Reportage
In Georgia, protesters confront police and pro-Russian thugs – but for how long?
“At first, we had faith in [former president] Saakashvili. He said he wanted to eliminate corruption, make reforms ... then he became greedy, a liar, a traitor.” Georgians have never gotten over that experience. Now they don't trust anyone and they don't want leaders.
In Georgia, the power of the people is out in the streets, but it’s not rallying behind anyone. The opposition politicians, who showed up at the last elections divided and in micro-coalitions supported by small percentages of the population, are unable to take advantage of it.
And those in power are repressing it and condemning it: after trying to stoke fears of a “new Maidan,” they’re now accusing the West of reducing them to a stereotype: “We are not pro-Russian, we have a pragmatic stance with respect to the Kremlin.” But there are no stages being set up in the streets, no podium from which a charismatic figure could emerge to channel the 13 days of continuous protests into a full-fledged movement. And from talking to the protesters, it seems that no one is looking for that kind of solution.
“At first, we had faith in [former president] Saakashvili,” says Luka, a middle-aged man we interview over a glass of the famous Georgian wine fermented in kwevri, the large earthenware amphorae buried underground that give white wine a distinctive orange color, a tradition here “for two thousand years, long before the natural wine fads.”
“He said he wanted to eliminate corruption, make reforms ... then he became greedy, a liar, a traitor.” Georgians have never gotten over that experience. Now they don't trust anyone and they don't want leaders: “Better off alone,” Epo tells us in front of the Opera Hotel, close to the Parliament building, a place where protesters gather every night to leave together and escape the police raids and, whenever they have to, spend the night together instead of going home.
The main threat has a name these days: “titushki.” It is an example of what linguistics calls “antonomasia,” or the rhetorical figure that turns a proper name into a character, an ideal-type. It came from Vadym Titushko, a Ukrainian fighter who in 2013 was arrested for beating up Channel 5 journalists together with two other men. Although Tituskho later switched over to the side of the protesters, later enlisting in the war against Russia in 2023, the term has remained in use all over the former Soviet world to denote a pro-government thug.
On Saturday night, tituskhi attacked Georgian TV Pirveli journalist Maka Chikhladze and her cameraman, Giorgi Shetsiruli, and put them in the hospital, after encountering them in a side street near Parliament. Both suffered head trauma and several injuries. The video showing the beating caused quite a stir across Georgia. “These are the methods of the thugs on the payroll of the government,” the opposition politicians accused. Prime Minister Kobakhidze tried to downplay the incident, claiming it was only “the work of a few troublemakers who will soon be arrested.”
The protests are peaceful, at least as we Europeans understand it. The presence of thousands of young people dressed in black, with balaclavas and gas masks ready for use, contrasts with what the demonstrators actually do: they never charge the police first, but rather wait tenaciously until the officers have had enough and decide to move on them in teams of “hunters” to make a few arrests. At that point, they all back off, but they don’t run away. Even when the water cannons arrive and the tear gas starts being used, the crowd backs away but does not disperse.
But the question among us foreigners is always the same: How long can they continue like this? “They have to remain peaceful,” says Luka, who in addition to taking part in protests over the past decades also fought as a gunner against Russia in 2008. “This generation has the strength that we didn't have. They’re able to wait, because even though they may not know what they want, they are very aware of what they don't want.” In the meantime, an initial change has taken place: spontaneous self-defense groups have sprung up to fight off attacks from the titushki.
We saw these groups forming the day after the attack on the TV Pirveli journalists: hooded young people, like everyone else, who came together to “protect the demonstrations.” There were many young women among them. They set off in a spontaneous march at a brisk pace, circling the narrow streets around Rustaveli, stopping now and then to discuss their plans and starting off again shortly afterward. Their excitement at their mission overshadowed their lack of experience.
Pro-government TV channels have labeled them “far-right hooligans and troublemakers,” which is false, at least at this point. But the real self-defense groups are much smaller and less conspicuous. “A few days ago, they beat up my son here, near the Parliament; the other night, my daughter was attacked on her way home. That's enough,” Alex (not his real name) tells us. We don’t see his face, as the black balaclava covers everything but his eyes, but we know that in ordinary life he is a martial arts master.
“We know who all of them are,” he explains as he walks briskly towards the headquarters of an NGO where there was an attack a couple of days ago. “They are washed-up boxers or fighters who are sent to do the dirty work for a few lari. We wouldn’t choose to intervene, but if the police won’t protect us, we have a duty to defend our people.” This is the first step. We ask Alex if they’re also planning any offensive actions. “At this point, no, there is no organization. We are only looking for titushki.”
Meanwhile, in front of the Parliament building, the mayor, former AC Milan soccer player Kakha Kaladze, wanted to put up the Christmas tree no matter what. Protesters covered the metal structure with flags and photos of those arrested. In the center they put up a sign saying: “Ivanishvili [the oligarch patron of the ruling party] stole Christmas.”
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/georgia-titushki-per-aggredire-i-manifestanti on 2024-12-10