Comparative Politics Central and Eastern European Politics PSC 2331

Dayton Agreement 1995

(B, C, S) The Dayton Agreement was a peace agreement reached on Nov. 21, 1995, by the presidents of B​osnia,​C​roatia,​and S​erbia,​ending the war in Bosnia and outlining a General Framework Agreement for Peace in B​osnia and Herzegovina.​It preserved Bosnia as a single state made up of two parts, the Bosniak-Croat federation and the Bosnian Serb Republic, with Sarajevo​remaining as the undivided capital city.

The Singing Revolution 1987-1991

(E, L, L) A commonly used name for events between 1987 and 1991 that led to the restoration of the independence of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Mass singing at protests.

Incorporation model

(E, L, L, U) Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine. Follow and copy the Soviet Model just like what other nations in the region were doing, but this model called for incorporation into/becoming part of the Soviet Union. The US never recognised formal absorption into the USSR of incorporated countries.

M​ikhail Gorbachev 1988-1991 (SOVIET)

A former Soviet statesman, he was the eighth and last leader of the Soviet Union, having served as Head of the Soviet state from 1988 until 1991 when the party was dissolved. Gorbachev's policies of g​lasnost(​"openness") and p​erestroika​("restructuring") as well as summit conferences with United States President R​onald Reagan​and his reorientation of Soviet strategic aims contributed to the end of the C​old War,​removed the constitutional role of the Communist Party in governing the state, and inadvertently led to the d​issolution of the Soviet Union.​

Petofi Circles est. 1956 (HUNGARY)

A group formed in 1956 in Hungary that was named after Sandor Petofi, who symbolized Hungary's desire for freedom. It was made up of intellectuals, writers, and some communists, and the circle generated ideas that led to the Revolution of 1956. Poetry was big also for fighting against the Russians.

Public Against Violence 1989 (SLOVAKIA)

A political movement established in B​ratislava,​S​lovakia​in November 1989 during the Velvet Revolution which overthrew the C​ommunist Party​rule in C​zechoslovakia.​It was the Slovak counterpart of the Czech C​ivic Forum.​Public Against Violence was similar to Civic Forum in being a broad movement in opposition to Communism. The movement included cultural figures, religious and intellectual dissidents. It called for the dominant role of the Communist Party to be ended, with a p​rovisional government​composed both of Communists and the opposition, leading to free elections. However Public Against Violence also called for relations  between the Czechs and Slovaks to be altered in a new democratic federation. Public Against Violence has been seen to have failed due to an inability to establish a popular constituency; instead concentrating on government and parliamentary activities.

New Forum

A political movement in E​ast Germany​formed in the months leading up to the collapse of the East German state. It was founded in September 1989 and was the first independent (non-N​ational Front)​political movement to be recognised by the S​ocialist Unity Party of Germany-​led state on 8 November 1989. Hoped to prompt dialogue around democratic reforms.

Secret Speech 1956

A speech (entitled "On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences") that was given by Khrushchev during the 20th Party Congress in 1956 and which criticized Stalin's rule. It signified the beginning of the "Khrushchev thaw" in the Soviet Union's domestic and foreign policy and contributed to the Sino-Soviet split.

Transylvania (​ROMANIA)

After World War I, Transylvania became part of R​omania.​In 1940 N​orthern Transylvania reverted to H​ungary​as a result of the S​econd Vienna Award,​but it was reclaimed by Romania after the end of World War II.

Anna Walentynowicz 1980 (POLAND)

Anna Walentynowicz was a Polish free trade union activist whose firing as a shipyard worker made her a central figure in Poland's Solidarity movement. Her firing in 1980 ignited the strike at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk, which set off a wave of strikes in Poland, and quickly paralyzed the Baltic coast. The Interfactory Strike Committee based in the Gdansk shipyard eventually transformed itself into Solidarity trade union, of which Walentynowicz became a prominent member. By September, more than one million workers were on strike in support of the 21 demands of MKS, making it the largest strike ever. Her arrest became an organizing slogan: "Bring Anna Walentynowicz back to work!" in the early days of the Gdansk strike, and she is now widely regarded as the "mother of independent Poland".

General Ion Antonescu 1940-1946 (ROMANIA)

Antonescu was a R​omanian​marshal and statesman who became dictator of the pro-German government​during W​orld War II.​He established a military dictatorship and openly embraced the Axis powers. His "National Legionary State" briefly brought the Iron Guard to power as his partner, but, after a period of Guardist revolutionary and criminal excesses, he suppressed the organization. He at first secured widespread popular support for his domestic reform program and, as Germany's ally, for his declaration of w​ar​against the U.S.S.R. in pursuit of recovering Bessarabia​and northern B​ukovina.​His popular support gradually eroded, however, as manpower losses mounted on the Russian front. His regime was finally toppled by a coup d'etat in August 1944 led by King Michael; Antonescu subsequently was sentenced to death by the Romanian communist people's court and was executed as a war criminal in 1946.

Brezhnev Doctrine 1968

Articulated by Soviets to justify invasion of Czechoslovakia that ended the Prague Spring, and invasion of Hungary (1956) - meant to limit independence of satellite states' communist parties but no country could compromise cohesiveness of E. Bloc (can't leave Warsaw Pact) superseded by Sinatra Doctrine in 1989.

Edvard Benes 1935-1938 (CZECH)

Benes was a leader of the C​zechoslovak​independence movement, Minister of Foreign Affairs and the second P​resident of Czechoslovakia​from 1935 to 1938 and again from 1940 to 1948. He was known as a skilled diplomat. During W​orld War I,​Beneš was one of the leading organizers of an independent Czechoslovakia from abroad. In September 1915, he went into exile,​and in Paris he made intricate diplomatic efforts to gain recognition from France and the United Kingdom for the Czechoslovak independence movement.

Béla Kún 1919 (HUNGARY)

Béla Kún was a communist leader and head of the Hungarian Soviet Republic of 1919. He founded the Hungarian Communist party on December 20, 1918. His extensive propaganda combined social agitation with promises that, if given power, he would secure Soviet aid against the Romanian forces then occupying parts of Hungary. After his release from prison in 1919, he assumed the dominant position in a new Communist-Social Democratic coalition government. His regime took advantage of an upsurge of popular nationalism and created a Red Army that rapidly reconquered a considerable portion of the territory lost to Czechoslovaks and Romanians. Kun also quickly eliminated the moderate elements of the government though terroristic measures. Soviet help, however, failed to arrive and Kun alienated the peasantry by nationalizing Hungary's estates rather than dividing them among the peasants. As a consequence, food distribution broke down, and the army refused to fight. The regime collapsed on August 1, 1919, and Kun fled to Vienna. He was eventually accused of Trotskyism and fell victim to one of Joseph Stalin's purges in the late 1930s.

