Actors without Society. The role of civil actors in the postcommunist transformation

Author(s): Srđan Dvornik / Language(s): English

This study is primarily based on experiences during activist commitments and in my working with international foundations. The encouragement to undertake the study came from Dr. Azra Džajic´-Weber, the director of the Regional Office of the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Sarajevo from 1998 to 2007. The work was originally conceived as a collection and interpretation of the experiences of a broad variety of civic actors in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia. In the early stage, however, it became obvious that it was necessary first to examine, and even “deconstruct,” the fundamental concepts that have framed the original approach. Rather than assuming that building democracy and rule of law was already underway – as well as the development of civil society – it turned out that many problems lay in those very assumptions. The most important is the problem of overlooking the fact that in the postcommunist transformation, society itself had yet to be established. // Therefore, the work in its final outcome is mostly dedicated to the very meaning of the basic determinants of the postcommunist transformation, in order to fathom the civic actors’ place within the newly defined framework. They are not referred to as a “civil society” but as civil actors, because it is they who, together with other factors, develop a society as a complex of autonomous relations and transactions, as well as a field for civic commitment.

Krstaški rat i slom evropskog socijalizma

Author(s): Aleksandar Sekulović / Language(s): Serbian

"Za tango je potrebno dvoje"

Author(s): Ildiko Erdei / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

Povratak otpisanih

Author(s): Mitja Velikonja / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

Problem interpretacije tranzicije iz "nerealnog socijalizma"

Author(s): Ines Prica / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

The goal of the paper is to denote the fundamental questions and problems of the (anthropological) interpretation of post socialism, commencing from its initial moment, that is, the identification of the event that indicates the establishment of transition as a social, political and cultural process. After assessing the circumstances of interpreting transition as a change of a global nature, particular consideration will be focused upon the local: how, principally in the Croatian social and humanist sciences, the question of "shift" is being reproduced considering the idiosyncrasies of the Yugoslav socialism.

Ljudi (koji nisu sasvim) kao mi. Kulturna konceptualizacija pojma privatnik u Srbiji

Author(s): Bojan Žikić / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

Unlike other transitional milieus, countries of the former Yugoslavia have had contact with privately owned business in their pre transitional period, i.e. in the era that preceded their economic, social and cultural transformation into capitalism. Private entrepreneurs in Serbia have always had a unique status from a legal, social, and culturally cognitive position. In the essay, preconditions and motives, through a cultural conceptualization viewpoint, are discussed.

Dimenzije ekonomije: prilog promišljanju privatizacije kao socio-kulturne transformacije

Author(s): Ildiko Erdei / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

The process of privatization, in other words the transformation of the former state owned, into private property, represents an element of the "transitional package" that brings about expectations of procurement for the ex-socialist societies into a state of "new economic normality" that is, in today’s societies and economy, represented by liberal capitalism. In the examination and analysis of the privatization through the economic, governing and expert milieus, this process is frequently situated in the context of economic and political study. In doing that, the investigation of the social and cultural implications of the process that stems from privatization representing not only a modification of the ownership structure, but a complex process in which there is an encounter of the different business and organizational cultures of "east" and " west", and through which they are subject to a reexamination and revision of some of the basic cultural categories, such as time, the idea of a person, concept of production, labor, as well as the questions of responsibility, freedom, creativity, independence, is recurrently being disregarded. From such a perspective, that is pursued by many anthropologists who deal with post-socialist countries, it comes about that privatization will foster, not only, a novel mode of ownership and a new breed of business, but primarily, a new category of social individuals, that are expected to epitomize the new economic and social order, in which they are successfully integrated, so as to reproduce it. In other words, the "disciplining" of the manufacturers, is intrinsically linked to the transformation of the logic of economy that is based upon the"independent consumer" that twists privatization into an ambiance in which questions of responsibility, choice, freedom and coercion, are discussed and negotiated. In this paper such queries will be inspected through a privatization of a local brewery in 2003, by a known, but not a leading world beer and beverage producer.

Od Morlaka do postsocijalizma. Tranzicija kao element mimikrijskog diskursa

Author(s): Tomislav Pletenac / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

The acknowledgement of post socialism as a specific culture that rose upon the remnants of the political and social system of Eastern Europe and Asia, was until the 90's, a marker of Western anthropological theory, as well as its ethnographic terrain. The proliferation of such a anthropological paradigm was frequently executed undermining the local practices. They were perceived as uninformed or nationalistic, and in the case of the Balkans, even indirectly responsible for the war and ethnic cleansing. Such denial of the local discourse, on the other hand has unlocked a contradiction through which it is perceived that the socijalist matrix was responsible for nationalism, even dough it was based upon class, and not a national identity. But such a paradox is a product of a more fundamental anthropological embeddedness in the Enlightenment etiquette that was built into the foundations of anthropology. Negation of the practices of others, and the introduction of "rational, better, more informed and advanced", is a precondition for the formation of the other in anthropology. Even if it seems that in the anthropology of post socialism we perceive a reinvention of such Enlightenment/colonial discourse, it can be exposed through the examples of the Dalmacija depiction by Albert Fortiss and Ivan Lovric that such development commenced long before, almost at the dawn of anthropology in Eastern Europe.

