Consolidating Economic Reforms: the Hungarian Experience with Lessons for Poland

How to assess Hungary's present situation in the broader context of overall economic and political developments in post-socialist Eastern Europe? The regional perspective suggests that in terms of parting with state socialism and building market democracy Hungary - and a few other countries including Poland - represents the maximum any former socialist state could achieve between 1989-98. While in this respect no country succeeded in getting farther, most other states have struggled with the peaceful or forceful formation of national identity or a new, independent state, which often dominated over and conflicted with, the issues of economic reforms and democratization on the transformation agenda. Another key to success is that Hungary - similar to Poland, but to a much larger extent - became a major target for foreign direct investment. This is due to a number of factors: from Hungary's strategy for debt, macroeconomic management and privatization, to the foreign investors' and creditors' own expectations. However, the resulting large capital inflow had a major impact on the features of Hungarian capitalism. While everywhere in East the new ownership structure displays various combinations of foreign owners, "national capitalists", and the scattered property rights of workers, the proportions dramatically differ. In much of the East the cohort of foreign investors is entirely missing, while national capitalists of often doubtful origin, skills and strategies acquired overwhelming share and influence. At the other extreme, in former GDR virtually the whole business elite is "foreign": West-German or of other Western origin. On this scale Hungary, with a one-third of its largely private economy in foreign hands [Hegymenet, 1998: 163] in 1997 is closest to the former GDR - and at the same time farthest from the other extreme exhibited by Eastern "national capitalisms". This location makes the Hungarian case specific and hints both at the risks the country avoided and the ones it took.Hungary, Poland, economic reforms

Transnacionalización, integración social y diversidades de capitalismo en el este y en el sur

This article analyzes the deep and shallow modes of international integration, semicore, semiperipheral, and peripheral profiles of global insertion, and the presence and absence of transformative state capacity and social cohesion, as interacting dimensions of capitalist diversity in post-socialist Eastern Europe and Latin America. On these grounds, it is argued that Cardoso and Faletto’s dependent development paradigm maintains validity. When adapted to the new conditions, their approach is able to capture the overlapping and divergent aspects of capitalist development in both regions. Recent patterns of development demonstrate that although dependency, stemming from the unequal distribution of resources, roles, and opportunities, continues to be an important aspect of the international division of labor, it ceases to contradict even complex forms of industrialization. Similarly, notwithstanding the asymmetrical power relationships characterizing them, the new transnational integration regimes allow and sometimes help formation of new nation states with improved regulatory capacities. Finally, dependency does not necessarily undermine domestic social inclusion. Rather, it is up to the democratic competition to strike a balance between the requirements of promising international and socially acceptable domestic integration.El presente artículo analiza los modos de integración internacional, los perfiles de inserción global, la presencia o ausencia de capacidades transformativas de los Estados y la cohesión social como dimensiones que interactúan en la definición de diversidades de capitalismo en la Europa del Este postsocialista y en América Latina. Sobre esta base, se sostiene que el paradigma de desarrollo dependiente de Cardoso y Faletto mantiene su validez. En efecto, una vez adaptada a las condiciones contemporáneas, la perspectiva de Cardoso y Faletto es capaz de capturar las similitudes y divergencias del desarrollo capitalista en ambas regiones. Los patrones recientes de desarrollo demuestran que, a pesar de que la dependencia –derivada de la distribución desigual de recursos, roles y oportunidades– continúa siendo un aspecto importante de la división internacional del trabajo, ella ha dejado de ser un factor en contradicción con formas complejas de industrialización. Del mismo modo, a pesar de las relaciones asimétricas que caracterizan a los nuevos regímenes transnacionales de integración, estos permiten e incluso ayudan a la formación de nuevos Estados-naciones con mejores capacidades regulatorias. Finalmente, la dependencia no necesariamente socava la integración social. Más bien, es responsabilidad de la competencia democrática generar un equilibrio entre los requerimientos de una integración que sea internacionalmente promisoria y socialmente aceptable

La transformation hongroise : grévistes de la faim, syndicalistes, et membres du gouvernement

Une transition vers quoi ? Dans le tumulte des années 1989 et 90, nombre de politiciens, de politistes, d’économistes, d’experts partageaient l’idée que la chute du régime communiste en Europe de l'Est serait bientôt suivie d’une transition vers la démocratie libérale et l'économie de marché. Deux ans plus tard, les analystes devinrent moins optimistes quant à la consolidation de la démocratie. Alors que les économistes étaient frappés par la profondeur et la longueur de la récession, les so..

Die Suche nach dem „wahren" sozialistischen Sozialprodukt

The articles explores how the way in which wars are being waged has changed since the 19th century. Its main focus is on ground warfare. Warfare, according to the thesis advocated in the article, has become industrialized within a few decades. One of the consequences was that since then only rarely battles have been lead face to face. Another result was a change in the way the military had to prepare for war. After presenting a short overview the articles proceeds to deal with objectification tendencies in regard to death, which also began to develop in pre-industrial periods

Állam, nemzetköziesedés és a kapitalizmus változatai Kelet-Európában

Ez a tanulmány a kelet-európai kapitalizmusok változatosságával foglalkozik, az erről szóló irodalomhoz három dimenzióban járul hozzá. Az első, hogy empirikusan négyféle kapitalista rezsimtípus azonosítható be intézményi konfigurációik és azok teljesítményei alapján: a balti államok állam által vezérelt neoliberális, a volt FÁK-országoknak az előző csoportnál direktebben piac által vezérelt neoliberális, a visegrádi államok beágyazott neoliberális, valamint a szlovének neokorporatista rezsimje. A második dimenzió, hogy a kapitalista rendszerek diverzitását egyrészt külső tényezők bonyolult összjátéka magyarázza, különösen a globális áru- és pénzpiacok, a nemzetközi intézmények és a külföldi közvetlen tőkebefektetések, másrészt a reformok megvalósítására vonatkozó különböző szintű állami kapacitások. Harmadsorban: óvatosan kell eljárni a domináns összehasonlító politikai gazdaságtani megközelítés, a kapitalizmus változatainak egy az egyben történő, a térség elemzéséhez való felhasználásakor, mivel az nem illeszkedik az ottani intézmények kialakulásának körülményeihez, azok nemzetközi beágyazottságához és a kelet-európai piacgazdaságok félperifériás jellegéhez

Overcoming Postcommunist Labour Weakness: Attritional and Enabling Effects of MNCs in Central and Eastern Europe

Based on micro-level analysis of the developments in the steel sector in Poland, Romania and Slovakia, this paper examines the effects of multinational corporations (MNCs) on labour unions in Central and Eastern Europe. It makes a three-fold argument. First, it shows that union weakness can be attributed to unions’ strategies during the restructuring and privatization processes of postcommunist transition. Consequently, tactics used for union regeneration in the West are less applicable to CEE. Rather, the overcoming of postcommunist legacy is linked to the power of transnational capital. Through attritional and enabling effects, ownership by MNCs forces the unions to focus their efforts on articulating workers’ interests. The paper examines the emerging system of industrial relations in the sector and explores the development of the capabilities needed to overcome postcommunist legacies