The first round of presidential elections took place in Georgia. Exit polls diverged in forecasts. None of the candidates received more than half of the votes, according to Edison Research. And Salome Zurabishvili, supported by ruling party Georgian Dream, and opposition candidate Grigol Vashadze. At the same time, the Psychoproject company announced that Zurabishvili was winning in the first round. According to the Georgian MP Giorgi Lomiya, the future president should establish a direct dialogue with Moscow. Of the three main candidates, Salome Zurabishvili is the most hopeful in this regard. After the current elections in Georgia, the transition to a parliamentary form of government will be completed.
Sly numbers
In total, the CEC of Georgia registered 25 candidates for the presidency of the country (19 political parties, six - by initiative groups). The main favorite in the presidential race is French-born former Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zurabishvili (in office from 2004 to 2005), who ran as an independent candidate, but was later supported by the ruling Georgian Dream party. Its main competitors were considered representatives of the opposition - the leader of the "Strength in Unity" association and a former ally of ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili Grigol Vashadze, as well as David Bakradze from the European Georgia - Movement for Freedom party.
According to the CEC of Georgia, the turnout was 46.74%. At the same time, the exit polls differed in their forecasts. According to the American company Edison Research, Salome Zurabishvili scored 40%, just like Grigol Vashadze. In third place was David Bakradze, who received 10% (results at 16:00).
The exit poll conducted by another US company, BCG Research, also did not reveal a winner in the first round. According to its results, Grigol Vashadze was in the lead with 37%, while Salome Zurabishvili was slightly behind (34%).
Meanwhile, the Georgian service "Psychoproject" shows a different picture. According to her exit poll, which was ordered by the ruling party, Salome Zurabishvili wins with 52.3% of the vote (Grigol Vashadze gains 28.1%, David Bakradze - 9.2%).
This data was cited by Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze, who said that Salome Zurabishvili was "confidently in the lead." He also congratulated the population of the country "on the completion of the elections in a peaceful, free and democratic environment" and thanked "for the activity and civic culture."
According to Georgian legislation, if none of the candidates wins the first round, the second one is held within two weeks. The two candidates with the highest number of votes will participate in it, and the winner will be determined by a simple majority. David Bakradze has already admitted his defeat in the elections. According to the politician, if the second round takes place, his party will support the candidacy of Grigol Vashadze.
Recent popular
The presidential term in Georgia is six years. The current head of state will be the last to be elected by direct universal suffrage. From 2024, it will be elected by a panel of 300 delegates (in equal proportions of parliamentarians and representatives of local authorities).
After the inauguration of the elected president, the transition to a parliamentary republic will be completed in the country. In accordance with the constitutional amendments adopted in 2010, the powers of the prime minister were expanded and the functions of the president were reduced. He will continue to be the head of state and represent the country in the international arena, but his decision-making capabilities are reduced to a minimum. RISS expert Azhdar Kurtov is confident that the results of the elections will not be able to radically change Georgia's foreign policy guidelines.
In this country, for a long period, since the time of the late USSR, views that can be characterized as anti-Russian prevailed within the political elite. Despite the fact that this is detrimental to their own interests, - said Azhdar Kurtov in an interview with Izvestia. - The paradigm of a pro-Western orientation is being strongly implanted and does not allow the formation of alternative political forces that would be guided by the restoration of historical ties with Russia. All this is fueled by handouts, including financial ones, from Russia's geopolitical competitors - primarily the United States.
Neighbors shouldn't fight
Giorgi Lomia, a Georgian deputy from the Alliance of Patriots of Georgia parliamentary party, in an interview with Izvestia, noted that Salome Zurabishvili's victory is important from the point of view of improving relations with Moscow.
Candidates Grigol Vashadze and David Bakradze openly declare that a direct dialogue with Russia will lead to nothing and that the only way to talk to the Russian Federation is with the help of the West. Salome Zurabishvili did not say this, and we hope that she will win and agree to this dialogue to improve Georgian-Russian relations, the parliamentarian noted.
According to him, it is especially important that a meeting takes place between the newly elected president of the country and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. This event would be a turning point in relations between the two states.
The world must see that Georgia itself is interested in rebuilding direct dialogue at the highest level,” said Mr. Lomiya.
Neighbors should not be at enmity, especially since our peoples are united by a centuries-old common culture. It is also important for the development of the Georgian economy, he noted.
