Georgian Dream: two years in government

Two years have passed since the Georgian Dream coalition took office. This is not a lot of time for making in-depth assessments. However, this period is enough for certain evaluations.

The 2012 parliamentary elections were distinguished in Georgian history owing to several facts: the government was changed peacefully, and the previous political party was not destroyed. On the contrary, the United National Movement has become the country’s main opposition party.

Members of the coalition believe that their essential achievement was defeating the authoritarian regime, which is looked at by many as a criminal regime. However, some Georgian analysts think that it is too early to speak about the country’s democratic advancement. Analyst Vakhtang Dzabiradze suggests that Georgia has not improved its democratic outlook. He also says that the situation in this regard is actually unchanged.

“We maintain the same democratic level, we have not stepped back and that is due to the fact that the current government refrains from using authoritarian methods,” Dzabiradze explains.

The Georgian Dream coalition prefers to mention only the positive things it has achieved under its leadership, ignoring the multiple promises given during the election campaign. They stress that the two years is not enough to fulfill all the promises and that people should give them more time. Speaking about the promises, their trump card is a countrywide insurance program and a freed business sector. However, business representatives do not speak about how free they are from government influence. When it comes to the economy, the current government is proud of opening the Russian market.

The lack of serious achievements in the economy has created an opportunity for the parliamentary and non-parliamentary opposition members to criticize the government during the economic downfall. The United National Movement accuses the government of having a poor economic policy.

The Georgian Dream coalition sees more advancement in foreign policy. They believe that they have managed to somehow normalize relations with Russia. However, Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili has admitted that full improvement of relations with Russia is unlikely without the de-occupation of Georgian territories. The opposition interprets the government’s changed policy towards Russia very differently. They think that the Georgian Dream sacrifices state interest in their attempt at regulating relations with Russia.

On the whole, two years give us some chance to analyze the current situation in the country. The resolution of the European Council over Georgia coincided with the two year anniversary of the change of power in Georgia. The resolution provides genuine information concerning the country’s failure in various fields and gives recommendations on how to improve them.