A prep course for the month-long World Cup soccer tournament, a worldwide pheno

ll apart when the terrifying power that had silenced ethnic desires and rivalrie

s for so many years lost its grip . Its first leader after independence , Zviad 

Gamsakhurdia , was ousted in a coup in January 1992 after behaving erratically .

 He fled the country , but he returned to launch an offensive against the govern

ment last fall . At the same time , separatists from the Abkhazia region along t

he Black Sea took up arms in earnest . Shevardnadze flew to the regional capital

 of Sukhumi to rally his troops and vowed to defend the city to the end . But hi

s troops were routed , and he barely escaped with his life . About 250,000 Georg

ians were driven out of their homes by the minority Abkhaz ethnic group , and ma

ny now are living a bleak existence in Tbilisi hotels . Another ethnic battle is

 being waged in South Ossetia . Between the two regions , Georgia has lost contr

ol over about one-fifth of its territory . `` Georgia is in the worst trouble ec

onomically of all the former republics , '' Shevardnadze said , speaking quietly

 , almost sadly in his large , spartan office after having spent the day arguing

 with his fractious Parliament . War and political uncertainty have very nearly 

destroyed the economy . The average wage in the country is 50 cents a month , do

wn from $ 1 a month last fall . Georgia issued its own currency , called the cou

pon , a year ago because it couldn't get enough rubles from Russia . The coupon 

, which was introduced at parity to the ruble , now sells for a million to the d

ollar , while the ruble trades for about 1,800 to the dollar . ( Begin optional 

trim ) The demise of the currency has nearly destroyed the older generation . Th

e pension of Tsiala Mchedlishvili , 64 , is now worth 9 cents a month . `` I wor

ked all my life in construction , '' she said as she walked along Leselidze stre

et . `` I had to haul cement and drag blocks . `` Now , '' she said , throwing h

er arms out , `` nothing . '' `` My whole month 's pension will only buy half a 

cup of yogurt , '' she said . Like other Georgians , Mchedlishvili spent the win

ter with intermittent electricity and without heat or hot water . Georgia can no

 longer afford to buy much fuel from Russia , another consequence of the breakup

 of the Soviet Union and one that prevents most factories from operating . While

 people suffer , the politicians hurl accusations at each other . Shevardnadze '

s nationalist critics accuse him of humiliating Georgia by crawling to Russia fo

r help . Many Georgians loathe Russia , certain that it intends to rebuild its e

mpire . Russians are accused of fighting on the Abkhazian side an assertion dipl

omats here support to weaken Georgia so it would seek Russian protection and to 

sabotage Shevardnadze , who , paradoxically , is blamed by Russians , especially

 in the military , for destroying the Soviet Union . In fact , as soon as Shevar

dnadze agreed to join the Commonwealth of Independent States and promised milita

ry bases to Russia , Russia intervened and put a stop to the fighting in Abkhazi

a . A cease-fire was signed in Moscow May 14 , but clashes still have been repor

ted . ( End optional trim ) Georgia is deeply important to Russia , said George 

Tarkhan-Mouravi , a member of the board of the institute , even though it should

n't be . `` Rationally , Georgia would only weaken the ruble zone , '' he said .

 `` Mostly , Russians feel a sense of loss , that they lost something that belon

ged to them . '' Nodar Natadze , a member of Parliament and head of the national

ist Popular Front party , said Russia wants nothing less than the restoration of

 its empire . `` Oh yes , oh yes , oh yes , '' said Natadze , `` they want the e

mpire . The average Russian has no hope of prospering personally . He knows he '

