The process of democratisation in Slovenia has been gradual and included a liberalisation stage within the former socialist system when, although not legally allowed, political pluralism and oppositional activity were tolerated by the elite in the Socialist Republic of Slovenia. The regulation of modern political parties only became possible when the Slovenian party elite decided to allow political pluralism as part of a legally determined democratisation process. On one hand, the political elite did control the democratisation processes (in fact, all of the laws paving the way to democratisation processes were adopted by representatives of the old elite sitting in the republic's socialist assembly - albeit as a result of domestic bottom-up and Yugoslav federal top-down pressures). On the other hand, the regulation of political parties was quite generous in terms of the relatively easy preconditions for establishing a political party.