Political Science • Eastern Europe Carey Edited by Henry F. Carey Foreword by Norman Manea “Henry Carey’s collection captures with great precision the complex, contradic- tory reality of contemporary Romania. Bringing together Romanian, West European, and American authors from fields as diverse as anthropology, politi- Romania cal science, economics, law, print and broadcast journalism, social work, and lit- ROMANIA SINCE 1989 erature, the volume covers vast ground, but with striking detail and scholarship and a common core approach. Romania since 1989 provides perhaps the most comprehensive view of the continuing, murky, contested reality that is Romania today and is a must read for any scholar of modern Romania, of East-Central Europe, and of the uncertain, troubled, post-socialist era.” since 1989 —David A. Kideckel, Central Connecticut State University Sorin Antohi “The wealth of detail and quality of insights will make this an excellent source- Wally Bacon book for students of political change after the Cold War. It should be taken seri- Gabriel Ba˘ descu ously by policy practitioners increasingly involved with Romania’s problems.” Zoltan Barany —Tom Gallagher, Professor of Peace Studies, Bradford University, U.K. Politics, Jóhanna Kristín Birnir Larry S. Bush Those who study Romania must confront the theoretical challenges posed by a Economics, Pavel Câmpeanu country that is undergoing a profound transformation from a repressive totali- Henry F. Carey tarian regime to a hazy and as yet unrealized democratic government. The most and Society Daniel Da˘ ianu comprehensive survey of Romanian politics and society ever published abroad, Dennis Deletant this volume represents an effort to collect and analyze data on the complex prob- Christopher Eisterhold lems of Romania’s past and its transition into an uncertain future. Henry F. Carey Ely has brought together the world’s leading scholars on Romania to discuss key John F. aspects of the country’s sites of conflict in a groundbreaking work that includes Anneli Ute Gabanyi six resident Romanian authors who rarely publish in the global academic press. Peter Gross Romania since 1989 is a must for anyone seeking either a basic understanding Richard Andrew Hall Claude Karnoouh or a sophisticated analysis of contemporary Romania. The book is also an and Society Economics, Politics, invaluable resource for those who study the economies and governments of other Norman Manea countries in transition, as it presents an ideal case study with lessons that can be Mihaela Miroiu applied elsewhere. Mihnea Ion Na˘ stase Daniel N. Nelson Henry F. C arey is Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State Liliana Popescu University. He has published widely on Eastern European politics, international Sandra Pralong human rights, and democratization. Sabrina P. Ramet Steven D. Roper Frank Sellin Michael Shafir For orders and information please contact the publisher Ca˘ta˘lin Augustin Stoica Lexington Books Paul E. Sum An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200 Vladimir Tisma˘ neanu Lanham, Maryland 20706 F. Peter Wagner 1-800-462-6420 Larry L. Watts www.lexingtonbooks.com Robert Weiner Clifford F. Zinnes Romania since 1989 Romania since 1989 Politics, Economics, and Society Edited by Henry F. Carey LEXINGTON BOOKS Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Oxford LEXINGTON BOOKS Published in the United States of America by Lexington Books An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 PO Box 317 Oxford OX2 9RU, UK Copyright © 2004 by Lexington Books All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Romania since 1989 : politics, economics, and society / edited by Henry F. Carey. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7391-0592-2 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Romania—Politics and government—1989– 2. Post-communism—Romania. 3. Romania—Economic conditions—1989– I. Carey, Henry F., 1953– JN9630.R665 2003 320.9498—dc21 2003014082 Printed in the United States of America ∞™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48–1992. Contents List of Tables ix Foreword xi Norman Manea Preface xvii Henry F. Carey Introduction 1 Henry F. Carey and Christopher Eisterhold Part 1: Romanian Exceptionalism? 1 Understanding National Stalinism: Legacies of Ceaus¸escu’s Socialism 27 Vladimir Tisma˘neanu 2 Sonderweg Romania? 