Nicolae Ceaușescu 1967-1989 (ROMANIA)

Came to power in March 1967 after death of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Rej. Asserted more independence from Moscow. One of the few to denounce the Soviet invasion after the Prague Spring. Had a balance between East and West (willing to work with the West). In mid-1960s, launched a strategy to establish a unified national state, ethnically. Forced Germans to emigrate, and Hungarians were forced to assimilate under administrative, educational, and economic policies. Dictator of Romania, did not empathize with the public at all, and during protests against his dictatorship, he ordered his personal security force, the Securitate, to fire on the protestors. Only communist leader whose fall was violent; created a cult of personality around himself and his wife Elena, and their children.

Charter 77 1976-1992 (CZECH)

Charter 77 was an informal civic initiative in communist Czechoslovakia from 1976 to 1992 named after the document Charter 77 from January 1977. The Charter criticized the government for failing to implement human rights provisions of a number of documents it had signed. Spreading the text of Charter 77 was considered a political crime by the communist regime. Several means of retaliation were used against the signatories, including dismissal from work, denial of educational opportunities for their children, suspension of drivers' licenses, forced exile, loss of citizenship, and detention, trial, and imprisonment. After the 1989 Velvet Revolution, many of its members played important roles in Czech and Slovak politics.

"Little Stalin" Vulko Chervenkov 1950-1954 (BULGARIA)

Cherenkov was a Bulgarian communist politician. He served as leader of the Communist Party between 1950 and 1954, and Prime Minister between 1950 and 1956. Cherenkov was the brother-in-law of Georgi Dimitrov (former Bulgarian communist party and state leader). Chervenkov became a member of the government which took office soon after the end of World War II in 1945 which quickly came to be controlled by Communists. He became minister of culture in 1947, and became deputy prime minister in 1949. Shortly after  becoming deputy prime minister, Bulgarian leader Georgi Dimitrov died and Bulgaria temporarily adopted a model of collective leadership, with Chervenkov becoming general secretary of the party and Vasil Kolarov becoming prime minister. Kolarov died in 1950, and Chervenkov was able to fuse the two most powerful offices in Bulgaria once again, with full Soviet approval. Chervenkov's policies closely resembled those of the Soviet Union at the time, which earned him the nickname "Little Stalin". His rule featured harsh repression of all deviation from the party line, arbitrary suppression of culture and the arts along the lines of Socialist realism, personality cult and an isolationist foreign policy

Club 231 (​CZECH)

Club 231 brought together former political prisoners in Czechoslovakia and was founded amidst the development of new spaces for freedom of the press and other societal activities during the Prague Spring. The group aimed at rehabilitating judicial, civil, property, political and moral justice.

Cominform 1947-1956

Cominform was a S​oviet-​dominated organization of Communist parties founded in September 1947 at a conference of C​ommunist party​leaders in S​zklarska Poręba,​P​oland.​Soviet leader Josef Stalin​called the conference in response to divergences among communist governments on whether or not to attend the P​aris Conference​on M​arshall Aid​in July 1947. The intended purpose of Cominform was to coordinate actions between Communist parties under Soviet direction.The Cominform was dissolved in 1956 after Soviet r​approchement​with Yugoslavia and the process of D​e-Stalinization.​

So-called Normalization (CZECH)

Czechoslovakia, Husak brought in after the riot in February 1968 and replaced Dubcek, rollback all the changes that occurred before (talk of getting rid of leading role of party, rethinking structure of society), reassert leading role of the party, normalize mass orgs to transmission belts, accompanied by massive personnel purges--leads to period of 20 years of stagnation in culture, politics, economy, society.

Gheorge Gheorgiu-Dej 1948-1964 (ROMANIA)

Dej was the c​ommunist​leader of R​omania​from 1948 until his death in 1964, coming into power through violent purges of his rivals. During his reign, he instituted the main tenants of "high Stalinism", including show trials, secret police (the Securitate) and coercion. His widespread use of the secret police instituted fear among society. He also instituted  collectivization and a heavy focus on industrialization along Soviet lines. Dej died in 1964 and was succeeded by Caucesceau.

Democratic centralism

Democratic centralism is a principle of Communist party organization by which members take part in policy discussions and elections at all levels but must follow decisions made at higher levels. During the Stalinist era, the principle of democratic centralism existed. Under Brezhnev, this de facto agreement became part of the 1977 Soviet Constitution and extended to all elections, combining central leadership with local initiative.

Elena Ceausescu 1973-1989 (ROMANIA)

Elana was the wife of Romania's Communist leader Nicolae Ceaușescu, and Deputy Prime Minister of Romania.In June 1973 she became a member of the Politburo of the Romanian Communist Party, becoming the second most important and influential person after Ceauşescu himself. She was deeply involved in party administration alongside her husband, and was one of the few spouses of a Communist Party boss to become a power in her own right.A strong cult of personality developed around her. She and her husband fled following the Romanian Revolution in December 1989, and she was executed on Christmas Day of that same year.

Benes Decrees 1940-1945 (CZECH)

Officially called the Decrees of the President of the Republic but known as the Beneš decrees, these extremely controversial laws issued between 1940 and 1945 were issued during World War II by the Czechoslovak government-in-exile in London as there was no Parliament and later by the first postwar government of Czechoslovakia. The decrees declared that Germans, Hungarians, traitors and collaborators living in the Czech lands and Slovakia would have to relinquish their Czechoslovak citizenship and their property without compensation. Furthermore, approximately three million ethnic Germans and Hungarians were expelled from the country from 1945 to 1947. Some 19,000 Germans died in the process of moving and another 6,000 were murdered.

Self-Management 1949-1950s (YUGOSLAVIA)

Faced with economic stagnation, a Soviet-bloc trade embargo, dwindling popularity, and a dysfunctional Soviet-style economic system, Yugoslav leaders returned to the core of their  philosophy, the writings of Marx. Their aim was to reassess their ideology and lay the groundwork for a new economic mechanism called Socialist (or workers') self-management. Enterprises formed prototype workers' councils in 1949, and the Federal Assembly passed laws in 1950 and 1951 to implement the system fully. These laws replaced state ownership of the means of production with social ownership, entrusting management responsibilities to the workers of each enterprise. The laws empowered enterprise workers' councils to set broad production goals and supervise finances, but government-appointed directors retained veto power over council decisions. The government also reformed economic planning and freed some prices to fluctuate according to supply and demand, but foreign trade remained under central control. Living conditions, health care, education, and cultural life improved in the wake of the economic and political reforms. In the mid-1950s, the government redirected investment toward production of consumer goods, and foreign products became widely available. The regime also relaxed its religious restrictions, allowed for a degree of public criticism, curbed abuse of privileges by party officials, and reduced the powers of the secret police. Travel restrictions eased.