On April 9, 1991, the Act on the Restoration of the State Independence of Georgia was adopted in Tbilisi. Over the past quarter century, three presidents have changed in the country and four wars have gone through - the Georgian-Ossetian, civil in the early 1990s, the Georgian-Abkhaz and Georgian-Russian in 2008. As a result of hostilities, Georgia lost 20 percent of its territory, in particular Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and received more than 320,000 internal refugees. At the same time, Tbilisi has achieved the signing of an association agreement with the European Union, lives in anticipation of the abolition of visas with the EU, while the visa regime with Russia is in effect.
What role did its presidents play in the formation of Georgian statehood, what did the political leaders of the country succeed and what did not succeed over the past 25 years?
The dissident president and nationalism
"The first president of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, under whom a country called Georgia appeared on the world map at the end of the 20th century, is a representative of the dissident movement," says David Jishkariani, a historian and lecturer at the Georgian American University. "Gamsakhurdia focused on the mythological origin of the Georgian ethnic group and liberation of the country from evil in the face Russian empire". This, according to the expert, contributed to the development of Georgian nationalism in the 1990s.
At the same time, the first Georgian president missed the chance to take advantage of Russia's weakness and establish regional cooperation in the South Caucasus, notes Corneli Kakachia, director of the Georgian Institute of Politics.
Zviad Gamsakhurdia failed to establish relations with the former political elite of the country. "Gamsakhurdia did not have the skills of public administration. He stayed in power for only a year and was forced to leave the country as a result of the coup," recalls David Jishkariani. Later, the first Georgian leader returned to Western Georgia, where he headed the government in exile. Gamsakhurdia died in 1993, according to one version - he committed suicide, according to another - he was killed.
The rule of corruption and the emergence of a new political elite
In 1992, Zvmad Gamsakhurdia was replaced by former Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze. "His clan rule was remembered for massive rampant corruption, although it was under him that the first attempts at institutional leadership of the country were made," notes historian Jishkariani. In addition, it was under Shevardnadze that the Constitution of Georgia was adopted in 1995 and Tbilisi's desire for European and Euro-Atlantic integration was declared.
During the years of Shevardnadze's rule (from 1992 to 2003) there were successes and failures in resolving local conflicts. On the one hand, Jishkariani emphasizes, the Black Sea region of Georgia, Adzharia, with its capital in Batumi, was not subordinate to Tbilisi, but with the advent of the Ergneti market in the early 1990s, some progress was made in resolving the South Ossetian conflict (Ergneti - operating until 2004, not far from the administrative line with South Ossetia, an agricultural market, which is believed to have contributed to the settlement of the conflict, since Georgians and Ossetians communicated there. Red. ).
"Under Shevardnadze, a new political elite appears in the form of Zurab Zhvania and Mikheil Saakashvili, who staged a revolution in 2003," says political analyst Kornely Kakachia. We are talking about the so-called "War of the Roses" in November 2003, as a result of which Mikhail Saakashvili's team came to power.
According to the director of the Georgian Institute of Politics, Korneli Kakachia, after leaving power, former Georgian leaders turned out to be unnecessary in their country. “For example, Shevardnadze, although he remained in Georgia, lived as a hermit until his death in 2014. He was not even invited to speak at local universities,” the expert says. According to historian Jishkariani, it is not clear what fate awaits the Georgian Dream and its informal leader Bidzina Ivanishvili. "Georgian Dream" has already lost its popularity. The party has not managed to learn how to effectively manage the country and adequately perceive the problems it faces," he notes.
The path from independence to freedom
In 25 years of independence, none of the Georgian presidents has succeeded in dealing with Georgia's economic problems, political scientist Corneli Kakachia believes. David Jishkariani complains that the level of education in Georgia has declined over the years. Major Achievements Georgian leaders over the past quarter of a century, experts call the emergence of state institutions and a political elite capable of governing the country within the legal framework.
Taking office in November 2013, he called the past 25 years the path from independence to freedom. He repeats that it is one thing to achieve independence from someone that was important for Georgia in the 1990s, and another thing is real freedom, the goal of today's Georgia.
