Transition in Central and Eastern European Countries
Transition in Central and Eastern European Countries
Experiences and Future Perspectives
Contributor(s): Pero Maldini (Editor), Davorka Vidović (Editor)
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, History, Anthropology, Social Sciences, Political Sciences, Civil Society, Sociology, Special Historiographies:, Electoral systems, Welfare systems, Developing nations, Culture and social structure , Nationalism Studies, Sociology of Culture, Welfare services, Post-Communist Transformation, History of European Union, Migration Studies, Inter-Ethnic Relations, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment, Ethnic Minorities Studies
Published by: Centar za politološka istraživanja
Keywords: transition; European Union; South-East Europe; post-communist countries; post-socialist countries; lustration; welfare state; health care system
Summary/Abstract: Papers collected in this book were presented at an international scientific conference "Transition in CEE Countries: Experiences and Future Perspectives" which was held on November 3rd and 4th 2006 in Dubrovnik. The Conference was organized by the Political Science Research Centre Forum, in cooperation with the University of Dubrovnik. It gathered eminent scientists from Croatia and Europe that are positioned in different scientific orientations and points of view. Papers presented in this book discuss different transition phenomena, from general theoretica issues to very specific transformation processes in particular countries. Papers in this collection could be roughly divided into two main parts. The first one includes papers that analyse and discuss general theoretical and conceptual insights and consequences regarding transition processes. This is mainly the case with papers of the following authors: Philippe C. Schmitter, Anđelko Milardović, Pero Maldini and Mislav Kukoč. Their papers provide theoretical overviews of theories of consolidated democracy, Europeanization, socio-cultural values, multiculturalism and the issue of sovereignty. The second group consists of papers with more specific analysis; they are either focused on particular aspects of the transition process in CEE countries or they are aiming to offer a broader understanding of transition patterns in specific countries. This group of papers includes the works of Mate Szabo, Jacek Klich, Vladimira Dvorakova, Davorka Vidović, Davor Pauković, Tomaž Deželan and Damjan Lajh. Their papers examine subjects such as: dealing with the past and lustration, protests in countries pre- and post-1991, ideologies and their role in the transition process, citizenship and the nature of the franchise, as well as social policy change in terms of welfare in transition. Different theoretical approaches and thematic diversity of presented papers form a multidisciplinary character of this book. The studies mainly used the comparative approach, which is in theoretical and pratical sense actually inherent to the subject of democratic transition. In the scope of social sciences this book has managed to offer a relatively wide image of specific features and different experiences of democratic transition, as well as of ways of thinking and interpreting contemporary social reality in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
- Print-ISBN-13: 978-953-7022-15-0
- Page Count: 254
- Publication Year: 2007
- Language: English
A European Democracy: Why and How?
A European Democracy: Why and How?
(A European Democracy: Why and How?)
- Author(s):Phillipe C. Schmitter
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Governance, Public Administration, Economic policy, Government/Political systems, Electoral systems, Developing nations, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
- Page Range:17-36
- No. of Pages:20
- Summary/Abstract:While democracy in Europe took a very long time to emerge and consolidate itself, the democratization of Europe has only just begun and remains a rather remote prospect. The competing national states that composed this part of the world were originally autocratic – with the historical exception of Switzerland, which somehow continuously managed to practice its peculiar form of democracy. Indeed, Western Europe became uniformly democratic only in the mid-1970s with the regime changes in Portugal, Spain, and Greece. And parts of the former Soviet Union have still to institutionalize the accountability of its rulers by way of competitive processes of representation.
- Price: 4.50 €
Transition and Consolidation of Democracy
Transition and Consolidation of Democracy
(Transition and Consolidation of Democracy)
- Author(s):Anđelko Milardović-Ivanković
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Civil Society, Governance, Government/Political systems, Electoral systems, Welfare systems, History and theory of political science
- Page Range:37-61
- No. of Pages:25
- Summary/Abstract:In political theory, one of the recurring types of government described by various thinkers is democracy. In political theory or practice, democracy did not always have the significance as it has, for example, today; when we can say that it is the most dominant type of government on a global level, with 120 registered consolidated democracies and 37 restrictive democratic regimes registered in 2000. These political orders typologies, which are a product of the modern political era, are based on government and political systems being classified as democratic and undemocratic. Undemocratic orders are totalitarian and authoritarian. Regardless of the world regions, this narrowed synthetic classification of types of government might be applied in case of the 20th century societies. The 20th century is a real testing ground for political science research of government systems, waves of democratization and reversions.