Imre Nagy (HUNGARY)

First Communist minister of agriculture in Hungary, became prime minister after Stalin's death. Nagy tried to push for reforms in the party, was replaced by the more conservative Rákosi when the Kremlin felt he overstepped his limits. He was brought back as prime minister in Hungary in the wake of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. The government at this time denounced the Warsaw Pact while Soviet troops were killing demonstrators; Nagy refused to resign as prime minister, and he and similar-minded leaders were arrested, sent Romania, then tried and executed, and buried in an unmarked grave. The memorial service and reburial of Nagy in 1989 signalled the end of communism in Hungary.

Cetniks (CROATIA)

Freedom fighters - Serbian support of Nazi control in Croatia, WWII, pattern of terror and counter terror. Serbian nationalist fighters in WWII. Fought the Nazis and the Croats/Ustase.

Collectivization

Goal to consolidate individual land and labor into collective farms. It was believed that collective farms could produce better than individual peasant farms. Thought of as the solution to the crisis of agricultural distribution, believed it would increase food supply, raw materials for industry, and agricultural exports. High production quotas caused resentment and strikes. Bad harvests and food distribution caused issues.

Enver Hoxha 1941-1985​(ALBANIA)

Hoxha was the first communist chief of state of A​lbania,​very authoritative. As that country's ruler for 40 years after W​orld War II,​he forced its transformation from a semi-feudal relic of the O​ttoman Empire​into an industrialized economy with the most tightly controlled s​ociety​in Europe.​The economy was revolutionized under Hoxha; agricultural collectivization, boost in industrial investment and production. In order to enforce his radical program changes, he resorted to brutal Stalinist tactics of coercion. Private property was all confiscated, and religious, cultural and intellectual institutions were either shut down or put in control of the state. He also cut several ties with other countries, claiming that Albania could survive on its own.

Gustav Husak 1969-1987 (CZECH)

Husak was a Slovak politician, president of C​zechoslovakia​and a long-term Secretary General of the C​ommunist​Party of Czechoslovakia (1969-1987). His rule is known as the period of the so-called "N​ormalization"​after the P​rague Spring.​Husak reversed Dubček's reforms and purged the party of its liberal members in 1969-71. He then concentrated on managing the nation's e​conomy​while keeping a tight rein on internal dissent. He added the post of president​to his other titles in 1975. Husak yielded his post as general secretary in 1987, when his opposition to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's program of p​erestroika​("restructuring") had put him out of touch with events. Communist rule collapsed in Czechoslovakia in late 1989, and that December Husak resigned as president and was succeeded in that o​ffice​by the playwright and former dissident V​aclav Havel.​

Helsinki Accords of 1975

In 1971, the Warsaw pact countries proposed a conference with NATO to discuss European Security. The conference began in Helsinki in 1973 with thirty three countries attending. Effort to reduce tension between Soviet and Western blocs by common acceptance of the post WWII status quo in Europe. These accords were nonbinding and were not treaties. The West saw the acceptance of these issues by the communist states of Eastern Europe as a significant step forward. In reality, the Soviet bloc governments ignored or paid lip service to the human rights agreement. 

Kadar Compromise​(​HUNGARY)

In July 1957, Kadar appeased hard-liners in Hungary and abroad by agreeing to re-collectivize agriculture. Hungary became the only country with a centrally planned economy where crop output increased as a result of collectivization.

Kuroń-Modzelewski Open Letter 1964 (POLAND)

In Poland in 1964, Jacek Kuroń and K​arol Modzelewski​wrote T​he Open Letter to the Party.​ In this letter they criticized a new ruling and bureaucratic class and suggested replacing the existing system with workers' d​emocracy,​including organizing a referendum according to which major decisions concerning a distribution of national income would be made. The immediate aim was to have a consent of all workers to make decisions on economic plans. The critique was closely related to the ideas of M​arxism​and T​rotskyism.​In 1965, They were sentenced to three years in prison for writing T​he Open Letter to the Party.​

"he who is not against us is with us"- Kadar (1961)​(HUNGARY)

In his rally speeches, Kadar said this in stark contrast to Rakosi's "he who is not with us is against us" tagline. It symbolized the easing of restrictions of freedom of speech and movement under Kadar, as well as some cultural activities in Hungary.

Jakub Berman 1944-1953 (POLAND)

Jakub Berman was a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party. Between 1944 and 1953, he was considered Joseph Stalin's right hand in the People's Republic of Poland - in charge of the notorious State Security Services Urzad Bezpieczenstwa, the largest secret police in Polish history and one of its most repressive institutions. In addition, he was responsible for propaganda and ideology.

Wojciech Jaruzelski 1981-1985

Jaruzelski was a Polish army general and political leader who served as premier chairman of the Council of State and president during the final years of communist rule in Poland, but he eventually oversaw the country's move to a market economy and a multiparty democracy. In an effort to crush the Solidarity trade union which was greatly pressuring the country and restore economic stability, he declared martial law in Poland in December 1981. The move was accompanied by mass arrests of political dissidents and Solidarity leaders. With Solidarity suppressed, Jaruzelski lifted martial law in July 1983 but remained firmly in control of both the Polish government and the PUWP. Though adept at suppressing the political opposition, Jaruzelski proved less successful in his efforts to restore Poland's stagnant economy. In 1988 he changed course and approved negotiations between the government and the outlawed Solidarity. Those talks culminated in April 1989 in an agreement providing for far-reaching reforms in Poland's political system, notably the legalization of Solidarity, the holding of free elections to a restructured Parliament, and the conversion of the hitherto largely ceremonial post of president into an office carrying strong executive powers. Jaruzelski was elected President in 1989 and then resigned. He was charged with crimes related to the 1981 imposition of martial law, but the trial was suspended in 2011 when he was diagnosed with cancer.

