High Hopes Come Crashing Down

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili's self-serving paean to his own failed presidency in his Dec. 19 op-ed "Georgia and the War in Afghanistan" is an object lesson in public relations over reality.

Elected following his country's Rose Revolution, Mr. Saakashvili initially inspired high hopes that he would practice what he preached and bring democratic institutions to Georgia. Tens of millions of dollars were sent by Western countries to aid in this effort. Not surprisingly, Mr. Saakashvili's public-relations machine plays to the Western press, which, unlike that in his own country, is open and free.

The unfortunate truth is that his leadership has been a crashing disappointment, with democratic institutions like Parliament and the courts under the thumb of a woefully immature leader who blames his country's troubles on everything but his own inadequacies. In its 2008 country report, Freedom House rated national democratic governance in Georgia at a dismal 5.75 on a scale of one to seven where seven represents the lowest level of democratic progress.

This rating was a downgrade from prior years, indicating that the trend in Georgia is moving away from, not toward, democratic governance.

Mr. Saakashvili nevertheless panders to the West by committing troops to Afghanistan and Iraq, having the nerve to say that his police force's "reform know-how" will aid the Afghans, when his own citizens fear the police, having felt their heels against their necks.
Afghanistan desperately needs assistance, but not from a modern-day Potemkin who can't even make his own village look good.

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