The Rose Revolution in Georgia unravelled in a haze of teargas last night as riot police broke up protests and the pro-Western President declared a state of emergency.

Mikhail Saakashvili accused Russia of attempting to destabilise Georgia, while special forces troops fired teargas and rubber bullets and used water cannon on demonstrators in running battles in the capital, Tbilisi.

The violence is the most serious challenge to Mr Saakashvili since he swept to power on a wave of popular support in the pro-democracy Rose Revolution in 2003. It also threatens American policy in the strategically important Caucasus region.

Mr Saakashvili is strongly pro-American and has clashed repeatedly with President Putin in his efforts to move Georgia out of Russia’s orbit and into Nato and the European Union. Last night he declared a 15-day state of emergency across the country. Police stormed two opposition television stations later and closed them down.

Authorities also declared three Russian diplomats personae non gratae and recalled Tbilisi’s ambassador in Moscow for urgent consultations.

“Georgia is facing a very serious threat of unrest,” Mr Saakashvili said in a televised address to the nation. “High-ranking officials in Russian special services are behind this.”

Opposition politicians blamed Mr Saakashvili, accusing him of corruption and authoritarian rule, and pledged to redouble efforts to oust him. Salomé Zourabichvili, a former ally and Foreign Minister, who was dismissed by the President, said: “The Georgian people are tired of Saakashvili, who blames Russia everywhere. There is a real stand-off between the people and the authorities.”

The US has poured huge sums into supporting Mr Saakashvili. He has made considerable progress in stamping out state corruption and attracting foreign investment, but many Georgians complain that they have yet to see any tangible improvement in their daily lives.

The confrontation threatens to present Washington with a choice of supporting an increasingly unpopular leader or watching a key ally slide into chaos at a critical moment. Georgia’s importance to the US has risen since Mr Putin succeeded at last month’s Caspian Sea summit in removing Azerbaijan as a potential base for American military action against Iran over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

The violence in Tbilisi erupted on the sixth day of protests by a coalition of opposition parties. The protests began on Friday when 50,000 people gathered outside parliament. They had dwindled to about 3,000 people by early yesterday when hundreds of special forces troops, their faces covered by gas masks, used batons to clear the square outside parliament.

Running battles then broke out along the city’s main Rustaveli Avenue as teargas swirled through the air. Police later fired rubber bullets as thousands of people regrouped to continue protests in a nearby square.

One opposition leader, Levan Gachecheladze, said that the authorities had shown their true face: “truncheons and gas. They used force against peaceful people and they will pay for this.”

The Health Ministry said that more than 360 people were treated in hospital, most for the effects of teargas. Witnesses reported seeing some demonstrators dragged bleeding into police cars. “These people are fascists, but we’re not going to stop. We’ll be back tonight, we’ll be back tomorrow. We’ll be back as long as it takes,” said a protester, Nino Khornauli, 55.

The demonstrations have ominous echoes of Mr Saakashvili’s rise to power in November 2003, when he led a storming of parliament to overthrow Eduard Shevardnadze’s regime after protests over rigged elections. The opposition is demanding early parliamentary elections as well as the President’s resignation.

Nino Burdjanadze, the Speaker, and a close ally of Mr Saakashvili, appealed for calm and pleaded with the opposition to negotiate.

People power

Orange Revolution In 2004 protesters in Ukraine forced the Government to call a fresh ballot after a fraudulent presidential election, bringing the pro-Western Viktor Yushchenko to power

Cedar Revolution Demonstrations sparked by the assassination of the former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February 2005 brought about the complete withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon

Tulip Revolution Protests in Kyrgyzstan led to the overthrow of Askar Akayev in 2005. The new President, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, received overwhelming support in elections that July, but faced opposition protests this year amid allegations of corruption

Purple Revolution Iraqi elections in 2005 gave promise of a revolution inspired by the purple ink used as a measure to prevent double voting. The continued violence in Iraq runs counter to comparisons with other popular movements

Saffron Revolution Anti-junta protests in Burma this year were led by students and then by the saffron-robed Buddhist monks. They subsided after a brutal crackdown

Source: Times archives

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