Josip Broz Tito 1935-1938 (YUGOSLAVIA)

Josip Broz Tito was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman, serving in various roles from 1943 until his death in 1980. During World War II he was the leader of the Partisans, often regarded as the most effective resistance movement in occupied Europe. During his presidency, his internal policies successfully maintained the peaceful coexistence of the nations of the Yugoslav federation.

Laszlo Rajk Jr. (HUNGARY)

Laszlo Rajk Jr. is a Hungarian architect, designer, and political activist. As an architect, he became the member of the Hungarian avant garde movement. From 1975 he joined the Democratic Opposition, the underground political movement in Hungary, therefore from  1980 he was blacklisted, and was not allowed to work under his own name. In 1981 he founded the independent, underground AB Publishing House, and ran an illegal bookstore from his apartment. In 1988 he was one of the founders of the Network of Free Initiatives and the liberal party, the Alliance of Free Democrats, and served six years in the Hungarian Parliament after free elections in 1990. Recently he has worked as an architect and a production designer for films and taught film architecture at the Hungarian Film Academy in Budapest.

Vladimír Mečiar 1991-1998 (SLOVAKIA)

Meciar is a former S​lovak​politician who served three times as P​rime Minister of Slovakia serving from 1990 to 1991, from 1992 to 1994, and from 1994 to 1998. He is the leader of the People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia​(ĽS-HZDS). Mečiar led Slovakia to disengagement from the C​zech Republic​in January 1993 and was one of the leading presidential candidates in Slovakia in 1999 and 2004. He has been criticised by his opponents as well as by Western political organisations for having an a​utocratic​style of administration and for his alleged connections to organized crime.

Stanislaw Mikolajczyk (POLAND)

Mikolajczyk was a Polish statesman who tried to establish a democratic, non-Soviet regime in Poland after WWII. He fled to London after the German invasion of Poland in 1939. He served as minister of the interior of the Polish government in exile then became deputy Prime Minister and eventually Prime Minister from 1943-44. In 1945, Mikolajczyk returned to Poland and joined the Communist-dominated provisional government as second deputy premier and minister of agriculture and land reform. At the Potsdam Conference, he pressed the interests of a free Poland- the condition was agreed upon, but ignored. Mikolajczyk's Peasant Party leaders, as the only non-Communist opposition, suffered from repeated intimidation and arrests. When the manipulated election of 1947 foreshadowed a Stalinist takeover, Mikolajczyk fled to England and then to the US.

Slobodan Milosevic 1989-1997 (SERBIA)

Milosevic was a Serbian and Y​ugoslav​politician who was the P​resident​of S​erbia​from 1989 to 1997 and President of the F​ederal Republic of Yugoslavia​from 1997 to 2000. He also led the Socialist Party of Serbia​from its foundation in 1990. He rose to power as Serbian President after he and his supporters claimed need to reform the 1​974 Constitution of Yugoslavia​due to alleged marginalization of Serbia and political incapacity for Serbia to deter Albanian separatist unrest in the province of K​osovo.​Several major reforms to Serbia's constitution in the 1980s to the 1990s that reduced the powers of the autonomous provinces in Serbia and in 1990 transitioned Serbia from a M​arxist-Leninist​s​ingle-party system​to a m​ulti-party system,​ attempted reforms to the 1974 Constitution of Yugoslavia, the b​reakup of Yugoslavia​and the outbreak of the subsequent Y​ugoslav Wars,​the founding of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by the former SFRY republics of Serbia and Montenegro, negotiating the D​ayton Agreement on behalf of the Bosnian Serbs that ended the B​osnian War​in 1995, and his overthrow in 2000. Milošević r​esigned​the Yugoslav presidency amid demonstrations, following the  disputed presidential election of 24 September 2000 and has been charged with war crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

János Kádár 1956-1988 (HUNGARY)

More moderate Communist leader. General Secretary of Hungarian Socialist Workers Party. Allows rescue of those with good-standing, regime defines dissidents - Hungary ignored after harsh initial period, political loosening because many communist opponents left (exodus), his rule was marked by what would later become known as 'Goulash Communism'. He pushed for an improvement in the standard of living, engaged in international trade with Western  Europe, Kadar compromise working with intellectuals no one would oppose communism, "he who is not against us is with us" in contrast to Rakosi. New Economic Mechanism.

Antonin Novotny 1957-1968 (CZECH)

Novotny was G​eneral Secretary​of the C​ommunist Party of Czechoslovakia​from 1953 to 1968, and also held the post of P​resident of Czechoslovakia​from 1957 to 1968. A hardline supporter of S​talinism​before and after the death of the Soviet leader, Novotný was forced to yield the reins of power to A​lexander Dubček​during the short-lived reform movement of 1968.

Ethnic Cleansing

Particularly prominent during the Bosnian War and came to be known as the "Bosnian Genocide" (Led by Milosevic). T​he e​thnic cleansing campaign​that took place throughout areas controlled by the Bosnian Serbs (majority O​rthodox)​through the VRS targeted Bosniaks (majority M​uslim)​and Bosnian Croats (majority C​atholic)​. The ethnic cleansing campaign included unlawful confinement, murder, r​ape,​sexual assault, torture, beating, robbery and inhumane treatment of civilians; the targeting of political leaders, intellectuals and professionals; the unlawful deportation and transfer of civilians; the unlawful shelling of civilians; the unlawful appropriation and plunder of real and personal property; the destruction of homes and businesses; and the destruction of places of worship

Islands of Creative Deviation

People who kept their jobs and positions in real life but participated in the opposition.

Baggage train communism

Poland, East Germany, Bulgaria, Romania. Cases where Red Army liberated the country and then installed hand picked leaders, who had been set to the Soviet Union, to start Communist rule. External control, leaders had the Soviet Model as direction.

Matyas Rakosi 1945-1956 (HUNGARY)

Rakosi was the leader of Hungary's Communist Party from 1945 - 1956. His rule was aligned with USSR politics during Joseph Stalin's government. He used salami tactics to destroy the non-Communist forces in the country by "cutting them off like slices of salami." He gave the non-Communist parties an ultimatum: cooperate with a new, Communist-dominated coalition government or go into exile. Approximately 350,000 officials and intellectuals were purged under his rule. Rákosi imposed totalitarian rule on Hungary — arresting, jailing and killing both real and imagined foes in various waves of Stalin-inspired political purges- as the country went into decline.

Günter Schabowski (GERMANY)

Schabowski is a former official of the S​ocialist Unity Party of Germany​(SED), the ruling party during most of the existence of the G​erman Democratic Republic.​Schabowski gained worldwide fame in November 1989 when he improvised a slightly mistaken answer to a press conference question, raising popular expectations so rapidly that massive crowds gathered the same night at the B​erlin Wall,​forcing its opening after 28 years; soon after, the entire i​nner German border​was opened.

