Power, Civil Society and Contentious Politics in Post Communist Europe
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POWER, CIVIL SOCIETY AND CONTENTIOUS POLITICS IN POST COMMUNIST EUROPE Neil Albert Cruickshank A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of PhD at the University of St. Andrews 2008 Full metadata for this item is available in the St Andrews Digital Research Repository at: https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/ Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10023/559 This item is protected by original copyright POWER, CIVIL SOCIETY AND CONTENTIOUS POLITICS IN POST COMMUNIST EUROPE NEIL ALBERT CRUICKSHANK 2008 Submitted for the degree of PhD in International Relations DECLARATIONS I, Neil Albert Cruickshank, hereby certify that this thesis, which is approximately 85,000 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of work carried out by me and that it has not been submitted in any previous application for a higher degree. I was admitted as a research student in September 2002 and as a candidate for the degree of Ph.D. in September 2002; the higher study for which this is a record was carried out in the University of St Andrews between 2002 and 2008. 17/11/2008 ………………………………………………. I hereby certify that the candidate has fulfilled the conditions of the Resolution and Regulations appropriate for the degree of Ph.D. in the University of St Andrews and that the candidate is qualified to submit this thesis in application for that degree. 17/11/2008 ………………………………………………… In submitting this thesis to the University of St Andrews we understand that we are giving permission for it to be made available for use in accordance with the regulations of the University Library for the time being in force, subject to any copyright vested in the work not being affected thereby. We also understand that the title and the abstract will be published, and that a copy of the work may be made and supplied to any bona fide library or research worker, that my thesis will be electronically accessible for personal or research use unless exempt by award of an embargo as requested below, and that the library has the right to migrate my thesis into new electronic forms as required to ensure continued access to the thesis. We have obtained any third- party copyright permissions that may be required in order to allow such access and migration, or have requested the appropriate embargo below. The following is an agreed request by candidate and supervisor regarding the electronic publication of this thesis: Access to Printed copy and electronic publication of thesis through the University of St Andrews. 17/11/2008 ……………………………………………………. Neil Albert Cruickshank 17/11/2008 ……………………………………………………. Dr. Rick Fawn iii ABSTRACT This dissertation examines how contentious collective action in two post communist states, Poland and the Czech Republic, has broadened to included European and international actors. It identifies the emergence of new opportunities for contention brought about by recent episodes of institutional change, specifically EU accession, and questions how they benefit materially or politically weak NGOs. With the intention of determining how three interrelated processes, democratization, Europeanization and internationalization, affect the nature and scope of contentious politics, this dissertation carries out an investigation of several concrete episodes of political mobilization and contention. As shown these ‘contentious events’ involved a myriad of national, European and international actors, mobilizing to challenge national policy. Data from NGO questionnaires, interviews and newswire/newspaper archives are used to discern the nature and 2scope of contentious collective action. This dissertation assesses the extent to which transnationalization of advocacy politics has disrupted existing power arrangements at the national level between NGOs and government. Hypothesizing that European Union accession in 2004 changed the nature and scope of contentious collective action in post communist Europe, this dissertation undertakes a comparative empirical examination of three sectors, environment, women and Roma, and twenty-nine representative NGOs. My research identifies three important developments in the Polish and Czech nonprofit sector: first, European advocacy networks and institutions are helping national NGOs overcome power disparities at the national level; second, issues once confined to national political space has acquired a European dimension, and; third, despite Europeanization, a few notable policy issues (i.e. reproductive rights, nuclear energy and domestic violence) remain firmly under national jurisdiction. This dissertation contributes to existing collective action/post communist scholarship in three ways. It applies established theories of contention/collective action to several recent episodes of political mobilization; it confirms that post accession institutional change does offer new political opportunity structures to national NGOs, and finally; it presents new empirical research on post communist collective action. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLES, GRAPHS AND DIAGRAMS………………………. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………….. vii INTRODUCTION……………………………………………….. 1 Research Questions and Hypotheses……………… 6 Terms and Concepts…………….......................... 28 GROUP POLITICS IN THE POST COMMUNIST ERA………… 37 THE POST COMMUNIST STATE AND INTEREST ARTICULATION 69 EMPIRICAL FINDINGS ANALYSIS……………………….. 85 ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICS………………………………. 112 Temelín NPP……………………………………… 139 Rospuda Valley……………………………………. 145 WOMEN’S RIGHTS…………………………………………….. 155 Abortion………………………………………… 179 Domestic Violence………………………… …… 185 THE EUROPEAN UNION, MINORITY RIGHTS AND ROMA 191 Roma NGOs…………………………………….. 210 Sterilization……………………………………. 224 Education, Housing and Equality……………….. 227 CONCLUSION…………………………………………………. 232 APPENDIX A: Poland Law on Public Benefit Activity. 243 APPENDIX B: Questionnaire in English………………. 244 APPENDIX C: Questionnaire in Polish………………. 265 APPENDIX D: Questionnaire in Czech……………….. 277 APPENDIX E: Czech NGO Mailing List……………… 287 APPENDIX F: Polish NGO Mailing List…………….. 292 SOURCES …………………………………………………… 298 v TABLES, GRAPHS AND DIAGRAMS 1.1 Actors, Issues and Sectors Table 1.2 Three Dimensional Governance and Planes of Contention 4.1 Respondent NGOs from Poland by Category 4.2 Respondent NGOs from Czech Republic by Category 4.3 Self-identification of Group Type – Poland 4.4 Self-identification of Group Type – Czech Republic 4.5 Meeting Operating Costs – Poland 4.6 Question: Would you say your organization needs additional funding? 4.7 Rate Government Performance 4.8 Importance Attached to Developing Ties with European NGOs – Poland 4.9 Funding Applications by Country 4.10 Importance Attached to Working Directly with the EU 4.11 Rate Government in Your Policy Area 4.12 Government Encouragement 4.13 Government’s Eagerness to Help NGOs 6.1 NGOs operating in the Area of Women’s Rights 7.1 Roma NGOs: Political Efficacy and Perception of Politics vi I would like to acknowledge the assistance and guidance of my supervisor, Dr. Rick Fawn, in completing this dissertation. The writing of this thesis has been a long and often complicated process. Nevertheless it has been the most rewarding experience of my academic life. A special thank-you to Alana, who as my wife, partner and mother to our daughter, Devyn, has provided unfailing support throughout. I will forever be grateful. Neil Cruickshank November 2008 vii FOR ALANA AND DEVYN viii The growth of non-party associations and organizations typical of established democracies has been inhibited by the suspicion that many political leaders have of non- profit organizations and by regulations that do not favour their development (Wolchik 1995: 37) In the demobilized post-communist context, many interest groups, even economic interest groups with rational incentives to lobby state institutions, have not adequately understood where their own interests lie or have been too weak institutionally to make effective demand on the state. (Orenstein and Desai 1997: 43) If you take the post-communist countries in Eastern Europe, we had and we still have some social movements, but on the whole, they are very limited. If you take Poland or the Czech Republic, there is practically nothing right now. (Touraine 2002: 94) ix CHAPTER ONE: Introduction This dissertation investigates political mobilization in two post communist states, Poland and the Czech Republic, to discern how new institutional arrangements influence the scope and character of contentious collective action. Primarily concerned with how EU accession has changed repertoires of contention 1 at the national level, this dissertation explores policy areas that encourage transnational advocacy, like the environment and human rights. The architecture of European governance means no institution, either national or European, is completely autonomous. Even states/governments that have traditionally been able to keep lobbyists and advocacy groups at arm’s length are discovery in an integrated Union this is virtually impossible. Lacking embedded policy networks and advocacy communities, and an established system of interest intermediation, post communist states are particularly vulnerable to European and international influences. Additionally, accession means European NGOs and advocacy networks are able to spread eastward into states that, thanks to EU directives and customs, look awfully similar to their own. An examination of several episodes of contentious politics in Poland and the Czech Republic reveal how on several occasions