Mikhail Saakashvili

Mikhail Saakashvili (Georgian: მიხეილ სააკაშვილი) (born December 21, 1967) is a Georgian jurist and politician and the current President of Georgia.

Early career

Saakashvili graduated from the School of International Law of the Kiev State University (Ukraine) in 1992. He briefly worked for the government of Tengiz Kitovani and Jaba Ioseliani following the overthrow of President Zviad Gamsakhurdia before receiving a fellowship from the United States State Department (via the Edmund S. Muskie/FREEDOM Support Act (FSA) Graduate Fellowship Program).

Related Topics:
Kiev State University - Ukraine - 1992 - Tengiz Kitovani - Jaba Ioseliani - Zviad Gamsakhurdia - United States State Department

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He received a law degree from Columbia in 1994 and a SJD (Doctorate of Juridical Science) from the law school at George Washington University the following year. In 1995, he also received a diploma from the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France.

Related Topics:
Columbia - 1994 - George Washington University - 1995 - Strasbourg - France

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After graduation, while working in the New York law firm of Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler in early 1995, Saakashvili was approached by Zurab Zhvania, an old friend from Georgia who was working on behalf of President Eduard Shevardnadze to recruit talented young Georgians to enter politics. He stood in the December 1995 elections along with Zhvania, and both men won seats in parliament, standing for the Union of Citizens of Georgia, Shevardnadze's party.

Related Topics:
New York - 1995 - Zurab Zhvania - Eduard Shevardnadze - Union of Citizens of Georgia

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Saakashvili soon made a name for himself as chairman of the parliamentary committee charged with creating a new electoral system, an independent judiciary and a non-political police force. He achieved a high degree of public recognition, with opinion surveys finding him to be the second most popular person in Georgia, behind Shevardnadze. He was named "man of the year" by a panel of journalists and human rights advocates in 1997. In January 2000, Saakashvili was appointed Vice-President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

Related Topics:
1997 - 2000 - Council of Europe

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On October 12, 2000, Saakashvili became Minister for Justice for the government of President Shevardnadze. He initiated major reforms in the decrepit, corrupt and highly politicised Georgian criminal justice and prisons system. This earned praise from many international observers and human rights activists. But in mid-2001 he became involved in a major controversy with the Economics Minister Vano Chkhartishvili, State Security Minister Vakhtang Kutateladze and Tbilisi police chief Soso Alavidze, accusing them of profiting from corrupt business deals.

Related Topics:
October 12 - 2000 - 2001

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Saakashvili resigned on September 5, 2001, saying that "I consider it immoral for me to remain as a member of Shevardnadze's government." He declared that corruption had penetrated to the very centre of the Georgian government and that Shevardnadze lacked the will to deal with it, warning that "current developments in Georgia will turn the country into a criminal enclave in one or two years."

Related Topics:
September 5 - 2001

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