Franco-Soviet Mutual Assistance Treaty 1935

Signed on May 2, 1935, both countries agreed to consult with each other if either country found itself in danger of attack by any European state and immediately to come to the aid of the attacked country.

Munich Agreement 1938 (CZECH)

Signed on September 30, 1938, the Munich Agreement was a settlement permitting Nazi Germany's annexation of portions of Czechoslovakia along the country's borders mainly inhabited by German speakers, for which a new territorial designation "Sudetenland" was coined. The agreement was negotiated between the main powers of Europe without the presence of Czechoslovakia, and is today regarded as a failed act of appeasement toward Germany. Because the state of Czechoslovakia was not invited to the conference, it felt betrayed by the United Kingdom and France, especially because Sudetenland was of immense strategic importance to the country, as most of its border defenses were situated there, and many of its banks and heavy industries were located there as well. In 1939 Germany invaded, essentially ending democracy in Czechoslovakia.

Silesia

Silesia, a historical region that is now in southwestern Poland, was originally a Polish province. Nazi Germany reacquired Upper Silesia with its conquest of Poland in 1939. The Germans killed or deported many educated Silesian Poles during W​orld War II​and filled the area with German settlers. But German-held Silesia was overrun in early 1945 by the Soviet Red Army. In August 1945 the Allied powers agreed to assign nearly all of Silesia to Poland and to transfer the region's German population to Allied-administered Germany. The Red Army and the Poles then forcibly expelled the Silesian Germans to the west, in the process committing atrocities as serious as those previously perpetrated by the Germans on the Silesian Poles. More than three million Germans left Silesia, and the area was repopulated by Poles from the east and north. Silesia's devastated industries were subsequently rebuilt.

Alexander Dubcek 1968-1969 (CZECH)

Slovak politician and head of Slovak Communist Party. Prague spring- attempt to find a form of socialism better suited for a western developed country. Socialism with a human face. Delayed de-Stalinization. Biggest effort to reform socialism under communism, initiated by the Communist Party. Wanted to eliminate most repressive aspects of Communism- allowed for greater freedom of expression and toleration of political and social organizations not under Communist control. Dubcek was forced to resign after the Warsaw Pact.

Socialist Realism

Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which developed under Socialism in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having as its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism. All material goods and means of production belonged to the community as a whole; this included means of producing art, which were also seen as powerful propaganda tools. It was the officially approved type of art in the Soviet Union for nearly sixty years. The style often glorified the roles of the meek and working class and the struggle for its emancipation.

Solidarity est. 1980 (POLAND)

Solidarity is a Polish trade union federation that emerged August 31, 1980 at the Gdansk Shipyard under the leadership of Lech Walesa. It was the first non-Communist Party-controlled trade union in a Warsaw Pact country. In the 1980's, Solidarity was a broad anti-bureaucratic social movement, using the methods of civil resistance to advance the causes of workers' rights and social change. The government attempted to destroy the union during the period of martial law in the early 1980's and several years of political repression, but in the end it was forced to negotiate with the union.

2,000 Words 1968 (CZECH)

The "Two Thousand Words" is a manifesto written by Czech reformist writer Ludvik Vaculik in the midst of the Prague Spring, a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia that began in January 1968. In essence, the manifesto was a call for the people of Czechoslovakia to hold their party accountable to standards of openness - not open revolution. Vaculik began with an assessment of how the nation had declined under the CCP, painting a picture of moral and economic decay in which workers made no decisions for themselves.

Action Program 1968 (CZECH)

The Action Programme is a political plan, devised by A​lexander Dubček​and his associates in the C​ommunist Party of Czechoslovakia​(KSČ), that was published on April 5, 1968. The program suggested that the C​zechoslovak Socialist Republic​(ČSSR) find its own path towards mature s​ocialism​rather than follow the S​oviet Union.​AP called for the acknowledgment of individual liberties, the introduction of political and economic reforms, and a change in the structure of the nation. In many ways, the document was the basis for P​rague Spring​and prompted the ensuing W​arsaw Pact​i​nvasion of the ČSSR​in August 1968.

Arrow Cross (HUNGARY)

The Arrow Cross Party was a national socialist party led by Ferenc Szalasi, which led in Hungary a government known as the Government of National Unity from October 1944 to March 1945. During its short rule, ten to fifteen thousand people, most of whom were Jews, were murdered outright, and 80,000 people were deported from Hungary to their deaths in the Auschwitz concentration camp. After the war, Szalasi and other Arrow Cross leaders were tried as war criminals by Soviet courts. The party's ideology was similar to that of Nazism - extreme nationalism, the promotion of agriculture, anti-capitalism, anti-communism, and militant anti-Semitism.

Catholic Church (POLAND)

The Catholic Church had greatest significance to Poland, given that the Soviets actually left the Roman Catholic Church alone and did not suppress it (as they would suppress other churches and religions in the region.) The Communists initially treated the Roman Catholic Church well in the late 1940s because they were not the strongest party yet, and could be challenged by the Peasant and Socialist parties. Religion was never outlawed and was permitted by the constitution, however, the state nevertheless directed efforts at achieving the goal of an atheistic society.The Catholic Church, as the religion of most Poles, was seen as a rival competing for the citizens' allegiance by the government, and therefore the government attempted to suppress it. It became the strongest opponent of the regime throughout communism's existence in Poland and provided a more successful resistance than had religious bodies in most other communist states.

CMEA/Comecon 1941-1991

The Council of Mutual Economic Assistance was an economic organization from 1949 to 1991 under the leadership of the Soviet Union that comprised the countries of the Eastern bloc along with a number of socialist states elsewhere in the world. The Comecon was the Eastern bloc's reply to the formation of the Organization for European Economic Cooperation in Western Europe. The primary factors in Comecon's formation appear to have been Joseph Stalin's desire to cooperate and strengthen the international socialist relationship at an economic level with the lesser states of Central Europe, and which were then cut off from their traditional markets and suppliers in the rest of Europe. The ultimate goal of Comecon was to prevent countries in the Soviets' sphere of influence from moving towards that of the Americans and South-East Asia.