"At the moment, Georgian society is somewhat ignoring this call, because today the solution of social problems has come to the fore, and this issue has even obscured the problem of territorial integrity," historian David Jishkariani believes. "Georgia really has ambitions to achieve real independence, which, in particular, can be expressed in freedom of foreign policy decisions," sums up political scientist Kornely Kakachia.
The third president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, continued the sad tradition of the new Georgian statehood. Each of his predecessors had his own war.
The first president of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, provoked the first armed conflict in South Ossetia.
Even before coming to the highest power in Georgia in September 1989, speaking at a rally in the village of Eredvi, the "violent Zviad" declared that "Ossetian people are rubbish", which must be "sweep with a broom through the Roki Tunnel".
This philosophy of interethnic relations led to the first skirmishes and pogroms (moreover, not only directly on the territory of South Ossetia, but also in the interior regions of Georgia).
This whole wave of violence ended with tensions escalating into open conflict, which received open support from Georgian national dissidents after they came to power in 1990-1991. In December 1990, the Presidium of the Supreme Council of Georgia introduced a state of emergency in Tskhinvali and the Java region.
At the same time, the transport blockade of South Ossetia (whose autonomy was liquidated on December 11, 1990) began. On January 6, 1991, taking advantage of the inaction of the then allied internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Georgian militants entered Tskhinvali.
The first Georgian-Ossetian fire blazed.
After the overthrow of the "furious Zviad" and the coming to power of the Military Council (transformed into the State Council) and the invitation to the "kingdom" of the former First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze, the armed conflict in South Ossetia was completed. On June 24, 1992, the Dagomys Agreements on the principles of settling the Georgian-Ossetian conflict were signed.
After the tragedy of August 8, 2008, these agreements no longer work (we will talk about this in more detail below), but for almost 16 years they have fulfilled their positive role.
But, having returned from Moscow to Tbilisi, the "white fox" faced the problem of legitimacy. No matter how we treat Gamsakhurdia (and especially his ultra-nationalist slogans), he was a legitimately elected president who received almost 100% support without any administrative resource. Shevardnadze, on the other hand, was invited to the throne by a military junta whose members (Tengiz Kitovani and Jaba Ioseliani) had a controversial reputation, to put it mildly.
An experienced politician did not find anything better than to solve the problem of legitimacy through a military conflict.
The focus was that the Georgian population of Abkhazia was almost completely on the side of the deposed Zviad. The Georgian community in Abkhazia also differed in much more radical approaches towards "foreigners". Megrelia, neighboring Abkhazia, has become a stronghold of Zviadism.
To find mutual language with this part of the Georgian society, the "white fox" (using the vague position of Moscow, occupied with internal disputes) first signed the Manifesto of National Reconciliation, and then launched an operation to pacify Abkhazia.
As a result, he received 250 thousand refugees, about 5 thousand killed and more than 10 thousand wounded, as well as internal Georgian civil war 1993. As they say, he did not conquer Abkhazia, and he did not reconcile the Georgians, and he did not solve the issue of legitimacy.
The "Rose Revolution" put an end to the career of this politician.
It is in the events of five years ago, the "Georgian Maidan", that we can already see the first reflections of the future bonfire in South Ossetia. Contrary to popular stereotypes, "Rose Revolution" was not a foreign policy combination, but a demand of the Georgian society for a "strong hand". A hand capable of overcoming the chaos of the Shevardnadze era, overcoming national humiliation.
Therefore, the ideas and slogans of Saakashvili and the United National Movement of Georgia are stylistically so similar to Putin and United Russia. Those who do not believe can read the works of Georgian pro-government experts dedicated to the events of November 7, 2007, or follow the activities of the Imedi company.
The frustrated Georgian society almost in unison supported the triumvirate of "young Georgians", and then Saakashvili personally.
It is this point that is the most difficult in our today's disputes about the limits of the use of force and "peace enforcement".
It is useless to exchange Saakashvili for anyone else, especially for Igor Giorgadze, whose popularity within Georgia is not even zero, it is a negative value. As long as the Georgian society does not understand that the "gathering of lands" by force and on the basis of the "Georgia for Georgians" model (even if in a light version, as Saakashvili suggested) is unrealizable in principle, things will not move forward.
Meanwhile, in order to implement the ideas of Zviad and Merab Kostav (it was he who was the author of the notorious slogan about "Georgia for Georgians") there are no resources. Neither power nor external: the West will not fight for "great Georgia", having the problems of Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea. There is nothing but the exaltation of the radical intelligentsia.
