The communist successor parties of eastern and central europe and european integration

Abstract

The rich array of party systems evident in the European Union pre-2004 became even more diverse with the accession of ten new member states, with their own party systems, on 1 May 2004. Among the new players in the ‘Europolity’ we find several communist successor parties. These have undertaken a variety of reform processes dependent on, among other things, the nature of the transition that their societies have undergone. They have therefore taken up different places in their respective national party systems. Subsequently, they have adopted different attitudes towards issues of European integration. The Polish, Czech, Slovak and east German successor parties have encountered different experiences in this regard. While the German PDS is already well integrated into the Europolity, and has developed its own positions on most European policies, the defining issue for the three other parties has been the question of accession and membership. The attitudes of these three parties to the EU's most significant policy areas are nevertheless most often shaped by national policy preferences rather than by any acceptance of broader European goals.

Notes

1. For a general overview on the development of the post-communist successor parties after 1989, see J.T. Ishiyama (ed.), Communist Successor Parties in Post-Communist Politics (Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science, 1999); A.M. Grzymala-Busse, Redeeming the Communist Past: The Regeneration of Communist Parties in East Central Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002); A. Bozóki and J.T. Ishiyama (eds.), The Communist Successor Parties of Central and Eastern Europe (Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2002); J.L. Curry and J.B. Urban (eds.), The Left Transformed in Post-Communist Societies: The Cases of East–Central Europe, Russia and Ukraine (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003).

2. See N. Crook, M. Dauderstädt and A. Gerrits, Social Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe (Amsterdam: FES, 2002), p.22; J. Sloam, Policy Transfer and Programmatic Change in Communist Successor Parties in East–Central Europe (Birmingham: University of Birmingham, Institute for German Studies, 2003), available at <http://www.igs.bham.ac.uk/research/Policytransferweb.pdf>, accessed 3 July 2003; P. Taggart and A. Szczerbiak, ‘Parties, Positions and Europe: Euroscepticism in the EU Candidate States of Central and Eastern Europe’, Working Paper No.46, Sussex European Institute, 2001, pp.11–12.

3. See H. Kitschelt, Z. Mansfeldova, R. Markowski and G. Tóka, Post-Communist Party Systems: Competition, Representation, and Inter-Party Co-operation (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999).

4. See G. Marks and C.J. Wilson, ‘The Past in the Present: A Cleavage Theory of Party Response to European Integration’, British Journal of Political Science, Vol.30, No.3 (2000), pp.433–59.

5. See P.A. Hall and D.W. Soskice (eds.), Varieties of Capitalism: The Institutional Foundations of Comparative Advantage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001).

6. See M. Dauderstädt, ‘Interessen und Hindernisse bei der EU-Osterweiterung. Die Rolle des “acquis communautaire”’, in Politikinformation Osteuropa 98 (Bonn: FES, 2002).

7. It was the common agricultural policy that caused Václav Klaus to demand in Davos that the EU revise its policy rather than force the then candidate countries to adopt it, at which EU Commissioner van den Broek made his famous remark that it was the Czech Republic that wanted to join the EU, not the opposite.

8. On terminology, see M. Dauderstädt, A. Gerrits and G. Markus, ‘Three Roots of Social Democracy in Post-Communist Societies’, in M. Dauderstädt, A. Gerrits and G. Markus, Troubled Transition. Social Democracy in East–Central Europe (Amsterdam: FES, 1999), p.69ff; G. Meyer, ‘Demokratie und Marktwirtschaft – ohne soziales Netz? Parteien, Wählerverhalten und politische Kultur. Konflikte und Konjunkturen der Macht: Das Beispiel der Sozialdemokraten’, in Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Baden-Württemberg (ed.), Der Bürger im Staat, No.3 (1997), p.2; Kitschelt et al., Post-Communist Party Systems, p.16.

