Political Reform in Georgia

IMGXYZ2789IMGZYXFollowing disputed municipal elections in May 2010, Georgia embarked on a new wave of democratization that culminated in extensive constitutional reforms aimed at shifting power from the presidency to the parliament. Irakli Alasania, Georgia’s former ambassador to the United Nations and founder of the Our Georgia—Free Democrats Party, discussed the challenges and opportunities facing Georgia. He was joined by Cory Welt of the George Washington University and Carnegie’s Thomas de Waal.

2010 Municipal Elections

While the run-up to the recent municipal elections sparked unprecedented public debate between candidates and their constituents, much work remains to be done to promote free and fair elections in Georgia, Alasania asserted. Opposition parties and their supporters faced a number of constraints during the electoral campaign, including:

• police intimidation of opposition supporters,
   
• limited access to mass media resources,
   
• unequal distribution of campaign funds and limited opportunities for fundraising, as the result of political pressure from the government on the business community to support the ruling party.

Political Reforms

The fragmented Georgian opposition is now attempting to overcome its differences and form a coalition comprised of representatives from eight non-parliamentary opposition parties. Alasania explained that the opposition parties hope to use this new platform to coordinate their joint activities and engage in a meaningful dialogue with the ruling party on electoral reform in the first instance.

• Tackling the Electoral Code: Among the most pressing issues on the coalition’s agenda is the question of reforming the Electoral Code which is currently viewed by the opposition as the main impediment to free and democratic elections. Alasania explained that reforms will focus on three key areas: updating the voters’ registration lists and implementing biometric identification cards, increasing media transparency, and giving each candidate an equal opportunity to raise campaign funds. Progress is being made on this issue: a six-point document, formulated by the opposition, was presented to the speaker of the Georgian parliament who consequently agreed to hold negotiations on the Electoral Code in a working group with both opposition and parliamentary majority representatives. The document drafted by this working group will serve as a guide for the parliamentary elections in 2012.
   
• Constitutional Reforms: Recent constitutional changes will give a disproportionate share of power to the prime minister and fail to safeguard such crucial democratic liberties as an independent judiciary, argued Alasania. He suggested the reforms may be the result of political parties that are looking to further their own interests rather than strengthen Georgian democracy.

Georgian Society and Economy

• Business Environment: Despite major reforms in the Georgian economy since Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in 2004, the country still lacks free and fair competition, Alasania argued. Monopolies dominate virtually every sector of the economy. Alasania described several chief areas of concern:
  
  
  • Repeated attempts by the government to extract funds from the business sector will inevitably result in a shutdown of many small businesses.
     
  • Tight state control over the business sector has led to over 60 percent of private businesses being under state investigation.
     
  • The new labor code, enforced in 2006, limits trade union bargaining rights, creating an insecure working environment for state and private-sector employees.
  
   
• National Economy: Alasania also expressed concern about the mounting national debt and the steeply declining inflow of foreign investment after the eruption of the 2008 August War, which could have a disastrous effect on the already weak Georgian economy. He cautioned that with the current state mechanism, where economic decisions are made on an ad hoc basis, Georgia will fail to develop a healthy, sustainable economic system.
   
• Social Conditions: Approximately half of the Georgian population lives below the poverty line and 30 percent of the population is unemployed, stated Alasania. Villages are being abandoned as young people head to towns or abroad in search of better jobs. Meanwhile, although systemic corruption has been uprooted, corruption among the Georgian elite remains high and the budget is not fully transparent, allowing for the misallocation of state funds. According to Alasania, almost one seventh of the annual budget was allocated for unknown purposes in 2010.
   
• Civil Society: Alasania expressed particular concern that Georgia’s nascent civil society, intimidated by state and local authorities, remains weak.

U.S.-Georgia Partnership

Alasania praised the Obama administration’s foreign policy toward Georgia, which emphasizes building and developing democratic institutions in Georgia, arguing that a strong U.S.-Georgia partnership is the main guarantee for Georgia’s security. The reset in U.S.-Russia relations should also make Russia more willing to work with Georgia to resolve the dispute over the political status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Frozen Conflicts

While Georgia’s reunification with Abkhazia and South Ossetia is far from imminent, Alasania underscored the importance of initiating dialogue with both autonomous territories. An increased international presence in the occupied territories will help to create the necessary security and trust to engage in such dialogue. Finally, he argued that significant and rapid economic reforms would make Georgia more attractive to both Abkhazia and South Ossetia and potentially accelerate the resumption of the dialogue.

Future Prospects

Widespread public debate on Georgia’s political future should be seen as an indicator of sustained civil efforts to foster a new political culture, Alasania contended. Yet numerous problems—including the constant security threat posed by Russia and the volatile environment of the Georgian economy—continue to threaten the country’s stability. Close partnerships with the United States and the EU are critical for Georgia to achieve democratic and economic prosperity, concluded Alasania.