Looming above Tbilisi’s huge, but financially strapped, Botanical Gardens and alongside the 4th century Narikala Fortress is the statue of Mother Georgia, a national symbol, who greets friends with a wine bowl, and enemies with a sword

On the American frontier it was pretty much every man for himself, no rule of law, with the six-shooter doing the talking. The “Wild East” of early 21st Century Georgia displays its own lawlessness, manifest by criminal gangs and widespread smuggling, along with near universal tax avoidance and wide-ranging corruption in government.

No matter how much selfish individualism might have existed in the American “Wild West” 150 years ago it probably could not compare with the amazing lack of respect shown by Georgia’s wild drivers who would as soon run down a pedestrian as yield in “crosswalks” or anywhere on the road. Since the traffic police (GUI, from the Russian for State Auto Inspectors) are everywhere one would think they could get things under control. One would be wrong, for members of the GUI simply stop cars at random, take a $2.50 bribe and send the drivers on their way.

In Georgia, a visitor could do worse than follow the suggestion of a veteran American diplomat who gave this advice about traveling to Tbilisi: “Watch both ways when you cross the street, and protect your liver.”

The liver of a careful guest can be sheltered from too much of the excellent Georgian wine, although it is certainly a central part of the nation’s famous hospitality, centered around the “supra”–literally feast–with its “tamada,” or toastmaster, who makes sure everyone has enough to eat and particularly to drink.

Georgia has a population of approximately 5 million, although the exact figure is uncertain since the last count was in the 1989 Soviet census, which showed 5.5 million. Many, particularly Russians, Armenians, Greeks and Jews have left in the last ten years. About 13,000 Jews remain, some of whose families were 20th Century migrants from other parts of the Soviet Union, but a good number have ancestors who came to Georgia perhaps 2000 years ago.

There is a huge mixture of ethnicity, perhaps 15 major groups, and maybe 80 different peoples living in Tbilisi with its population of 1.5 million.

The late British author and anthropologist Laurens van der Post wrote of the Georgians, “They and the Irish both realize the positive creative uses of irresponsibility. They are an impulsive and passionate people for whom hospitality and having a good time are the highest aims.” A reporter visiting in the summer of 2002 can confirm that observation.

Another student of Georgian culture, Oxford-trained writer Tim Burford, wrote last year, “The Georgians have managed to dance their way through history and come out laughing. They grew out of a blend of Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures, and the present day nation is a mix of very different types: The Mingrelians in the west, who are quick, smart, boastful and can’t be stopped from feeding guests; the naive and funny Svans; the extremely hospitable and talkative Imeretians; the slow and careful Rachvels; the political and humorous Gurians; the calm wine-loving Kakhetians. As for the Adjarians, they are said to have all the above qualities.”

In Georgia when one engages in a discussion about politics and economics, conversation quickly turns to one word: Corruption. “Improper use of position,” as it is defined, has even generated an official American explanation, readily available from the U.S. Embassy, as follows, “Traditionally Georgians have always done whatever is necessary for their family or clan. When there is a conflict between family and government little attention is paid to the needs of the State.”

However, the American government is not prominent in Georgia merely to offer explanations. Millions of taxpayer dollars are spent annually on efforts to help root out corruption and build stronger institutions of government. Democracy and legal reform programs are budgeted at $23.5 million for 2002. In the words of a State Department fact sheet, released June 6, 2002, these programs in Georgia, “seek to strengthen non-governmental organizations, independent media, the judiciary and the next generation of leaders. Assistance encourages them to be more accountable, better manage their resources and fight corruption."

Any hesitation about discussing corruption with government officials, or with ordinary citizens, goes away after an initial conversation or two. After the topic of low wages, the problem of official theft is the biggest issue in Georgian political life. One top minister told The Washington Times, “I make $500 a month. Imagine how tempting it is when I see that my simple signature on a piece of paper could easily put a million dollars in my bank account.” In conversation with government officials the subject of corruption has two parts, first, “We are making progress by getting rid of lower and middle level officials who take bribes.” Second, “We have a long way to go to get strong, honest institutions of government.”

The habit of taking a bribe, or being readily prepared to offer one, did not grow up overnight and is not merely a phenomenon of the new Georgian democracy. When he was First Secretary of the Communist Party in the 1970s, Eduard Shevardnadze made his reputation by purging corruption among Party and government officials. Much of the life and culture of Georgia has its roots, as would be naturally expected, in the Soviet experience, where authorities had huge powers and citizens were often at their mercy.

As one can observe in other transition societies there is a concurrent nostalgia for the good old days of socialism when as a Georgian social scientist, a demographer, put it, “Everyone had a job, people were given a vision and ideals and rent and utilities cost little or nothing. It was much better then.” These views echo similar thoughts heard this summer from a spectrum of Georgians. The past ten years of early market economics have been extremely tough on this population, with the loss of the “demand” market in the Soviet Union closing down many factories and ending outlets for what had been a monopoly in agriculture. Part of the problem is that the free Russian market now looks elsewhere for product. Another big requirement is for Georgian business to learn how to create customers through marketing, instead of merely fulfilling five-year plans. All this is new and very difficult.

But a two-month reporting trip through Georgia shows that thoughtful and aggressive business leaders are succeeding, particularly those who have an eye on quality and on finding how to identify and serve customer needs. After all, the American Wild West, and its parallel monopoly institutions all over the U.S. in the “gilded age” eventually yielded to a more socially responsible pattern. Just as the Robber Barons, who dominated the early industrial age in the United States, found their match in strong Federal regulatory bodies, so too will the Wild East be tamed with the maturation of governance in Georgia. The rule of law will eventually come also to this young nation, perhaps taking just a bit longer than one would hope.