Peter Weiss. Andrei Platonov. Ragnvald Blix. Georg Henrik Von Wright. Adam Michnik
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A quarterly scholarly journal and news magazine. March 2011. Vol IV:1 From the Centre for Baltic and East European Studies (CBEES) Södertörn University, Stockholm FEATURE. Steklov – Russian BALTIC temple of pure thought W O Rbalticworlds.com L D S COPING WITH TRANSITIONS PETER WEISS. ANDREI PLATONOV. RAGNVALD BLIX. GEORG HENRIK VON WRIGHT. ADAM MICHNIK. SLAVENKA DRAKULIĆ. Sixty pages BETRAYED GDR REVOLUTION? / EVERYDAY BELARUS / WAVE OF RELIGION IN ALBANIA / RUSSIAN FINANCIAL MARKETS 2short takes Memory and manipulation. Transliteration. Is anyone’s suffering more important than anyone else’s? Art and science – and then some “IF YOU WANT TO START a war, call me. Transliteration is both art and science CH I know all about how it's done”, says – and, in many cases, politics. Whether MÄ author Slavenka Drakulić with a touch царь should be written as tsar, tzar, ANNA of gallows humor during “Memory and czar, or csar may not be a particu- : H Manipulation: Religion as Politics in the larly sensitive political matter today, HOTO Balkans”, a symposium held in Lund, but the question of the transliteration P Sweden, on December 2, 2010. of the name of the current president This issue of the journal includes a of Belarus is exceedingly delicate. contribution from Drakulić (pp. 55–57) First, and perhaps most important: in which she claims that top-down gov- which name? Both the Belarusian ernance, which started the war, is also Аляксандр Лукашэнка, and the Rus- the path to reconciliation in the region. sian Александр Лукашенко are in use. Balkan experts attending the sympo- (And, while we’re at it, should that be sium agree that the war was directed Belarusian, or Belarussian, or Belaru- from the top, and that “top-down” is san, or Byelorussian, or Belorussian?) the key to understanding how the war BW does not want to take a stand on began in the region. Leaders of various the merits of the “Russianism” of Lu- stripes were driving separatist move- kashenka/Lukashenko, so, for the time ments and fomenting hatred between being, we will give our authors leeway groups by emphasizing differences and here. This might at times lead to incon- reviving historic wrongs. Religion was sistencies, but Shakespeare himself exploited as a political weapon to cre- Evelina Kelbetcheva of the American University of Bulgaria in Sofia, at a Lund seminar. spelled his own name at least a dozen ate antagonisms. Historiography was different ways, so we take ourselves to used as a strategy to manipulate the be in good company. people. them? And perhaps even more difficult, posite effect: old wounds are reopened Have thoughts on the language of how can they reconcile themselves and conflicts flare up. Baltic Worlds? Write to the head of our PROFESSOR OF HISTORY Evelina Kel- to the crimes comitted by their own The moderator of the symposium, language team: brian@balticworlds. betcheva, of the American University of groups? Sanimir Resić, associate professor of com ≈ Bulgaria in Sofia, emphasizes the gap Dzenan Sahović, lecturer in political East and Central European Studies between a scholarly understanding of science at Umeå University, believes and head of the Centre for Languages history, and public perceptions of his- that there is currently widespread and Literature at Lund University, sums tory. History is constantly being falsified postwar mourning on three levels: the things up: and revised to fit contemporary needs. individual, the collective, and the politi- “We would probably need at least ten “Some people think there is too cal/national. Nelson Mandelas to reach consensus in Conference much digging into Balkan history the Balkans.” ≈ and that this opens old wounds and IT IS HARD TO SEE the suffering of June 12–15, CBEES (Södertörn provokes new conflicts. Others believe others when one’s own is so all-encom- University) will be hosting the Ninth we talk too little about history. We must passing. When memorials are set up Conference on Baltic Studies in Europe: spread accurate knowledge in order to to honor the memory of a vulnerable “Transitions, Visions and Beyond”. understand what happened and why”, group victimized in the war, it immedi- The conference seeks to bring says Evelina Kelbetcheva. ately sparks resentment among other together representatives of academic “The knowledge that has to be con- groups, who believe their suffering was communities who share an interest in veyed to the people is how they have the greater. That everyone suffered, but exploring the Baltic region from multiple allowed themselves to be manipu- also inflicted suffering, is a truth few perspectives. Baltic region studies is lated by those who believe they have people see. considered to be a particular histori- exclusive rights to the interpretation of It is for precisely that reason that cal, political, linguistic, social, cultural, history”, says Slavenka Drakulić. She Dzenan Sahović believes the peace and ideological