However, this exaltation has played (and will continue to play) its negative role.
Saakashvili in 2004 simply reacted to a public request. In the same or almost the same way as Putin did in 1999, when he began to "kill terrorists" from Chechnya in the toilet.
Saakashvili's problem was only that he did not have Putin's resources, and, secondly, that his ideas and projects were in conflict with Russia's interests in the Caucasus.
Today Russia has clearly declared the South Caucasus as a sphere of its interests.
Let's imagine for a second that Moscow would have remained silent in August 2008, agreeing to the "Tskhinvali blitzkrieg". It seems that many in the North Caucasus would regard this as weakness, deciding, for example, that the time has come for a review of the status of the Prigorodny region (a disputed land between Ingushetia and North Ossetia).
Thus, the war could have come to our house, and not stop in front of the Roki tunnel.
In this regard, one should not overly subjectivize both past conflicts and the current one. Moscow cannot give up its positions in the South Caucasus, and Tbilisi cannot (I would like to believe that Bye) to abandon the ideas of "great Georgia".
As the saying goes, the strongest wins in an argument.
Russia could not concede because in this case would cease to be not only a superpower, but in general a full-fledged state.
Stopping at the Abkhazian and Ossetian borders is quite justified, because integration of Georgia into Russia(or Russian sphere of control) - dangerous and unattainable utopia(fraught with serious political losses).
The third president of Georgia spent his third war.
Promises to meet a new winter in a warmer climate (which he spoke about on the eve of this year's presidential elections with refugees from Abkhazia) did not come true. Now we will have to answer to those who chose "heart and soul" the symbol of the "Rose Revolution".
But will this exam become a "change of milestones" in the mindset of the Georgian voter? Will they not consider it not their own mistake, but the intrigues of external forces (as it was before, and more than once)?
A rhetorical question.
For now, we can state that all existing formats of a peaceful settlement are canceled. For four years they were destroyed by Georgia (purposefully, not particularly hiding their goals). In 2008, Russia joined in, freeing up room for maneuver.
On August 12, 2008, the Russian president actually for the first time officially questioned the territorial integrity of Georgia. In Medvedev's Six Points, the question of the future of South Ossetia and Abkhazia is proposed to be discussed at the international level.
The President of the European Union Presidency Nicolas Sarkozy also for the first time opposed territorial integrity to state sovereignty(stating that one is not completely identical to the other). This is a new reality that has developed after the third war of the third president of Georgia. As we see, with each new war, Georgia's positions are objectively weakened. After the first Georgian-Ossetian war, Tbilisi had chances for the reintegration of South Ossetia and the "Tatarstanization of Abkhazia."
After 1993, Abkhazia was lost, but the chances of maintaining its influence in Tskhinvali remained until 2004. Over the past four years, and especially after the August tragedy, South Ossetia has become an unattainable goal for Georgia.
Thus, today a new configuration is taking shape in the South Caucasus as a whole. It depends on the adequacy of Russia whether we will be able to put together an advantageous combination for ourselves. There are three main problems here.
The first is the localization of the conflict and the prevention of new allies of Georgia in the active game.
The second is the search, if not allies, then at least temporary companions. It's time to give up illusions about the CIS. Each Commonwealth country has its own "separatist skeletons in the closet", and therefore is afraid to support Moscow, trying on the "Ossetian shirt" for itself.
The "Ossetian crisis" of August 2008 also split the West.
According to the fair remark of the historian and journalist Yaroslav Shimov, "the reactions of Western countries to the conflict turned out to be unequal. The most restrained - and relatively benevolent towards Russia - were Western Europeans. Thus, from the lips of German diplomats in the first two days of hostilities, until they went beyond the South Ossetia, there were even words about "understanding" Moscow's motives.
When Russia shifted military operations to Georgia proper, Western European reaction became more critical, but nevertheless did not go beyond calls for a ceasefire and attempts at mediation. Particularly active in this respect were France and Finland, the current EU and OSCE chairs respectively.
Another thing is the USA. However, as the same summit in Bucharest showed, even this superpower does not have absolute dominance in the Alliance.
AND third problem - ensuring our dominance in conflict resolution.
"Medvedev's Six Points" is, hopefully, only the beginning of building a favorable configuration for us in the South Caucasus region.
