The post communist countries; Poland Bulgaria, Georgia, Russia, and Uzbekistan share much of the same history, but the current reformation of each counties government after communism is quite different. The post communist counties that are doing better than the others owe their success to three factors; firstly how indoctrinated into communism the countries were, secondly how each of the countries governments reestablished themselves after gaining independence from the Soviet Union, and thirdly the countries' willingness to adopt free markets.
Both Poland and Bulgaria share similar successes after communism. Their societies are free, their states are strong, and their corruption is extremely low. Georgia travels a middle ground sharing traits in both camps liberal and repressive. In comparison the states of Russia and Uzbekistan are repressive, boarding on fragile, and share mid to high levels of corruption.
The Soviet Union was never able to establish a truly communist base in Poland. The country's deeply catholic roots would not allow the wave of change the Soviet Union need to create an extreme presence in the country. The existence of the Solidarity movement in Gdansk, proof of the polish peoples' exhaustion with the communist state was an irreversible taste of freedom that helped propel the country forward both immediately before and after independence from the Soviet Union (Reisinger). Since Poland never developed ideological ties to communism it was easier for the Polish government to become more democratic. After the fall of the Soviet Union and the establishment of Liberated Poland the government became a republic (Poland, CIA). According to the Nations in Transit, corruption in the Polish government is low to none (N...
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"Uzbekistan." Freedom House.Media. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.
Moss, W., 2014. A History of Russia Volume 2: Since 1855. 1st ed. London, England: Anthem Press London, pp.112-113.
Crockatt, Richard. The fifty years war : the United States and the Soviet Union in world politics, 1941-1991. London; New York; Routledge, 1995.
During the 20th century, the rise of communism sparked rage in people throughout the world. More towards the end of the 1900's the fall of communism and dictatorships was just the beginning of what would eventually be a large democratic change for several countries. 1989: Democratic Revolutions at the Cold War's End, speaks about the change brought to several different countries from the 1980's-1990's and plans to show "the global transformations that marked the end of the cold war and shaped the era in which we live"(Pg V). During the cold war, communist had power and control over a large area and spread communism throughout several continents. This book specifically hits on six different studies of where communism and dictatorship affected these areas and what they did to stop it. Poland, Philippines, Chile, South Africa, Ukraine, and China throughout the end of the 20th century created revolutionary movements which brought them all one step closer to freeing themselves and creating democratic change.
Mau, Vladimir. " The road to 'perestrokia': economics in the USSR and the problem of
Westwood, J. N., “Endurance and Endeavour: Russian history, 1812-1980”. 2nd ed. Oxford University Press, 1981.
Franklin, Simon and Emma Widdis, eds. National Identity in Russian Culture: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2004.
In the fall of 1989, people all around the world were watching unbelievable scenes on their televisions. Thousands of people in eastern Europe were meeting in the streets and squares and demanding the end of the communist rule. For the first time in history, opposition to communism was publically voiced. Barbed wire border fences in Hungary were being torn down. East Germans were fleeing to the West. Overnight the Berlin wall collapsed. The start of these historical events was the Polish Revolution of 1989.
Eastern Europe and the forming of economic alliances in reaction. At the end of World War II, the Soviet Union began transforming the newly freed countries and engulfed them one by one until all of Eastern Europe was part of the Soviet Union. The United States became alarmed with the growing of communism in Europe and set up...
Wood, A. (1986). The Russian Revolution. Seminar Studies in History. (2) Longman, p 1-98. ISBSN 0582355591, 9780582355590
Russia, a vast country with a wealth of natural resources, a well, educated population, and diverse industrial base, continues to experience, formidable difficulties in moving from its old centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. President Yeltsin's government has made substantial strides in converting to a market economy since launching its economic reform program in January 1992 by freeing nearly all prices, slashing defense spending, eliminating the old centralized distribution system, completing an ambitious voucher privatization program, establishing private financial institutions, and decentralizing trade. Russia, however, has made little progress in a number of key areas that are needed to provide a solid foundation for the transition to a market economy.
The Soviet Union, which was once a world superpower in the 19th century saw itself in chaos going into the 20th century. These chaoses were marked by the new ideas brought in by the new leaders who had emerged eventually into power. Almost every aspect of the Soviet Union was crumbling at this period both politically and socially, as well as the economy. There were underlying reasons for the collapse of communism in the Soviet Union and eventually Eastern Europe. The economy is the most significant aspect of every government. The soviet economy was highly centralized with a “command economy” (p.1. fsmitha.com), which had been broken down due to its complexity and centrally controlled with corruption involved in it. A strong government needs a strong economy to maintain its power and influence, but in this case the economic planning of the Soviet Union was just not working, which had an influence in other communist nations in Eastern Europe as they declined to collapse.
Riasanovsky, Nicholas V., and Mark D. Steinberg. A History of Russia. 7th ed. Oxford: Oxford, 2005. Print.
After their defeat in the Crimean war (1853-1856), Russia’s leaders realized they were falling behind much of Europe in terms of modernisation and industrialisation. Alexander II took control of the empire and made the first steps towards radically improving the country’s infrastructure. Transcontinental railways were built and the government strengthened Russia’s economy by promoting industrialisation with the construction of factory complexes throughout...
... within the countries and factions within their respective Communist parties, in the 1980’s and early 1990’s (244).
Rosenberg, William G., and Young, Marilyn B. Transforming Russia and China: Revolutionary Struggle in the Twentieth Century. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982.