Unfinished Europe: Transition from Communism to Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

The Berlin Wall collapsed a quarter of a century ago. This anniversary led to publication of studies about the success of Central and East European transformation. Some of them maintain that the region became ‘normal,' and nearer to their Western neighbors. In reality, the region still belongs to the periphery of Europe with a mostly dual economy and low level of income. Modern sectors and the entire banking industry are subsidiaries of Western multinationals. The political system is often authoritarian. Democratic forms often cover non-democratic contents. Corruption, tax evasion and other symptoms of peripheral political behavior are quite common. Transformation is so far not accomplished and will certainly require two or three generations to achieve.