The 2011 Georgian protests were a series of anti-government protests in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to t ...
against President
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. .
Events
The protests began on 21 May 2011 when over 10,000 Georgians attended a demonstration in
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...
demanding Georgian President
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. 's resignation. In the southwestern city of
Batumi
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), second largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's ...
some demonstrations also occurred with some protesters attempting to break into television building.
Nino Burjanadze
Nino Burjanadze (Georgian: ნინო ბურჯანაძე , also romanized Burdzhanadze or Burdjanadze, born 16 July 1964) is a Georgian politician and lawyer who served as Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia from November 2001 to ...
, an ex-parliamentary speaker and leader of the
Democratic Movement-United Georgia
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
party, has been a lead figure in the demonstrations. The protesters in
Batumi
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), second largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's ...
briefly clashed with police.
On 26 May at about 00:15, Georgian police began to suppress the protests with tear gas and rubber bullets, and the protests soon ended.
On 28 May, a separate demonstration was held with thousands of participants, protesting against violence both by the protesters and by the police.
Arrests
In early June, Georgian authorities arrested and charged
Badri Bitsadze
Badri Bitsadze ( ka, ბადრი ბიწაძე) (born 27 April 1960) is the former Chief of the Border Police of Georgia. He holds the rank of Lieutenant General, and previously held the posts of Chief Military Prosecutor, Deputy General ...
, husband of former parliament speaker
Nino Burdzhanadze, with attempting to orchestrate the government takeover using paramilitary groups during the violent anti-government protests. There have been 105 other arrests of protesters.
Reactions
Mikheil Saakashvilli stated that he believed the protestors were
backed by Russia and had provoked the violence.
Likewise
John R. Bass, the
American ambassador to Georgia, stated that "here were clearly a number of people included in that protest who were not interested in peacefully protesting, but were looking to spark a violent confrontation."
The Georgian Interior Ministry released video recordings that it claims show opposition members discussing how to instigate clashes with police
/ref> The Economist
''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econ ...
, meanwhile, spoke of an attempt by Burjanadze to "claw her way back to power".Irakli Alasania
Irakli Alasania ( ka, ირაკლი ალასანია) (born 21 December 1973) is a Georgian politician, soldier and former diplomat who served as the Minister of Defense of Georgia from 2012 to 2014. He was Georgia's Ambassador to t ...
(an opposition leader who disassociated himself from the protests early on) opined that the protests were doomed to failure because:
See also
*Rose Revolution
The Rose Revolution or Revolution of Roses ( ka, ვარდების რევოლუცია, tr) was a nonviolent change of power that occurred in Georgia in November 2003. The event was brought about by widespread protests over the ...
*2007 Georgian demonstrations
In 2007, a series of anti-government protests took place across Georgia (country), Georgia. The demonstrations peaked on 2 November 2007, when 40,000–50,000 rallied in downtown Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. People protested against the alleg ...
* 2009 Georgian demonstrations
* 2012 Georgian protests
*List of protests in the 21st century
This is a list of protests in the 21st century.
Revolutions and uprisings Plants (Colour) revolutions
* Rose Revolution (Georgia, 2003)
* Tulip Revolution (Kyrgyzstan, 2005)
* Cedar Revolution (Lebanon, 2005)
* Orange Revolution (Ukrain ...
* 2018 Georgian protests
References
{{Georgia topics
2011 in Georgia (country)
Protests in Georgia (country)
Georgian
History of Tbilisi
2010s in Tbilisi