Dimitrov Constitution 1947-1971 (BULGARIA)

The Dimitrov Constitution was the C​onstitution of Bulgaria​in effect from 1947 to 1971. G​eorgi Dimitrov,​after whom the document is named, guided the framing of the 1947 constitution on the model of the 1​936 constitution of the Soviet Union.​The Dimitrov Constitution guaranteed citizens equality before the law; freedom from discrimination; a universal welfare system; freedom of speech, the press, and assembly; and inviolability of person, domicile, and correspondence. But those rights were qualified by a clause prohibiting activity that would jeopardize the attainments of the national revolution of September 9, 1944. Citizens were guaranteed employment but required to work in a socially useful capacity.​The constitution also prescribed a planned national economy.Private property was allowed, if its possession was not "to the detriment of the public good.

Gdansk Agreement 1980 (POLAND)

The Gdansk Agreement was an accord reached as a direct result of the strikes that took place in Gdansk, Poland. Workers along the Baltic went on strike in August 1980 in support of the 21 demands of MKS which eventually led to the creation of Solidarity. The strikes were a result of Poland's terrible economic situation and the increase in food prices. Due to the popular support of the citizens and other striking groups, the workers in Gdansk held out until the government gave into their demands, and formed the Gdansk Agreement on August 31, 1980 as an authentic social contract with the government. This allowed citizens to bring democratic changes within the communist political structure. The main concern of the workers was the establishment of a trade union independent of communist party control and the legal right to strike. In creating these new groups, there would be a clear representation of the workers' needs. The Agreement was really important to the politics of Poland because the strikes exposed the corruption and negligence within the state's leadership. In recognizing individual rights, such as the freedom of expression, the government was opened for the creation of civil societies. This allowed citizens to come together where all people can agree on human rights regardless of party beliefs.The problems caused by the labor movements and the ensuing Gdansk Agreement led to the removal of Gierek and the installation of Kania in September 1980.

Iron Guard 1927-1941 (ROMANIA)

The Iron Guard is the name most commonly given to a far-right movement and political party in Romania in the period from 1927 into the early part of World War II (1941). The Iron Guard was ultra-nationalist, fascist, anti-communist, and promoted the Orthodox Christian faith. It is also considered an anti-semitic organization, an ideology even going so far as to demand the introduction of "state anti-semitism". When Ion Antonescu came to power in September 1940 he brought the Iron Guard into the government. The Guard launched a murderous attack on Jews. In January 1941, however, Antonescu used the army to suppress a revolt of the Iron Guard. He destroyed the organization, and its commander Horia Sima and some other leaders escaped to Germany.

Worker's Defense Committee (KOR) est. 1976 (POLAND)

The KOR, or the Workers' Defense Committee, was a Polish civil society group that emerged under communist rule to give aid to prisoners and their families after the June 1976 protests and government crackdown. The KOR was an example of successful social organizing based on specific issues relevant to the public's daily lives. It was a precursor and inspiration for efforts of the Solidarity trade union a few years later.

National Front 1945-1989 (CZECH)

The National Front was the coalition of parties which headed the re-established Czechoslovakian government from 1945 to 1948. During the C​ommunist era in Czechoslovakia (1948-1989) it was the vehicle for control of all political and social activity by the C​ommunist Party of Czechoslovakia​(K​SČ)​.

Polish United Workers Party 1948-1989 (POLAND)

The PUWP was the Communist party which governed the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1989 and was ideologically based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism. The party controlled the bureaucracy, military, secret police and the economy with a strong hand and an aim to propagate communism around the globe. Technically, the party was organized on the basis of democratic centralism which assumed a democratic appointment of authorities, making decisions, and managing its activities. However, in reality, the key roles were played by the Central Committee, its Politburo and Secretariat. The party instituted the nomenklatura system of the state and economy management.

New Economic Mechanism 1956-1968 (HUNGARY)

The Period from 1956-1968 was one of reform in Eastern Europe. Having reached social peace, Kádár turned his attention to economic improvement. On May 7, 1966, the Central Committee of the HSWP announced Kádár's plans for the reform of the economy, known as the New Economic Mechanism (NEM). The reform is considered as "the most radical postwar change" of any Comecon country. The plan, which became official January 1, 1968, was a major shift to decentralization in an attempt to overcome the inefficiencies of central planning. The NEM represented a move away from the soviet economic system of compulsory plan indicators in favor of a policy that states profits as the enterprise's main goal. The new economic policy created market relationships among firms, used prices as allocative functions and firms responding to prices to maximize profits, and used profits to budget new investments.

Plastic People of the Universe (CZECH)

The Plastic People of the Universe is a rock band from Prague, Czech Republic. It was the foremost representative of Prague's underground culture (1968-1989). This avant-garde group went against the grain of the Communist regime and due to its non-conformism often suffered serious problems such as arrests. One of their arrests motivated the preparation of Charter 77 in 1976. The group continues to perform even after the death of its founder.

London Poles 1939- 1990

The Polish government-in-exile, formally known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile was the g​overnment in exile​of P​oland​formed in the aftermath of the I​nvasion of Poland​of September 1939, and the subsequent o​ccupation of Poland​by N​azi Germany​and the Soviet Union, which brought to an end the Second Polish Republic. Despite the occupation of Poland by hostile powers, the government-in-exile exerted considerable influence in Poland during W​orld War II​through the structures of the P​olish Underground State​and its military arm resistance. From 1940, following the Fall of France, the government moved from there to London,​and remained in E​ngland​until its dissolution in 1990.

Pope John Paul II (POLAND)

The Pope played a pivotal role in both opposing Soviet power and ultimately in the collapse of Communism in Poland. The Pope, born in Poland, felt a strong sense of affiliation with his homeland. He took initiative to denounce restrictions on religious freedoms as well as demote church leaders who negotiated with the communist party. He held a Mass during his papal visit to Poland in 1979 that is noted as perhaps triggering the fall of communism worldwide. The following year, the Catholic, anti-communist movement, The Solidarity trade union, emerged. The Pope was shot in 1981, and many believe it to have been a Soviet Union conspiracy. In 1989, the Pope met with Gorbachev, and the Soviet Union agreed to establish diplomatic relations with the Vatican. Gorbachev also pledged to allow greater religious freedom in the Soviet Union.

