Under President Mikheil Saakashvli, schools in Georgia made progress in teaching English and cracking down on bribery. Now, following Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili’s rise to power, the Georgian government is taking on a new challenge in reforming the education system – overhauling the state-run school security service known as the “mandaturebi.”
The recent parliamentary election in Georgia saw the ruling United National Movement (UNM) party defeated by the opposition Georgian Dream (GD) coalition led by new Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili.
Georgia took a quantum leap forward in its democratization process when President Mikheil Saakashvili provided for a smooth transfer of power following his party’s defeat at the ballot box in early October.
The statesmanship exhibited by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili following his party’s electoral defeat in parliamentary elections may give him more room for political maneuver down the road.
From wine making to “color” revolutions, Georgia has had many firsts - but will it now become the first country to allow a non-citizen to become prime minister?
This article was updated at 2:20am EST on October 4.
After a solid victory over President Mikheil Saakshvili’s United National Movement in Georgia’s October 1 parliamentary elections, billionaire
Bidzina Ivanishvili and his nine-party coalition may feel like they are living the Georgian Dream. But keeping the coalition together and governing effectively may prove a challenge.
For weeks, there have been fears of protests, civil disorder, even a Russian attack. But, in the end, October 1, the day of Georgia’s parliamentary elections, proved relatively quiet, held amid summer-like weather. Yet the broad discrepancy of exit poll numbers seemed sure to fuel controversy in the coming days and weeks.
Just days ahead of the country’s October 1 parliamentary vote, televised images of the brutal treatment of detainees at Georgia’s Prison No. 8 are stoking one of the most serious political crises ever encountered by President Mikheil Saakashvili’s administration. The scandal has quickly scrambled assumptions about the upcoming election.