49 F. Peter Wagner 3 Memory, Memorials, and Membership: Romanian Utilitarian Anti-Semitism and Marshal Antonescu 67 Michael Shafir 4 Re-Membering Romania 97 John F. Ely and Ca˘ta˘lin Augustin Stoica v vi Contents 5 Democratization in the Shadows: Post-Communist Patrimonialism 117 Frank Sellin Part 2: The State and Politics 6 Institutionalizing the Party System 139 Jóhanna Kristín Birnir 7 Parliamentary Development 159 Steven D. Roper 8 An Evaluation of Six Forms of Political Participation 179 Paul E. Sum and Gabriel Ba˘descu 9 Media in the First Post-Communist Decade 195 Peter Gross 10 Political Culture in Post-Ceaus¸escu Romania 215 Richard Andrew Hall Part 3: Civil Society and Social Issues 11 NGOs and the Development of Civil Society 229 Sandra Pralong 12 Multiculturalism and Ethnic Relations in Transylvania 247 Claude Karnoouh 13 Romani Marginality and Politics 255 Zoltan Barany 14 Church and State in Romania before and after 1989 275 Sabrina P. Ramet 15 Post-Totalitarian Pre-Feminism 297 Mihaela Miroiu and Liliana Popescu 16 Gay and Lesbian Rights 315 Mihnea Ion Na˘stase 17 Higher Education and the Post-Communist Generation of Students 335 Sorin Antohi Part 4: Economics and Environment 18 The New Business Elite: From Nomenklatura to Oligarchy 353 Anneli Ute Gabanyi Contents vii 19 Economic Reform 373 Wally Bacon 20 Fiscal and Monetary Policies 391 Daniel Da˘ianu 21 Trade Unions and Labor Relations 419 Larry S. Bush 22 The Environment in Transition 439 Clifford F. Zinnes Part 5: Security 23 Romanian Security 461 Daniel N. Nelson 24 Romanian Bilateral Relations with Russia and Hungary: 1989–2002 485 Robert Weiner 25 The Security Services since 1989: Turning over a New Leaf 503 Dennis Deletant 26 Civil-Military Relations: Continuity or Exceptionalism? 523 Larry L. Watts Conclusion:Ambiguous Democratization? 553 Henry F. Carey Afterword: Ten Points,Ten Years After 619 Pavel Câmpeanu Index 627 About the Contributors 635 Tables 4.1. Percentage Point Distribution of the Answers Regarding December 1989 (Romania, 1999) 107 4.2. Descriptive Statistics for the Variables Included in the Analysis of Beliefs about December 1989 Events 110 4.3. Coefficients from the Multinomial Logistic Regression Analysis of Believing That It Was a Coup d’état or That Something Else Happened in December 1989 versus Believing That It Was a Revolution 111 6.1. Fragmentation in Parliament 143 6.2. Volatility of Electoral Preferences between Elections 148 6.3. Romanian Parties Represented in Parliament 151 7.1. Assembly of Deputies Parliamentary Groups 1990 162 7.2. Number of Parliamentary Laws and Presidential Decrees 163 7.3. House of Deputies Parliamentary Groups, 1992 166 7.4. Senate Parliamentary Groups, 1992 168 7.5. House of Deputies Parliamentary Groups, 1996 171 7.6. Senate Parliamentary Groups, 1996 171 7.7. House of Deputies Parliamentary Groups, 2000 174 7.8. Senate Parliamentary Groups, 2000 175 8.1. Percentage of Voters According to Significant Factors 183 8.2. Frequencies of Participation beyond Voting in Percentages 185 8.3. Percent of Respondents Who Have Participated in Civil Society Membership 189 8.4. Logistic Regression Model of Romanian Participation 194 ix x Tables 13.1. Estimates of Romania’s Roma Population 256 13.2. What Is Most Important in Life to Succeed? 258 20.1. Macroeconomic Indicators, 1990–2002 413 Foreword The sudden downfall of Communism in Eastern Europe did not lead, as many had hoped, to an equally sudden transition to a democratic and pros- perous society. In both the East and the West, the disappointment is obvious. Freedom has once again proven to be more complex and delicate than force, as Thomas Mann once observed. It suffices, however, to recall similar historic events in order to realize that our perplexity at the perceived lack of progress in Romania is just a form of naiveté, if not arrogance. France in the aftermath of the French Revolution, and even Germany and France in the transitional period after World War II are the first examples that come to mind. The rough transition from a Com- munist police state to the civil society of the current capitalist system natu- rally involves drastic dislocations and difficulties. After the failed bloody ex- periment to abolish the “exploitation of man by fellow man,” a traumatic new experience challenges the survivors: the transition from state ownership of evil to private ownership of good and evil. In the first decade of the post-Communist era, Eastern Europe went for- ward and backward, simultaneously. The “forward” movement reflected the contract with the future, the adaptation to the economic and social require- ments of the capitalist world, and the pursuit of international recognition. The “backward” movement reflected the pressing burden of having to reevaluate the country’s history both before and during Communism—a his- tory that was manipulated and falsified by the ideology and interests of a sin- gle party that dominated the totalitarian state. This transitional tension within Romania, between the movement forward and the movement backward, is xi xii Foreword further complicated by the international context in which it is taking place— in a “global,” computerized, postmodern era, with all its overwhelming in- fluences and implications for Romanian society.