01502nas a2200205   4500000000100000008004100001260000900042653002500051653002400076653002300100653002600123653001900149653002000168653002700188100001800215700001900233245018700252490000700439520085000446       2024                            d  c202410aGeorgian Dream Party10aGeorgian opposition10ade-democratization10ademocratic governance10aEU integration10alessons learned10ademocratic backsliding1 aPhilipp Fluri1 aTamar Pataraia00aDemocratic Backsliding and De-Democratization: How the Georgian Dream Party Eroded the Rule of Law, Undermined the Integrity of Independent State Institutions, and Consolidated Power0 v233 a<p>The article examines political and legislative developments in Georgia between 2020 and 2024, highlighting policies and legislative actions that have undermined the country’s democratic trajectory and its now-suspended EU integration efforts. It sheds light on the process of democratic backsliding and de-democratization, emphasizing the consolidation of power and the erosion of the integrity of independent institutions. Though de-democratization is, as a rule, unoriginal and predictable in its brutality, lessons can still be learned and “warning signs” heeded from this Georgian case study. Hybrid activities, such as the brutal police clampdown on public demonstrations manifesting assertions of state capture, have occurred and can be expected in other transitional contexts as well. The awakening from dreams can be brutal.</p>