However, one should not indulge in complacency and fanfare. The completion of a particular operation is not a conflict resolution. This will take months and years.
The price of the issue is stability in the North Caucasus and in the South of Russia as a whole.
The President, in the understanding of both the people of Georgia and many countries of the world, is a strong, serious, resolute speaker, dressed to the point.
However, few people know what they are - the first persons of states outside the protocol meetings and speeches. How do they spend their free time and what are they interested in?
At the same time, Gamsakhurdia's reference books were two dramas by William Shakespeare "Hamlet", "Henry IV" and the works of Walt Whitman.
Talking about books, Gamsakhurdia noted more than once that he did not like Goethe's Faust, because, in his opinion, the ending of the book was strange.
In addition to books, Gamsakhurdia loved music. The first president of Georgia played the piano perfectly and, if he did not read a book, he would definitely sit down at the instrument and play the works of Chopin or Schumann.
Gamsauhrdia was not fond of cinema. The only film that aroused his admiration was "300 Spartans", filmed in the 70s of the last century.
Eduard Shevardnadze
Historian Eduard Shevardnadze spent 11 years at the helm of the country, three of which were head of the State Council. The establishment of this body was necessary after the military coup and the resignation of Gamsakhurdia.
Shevardnadze was familiar to Georgian society even before his presidency. IN Soviet time in 1972-1985 he served as First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia.
In 1985-1990 Shevardnadze was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR.
Shevardnadze is a controversial political figure. For supporters, he is a great world-class politician who saved Georgia from collapse, while opponents consider him a corrupt person and are sure that it was he who drove the country into a severe political and economic crisis.
One way or another, few people doubt that Shevardnadze understood the language of politics well and got along with people.
Friends and relatives of the second president of Georgia have repeatedly recalled that when communicating with family members, he was distinguished by calmness and poise.
Despite the fact that Shevardnadze took only two vacations during his 11-year reign, he tried to spend every weekend at his dachas - in the resort towns of Likani and Tsinandali.
The manager of the affairs of the State Council, Irakli Andriadze, in one of his interviews, somehow recalled that in Tsinandali, especially for the president, he always kept vodka in oak barrel. Shevardnadze drank alcohol only at the Tsinandali residence.
In Likani, he walked a lot and wrote something in a notebook. Rumor has it that he gave his notes to read only to his wife - Nanuli Shevardnadze.
In his circle of friends, Shevardnadze often noted that among the films he especially likes "Repentance" directed by Tengiz Abuladze. Shevardnadze's favorite book was also called "Repentance", which was written by the famous Georgian writer Shio Gvetadze.
Mikhail Saakashvili
Lawyer Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia as a result of the Rose Revolution in November 2003. He was elected president in January 2004.
The years of Saakashvili's rule are associated, first of all, with numerous reforms in the country. He took an active part in all these processes. Not a single large-scale discovery was left without his attention.
Saakashvili is an eccentric politician and a great orator. He loved to be in public, he always spoke confidently and what the people wanted to hear from him. By the way, thanks to Saakashvili's oratory skills, he was sometimes compared with the first president of Georgia.
He did not often demonstrate the charms and tourist potential of Georgia himself, and also rode the streets on a bicycle, accompanied by cameras.
With such a busy work schedule as Saakashvili's, it's hard to imagine whether the third president of Georgia had free time and whether he was engaged in something other than politics.
In the last years of Saakashvili's presidency, he became interested in agriculture. He invited guests to his country house in Kvareli (Kakheti region), which has a vineyard, on Rtveli - grape harvest.
One of his associates, who wished to remain anonymous, once said that Saakashvili did not like to read long texts - in newspapers he read only the headlines of articles about him and quickly turned the pages.
Saakashvili did not like to speak on paper either.
Despite all the originality, Saakashvili still has a favorite film - it's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" with Jack Nicholson in the title role.
Giorgi Margvelashvili
The fourth president of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, took over as head of the country in November 2013. He has already stated that he will not run for a second time, so it is safe to say that his rule will be limited to a five-year term.
Much is known about Margvelashvili's interests. He loves nature and that is why he moved to live in a country cottage, in the city of Dusheti, not far from Tbilisi.
