IS DEMOCRACY NATURAL - THE DEVELOPMENT OF POLITICAL REFORM IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN-EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Doubts are widespread, whether the states of Central and Eastern Europe will become and/or remain ''true'' democracies. Not few fear that they either might revert to some new form of Communism or ultimately endow themselves wirth nationalistic, authoritarian regimes. True, external conditions for democratisation are not very favourable: The security status of these countries is yet undetermined. Furthermore, their economies are in deep crisis. The old economic structures have collapsed and new ones that would be compatible with a market economy are slow to arise. Hence a decline in real wages and growing social problems. In order to gauge progress in democratisation, the article deals with the evolution and consolidation of political party-systems and argues that these tend towards the centre. The appeal of extreme nationalism is small and waning. Therefor, the party-systems increasingly ressemble those of Western Europe. Analysed from this perspective, fears concerning a non-democratic future of Central and Eastern Europe seem to be ill founded.