Formální a neformální politické struktury v zemích Jižního Kavkazu
Formal and Informal Political Structures in the Countries of the South Caucasus

Summary/Abstract: The purpose of the study is to explain the relations between formal and informal political structures in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Systemic corruption and various kinds of clientelism, such as patronage, autocratic cliques or clans, are identified as ideal types of informal political institutions, whereas a regional grouping is identified as a typical South Caucasian informal political structure, combining principles of patronage, clannishness, corruption and nepotism. Using theoretical frame developed by Helmke and Levitsky, five distinct models of relations between formal and informal political institutions were found out: (1) state of substitution, where informal institutions replaced defunct formal institutions; (2) state of competition between formal and informal institutions where informal political structures are decentralized in a (neo-)patrimonial fashion; (3) state of competition between formal and informal institutions, where several informal groups coalesce in order to control the state as a tool for dishing the opposition; (4) state of competition between formal and informal institutions, where informal groups merged into a hegemonic party, control systemic corruption in the country and misuse state institutions for their specific goals; (5) combination of states of competition and convergence, where informal institutions are partly focused on realizing particular goals, though at the same time they support modernizing endeavour of fairly strong formal institution.

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