Margvelashvili loves hunting, football and animals. It turns out that even at the age of five, he firmly decided that he would get a dog. The future president read a lot about animals. So he came to the psychology of animals, and later to general psychology, which gradually turned into philosophy, which became his profession.
Before his presidency, Margvelashvili lectured on philosophy at the universities of Georgia. He was also the rector of the Institute of Public Affairs of Georgia (GIPA).
The first book read by the President of Georgia back in childhood, became "Bible tales". Margvelashvili loves such works as "The Knight in the Panther's Skin", "Joseph and His Brothers" and "The Master and Margarita".
The current president is also a fan of the famous Georgian writer Vazha-Pshavela, he also loves Russian poetry Silver Age and William Shakespeare.
In addition, on the Internet you can easily find a photo in which Margvelashvili knits.
Not so long ago it turned out that the fourth president of Georgia loves to farm - he personally plants and picks potatoes. By the way, the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko presented him with potato seeds.
Who will become the fifth president of Georgia and what he will do in his free time will become known after October 28 - on this day the next presidential elections will be held in the country.
Presidents succeeded one another, often against the backdrop of revolutions and upheavals. The life of their children was also ambiguous.
Sputnik Georgia will tell you how the lives of the children of all four presidents of Georgia have developed and continue to develop.
Children of Zviad Gamsakhurdia
The first president of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, who died in 1993, has three sons - Konstantin, Tsotne and Georgy.
Konstantin (Koko) Gamsakhurdia is the son of Zviad Gamsakhurdia's first marriage to Dali Lolua. Named after his grandfather, a famous Georgian writer, Konstantin Gamsakhurdia was the only one who followed in his father's footsteps and entered politics.
© photo: AFP 2019 / VANO SHLAMOV
He graduated from the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Tbilisi State University. After the overthrow of his father and the "Tbilisi war" he left for Switzerland and was engaged in translations and literary criticism.
In 2004 he returned to Georgia and created and also headed the "Freedom" movement. He took part in opposition protests against the power of the third President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili. Several times Koko tried to run for parliament as a majoritarian deputy, but lost the elections.
The eldest son of Zviad Gamsakhurdia from his second marriage to Manana Archvadze is the most controversial figure in the Gamsakhurdia family.
Tsotne Gamsakhurdia was born in Tbilisi. In 1992 he moved with his mother and brother George to Chechnya, and from there in 1994 to Moscow. There he graduated from the Moscow State Linguistic University.
© AP Photo / Shakh Aivazov
In 1997, Tsotne Gamsakhurdia, together with his mother and brother George, returned to his homeland. He settled in Batumi (AR Adjara), where he became an assistant to the mayor. In 1999, he was charged with attempted murder - he wounded Avtandil Maglakelidze, a member of the Georgian water floor team, but the case was "hushed up".
After the "Rose Revolution" in November 2003, Tsotne took up science and disappeared from the media. In October 2009, he was arrested for premeditated murder and illegal possession of weapons and sentenced to 9 years and 6 months in prison.
While in prison, Gamsakhurdia went on hunger strikes several times. In 2012, Mikhail Saakashvili pardoned him at the request of the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II.
Most younger son Zviada Gamsakhurdia George avoids public life.
© photo: Sputnik / Dmitry Donskoy
Having lived in Moscow from 1994 to 1997, he graduated from the Moscow State University Friendship of Peoples, majoring in international law. Returning to Georgia, he worked for a long time in law enforcement agencies.
Children of Eduard Shevardnadze
The children of Georgia's second president, Eduard Shevardnadze, avoid publicity, especially after the Rose Revolution, when the opposition forced their father to resign.
© AFP / STRINGER
They did not follow in their father's footsteps. Shevardnadze's son is a lawyer, worked for UNESCO for a long time, and after 2003 he moved to Paris and went into business.
Shevardnadze's daughter Manana graduated from the Tbilisi Conservatory and worked for the Georgian Public Broadcaster. After the Rose Revolution, she said goodbye to public life, but remained in Georgia. IN this moment is the founder of the advertising company "Neostudio".
Children of Mikhail Saakashvili
The third President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili has two children. The eldest son, Eduard Saakashvili, is studying in the US at Swarthmore College.
© AP Photo / Irakli Gedenidze
In parallel with his studies, the son of the third president works part-time. He is one of the editors of the Daily Gazzete newspaper and writes articles.