From the Financial Times :
The violence underscores the political fragility of the country, which is a hub for strategic oil and gas pipelines carrying Caspian oil and gas to the west.The protests, launched last Saturday were led by Nino Burdjanadze, a former speaker of parliament and one of the architects of the 2003 Rose Revolution that swept Mr Saakashvili to power.
Support for Mr Saakashvili has waned since he led Georgia into a disastrous war with Russia in 2008 that ended when Georgia lost control of two fifths of its territory.
Georgia’s fragmented opposition say Mr Saakashvili has monopolised power and repressed independent voices, breaking his promise to promote democracy in Georgia. Russia has kept up relentless pressure on the president to resign since the war, describing him as a madman unfit to rule.
