5 December: former Georgian president and Odesa regional govenror Mikheil Saakashvili is detained in downtown Kyiv. (c) Serg Glovny/Zuma Press/PA Images. All rights reserved.An embattled and tired former Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili emerged briefly in the protest campsite he helped to create outside Ukraine’s parliament last night. Losing his voice, Saakashvili spoke quietly to again deny the charges by the authorities that he accepted money from Ukraine’s previous pro-Russian regime. Saakashvili is experiencing first-hand the rollercoaster ride of Ukrainian politics. The ex-statesman has been reduced to sleeping on the floor of a tent to avoid detention, just metres away from the Ukrainian presidential administration he once frequented.
When Saakashvili became the governor of the Odesa region almost three years ago, at the invitation of his university classmate Petro Poroshenko, it was a different time. The tacit support that existed for President Poroshenko and his team is now crumbling, with Saakashvili being just one of many who criticises their dedication to reform. With the events of the last week, Ukraine’s western partners have become the latest to openly criticise the president.
Ukraine’s security services botched an effort to detain Saakashvili on 5 December when they raided his apartment accusing him of planning a coup. In what turned into a worldwide spectacle, Saakashvili climbed up onto the roof to allow time for his supporters to gather below, he has said. He was dragged from the rooftop and into a van, but his supporters successfully blocked its exit and after several hours of pushing and shoving, freed Saakashvili. With his emboldened supporters, who numbered roughly 1,000, Saakashvili marched to the protest camp where he has remained.