Demokratija i partijski sistem Republike Makedonije – osnovne karakteristike i stranputice

Author(s): Cane Mojanoski / Language(s): Serbian Publication Year: 0

Identităţile Chişinăului. Ediția a treia

Author(s): Virgil Pâslariuc,Sergius Ciocanu,Sergiu Tabuncic ,Vlad Vornic,Ion Ciobanu,Sergiu Bacalov,Teodor Candu,Viorel Bolduma,Bo Larsson,Anatolie Gordeev,Mariana Şlapac,Alla Ceastina,Lucia Sava,Natalia Derevenco,Diana Ețco,Ivan Duminica,Olga Garusova,Iurie Colesnic,Lucia Argint,Tamara Nesterov,Ion Ștefăniță,Silvia Scutaru,Dinu Poștarencu,Maria Danilov,Adrian Crăciunescu,Iulian Rusanovschi,Lidia Prisac,Alexandru Corduneanu,Sergiu Musteaţă,Alexandru Chîșlari,Oleg Copceac,Vlada Afteni,Natalia PODLESNAIA,Aurelia Carpov,Angela Munteanu / Language(s): Romanian

The book is a collection of papers on history, culture, architecture, heritage and urban development of Chisinau

Istoria Mănăstirii Hâncu (1677-2010)

Author(s): Alexei Agachi / Language(s): Romanian

The book on history of one monastery from Moldova - Hancu (1677-2010)

Procesele etno-culturale din spaţiul carpato-nistrean în secolele II-XIV. Istoriografia sovietică

Author(s): Sergiu Matveev / Language(s): Romanian

The book on soviet historiography of the ethnocultural processes in the Carpathian-Dniester

Post-Cold War Relations between Turkey and Syria

Author(s): Demet Şenbaş / Language(s): English

After 2000, there was a closeness in the relations of Syrian and Turkey. However, Turkey and Syria were in dispute about water, Hatay and terrorism. Especially there was an intense tension over terrorism. This tension brought the two countries to the brink of a war in 1998. We can say that the relations between Syria and Turkey normalized after Adana Agreement in 1998. When Bashar Al-Assad came to power in Syria and as did AKP in Turkey, the relations improved even further leading to the abolishment of visas in 2009. However, with the Arab Spring, the relations turned sour and reached to a point that can’t be normalized anymore. This book analyses the relations between Syria and Turkey between 1998 and 2018.

Oči pamte

Author(s): Jelena Radošević / Language(s): Serbian

Više je razloga zašto sam pisala ovu knjigu, osnovni je da se čita o Zapadnoj Slavoniji. Ne mogu da podnesem, naprosto sam ljubomorna dok čitam zapise, knjige, feljtone, ispovijesti o Vukovaru, Sarajevu, Benkovcu, Posavini, a Zapadna Slavonija se spominje tek povremeno, silom, ne sa žaljenjem, nego nekako sramežljivo. A Zapadna Slavonija je postojala i još uvijek postoji, kao što postoji i moj Voćin i bol za njim. Za Podravskom Slatinom. Sve dok se ne počne pisati zašto smo pobjegli, i da li smo pobjegli, da li smo se predali ili se i to moralo dogoditi, kao riječ Božja – sve dotad želim da se o Zapadnoj Slavoniji čita onako kako sam ja znala da za-pišem. Kad se o nama prestane šaputati, nego se počne glasno govoriti i pisati, tada više neće biti bitno tko je kriv za odlazak mog naroda. Tada će se emocije stišati, zaboravićemo koliko nam je bilo hladno kad smo u decembru 1991. prelazili Papuk, Psunj i rijeku Rogoljicu dok se u prostorijama gdje je tog istog mjeseca potpisivan Vensov plan živa penjala i preko 25 stupnjeva.

The Birth and Death of Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia – Developing Polypeitharchic History

Author(s): Srđan Mladenov Jovanović / Language(s): English

A third of my adult life I have lived in what used to be known as the capital of Yugoslavia, Belgrade. The second third I have spent in what was known as Czechoslovakia, in the Moravian city of Olomouc. Yet both countries came into existence and ceased to exist within the 20th century. Many would say that similarities were aplenty. Both countries were formed in the immediate aftermath of the Great War (though Yugoslavia was initially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes), both suffered immensely during World War II, both endured almost half a century of Communist rule, both expired by the end of the century. However, the differences were far greater than the similarities, especially when it comes to the breakup of the two states, as ‘the process of that breakup was vastly different in the two states: it was virtually painless in Czechoslovakia, while it is excruciatingly painful in Yugoslavia’ (Bookman 1994, 175). Much has been written on the two topics, with the death of Yugoslavia probably receiving the most attention, due to the sheer brutality of the bloody breakup during the 1990s, yet a comparative research – to my knowledge – has seen scant attention, with a few notable exceptions (Bookman 1994, Bunce 1999). [...]

