Political allies of Georgia's former prime minister, Zurab Zhvania, are expressing concern about the circumstances surrounding his unexpected death. Unanswered questions also swirl around Raul Usupov, the man who died along with Zhvania in what officials say was a case of accidental carbon-monoxide poisoning.
Various Georgian media outlets, along with opposition politicians, continue to question whether the public is receiving an accurate picture of the circumstances surrounding the February 3 incident. A preliminary investigation concluded that a leak from a faultily installed heater killed Zhvania as he was visiting a political acquaintance, Raul Usupov, who also succumbed to carbon monoxide.
Various Georgian media outlets, along with opposition politicians, continue to question whether the public is receiving an accurate picture of the circumstances surrounding the February 3 incident. A preliminary investigation concluded that a leak from a faultily installed heater killed Zhvania as he was visiting a political acquaintance, Raul Usupov, who also succumbed to carbon monoxide.
Zhvania's death occurred at the apartment of Raul Usupov, the deputy governor of the Kvemo-Kartli region, who also died in the incident. The prime minister's bodyguards discovered the bodies of the two men at about 4:30 am, breaking down the apartment's door after not receiving a response to knocking and a cell-phone call, according to reports.
Zurab Zhvania, Georgia's prime minister and a member of the triumvirate that led the country's 2003 Rose Revolution, was found dead in a Tbilisi apartment February 3, the apparent victim of carbon-monoxide poisoning. An initial investigation indicated that Zhvania's death was accidental.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has unveiled his much-touted peace plan for South Ossetia, but analysts in Tbilisi say that expectations are low that the proposal will reverse more than 13 years of hostilities between Georgia and the breakaway region.
After years of inadequate or non-existent maintenance following the breakup of the Soviet Union, the problems of Georgia's electricity system are legion and legendary. But with expectations of a cash windfall from the current privatization campaign, the government is promising that the situation might after 13 years finally change.
Corruption has plagued Georgia -- as well as its neighbors Armenia and Azerbaijan -- for generations. While it was a problem even during the Soviet regime, ever since the former republics gained their independence in the early 1990s, the degree of corruption has crippled economic development and stifled attempts at reform.
