SPP Visiting Professor Wiktor Osiatynski discussed the changing role of civil society in his native Poland and other former communist countries at a November 26 lecture at at SPP.
After witnessing civil societies' shift in focus after the fall of the regime, Osiatynski, is convinced now that change at the local – even neighborhood level – is what is needed.
CEU President and Rector John Shattuck, who gave opening remarks, noted the fundamental change in the nature of civil society and non-governmental organizations.
"'Civil society,' the words themselves, have been seen in the past as talismanic – you could ward off abusive governments with civil society, if it organized itself. In this part of the world, it was civil society that was the organizing force against the communist regime; the peaceful revolutions were effectuated by civil society groups," he said. "However, civil society, as it now exists, is no longer a talismanic protection against abusive governments; in fact, civil society itself is now responsible for some major abuses: terrorism, xenophobia, and fundamentalism."
Osiatynski echoed this saying that, in the 1990s, CEU Founder and Honorary Chairman George Soros was one of the only people critiquing civil society and, instead, favoring the notion of an open society, characterized by transparent and responsive governments, freedom of expression, and tolerance.
While much of Central and Eastern Europe were controlled by the communist regime, the role of civil society, in the form of organizations that were neither the state nor the dominant church, was very important and conducive to change, he noted.
Osiatynski named the three most important aspects of life that allowed the regime to control the populace. First, they controlled the means of communication: the media. The message was, therefore, controlled and undisputed, at least publicly. Second, the regime controlled all employment so people were beholden to the state for income. And lastly, they controlled various aspects of life like privileged goods (cars, for example) and the ability to travel (passports).
In the late 1970s, after sending a popular book he authored about American scientists to the chairman of a Polish technical association, Osiatynski received a coupon from the official that would allow him to buy a car at a greatly reduced rate.
"That was his way of saying thank you," Osiatynski said. "If you wanted to do something – like have access to a car – you had to be in line with them [the communist party]."
In the 1980s, in reaction to the oppressive regime, civil society began to grow and there was an emergence of intellectual organizations that defended the rights of workers opposing communism. There were yet other organizations providing basic needs like medication. In Poland, these organizations were all connected with the Catholic church which is why, Osiatynski said, Poland is still "so Catholic."
When the regime fell in 1989, the pillars of civil society collapsed with it, he said. Citizen committees were "no longer needed" because the people believed that the government would take care of such matters. The appeal of Polish blue-collar hero Lech Walesa and his Solidarity Movement wore off.
"You can publish what you want, you can get passport, the market opens up, democratic values are established, a neo-liberal shift comes along and no one thinks about 'Solidarity' anymore," he said.
Often the problem, as Osiatynski sees it, is that civil society organizations and NGOs have not been institutionalized. In his view, the "watchdog or access-to-justice NGOs should be almost constitutionalized." These are the types of NGOs that resemble political parties that force the system to respond to people and to rights violations.
He wants people to think about community-based solutions and support grassroots organizations. He is working with organizations in western Ireland on the issue of rampant alcoholism. Organization of rehabilitation and support groups is managed by the local communities.
"People collect money and the people in town – the local baker, butcher, and so on – provide food for these groups. They want to solve a problem together. I believe that this is where civil society starts – where you live – people taking care of each other, and this doesn't require money. You make peace by acting; you make peace by solving specific problems and making amends, by asking for forgiveness; you don't make peace by just saying you want to make peace."
Osiatynski holds degrees in law and sociology from Warsaw University and the Polish Academy of Sciences and has, since 1995, been a university professor in legal studies at the CEU. He is also a counsel to the Open Society Foundations. He was an advisor to a number of constitutional committees of the Polish Parliament and he has written extensively on constitutional developments in post-Communist Poland and Eastern Europe.
The event was sponsored by CEU's School of Public Policy and the discussion was moderated by SPP Assistant Professor Austin Choi-Fitzpatrick.
By Colleen Sharkey