contact zone where the stresses that we should not believe that process and reconciliation must be di- meanings of identities, languages, and national and ethnic identities are fixed: rected from the top down. Conversely, Corrections relationships are renegotiated. “A lot of people believe national identity the EU and the UN often insist that In 2001, the conference “Baltic is as unchanging as the color of your peace must be built from the grassroots In a review in the last issue of BW (vol. States and Societies in Transition: Con- eyes. Identity, language, religion: they level. Dzenan Sahović emphasizes III: 4), Bernd Henningsen’s name was tinuity and Change” was held in Tartu, are all constructions.” that this approach confuses building a misspelled in a few places. In addi- Estonia. So it is high time to gather and How, then, should the traumatic democracy and overcoming injustices tion, in Anna Storm’s article, letters and examine the developments in the Baltic memories of the people be handled? between groups. Attempts to bring diacritics in the Lithuanian place name region since then, and see what chal- How can people reconcile with those attention to the suffering of various Sniečkus, as well as in Lake Drūkšiai, lenges we now face. who have perpetrated crimes against groups are more likely to have the op- were lost. The editors apologize for this. More information at www.sh.se. BALTIC editorial 3 W O R L Dbalticworlds.com S Many paths to Sponsored by the Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies reconciliation a quarterly scholarly journal and news magazine. march 2011. vol iv: 1 from the centre for Baltic and east european studies (cBees) södertörn university, stockholm f e a t u r e . steklov – russian BALTIC temple of pure thought contents he outcomes of the doubt. But how long can such “excep- general elections in tionalism” be maintained? Germany WORLDS D L R O W balticworlds.com SUNVISSON c o p i n g 4 Russia – inside or a number of former (and the people of other countries) had w i t h outside Europe? A Michnik socialist countries been tormented by the Nazi atrocities. KARIN transitions point of view in 2010 were highly Yet after two decades, the Federal Re- : peter weiss. andrei platonov. ragnvald b l i x . georg henrik varied. public was an integrated part of a von wright. adam michnik. slavenka Living Dostoevsky – Bely In the two most democratic, European state communi- d r a k u l i Ć. 6 si x t y p a g e s and the symbolists populous states af- ty. In a way that could be offensive, past B e t r ay e d G dr revolution? / everyday Belarus / Wave of reli Gi o n i n alBa n i a / russian financial markets ter Russia, the presi- wrongs were set aside in the interests of illustration Editor-in-chief In spite of ideology dential campaigns reconciliation. There was a strong need Anders Björnsson 10 – reading Platonov were influenced to to integrate, and to normalize. Editor a great degree by Ninna Mörner Peter Weiss and “Die relations with that IT CAN BE ARGUED that the historical Publisher 15 Ästhetik des Widerstands” very country to the east. A Polish-Russian detente “burden” lies even deeper in former Anu Mai Kõll – no natural deaths came about before the election of the head of state in Soviet Bloc countries, that it is rooted in Editorial advisory board Poland, but without the country’s liberal orientation a socio-economic and political-cultural Thomas Lundén, Chair, Ragnvald Blix and his and place within Europe being questioned. With the backwardness that stretches back to CBEES, Sari Autio– 22 adversaries – a cartoonist election in Ukraine, relations between Kiev and Mos- the pre-modern era. But is the gap Sarasmo, Aleksanteri of world repute cow were normalized, while — as a result of the liberal between East and West really deeper Institute, Helsinki, Lars debacle — interactions with the West appear to have than the gap between North and South Johannsen, University Picturing everyday life become frostier. However, while Poland was bullied on the European land mass? Than that of Aarhus, Ann-Cathrine 30 in Belarus – despite under the Kaczyńskis, with Ukraine, under Yanuko- between the Baltic and the Mediter- Jungar, CBEES (Director), banishment vych, this has not (yet) happened. ranean? If one looks at the responses to Anu Mai Kõll, CBEES, the recent economic crisis, absolutely Michael Gilek, CBEES Steklov, Moscow – a hall IN THE HUNGARIAN PARLIAMENTARY elections, both no Western or Eastern European pat- Jens E. Olesen, 34 of mathematical fame the purely conservative elements, with a blissful mis- terns can be discerned. Estonia and University of Greifswald, trust of the rule of law, and the extreme right, with an Poland have mastered the situation far Barbara Törnquist–Plewa, The topic of 1989 once aggressively xenophobic theory and practice, were better than Latvia and Hungary; the Lund University 39 more – and the buried strengthened, while the reform-minded forces of vari- Northern European countries, only one Editorial staff expectations ous hues were marginalized.