- Price: 4.50 €
Socio-Cultural Aspects of Transition
Socio-Cultural Aspects of Transition
(Socio-Cultural Aspects of Transition)
- Author(s):Pero Maldini
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Sociology, Government/Political systems, Electoral systems, Developing nations, Culture and social structure , EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
- Page Range:63-75
- No. of Pages:13
- Summary/Abstract:Establishment of democratic regimes in former authoritarian societies has emphasized the importance and vitality of democracy and marked large social, political and cultural changes. But, in spite of institutional and normative constitution of democracy and its general acceptability in almost all transitional societies, there are obvious and great differences in the attained democratic range within various postcommunist societies. Instead of transformation process and democratic consolidation in many transition societies, one can often find undemocratic political practice with certain retrograde processes, contrary to democratic transformation of society. Such experiences indicate that transition is not unambiguous and predictable process of social development which necessarily leads towards democratic regime, and also that normative-institutional democratic constitution is not sufficient to make a political regime democratic.
- Price: 4.50 €
Transition from Post-Communism: South-East Europe between Nationalism, Multiculturalism and Globalization
Transition from Post-Communism: South-East Europe between Nationalism, Multiculturalism and Globalization
(Transition from Post-Communism: South-East Europe between Nationalism, Multiculturalism and Globalization)
- Author(s):Mislav Kukoč
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Political Philosophy, Social Philosophy, Government/Political systems, Welfare systems, Culture and social structure , Nationalism Studies, Post-Communist Transformation, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
- Page Range:77-91
- No. of Pages:15
- Summary/Abstract:As some other new notions and phenomena such as clash of civilizations and bioethics, notions post-communism, multiculturalism and globalization has become known only quite recently, during the last decade of the 20th Century. The term post-communism contains the prefix ‘post’ which implies rather negative definition of a global society which comes ‘after communism’, or something which is ‘no-longer-communist-but-notyet- anything-else’. On the other hand, the concept post-communism is one of the current waves of various post-isms which define the contemporary epoch in a negative sense: post-modernism or post-modernity, post-industrialism or post-industrial society, post-capitalism, post-historicism or the end of history etc.
- Price: 4.50 €
Some Lessons of Collective Protests in Central European Post-Communist Countries: Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and East Germany between 1989-1993
Some Lessons of Collective Protests in Central European Post-Communist Countries: Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and East Germany between 1989-1993
(Some Lessons of Collective Protests in Central European Post-Communist Countries: Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and East Germany between 1989-1993)
- Author(s):Máté Szabó
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Politics, Civil Society, Politics and society, Post-Communist Transformation
- Page Range:93-116
- No. of Pages:24
- Summary/Abstract:When thinking about the traditions and the cultural heritage of contemporary protest movements, it is worth noting that East Central European history in the twentieth century has not been very rich in manifestations of political protest (Rotschild, 1989: 147-191; Schöpflin, 1993: 127-224). Despite recurrent political upheavals, revolutions, wars, and so on, protest as understood in the present paper – that is, public mobilization of support for specific demands - is not very widespread in the countries of the region.
- Price: 4.50 €
Welfare State in Post-Socialist Countries: Social Costs of Transformation
Welfare State in Post-Socialist Countries: Social Costs of Transformation
(Welfare State in Post-Socialist Countries: Social Costs of Transformation)
- Author(s):Davorka Vidović
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Economic policy, Welfare systems, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment, Fiscal Politics / Budgeting
- Page Range:117-139
- No. of Pages:23
- Summary/Abstract:Great turbulences, unpredictability and pressures due to a new social reality often follow the transfer from an old political and socioeconomic system into a new one. In the beginning of the 1990s, countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) transferred from socialist regimes into liberal democratic systems. On one hand, in terms of politics, this was a transition from an authoritarian to a democratic society, and on the other hand, in terms of economy, this was a transition from centrally planned economy into a free market economy. These two crucial transformations were a precondition for a whole range of other social changes in these countries. One of them was a transformation of welfare state, a system that had a significant influence on cohesion of a society as a whole, and therefore, could greatly determine the course of democratization. In this paper, I would like to give an overview of the key changes in the field of welfare in the context of internal economic and political transformations of the postsocialists Central and Eastern Europe countries, as well as in the context of external globalization pressures they have been exposed to at the same time.