ll never win in a peaceful competition with Germany or America . The only satisf

action he can feel as a man is to know Russia as a superpower and to know his co

untry as all powerful . `` And if he can only achieve that by sacrificing democr

acy and his personal welfare , he will do it . The only way to lure the average 

Russian to democracy is to make him lose any hope of restoring the empire . '' V

ladimir V. Zemsky , Russia 's ambassador to Georgia , denied that Russia has any

 wish to rebuild the empire . `` We want a strong , healthy Georgia , '' he said

 . `` Russia wants peace on its southern border . '' Natadze , 65 , a courtly li

nguistics professor , praised Shevardnadze for bringing Georgia out of internati

onal isolation . But he said he is too steeped in the past to save Georgia . She

vardnadze counters that some criticize him for being too pro-Russian and others 

for not being pro-Russian enough . `` I 'm a realist , '' he said . `` At this s

tage , only Russia can help . We have nothing . We don't even have guns for our 

police . There is no other way . '' ( Optional add end ) Georgia , a small natio

n of 5 million people , must find peace and stability to attract investment . So

 far , there are only two signs of Western investment here : Coca Cola , which h

as lots of flashy advertisements but a market of paupers , and a lovely , four-s

tar Austrian-built hotel a $ 175-a-day island of luxury . Back in the late 1970s

 it was Shevardnadze who persuaded his friend Mikhail S. Gorbachev that the Sovi

et system was rotten and needed rebuilding . The glory days of perestroika ensue

d . Now most of the world has forgotten those euphoric days of watching as an em

pire slowly freed itself of a repressive past . No one 's thanking Shevardnadze 

any more , though Maria Barlett , a former music teacher in St. Mary 's County ,

 Maryland , who answers his English correspondence , says former U.S. Secretary 

of State James A . Baker III still writes . But in Georgia , Shevardnadze looks 

a tragic figure indeed . He seems very alone in his large office , tired and dis

pirited , though pink-cheeked and charming as ever . He answers slowly and thoug

htfully questions that he has been asked many times before , as if for the first

 and most important time . `` Personally , I 'd be happier if I could be in Gorb

achev 's situation , '' he said . `` But my personal happiness would be incompat

ible with my country 's . I must be here if my country needs me . '' And , while

 no one is thanking him here , no one can come up with a better alternative , ei

ther . `` Georgia must be saved , '' said Shevardnadze . `` By whose hand it 's 

saved is not important . ''

