Democratization in Poland 1988-90 Polish Voices

The collapse of communism in 1989 produced a 'negotiated revolution' in Poland and Hungary but was effected more directly by 'People's Power' elsewhere in Eastern Europe. The Polish case is crucial, as its political and economic dilemmas were the most open, acute and long-established. It also produced the most advanced political and academic debate and analyses of communism's crisis. This volume makes available the reflections of a wide spectrum of Polish intelligentsia opinion on the reasons for the collapse of communism, the mechanisms of power-transfer and democracy's prospects. It is an indispensable case-study of the 1988-90 period in Poland which produced the most comprehensive 'Round Table' and the gradual, peaceful and negotiated transfer of communist power to the Solidarity counter-elite. This assessment of the initial transition stage towards democratization and marketization generates important themes, concepts and material for further comparative discussion.