- Price: 4.50 €
The Burden of the Past. Lustration as the Instrument of the Political Competition in the Czech Republic
The Burden of the Past. Lustration as the Instrument of the Political Competition in the Czech Republic
(The Burden of the Past. Lustration as the Instrument of the Political Competition in the Czech Republic)
- Author(s):Vladimira Dvorakova
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Politics, Political Theory, Political Sciences, Civil Society, Political history, Cold-War History, Post-Communist Transformation
- Page Range:141-155
- No. of Pages:15
- Summary/Abstract:The past matters in any process of transformation of the society, and sure plays an important role in the processes of transition and consolidation of democracy. It is important not only in the sense of „path dependency“ that I do not want to concentrate on in this paper but mainly as the form of legitimizing the political goals of the elites, as part of the political competition about the future orientation of the country. We can stress two basic aspects of how past is treated that are mostly mutually interconnected. The first one concentrates on the “choice” of the history – on the way how history is reconstructed, preserved and interpreted in the collective memory. The second aspect deals with the question what to do with the “physical relicts” of the past, with the personnel of the “ancient” regime. Both aspects have its impact on the character of future development, integrity of the society, forms of inclusion or exclusion, the understanding of justice, the rule of law, space for political competition, etc.
- Price: 4.50 €
Inclusiveness of Suffrage in Post-Yugoslav Region
Inclusiveness of Suffrage in Post-Yugoslav Region
(Inclusiveness of Suffrage in Post-Yugoslav Region)
- Author(s):Tomaž Deželan, Damjan Lajh
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Civil Society, Governance, Public Administration, Public Law, Electoral systems, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
- Page Range:157-188
- No. of Pages:32
- Summary/Abstract:Elections are widely justified as devices for consulting the people and thereby deriving their consent to govern (Nakamura and Johnson, 2005). At the start of the nineties of the 20th century in post-socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, elections became a precious value as a support for the building of democratic political institutions and processes. In this respect, inclusion of the citizenry in electoral and representative processes was vital for the consolidation of democracy in post-transition setting (Birch, 2003: 10). However, holding elections in (post-)conflict societies, for example on a territory of former Yugoslavia, encompassed both dangers and opportunities for democratic and anti-democratic impulses and forces (Nakamura and Johnson, 2005). Namely, institutional choices in a broader context, heavily determined an electoral design in post-socialist settings. Institutional choices were considerably expressed in institutional preferences of leading political actors, i.e. in their interests, goals and values (Kasapović, 1997).
- Price: 4.50 €
New Ideologies and Transition Opening in Croatia and Serbia
New Ideologies and Transition Opening in Croatia and Serbia
(New Ideologies and Transition Opening in Croatia and Serbia)
- Author(s):Davor Pauković
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Politics, Political Theory, Political Sciences, Civil Society, Governance, Post-Communist Transformation
- Page Range:189-217
- No. of Pages:29
- Summary/Abstract:In this paper I will try to outline the context of transition opening in the two largest former Yugoslav republics, Serbia and Croatia. The break-up of ideological consensus in socialist Yugoslavia opened the door to creating new ideological concepts, which led to the disintegration of the state. In such circumstances, transition in Croatia and Serbia was opened. More prominent political and social crisis led to a gradual loss of legitimacy of the governing communist Party, which will enable a certain degree of liberalization and abated authoritarian regime. Apart from these internal factors, the important role in transition opening was played by external factors, collapsing socialist bloc and the break-up of the USSR.
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Transformation of the Health Care System in Poland: Achievements and Challenges
Transformation of the Health Care System in Poland: Achievements and Challenges
(Transformation of the Health Care System in Poland: Achievements and Challenges)
- Author(s):Jacek Klich
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Politics, Governance, Public Administration, Public Law, Politics and law, Health and medicine and law, Post-Communist Transformation
- Page Range:219-247
- No. of Pages:29
- Summary/Abstract:Health care reforms defined as changes in two basic areas: legal (regulatory) and functional have been taking place in Poland within the broader framework of democratisation of the political system and introduction of market mechanisms in the Polish economy. Democratic principles and liberalization of production and trade constituted the new political and economic regimes after 1989 in Poland.
- Price: 4.50 €
Notes about authors
Notes about authors
(Notes about authors)
- Author(s):Author Not Specified
- Language:English
- Subject(s):General Reference Works
- Page Range:249-250
- No. of Pages:2
- Summary/Abstract:Notes about authors
- Price: 4.50 €
Summary
Summary
(Summary)
- Author(s):Author Not Specified
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Politics / Political Sciences, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
- Page Range:251-252
- No. of Pages:2
- Summary/Abstract:Papers collected in this book are presented in the international scientific conference „Transition in CEE Countries: Experiences and Future Perspectives” that was held on November 3-4th 2006 in Dubrovnik. The Conference was organized by the Political Science Research Centre Forum in cooperation with the University of Dubrovnik. It gathered eminent scientists from Croatia and European countries that are positioned in different scientific orientation and points of view.