 MEXICO CITY Bracing for a long throw , the young man in the print shirt drew hi

s arm back and let fly an egg . The crowd behind him cheered as yolk splattered 

across the district offices of the Institutional Revolutionary Party that has ru

led Mexico for 65 years . No party faithful rushed out to stop the vandalism ; t

he egg-thrower and his cheering section are party faithful . They were sullying 

their own headquarters to protest the selection of labor boss Carlos Aceves as c

andidate for federal deputy in their district . They supported a different local

 leader . Across Mexico , grass-roots activists have blocked streets and roads ,

 occupied party offices and resigned from the PRI , as the governing party is kn

own , in protest over the congressional candidate roster for the Aug. 21 federal

 elections . Officially , party leaders pass off the protests as signs of health

y competition . But privately , some PRI members worry that disappointed rank-an

d-file activists may stay away from the polls in protest or even vote for the op

position . `` Face it , '' one longtime party member said . `` They picked some 

really bad candidates this time . '' In too many districts , he said , candidate

s have influence inside the PRI because of their ties to labor unions , farm gro

ups and party leaders but little popular recognition , much less support . Getti

ng them elected will be tough . Beyond the quality of the candidates , the prote

sts reflect conflicts over the selection process and the PRI 's identity as a pa

rty . Traditionally , the PRI is made up of three groups : labor unions , peasan

t farmers and a nebulous `` popular sector . '' The party also has a parallel re

gional structure of municipal- and state-level activists . Candidate selection i

s a power struggle among those groups . The popular sector and regional groups p

ress for a more openly democratic selection process that favors local leaders wh

o will represent each district 's interests . Unions and farmers press for their

 quotas of congressional seats to look after their interests . Those seats are u

sually assigned by the party leadership , often ignoring the wishes of grass-roo

ts activists . This month , dozens of those activists refused to be ignored . Br

eaking party discipline , those `` natural leaders , '' as they called themselve

s , registered their candidacies at party headquarters , even though they had no

t received the nod from higher-ups . That forced a vote at their local conventio

ns instead of the usual selection by unanimous acclaim . ( End optional trim ) G

etting union and farm candidates approved by local convention delegates in the f

ace of competition required fancy footwork in some cases . A lexicon of dirty tr

icks that has grown up around election fraud came into play . There is `` the cr

azy mouse , '' changing the location of a convention at the last minute without 

advising delegates ; `` madruguete , '' changing the time ; and `` acarreo , '' 

bringing in outsiders to vote as delegates . Mexican newspapers published accusa

tions of and in some cases documented the use of each of those tricks during loc

al party conventions this month . Some grass-roots activists tried pre-emptive s

trikes , such as taking over party offices . After the egg-throwing did not conv

ince party leaders that they were serious , members of the Independent Popular O

rganization invaded district headquarters to prevent the local convention . ( En

d optional trim ) As pressure grew , some labor candidates such as Juana Maria G

onzalez in the mining state of San Luis Potosi who resigned for health reasons s

tepped down in favor of local candidates . Party leaders tried to calm protests 

by offering disappointed candidates congressional seats as party representatives

 offices that are distributed after the election based on the percentage of vote

s each party receives . But for many , consolation prizes were not enough . Emil

io Serrano , president of the Neighbors Committee of Iztacalco , a working-class

 borough of Mexico City , resigned from the PRI after losing the party nominatio

n for city assemblyman . `` Other parties have offered me a candidacy , particul

arly the PRD , '' he explained , referring to the Democratic Revolutionary Party

 , whose leadership includes former PRI activists . However , Serrano may be dis

appointed with that party as well . `` None of us can be completely happy with t

he way our candidates were chosen , '' PRD Chairman Porfirio Munoz Ledo acknowle

dged at a swearing-in ceremony for those candidates . He proposed `` re-founding

 '' the party to better ensure respect for democratic ideals .

 CHICAGO On the sun-swept streets of Kostkaville , on sandlot ball fields and in

 the pews of cavernous limestone churches , there is no confusing the plight of 

the neighborhood congressman with the fate of the nation . Named after a Polish 

saint , this grid of row houses is the heart of Rep. Dan Rostenkowski 's home ba

se , a place where the embattled House Ways and Means chairman matters more for 

the little things he does than for his legendary Washington clout . It is the li

ttle things toasters and appliances for the sisters of St. Stanislaus Kostka , p

ark fees for fast-pitch softball teams , a lucrative fund-raiser for the Polish 

Museum of America that many of Rostenkowski 's constituents fear they will miss 

most if he is convicted in the 17 federal criminal charges leveled against him T

uesday . `` This is a guy who 's always giving back to the community , '' said K

elly Torres , a city supervisor at Pulaski Park , a square-block field across th

e street from Rostenkowski 's home . `` He helps people around here in a thousan

d different ways . Nobody wants to see him go . '' His prominence atop the commi

ttee overseeing the nation 's tax laws has helped Rostenkowski become Congress '

 leading earner of honorariums , fees that legislators earn for making personal 

appearances before lobbyists and special interest groups . Last year , Rostenkow

ski made $ 80,500 in honorariums . Under federal law , the fees must go to chari

ty , providing Rostenkowski with ample amounts to donate to pet causes ranging f

rom orphanages to hot dog lunches for neighborhood children . Those who rely on 

the chairman 's speaking engagements and on excess funds from his campaign coffe

rs are , predictably , among his most ardent loyalists . They talk protectively 

of his generous nature a side of Rostenkowski they insist the outside world rare

ly sees . And they worry that any successor might sorely lack his human touch . 

