In late December 2011, the Georgian Parliament adopted amendments to elections-related legislation mainly aimed to restrict financing of political parties from private sources and institute more effective mechanisms of transparency in this area. While these changes may be motivated by specific political interest of the parliamentary majority, namely by the a billionaire politician, Bidzina Ivanishvili, entering the political fray, the substance of these restrictions correspond to accepted democratic practices and may play important positive role in the long-term development of democratic institutions in Georgia.
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