RUSSIA-BACKED NGO CONDUCTS POLL ON GEORGIANS’ ATTITUDE TOWARDS SAAKASHVILI
Regnum, Moscow
7 Jun 06
An opinion poll conducted by the Caucasus Institute for Democracy
[Russian non-government foundation with branches in Tbilisi, Yerevan,
Abkhaz and South Ossetian capitals] has shown that 18.99 per cent of
Georgians wholly support the [November 2003] Rose Revolution, 37.83
per cent partially support it and 35.98 per cent do not support it.
The foundation’s Tbilisi office polled a demographically representative
sample of 528 people in May 2006. Regnum has learnt that 45.83 per
cent of respondents say that their lives have changed for the worse
since the Rose Revolution, while 24.24 per cent say their lives have
improved. Furthermore, 10.41 per cent approve of the job Mikheil
Saakashvili has done as president, 13.82 per cent assess it more
positively than negatively, 23.10 per cent neutrally, 28.78 per cent
more negatively than positively, and 23.86 per cent negatively.
A total of 21.21 per cent of the respondents say that the socioeconomic
situation in Georgia has improved since Saakashvili came to power,
whereas 51.13 say it has changed for the worse.