Putinova Rusija

Author(s): Anna Stepanovna Politkovskaya / Language(s): Serbian

Internationally admired for her fearless reporting, award-winning journalist Anna Politkovskaya turns her steely gaze on President Putin and his early regime in this book.From Putin’s tyrannical grip on ordinary citizens to rampant corruption in highest ranks of the government, as well as Mafia dealings, scandals in the provinces and the decline of the intelligentsia, Politkovskaya offers a scathing condemnation of the President and his rule, revealing a shocking state of affairs: soldiers dying from malnutrition, parents requiring to bribes to recover their dead sons' bodies and conscripts are being hired out as slaves.More relevant and important than ever in today’s political landscape, Putin's Russia is both a gripping portrayal of a country in crisis and the testament of an extraordinary reporter.

Zakładnicy historii. Mniejszość polska w postradzieckiej Litwie

Author(s): Barbara Jundo-Kaliszewska / Language(s): Polish

The author presents a historical approach to the issue of the Polish national revival in the contemporary Vilnius region in the late 1980s and early 1990s, paying particular attention to the efforts aimed at establishing an autonomous Polish-speaking administrative unit within Lithuania. The theme of nationality policy in the countries of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is continually returning in the international public sphere. For political reasons, the events described in the book have historically been controversial and continue to affect bilateral relations between Poland and Lithuania; their origin is therefore well worth learning about.

100 of the most pressing Issues in the Republic of Moldova in 2007

Author(s): Ion Marandici,Dumitru Lazur,Ion Guzun,Stela Guzun,Nadejda Caprar,Diana Cheianu-Andrei,Olesea Cruc,Alexandru Lesanu / Language(s): English

The peculiarity of 2007 was the fact that it was the last year of the implementation of the EU Action Plan by the Republic of Moldova facing a severe drought. In 2006, the authorities of the Republic of Moldova had put forth the efforts to convince the European officials and the western partners of the possibilities of the country to implement the stipulations of the Action Plan RM-EU, the efforts have been materialized by the creating and sending reports regarding the implementation of the RM-EU AP. In 2007, the Moldovan authorities are facing the situation when they have to prove to the citizens and to themselves that the implementation of the Action Plan RM-EU did not represent just efforts but also clear results in bringing Moldova closer to EU. Or the implementation of this very document represented a capacity and availability test of the Republic of Moldova to approach the European Union. // This smart product offers comparative and analytical elements for the adoption of some superior techniques of evaluation of some decisions that involve important costs for our society. Meanwhile, the intention of the authors of this study is to encourage critical thinking and comparative approach regarding drafting of efficient and effective public policies as well as qualitative growth of the level of public debates on these issues of interest.

Тридцять років незалежності України: соціально-економічні підсумки та стратегічні візії майбутнього

Author(s): Ya. A. Shalilo,Ya. B. Vasilyuk,O. O. Kolomiets / Language(s): Ukrainian

Ukraine gained Independence thirty years ago. This fateful event in the development of the Ukrainian nation became at the same time a powerful challenge for the people of Ukraine in terms of their ability to purposefully and consistently build the basis for the realization of their sovereign rights. Further development has shown that the idea of ​​the inviolability of the value of Ukraine's sovereignty as a young European state has taken root in the minds of the vast majority of citizens. Profound changes have taken place in all spheres of life: from public consciousness to the national economy. The ability of Ukrainian society to resolutely resist the hybrid influence of the Russian Federation (RF), the desire to overcome the "gravity" of the eastern neighbor, the desire to build their own direction of European integration showed that Ukraine has achieved much greater success in gaining real sovereignty than most other post-Soviet countries. // Political and mental sovereignty must be logically continued in building a viable integrated and competitive national economy, which allows to fully realize the potential of independence for making and implementing sovereign decisions on the future development of the country and nation. The paradigm of perception of the country's independence must change: it is no longer a question of "independence from" but of "independence for" - independence for the implementation of a sovereign strategy of social development based on the realization of national interests, consolidated common vision of the future. // In the field of practical realization of the potential of sovereignty, Ukraine still has a long way to go. During the three decades of difficult, not always consistent, often contradictory progress that has taken place since Ukraine's independence, the economy has accumulated complex contradictions that are currently hindering the construction of an integrated vision of the future, proper consolidation of efforts to achieve it.

„A źródło wciąż bije...”. NSZZ „Solidarność” w Uniwersytecie Śląskim w latach 1980–2020

Author(s): Jolanta Gwioździk,Grażyna Pasterna,Ewa Żurawska / Language(s): Polish

The publication ”And the spring is still flowing…’Solidarity’ at the University of Silesia between 1980 and 2020" presents the history of ISGTU ”Solidarity” at the University, the circumstances of creating its structures, specific activities undertaken for the democratization of the country and the academic community. It also shows the mechanisms of repression applied to the union during the material law period, especially numerous internments. The analyses were based on private materials (mainly correspondence) and documents preserved in the Department Committee and press releases (including interviews) and studies on the history of the University of Silesia. The genesis of ISGTU ”Solidarity” at the University of Silesia was presented in the context of national events. The current organization of the union and its functioning in the years 1989–2020 was also described.