Political analyst: protests alone won’t topple Georgian Gov't

Political analyst Davit Zurabishvili, speaking on TV Pirveli, said that while he understands the anger of those who refuse any interaction with the government, activism and protests alone are not enough to bring about political change in Georgia.

“Protesting is part of the political process, but it’s not the whole process,” he said. “Simply taking to the streets and refusing any engagement with the government will not lead to its collapse from within. It has never worked that way and never will.”

Zurabishvili, who has witnessed several revolutions in Georgia—including the successful 2003 Rose Revolution—said that revolutions succeed when the government is already weakened from within. In the case of ex-President Eduard Shevardnadze’s regime, he recalled that “the government was falling apart because it couldn’t even pay the special forces, who were literally starving.”

“Now, the situation is completely different. The authorities are well-fed, paid well, and security structures are tightly controlled. There’s no sign of cracks within the system,” he concluded.