9. See K. Ziemer and C.-Y. Matthes, ‘Das politische System Polens’, in W. Ismayr (ed.), Die politischen Systeme Osteuropas (Opladen: Leske und Budrich, 2002), pp.215–16; D. Bingen, ‘Die “Sozialdemokratie der Republik Polen” (SdRP) in der “Demokratischen Linksallianz” (SLD)’, in G. Hirscher (ed.), Kommunistische und postkommunistische Parteien in Osteuropa: Ausgewählte Fallstudien (Munich: Hanns Seidel Stiftung, 2002), pp.70–71.

10. See K.-O. Lang, ‘Polens Demokratische Linksallianz – eine post-postkommunistische Partei? Vom Bündnis SLD zur Partei SLD’, Aktuelle Analysen des Bundesinstituts für ostwissenschaftliche und internationale Studien 4 (Cologne: Bundesinstitut für ostwissenschaftliche und internationale Studien, 2000), p.3.

11. See J. Bugajski, Political Parties of Eastern Europe: A Guide to Politics in the Post-Communist Era (London: Centre for Strategic and International Studies, 2002), p.172.

12. See N. von Redecker, ‘Polen’, in W. Weidenfeld and W. Wessels (eds.), Jahrbuch der Europäischen Integration (Berlin and Bonn: Europa-Union Verlag, 2002), p.421.

13. According to Mildenberger, populist anti-Western voices within the leadership occasionally make themselves heard: see M. Mildenberger, ‘Der Europäische Integrationsprozess aus Sicht der Beitrittskandidaten Polen, Tschechien und Slowakei’, DGAP-Jahrbuch 2000 (Munich: R. Oldenbourg-Verlag, 2001), p.187.

14. See http://www.chancen-erweitern.gv.at/default.pxml?lang = de&kap = 186>; accessed 20 Aug. 2004.

15. See H. Tewes, Polen vor dem Referendum (Bonn: KAS, 2003), available at <http://www.kas.de/publikationen/2003/1925_dokument.html>; accessed 15 July 2003.

16. See W. Cimoszewicz, ‘Future of the Common Foreign and Security Policy’, lecture by the minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of Poland Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz, Friedrich-Ebert-Foundation Berlin, 12 March 2003, available at <http://www.msz.gov.pl/start.php>; accessed 3 July 2003.

17. See W. Cimoszewicz, presentation at the 16th Session of the Sejm on 14 March 2002; available at <http://ww.polandembassy.org/Policy/p4-1.htm>; accessed 16 July 2003.

18. See W. Cimoszewicz, presentation at the 16th Session of the Sejm on 14 March 2002; available at <http://ww.polandembassy.org/Policy/p4-1.htm>; accessed 16 July 2003.

19. See J.M. Aznar, J.-M.D. Barroso, S. Berlusconi, T. Blair, P. Medgyessy, L. Miller and A.F. Rasmussen, ‘Europe and America must stand united’, statement of 30 Jan. 2003, available at <http://www.kprm.gov.pl/english/1433_5777.htm>; accessed 16 July 2003.

20. Foreign Minister Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz interviewed by Warsaw Voice, May 2003, available on <http://www.msz.gov.pl/start.php>; accessed 3 July 2003.

21. See Center for International Relations, ‘The Future of Europe in the Opinion of Polish Politicians’, transcript of a debate, Reports & Analyses, No.1 (2002).

22. See C. Franck and D. Pyszna-Nigge (eds.), Positions of 10 Central and Eastern European Countries on EU Institutional Reforms: Analytical Survey in the Framework of the CEEC-DEBATE Project (Louvain-la-Neuve and Brussels: Université Catholique de Louvain, 2003), at <http://europa.eu.int/futurum/documents/other/oth010603_3_en.pdf>, p.70; accessed 20 Aug. 2004.

23. See C. Franck and D. Pyszna-Nigge (eds.), Positions of 10 Central and Eastern European Countries on EU Institutional Reforms: Analytical Survey in the Framework of the CEEC-DEBATE Project (Louvain-la-Neuve and Brussels: Université Catholique de Louvain, 2003), at <http://europa.eu.int/futurum/documents/other/oth010603_3_en.pdf>, p.70; accessed 20 Aug. 2004. p.80.

