TBILISI, DFWatch – Four non-governmental organizations in Georgia Monday for the third time met with parliament’s judicial committee about the new law on party financing, called ‘law on political unions of citizens’.

Georgian Young Lawyers Organization, Transparency International Georgia, Coalition for Freedom of Choice and International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy are the NGOs which worked out a proposal for how to amend the law to improve the election environment ahead of the parliamentary elections in October.

In late 2011, the law on political unions of citizens was amended, with the stated aim of making the political party financing system more transparent and avoid corruption. But the civil sector says it only worsened the situation. They say it applied criminal responsibility to voters and threatened the functioning of legal and individual persons in Georgia. And that’s just some of the problems with the law, opponents say.

NGOs and media organizations started a campaign on February 13 called ‘This Affects You Too’, because the law applies to each citizen, restricting their freedom of speech, property rights, and freedom of assembly; and today’s meeting is being held within the frames of the campaign.

The meetings with the judiciary committee have had some results, as the committee is ready to negotiate over future amendments to the law.