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By Pavel P. Antonov “Justice, equality and brotherhood,” “fair distribution of resources,” “no exploitation,” “power to the people” — all these noble sounding sentiments cause pain in the ears of Central and Eastern European (CEE) citizens. During the decades of communist dictatorship, such slogans were used to hide the reality of oppression, brutality, corruption and poverty, created by the Soviet regimes. Today’s glossary includes terms like: “prosperity,” “market economy,” “competition” and “capital.” Accession to the European Union is the top priority of the former socialist countries in Europe. The new trend reflects the desire of CEE nations to share the social and economic standards of the West. But the road to prosperity has its hurdles. Economic and social analysts say the collapse of the Soviet empire in the early 1990s removed the last restriction to the global flow of capital — the main feature of today’s world economic reality. The magic key to multibillion-dollar profits and unrestricted growth has been discovered: free markets without national boundaries and without protectionist legislation. Many politicians and members of the media would have us believe that the money of the rich goes to the countries of the poor, creating new jobs and making everyone happy and wealthy. But now that the CEE countries are closer than ever to joining the wealthy club, the West receives more and more criticism for the type of development that it imposes on the rest of the world. Northern/ Western society is considered responsible for promoting a culture of consumerism and wasteful lifestyles, made possible by the unrestricted use of the entire planet’s resources by less than 10 percent of its population. Multinational corporations, who have gained enormous profits from global markets, are accused of ruining local industries, exploiting cheap labor and damaging the natural environment. Moreover, with their unrestricted financial might, multinationals are able to control whole governments, shape national legislation according their interests, or even neglect it completely. CEE has its special place in the process. In terms of economic and financial capacity, countries in the region seem to fall in the category of those that bear the negative consequences of unrestricted globalisation. Local industries lose the battle against multinationals, governments are often weak and easily compromised — moreover their policies are usually intended to be strictly in line with the recommendations of the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. But many people here hardly recognise their vulnerability and they are still unable to properly read anti-globalisation arguments. For them, demands for equity sound suspiciously similar to the old claims of equality. If the countries of CEE understand the dangers of uncontrolled development, the region - with its high levels of health care, education and social achievements - has a unique chance to be the world's pioneer in implementing a more successful and sustainable development model. |
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