Prague Spring 1968 (CZECH)

The Prague Spring was a brief period of liberalization in Czechoslovakia under Alexander Dubcek in 1968. Soon after he became first secretary of the Czechoslovak Communist Party on January 5, 1968, Dubcek granted the press greater freedom of expression; he also rehabilitated victims of political purges during the Stalin era. In April he promulgated a sweeping reform program that included autonomy for Slovakia, a revised constitution to guarantee civil rights and liberties, and plans for the democratization of the government. Dubcek claimed that he was offering "socialism with a human face". By June many Czechs were calling for more rapid progress toward real democracy. Although Dubcek insisted that he could control the country's transformation, the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries viewed the developments as tantamount to counterrevolution. On the evening of August 20, Soviet armed forces invaded the country and quickly occupied it. As hard-line communists retook positions of power, the reforms were curtailed, and Dubcek was deposed the following April.

Securitate (ROMANIA)

The Securitate was the popular term for the secret police agency of Communist Romania. The organization was, in proportion to Romania's population, one of the largest secret police forces in the Eastern bloc. Under the regime of Nicolae Ceausescu, the Securitate employed some 11,000 agents and a half-million informers. The Securitate was one of the most brutal secret police forces in the world, responsible for the arrests, torture, and deaths of thousands of people.

Sinatra Doctrine

The Sinatra Doctrine was the name that the Soviet government of Mikhail Gorbachev used to describe its policy of allowing neighboring Warsaw Pact nations to determine their own internal affairs. The name alluded to the Frank Sinatra song "My Way"-- the Soviet Union was allowing these nations to go their own way. This was a major break with the earlier Brezhnev Doctrine, under which the internal affairs of satellite states were tightly controlled by Moscow. This had been used to justify the invasions of Czechoslovakia in 1968 as well as of the non-Warsaw Pact nation of Afghanistan in 1979. By the late 1980s, structural flaws within the Soviet system, growing economic problems, the rise of anti-communist sentiment and the effects of the Afghan war made it increasingly impractical for the Soviet Union to impose its will on its neighbors. The "Sinatra Doctrine" has been seen as Moscow giving permission to its allies to decide their own futures. The proclamation of the "Sinatra Doctrine" had dramatic effects across the Soviet bloc. The beleaguered East German government had hoped for a Soviet intervention to defend communism in E. Germany and elsewhere, however, the announcement of this doctrine signaled that the Soviets would not aid them. A few weeks later the Communist governments of East Germany, Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria were ousted, and two months later the Communist rulers of Romania suffered the same fate, signalling an end to the Cold War and to the division of Europe.

Sino-Albanian relations 1972-1978 (ALBANIA)

The Sino-Albanian split refers to the gradual worsening of relations between A​lbania​and the People's Republic of China​in the period 1972-78. Both countries had supported each other in the S​oviet-Albanian​and S​ino-Soviet splits,​together declaring the necessity of defending Marxism-Leninism​against what they regarded as S​oviet​r​evisionism​within the international communist movement. By the early 1970s, however, Albanian disagreements with certain aspects of Chinese policy deepened as the v​isit of Nixon to China​along with the Chinese announcement of the "T​hree Worlds Theory"​produced strong apprehension in Albania's leadership under E​nver Hoxha.​Hoxha saw in these events an emerging Chinese alliance with American imperialism and abandonment of proletarian internationalism. In 1978, China broke off its trade relations with Albania, signalling an end to the informal alliance which existed between the two states.

Treaty of Trianon 1920 (HUNGARY)

The Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement of 1920 to formally end World War I between most of the Allies of World War I and the Kingdom of Hungary, the latter one of the successor states to Austria-Hungary. The treaty regulated the status of an independent Hungarian state and defined its borders, leaving Hungary as a landlocked state. The areas that were allocated to neighboring countries in total possessed a majority of non-Hungarian population, but 3.3 million Hungarians were left outside of post-Trianon Hungary. The treaty limited Hungary's army and the country was forced to pay retributions.

Ukrainian Insurgent Army 1942-1949 (UPA) (UKRAINE)

The UPA was a Ukrainian military formation which fought from 1942 to 1949, mostly in Western Ukraine, against the German and Soviet occupational regimes. Its immediate purpose was to protect the Ukrainian population from German and Soviet repression and exploitation; its ultimate goal was an independent and unified Ukrainian state. German auxiliary police and guard units, composed not only of ethnic U​krainians​but also of other nationals who had served in the Red Army, defected to the UPA. The number of non-Ukrainian UPA soldiers grew rapidly, and peaked in the late fall of 1943.

Ustase 1929-1945 (YUGOSLAVIA)

The Ustase were members of the Ustasa-Croatian Revolutionary Movement, a Croatian fascist and terrorist organization active, in its original form, between 1929 and 1945. Its members murdered hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Jews, and Roma during WWII in Yugoslavia. The ideology of the movement was a blend of fascism and ultraconservatism. The Ustase supported the creation of a Greater Croatia, and the movement emphasized the need for a racially "pure" Croatia and promoted genocide against the Serbs, Jews, and Romani people. The Ustase were also fiercely Catholic, and identified Catholicism with Croatian nationalism. The movement originally functioned as a terrorist organization before WWII, but in 1941 they were appointed to rule a part of Axis-occupied Yugoslavia, basically a puppet state of Nazi Germany.

Two-Camp Policy 1946

The Zhdanov Doctrine was a S​oviet​cultural doctrine developed by C​entral Committee secretary A​ndrei Zhdanov​in 1946. It proposed that the world was divided into two camps: the "i​mperialistic"​, headed by the U​nited States​and put into focus by the Truman Doctrine; and "d​emocratic"​, headed by the S​oviet Union.​The main principle of the Zhdanov doctrine was often summarized by the phrase "The only conflict that is possible in Soviet culture is the conflict between good and best". Zhdanovism soon became a Soviet cultural policy, meaning that Soviet artists, writers and i​ntelligentsia​in general had to conform to the party line in their creative works. Under this policy, artists who failed to comply with the government's wishes risked persecution. The policy remained in effect until the death of J​oseph Stalin​in 1953.

Parallel hierarchies

The classic Soviet administrative model that existed until 1989 was based on two parallel hierarchies- that of the state and that of the Party- whose structures were replicated in each of the union republics but were controlled by the federal organs in Moscow. The state hierarchy, whose legislative councils consisted of "popularly elected" Soviet members (after running unopposed) was politically weak but conducted most of the administration. The parallel party hierarchy was much more politically powerful and set out rules, monitoring how well the state hierarchy implemented the policies.

"Socialism with a Human Face" (CZECH)

The program was an attempt to overcome the disillusionment of the people of Czechoslovakia with the political and economic situation at the time. As the name suggests, the plan was to breathe new life into the ideals of socialism, which had lost popular support due to the government policies of the previous two decades. It never intended to bring back market capitalism.