`` People realize that if we lose him , we lose something special , '' said the 

Rev. Joseph Glab , a priest at St. Stanislaus Kostka , Rostenkowski 's home chur

ch . `` He has a real connection with people in this neighborhood . A city is on

ly as important as its neighborhoods and he 's part of ours . '' ( Begin optiona

l trim ) It was Rostenkowski who quietly wrote a check to the church 's nuns aft

er he learned in a conversation with Glab that the appliances in their convent h

ad fallen into disrepair . And it was Rostenkowski who made the largest donation

 six years ago to a $ 140,000 renovation campaign to repair the church 's bell t

ower , electric system and scarred interior . Rostenkowski has chipped in for tr

ophies and park fees for neighborhood Little League teams and bought uniforms fo

r the Deadmen , an amateur football club . A contribution from his campaign fund

s paid for a Polish Constitution Day performance by the Li ' l Richard Polka Ban

d which replied in kind by playing `` The Danny Rostenkowski Polka . '' There ar

e times when goodness has little to do with altruism and much to do with the uns

poken quid pro quos of politics . Joanna Janowski , the curator of the Polish Mu

seum of America , is grateful for Rostenkowski 's occasional contributions . But

 she appreciates even more the donations that have come in his honor . When Rost

enkowski was awarded the Polish Spirit Award at the museum 's annual Summer Ball

 in June 1992 , his presence brought the museum $ 85,000 in donations more than 

four times what it normally brings in for the event , Janowski said . Among the 

contributors were lobbying and commercial giants like the Philip Morris Co. ( $ 

5,000 ) , the Sara Lee Corp. ( $ 5,000 ) and the National Food Processors Associ

ation ( $ 2,000 ) . ( End optional trim ) But others in his district concede tha

t Rostenkowski calls in on old favors from those he has helped with his charity 

. In the furious final days of last March 's Democratic primary , Rostenkowski '

s aides boasted that his extensive network of prominent friends helped dispel th

e stigma of corruption that hampered his re-election bid against two Democratic 

Party challengers . Rostenkowski was praised in letters written on behalf of his

 campaign by Rev. James Close , director of the the Mercy Home for Boys and Girl

s , a well-known local orphanage , and by Rev. John Smyth , head of the Maryvill

e City of Youth , a Catholic academy .

