The Left Transformed in Post-Communist Societies The Cases of East-Central Europe, Russia, and Ukraine

by Curry, Jane Leftwich; Urban, Joan Barth; Baylis, Thomas A.; Krupavicius, Algis; March, Luke; Morlang, Diana; Wilson, Andrew

• ISBN13: 9780742526631
• ISBN10: 0742526631
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-06-05
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

One of the most unexpected outcomes of the Soviet bloc's transition out of communism is the divergent but important paths followed by once ruling communist parties. In The Left Transformed this ideological split into free market social democrats (Poland, Hungary, and Lithuania), anti-Western neo-Leninists (Russia and Ukraine), and doctrinal fence-sitters (the ex-communists of former East Germany) is explored through in-depth interviews, party presses and primary documents, and national election data. The careful examination of each party's transition as well as the most current information on organization, ideology, and electoral fortunes through late 2002 makes this book an invaluable resource for anyone interested in contemporary history, political parties, or comparative government in the former Soviet Empire.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations	vii
List of Tables	ix
Preface	xi
Introduction	1	(18)
Poland's Ex-Communists: From Pariahs to Establishment Players	19	(42)
Jane Leftwich Curry
Hungary: Socialists Building Capitalism	61	(38)
Diana Morlang
The Left-wing Parties in Lithuania, 1990-2002	99	(38)
Algis Krupavicius
Political Adaptation in Germany's Post-Communist Party of Democratic Socialism	137	(26)
Thomas A. Baylis
The Pragmatic Radicalism of Russia's Communists	163	(46)
Luke March
The Communist Party of Ukraine: From Soviet Man to East Slavic Brotherhood	209	(36)
Andrew Wilson
The Post-Communist Left: Divergent Trajectories, Shared Legacies	245	(26)
Joan Barth Urban
Appendix	271	(2)
Bibliography	273	(2)
Index	275	(8)
About the Contributors	283