24. See ‘Schweik zieht in die Welt hinaus’, Frankfurter Rundschau, 16 June 2003, available at <http://www.fr-aktuell.de/ressorts/nachrichten_und_politik/international/?cnt = 231869>; accessed 20 June 2003.

25. See K. Larischová, Zum Ausgang des EU-Referendums in der Tschechischen Republik (Prague: Friedrich Ebert Foundation, 18 June 2003), p.3.

26. See Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia: Political Programme, available at <http://www.kscm.cz/news_detail.asp?menu = 1&necId2 = 321&necId = 321&newId = 492>; accessed 18 June 2003.

27. See D. Hough and V. Handl, ‘The (Post-)Communist Left and the European Union: The Czech KSCM and the German PDS’, Communist and Post-Communist Studies, Vol.37, No.3 (2004), pp.319–39.

28. See Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia: Political Programme.

29. See V. Handl, Die Tschechische Kommunistische Partei: Orthodoxes Fossil oder erfolgreiche neo-kommunistische Protestpartei?, Analysen der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Politikinformation Osteuropa, No.105, Oct. 2002 (Bonn: FES, 2002), p.12.

30. See Lang, ‘Polens Demokratische Linksallianz’, p.29.

31. From the report of the Central Committee of the KSCM on party activities since the 4th party congress, cited in V. Handl, Die Tschechische Kommunistische Partei, p.12.

32. See Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia: Political Programme.

33. See Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia: Political Programme.

34. See Lang, ‘Polens Demokratische Linksallianz’, p.29.

35. See Larischová, Zum Ausgang des EU-Referendums in der Tschechischen Republik, p.3.

36. M. Grebenícek, cited in ‘Czech Voters Say “Yes” to EU’, International Herald Tribune, available at <http://www.iht.com/cgi-bin/generic.cgi?template = articleprint.tmplh&ArticleId = 99560>; accessed 16 June 2003.

37. See G. Schubert, ‘Das kommunistische “Nein” zur EU und die Haltung der Partei nach dem Referendum’, available at <http://www.radio.cz/de/artikel/42176>; accessed 16 July 2004.

38. See <http://www.eureferendum.sk>; accessed 28 July 2003.

39. See C. Thanei, Wahlen zum slowakischen Parlament: Regierungsmehrheit für die Mitte-Rechts-Parteien, KAS-Auslandsinformation, No.10 (Bonn: KAS, 2002), p.99.

40. See V. Bilčík, ‘Slovakia's Future of Europe Debate’, Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs, Vol.3, No.1 (2002), pp.14–31.

41. See V. Bilčík, ‘Slovakia's Future of Europe Debate’, Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs, Vol.3, No.1 (2002), pp.14–31, synoptic table, p.26.

42. See <http://www.sdl.sk/euromanifest.htm>; accessed 24 Aug. 2004.

43. See D. Hough, ‘The Programmatic Development of the Eastern German PDS: Learning What from Whom and Under What Conditions?’, in the present collection, pp.144–164, for further information on how the PDS has interacted with these organizations.

44. See also D. Hough, ‘The Programmatic Development of the Eastern German PDS: Learning What from Whom and Under What Conditions?’, in the present collection, pp.144–164, for further information on how the PDS has interacted with these organizations.

45. See PDS, Alternativen sind machbar: Für ein soziales, demokratisches und friedliches Europa! PDS-Wahlprogramm für die Wahlen zum Europäischen Parlament am 13. Juni 2004, available at <http://www.pds-pirmasens.de/PDS_Europa-Politik/pds_europa-politik.html>; accessed 16 July 2004.

46. See PDS, Europa mit Programm, available at <http://www.sozialisten.de/wahlen2004/wahlprogramm/langfassung/index.htm>; accessed 24 Aug. 2004.

47. S. Hix and U. Lesse, Shaping a Vision: A History of the Party of European Socialists, 1957–2002 (Brussels: Party of European Socialists, 2002).

48. M. Dauderstädt, Conflicting Distributive Interests in a Deepening and Widening Europe: A Challenge to the Emerging Europolity (Bonn: FES, Reihe Europäische Politik, 2004).