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (HUNGARY)

The spontaneous nationwide r​evolt​against the government of the H​ungarian People's Republic​and its S​oviet-​imposed policies (October 23- November 10 1956). Beginning as a leaderless student demonstration, It was the first major threat to Soviet control since the USSR's forces drove out the Nazis at the end of World War II and occupied Eastern Europe. As the students attempted to enter the radio building, they were fired upon by police, killing one and sparking the revolution. The Politburo first agreed to negotiate, then changed its mind and moved to crush the country-wide revolution. Soviet troops invaded, and the suppression resulted in mass arrests, denunciations, and less global support for communism. Despite the failure of the uprising, it was highly influential, and foreshadowed the downfall of the Soviet Union.

Salami tactics (HUNGARY)

The term was coined by orthodox communist leader Matyas Rakosi in the late 1940s to describe the actions of the Hungarian Communist Party. Rakosi claimed he destroyed the non-Communist parties by "cutting them off like pieces of salami". By portraying his opponents as fascists, he was able to get the opposition to slice off its right wing, then its centrists, then the more courageous left wingers, until only those fellow travelers willing to collaborate with the Communists remained in power.

Modified Pluralism

These tended to be countries that already major communist parties during the interwar period (though they didn't control the government). The communists already held some of the most important ministries such as those of agriculture, defense, and interior. The Soviets, when liberating the country during/after WWII, simply set up the coalition government. Hungary Followed more of a modified pluralism tactic; the communist party was far less popular than other parties at this point (especially the Smallholders' Party). Communist use salami tactics and slice off one bit at a time of other parties, and incorporate parties such as the Social Democrats into the Communist party.

Indigenous revolution

These were countries where the natives actually brought in communism and completely created it. Soviets had little to no role here, though that did not stop them from claiming that these countries still owed them. Yugoslavia: Tito and the Partisans helped free Belgrade from the Germans, while at the same time fighting against the Cetniks and the Ustasa- these countries typically used guerilla warfare. Albania had a communist revolution within its  nation. Initially allied with Yugoslavia, it used the later Tito-Stalin rift to ally with Moscow, and then after de-Stalinization, allied with China. They remained isolated.

Tito- Stalin Rift (YUGOSLAVIA)

Tito split relationship between Stalin and Tito, Yugoslavia were communist but not aligned with the soviets. Stalin tried to have Tito assassinated. It was said by the Soviets to be caused by Yugoslavia's disloyalty to the USSR, while in Yugoslavia and the West it was presented as Josip Broz Tito's national pride and refusal to submit to Joseph Stalin's will in making Yugoslavia a Soviet satellite state. Scholars now emphasize the cause was Stalin's rejection of Tito's plans to absorb Albania and Greece in cooperation with Bulgaria, thereby setting up a powerful Eastern Europe bloc outside Moscow's control.

Todor Zhivkov 1954-1989 (BULGARIA)

Todor Zhivkov was the communist head of state of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from 1954 to 1989. He was the longest-serving leader of any Eastern Bloc nation, and one of the longest ruling non-royal leaders in history. His rule marked a period of unprecedented political and economic stability for Bulgaria, marked both by complete submission of Bulgaria to Soviet directives and a desire for expanding ties with the West.

Milovan Djilas (YUGOSLAVIA)

Tudjman was a C​roat​politician who led the country to independence from Y​ugoslavia​in 1991 and who was president until his death. In 1989 Tudjman founded the C​roatian Democratic Union​(HDZ), which won Croatia's first free parliamentary elections in 1990. He pressed for the creation of a homogenous Croat state. When Serb areas of Eastern and Western Slavonia and the Krajina revolted, they were occupied by the Yugoslav army. Beginning in 1995, Tudjman reasserted control over these areas and established virtual control over portions of Bosnia and Herzegovina​with majority Croat populations. Although he signed the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement on Bosnia, his authoritarian style, along with his refusal to cooperate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, led to the international isolation of Croatia.

Yalta Conference 1945

WWII meeting of the heads of government from the US, UK and Soviet Union to discuss reorganization of Europe. Surrender and demilitarization of Germany. Germany split into 4  occupied zones, German reparations, Poland lines redrawn, free elections in Poland, Stalin agrees to participate in UN.

Civic Forum 1989-1990 (CZECH)

Was a political movement in the Czech part of Czechoslovakia, established during the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Its purpose was to unify the dissident forces in Czechoslovakia and to overthrow the Communist regime. They succeeded when the Communists gave up power after only 10 days of protest. Most of the members came from Prague based members of the Charter 77 dissident movement, but after the 1990 elections party unity vanished and the movement divided.

Ossie/Wessie (GERMANY)

Wessie is the informal name that people in Germany call former citizens of W​est Germany before reunification, while the counterpart for former citizens of E​ast Germany​is O​ssi.​These names represent the lingering differences between the two pre-reunification cultures. While some people in G​ermany​may consider these names insulting most people, others regard them as part of the G​erman culture.​

Wladyslaw Gomulka 1956-1970 (POLAND)

Wladyslaw Gomulka was the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party, the ruling communist party of Poland, from 1956 to 1970.

Lyudmila Zhikova (BULGARIA)

Zhikova was the daughter of B​ulgarian​Communist leader T​odor Zhivkov,​who reached the rank of senior B​ulgarian Communist Party​functionary and P​olitburo​member. Lyudmila Zhikova's office as the d​e facto​head of Bulgarian culture brought the nation's artistic community reasonably great freedom at a time when, after the crushing of the P​rague Spring,​ Soviet-bloc Communist orthodoxy was otherwise stricter than ever. She encouraged artists to travel abroad and also brought foreign art into Bulgaria. She established a number of cultural institutions.

Perestroika

​as a political movement for reformation within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during the 1980's (1986) associated with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and his glasnost policy reform. Literally, perestroika means "restructuring", referring to the restructuring of the soviet political and economic systems. It allowed more independent actions and introduced some market-like reforms, but the process of implementing the system resulted in exacerbated social and economic tensions already existing under socialism. It also increased nationalist sentiments among constituent republics. Perestroika is often argued to be the cause of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the 1989 revolutions in Eastern Europe, and the end of the Cold War.

Glasnost

​was the Soviet policy of open discussion of political and social issues. It was instituted by Mikhail Gorbachev in the late 1980s and began the democratization of the Soviet Union. Ultimately, fundamental changes to the political structure of the Soviet Union occurred: the power of the Communist Party was reduced, and multicandidate elections took place. Glasnosts also permitted criticism of government officials and allowed the media freer dissemination of news and information.