Page 120 - RIMD_4
P. 120
120 R e v u ed el ’ I n s t i t u td uM o n d ee td udéveloppement
The questions regarding democratic consolidation occurred in the Western
European countries mainly during the first half of the 20th century. The
situation in Central and Eastern Europe (including area of V4 countries)
was different because there the huge political changes occurred only to-
wards the end of the same century, i.e. almost 50 years later. A success-
ful overthrowing of the Communist regimes came to be real in the most
of these countries but the former satellites of the Soviet union very soon
found it difficult to create the new democratic political and administra-
tive systems (Horaničová and Klimovský, 2005, p. 1). However, we should
be aware of the fact successful overthrow of Communist regimes can be
understood differently in individual cases (Pinterič, 2011a).
§ 1 –What is the problem with reform processes?
The V4 countries have gone through a few very important changes for a re-
latively short period (since 1989). In Nižňanský’s (2002) opinion, they have
been associated with three fields. The first of them has had political charac-
ter (implementation of democratic elements, consolidation of democracy,
horizontal and vertical division of political power, etc.), the second one
has been linked to economy (elimination of the limits of market economy,
extension of private property, implementation of new tax policy, etc.), and
the third of them has been related to organization of state and its bodies
(new structure of public administration system, new principles of action of
public administration, improvements in delivering of public services, etc.).
Some of them have been started already in early 1990s, and some later,
however, only a few of them are finished so far.
The point is that there is always “a competition” between opinions or pro-
posals of the experts and political perspectives (i.e. perspectives of different
parties) in the conditions of V4 countries. In this paper I address the fol-
lowing central research question: what is relation between reform strategies
and political willingness?
The analysis is based on both quantitative and qualitative data collected for
the Slovak Republic as an example of V4 country. After reflecting upon the
academic debates with regard to reform processes in public administration
(with special regard to the reform processes aimed at sub-national levels)
a general description of the country of my enquiry and the main, selec-
ted results on relation between reform strategies and political willingness
follows. I used especially content analysis in order to provide a possible
answer to my central question.
o
RIMD–n 4–2013
The questions regarding democratic consolidation occurred in the Western
European countries mainly during the first half of the 20th century. The
situation in Central and Eastern Europe (including area of V4 countries)
was different because there the huge political changes occurred only to-
wards the end of the same century, i.e. almost 50 years later. A success-
ful overthrowing of the Communist regimes came to be real in the most
of these countries but the former satellites of the Soviet union very soon
found it difficult to create the new democratic political and administra-
tive systems (Horaničová and Klimovský, 2005, p. 1). However, we should
be aware of the fact successful overthrow of Communist regimes can be
understood differently in individual cases (Pinterič, 2011a).
§ 1 –What is the problem with reform processes?
The V4 countries have gone through a few very important changes for a re-
latively short period (since 1989). In Nižňanský’s (2002) opinion, they have
been associated with three fields. The first of them has had political charac-
ter (implementation of democratic elements, consolidation of democracy,
horizontal and vertical division of political power, etc.), the second one
has been linked to economy (elimination of the limits of market economy,
extension of private property, implementation of new tax policy, etc.), and
the third of them has been related to organization of state and its bodies
(new structure of public administration system, new principles of action of
public administration, improvements in delivering of public services, etc.).
Some of them have been started already in early 1990s, and some later,
however, only a few of them are finished so far.
The point is that there is always “a competition” between opinions or pro-
posals of the experts and political perspectives (i.e. perspectives of different
parties) in the conditions of V4 countries. In this paper I address the fol-
lowing central research question: what is relation between reform strategies
and political willingness?
The analysis is based on both quantitative and qualitative data collected for
the Slovak Republic as an example of V4 country. After reflecting upon the
academic debates with regard to reform processes in public administration
(with special regard to the reform processes aimed at sub-national levels)
a general description of the country of my enquiry and the main, selec-
ted results on relation between reform strategies and political willingness
follows. I used especially content analysis in order to provide a possible
answer to my central question.
o
RIMD–n 4–2013
