Georgia's special police forces run to disperse opposition protesters in front of the parliament building in Tbilisi, 07 November 2007 (AFP Photo / Vano Shalmov)

Georgian authorities have released a video this week showing alleged members of the opposition buying weapons and discussing a plan to stage a coup d'Etat. 10 people have been detained on these allegations so far.

Once Saakashvili’s fellow revolutionary, but now his strongest critic, Nino Burdzhanadze says the opposition is under attack.

Answering the question of what the Georgian government is doing to the opposition, Burdzhanadze, the Democratic Front United Georgia leader, says that “Government is trying to discredit one of the most serious political parties in Georgia, and the government is preparing the ground for provocations which would compromise the government, because Georgian opposition is not interested in provoking anything. We want constitutional and democratic changes.”

Irakly Alasania laid low during the conspiracy scandal. Georgia’s former UN representative, he turned on Saakashvili in December over his differences in handling the Russia-Georgia war. He is now deemed the most promising of the opposition leaders to replace him.

“For the elections, priority number one for us will be to change the balance of power, and to strip the presidential institution of the enormous powers that it has, and to change the decision-making process in Georgia,” says Mr. Alasania, the leader of Alliance for Georgia.

Burdzhanadze Nino (AFP Photo / Vano Shlamov)

But Saakashvilis’s foes elected to parliament are all staying out of the fight.

“They are not real opposition, they are ruling party satellites. They call themselves opposition, but they criticize us, not the authority, there is no real parliamentary opposition neither in Georgia, nor in Russia,” according to Conservative Party leader Kaha Kukava.

As if the the opposition camp is not divided enough, there are also those who are calling on the ancient royal family to reign over Georgia without a president at all.

Following a disastrous war with Russia, and with Georgia’s economy shattered, they say they need a change in leadership like never before, even if it takes another dark imprint on Georgian history to accomplish that.

Saakashvili has vowed to stay in power until 2013, and of course, he has survived protests far bigger than this one. But many here feel April 9 will be different. However divided, the opposition has some key figures from Saakashvilis government on their side.