 After President Clinton determined last month to extend normal trading arrangem

ents with China , the Beijing regime responded that `` the current situation off

ers a historic opportunity for the enhancement '' of bilateral relations . With 

North Korea pushing ahead with its nuclear weapons program , that `` historic op

portunity '' is already at hand . China holds the key to effective international

 sanctions against Pyongyang . If it turns that key , it would not be due to U.S

. pressure ; it would reflect China 's assessment of its own national interests 

. Having de-linked trade and human rights issues , the United States should not 

try to link China 's nuclear non-proliferation policies with any other significa

nt feature in the relationship . If we are to have mature ties with Beijing , th

ey must be based on respect , not threat . This will be the best way to deal wit

h the Hong Kong and Taiwan questions as well as the immediate crisis posed by No

rth Korea . The pressure is on Beijing as the Security Council nears considerati

on of international sanctions against Pyongyang . Will China vote yes , abstain 

( most likely ) or cast a veto ? As the major supplier of food , oil and coal to

 North Korea , it is loath to weaken a fellow Communist regime right on its bord

er . Yet it also has reason to fear the instability that would be created by a n

uclear North Korea threatening war against South Korea and stimulating Japan to 

develop its own nuclear capability . Obviously these considerations must loom la

rge in Chinese calculations . Beijing should seize the moment to demonstrate tha

t it is ready to play a vigorous role in stopping the spread of nuclear weapons 

. North Korea has rebuffed International Atomic Energy Agency inspection of its 

Yongbyon nuclear reactor . As a result , the IAEA has lost any chance of determi

ning if fuel has been diverted for bomb-making purposes . This being the case , 

a tough new question arises : How should North Korea be punished for its past vi

olations without jeopardizing any chance for bringing future North Korean nuclea

r operations under control ? Unlike Somalia or Bosnia or Haiti , North Korea wou

ld challenge vital U.S. security interests if it succeeds in setting a precedent

 that nations can violate the Non-Proliferation Treaty with impunity . Therefore

 , global economic sanctions are needed . There are , however , ways to steer th

is situation to a solution short of a second Korean war . The sanctions could be

 gradual and tailored to China 's wishes . Russia 's proposal for an internation

al conference could give North Korea the chance for a climb-down without loss of

 face . Japan could move to curb more than $ 1 billion a year in remittances fro

m expatriate North Koreans to their homeland . And the United States could expli

citly raise the prospect of full diplomatic relations with North Korea if it sto

ps defying international rules of conduct and becomes a law-abiding nation . Chi

na , however , is the decisive factor . Clearly , the situation cries out for Si

no-American cooperation at a level never achieved before .

 WASHINGTON Helen Briggs Ramsey spent two years in Europe during World War II he

lping injured soldiers of the Army 's 101st Airborne Division as one of the Red 

Cross 's `` Donut Dollies . '' By all accounts a gutsy woman , she once tried in

 vain to persuade the paratroopers to take her on a jump . For the rest of her l

ife , `` Briggsy '' had a special place in her heart for the airborne soldiers w

ho landed in Normandy on June 6 , 1944 . She attended many of their reunions and

 even considered going to France with the veterans for the 50th anniversary cele

brations taking place during the next few days . A friend who visited her in her

 Capitol Hill home on Memorial Day found her videotaping shows about the D-Day i

nvasion . Early Tuesday , a burglar broke into her house while she was outside s

ummoning her cat , Canteen . He bound and gagged her , beat her up and stole som

e small objects , police said . Ramsey , 78 , died of her injuries Thursday . Ac

ross the area last week , Ramsey 's friends remembered her dedication to the mil

itary and the hundreds of photographs , plaques and other memorabilia she kept i

n her home . They remembered how her eyes lit up when she talked about `` my guy

s '' and the enthusiasm with which she was anticipating the D-Day anniversary on

 Monday . Steve Baka , president of the District of Columbia chapter of the 101s

t Airborne Division Association , a veterans group , met Ramsey at the commemora

tion of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial a decade ago . He said many of her friends

 are in France for the anniversary and aren't aware that she had been slain . ``

 Everyone is going to be devastated , '' he said . On Sunday , he said , she was

 with a group of veterans who laid wreaths at the Wall and at the 101st Memorial

 at Arlington National Cemetery in honor of members of the division who died in 

battle . `` She was something else , '' said D.C. police Capt. Glenn Hoppert , a

 longtime friend of Ramsey . `` She probably knows more generals than any woman 

I know . She was well liked among the members of the 101st . '' D.C. police have

 made no arrests in the slaying of Ramsey , who had lived alone in a two-story r

ow house on Capitol Hill since she was widowed 20 years ago . Military officials

 , many of whom got to know Ramsey during her volunteer work organizing reunions

 for the 101st , were shaken by the news of her death . Gen. J.H. Binford Peay I

II , Army vice chief of staff and commander of the 101st Airborne Division durin

g Operation Desert Storm , said through a spokesman that he was not aware of Ram

sey 's death until a reporter called his office . He had spoken with her recentl

y and knew her well . `` Not only will I and other members of the 101st Airborne

 Division Association miss Briggsy , but also the members of the United States A

rmy , '' he said . `` She selflessly contributed her time and talent to the men 

and women in the Army from World War II to the present , and for that we are gra

teful . '' Ramsey worked for the Red Cross as a civilian for two years during Wo

rld War II , and at one point operated a hotel for transient Red Cross volunteer

s in Europe . She also ran a night club for the soldiers . Though Ramsey never g

ot to make her parachute jump during World War II , she fulfilled that dream las

t year when she parachuted in tandem with a member of the Golden Eagles jump tea