The countries of the former Eastern Bloc and Soviet Union have exhibited remarkable diversity in their post-communist regime paths. Whereas some states have become demonstrably more democratic and have moved in the space of fifteen years from the periphery to the centre of European politics, in others the political and economic climates seem hardly to be better, and their societies no more free, than in the final years of the Cold War.
Assessing progress towards democracy in the former Eastern Bloc - or the lack of it - requires a qualitative examination of post-communist polities. This...

This book presents an overview of current developments in Belarus. It explores the upswelling of popular support for the idea that Belarus must change. It highlights how the old regime presiding over worsening economic conditions has been confronted by increasing social mobilisation which demands a transformation of state-society relations.