CER's articles for the year 1999 are arranged below by date.
The archived CER articles for the year 2000 are HERE
Our full archives are also organised by:
We also offer:
- The Kinoeye Archive containing all articles pertaining to cinema.
- The Book Review Archive containing all our book reviews.
- The News Review Archive listing all the news updates throughout the past months.
- The Press Review Archive listing all the reviews of outside media looking into the region.
Plus, you can SEARCH all our articles for words of your choice.
Volume 1 Issue 1, 28 June 1999
Central Europe Review: Re-Viewing Central
Europe
Sean Hanley, Kazi Stastna and Andrew Stroehlein
Caught between the post-modern West and the post-Communist East.
The Prospects for Schuster's Slovakia
Michael J Kopanic, Jr, PhD
Slovakia's new President.
The New Face of the Capital Markets
Dr Max Gutbrod
Post-crisis Russian capital markets are becoming clearer.
CER's Regular Columns
Lateral Thinking on the Meaning of Central
Europe Today
Vaclav Pinkava
What is Mitteleuropa actually in the Mittel of?
An End to Violence?
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The Hungarian government counts the costs of war.
Serb Proposals for Partitioning Kosova
Nexhmedin Spahiu
Three plans for partition all contain the same flaws.
The Emergence of Tartu in Estonia
Mel Huang
The Estonian world is becoming less focused on Tallinn.
A 'New Marshall Plan' for Europe
Catherine Lovatt
Is a 52-year-old idea the best solution for the Balkans today?
Ten Years after Communism: The great Czech
malaise
Jan Culik
The Czech Republic is politically rudderless.
The Deadly Antlers of a Dilemma
Dr Sam Vaknin
NATO will crack in Kosovo.
Kinoeye
From East to West and Beyond: The
Karlovy Vary Film Festival
Andrew J Horton
Sneak preview of the 1999 festival.
The Russian Soul Fights Back:
Peter Lutsik's Okraina
Andrew J Horton
Film review and analysis.
Music
The Forgotten Avant Garde
Andrew J Horton
Soviet Composers Crushed by Stalin.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Selected cultural events in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic States
Czech Republic
Poland
Romania
Slovakia
Volume 1 Issue 2, 5 July 1999
Mitrovica Alarm
Nexhmedin Spahiu
The plans for partitioning Kosova in practice.
Theme of the Week: Minority Policy
The New Minority Language Law in
Slovakia
Michael J Kopanic, Jr, PhD
The Slovak Parliament's impending approval of a bill in the shadow of
Brussels.
Romania's Partial Progress on Minority
Issues
Catherine Lovatt
Romania has been tagged as a shining example, but...
CER's Regular Columns
So, You Want to Study Law in Prague?
Jan Culik
The long-rumoured corruption at
the Law School has been exposed.
Doing It Half Right
Mel Huang
The controversy in Estonia surrounding the reburial of Alfons Rebane.
Coda: So long and thanks for all the
goulash
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The immediate danger across Hungary's border is now gone.
Treasure Trove in Kosovo
Sam Vaknin
This is the real Balkan stability pact.
The Big Question
Vaclav Pinkava
Why do young Czechs want to join the Communist Party?
Kinoeye
Hamlet in Wonderland
Andrew J Horton
Miklos Jancso's Nekem lampast adott kezembe az Ur Pesten
Misty Melancholy with a
Bovine Sisyphus
Andrew J Horton
Karel Kachyna's Krava
Books and Literature
Last Train to Clarksville
A Short Story by Cyril Simsa
Music
The St
Petersburg Legacy
Andrew J Horton
A portrait of a city through its poetry and music.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Cultural events in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic States
Czech Republic
Poland
Romania
Slovakia
Volume 1 Issue 3, 12 July 1999
Theme of the Week: Women in Politics
The New Latvian President: Not a
Moment Too Soon
Mel Huang
Gender was hardly an issue in the recent Latvian presidential election.
The Legacy of Elena Ceausescu
Catherine Lovatt
No one has ever really taken her place in Romanian politics.
CER's Regular Columns
Another Kind of Frontier Dispute
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Hungarians and the protests of Croatian farmers.
A Touch of Class?
Sean Hanley
Notions of class in Czech society.
The MinMaj Rule
Sam Vaknin
Minorities neighbouring majorities cannot get along.
Press Freedom under Threat
Jan Culik
A controversial draft press law before the Czech Parliament.
Without Prejudice
Vaclav Pinkava
Czechs and Roma
Iron Guard Revival
Catherine Lovatt
A revival of the interwar fascist movement in Romania.
Another Kind of Frontier Dispute
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The Croatian farmers' blockade and Hungary
The Land Where Heroes Wear Dunce Caps
Tomas Pecina
Politics and privilege in the Czech Republic.
Slice of Life
A Year Away from Prague
Catherine Miller
One year ago, the Czech Social Democratic government took power.
Kinoeye
Who Will Take the Blame?
Peter Krasztev
Post-Yugoslav filmmakers create and family massacres.
Books and Literature
temptation
Prose by Ewald Murrer
Music
Zaum and Sun
Isobel Hunter
The 'first Futurist opera' revisited
On Display
Coming Up
in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of cultural events in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic States
Czech Republic
Poland
Romania
Slovakia
Volume 1 Issue 4, 19 July 1999
EMU and Central Europe
Rob Smith
The first of a series of exclusive articles.
God's Land: Tbilisi, Georgia
Andrew Princz
A look at the wonders of Georgia.
Theme of the Week: Information Technology
Hungarian IT Past and Present
"Blade Runner"
The traditions and ethos of the IT sector in Hungary today can be
traced back to the Communist period.
Surfing the Baltic
Mel Huang
As in most parts of the world, the Internet is booming in the Baltic.
CER's Regular Columns:
When Czech Fights Czech
Tomas Pecina
Czechs at home and Czechs abroad still cannot find common ground.
Romanian Economy in Crisis
Catherine Lovatt
Romania's economic woes mount.
Confessions of a Scum
Andrew Stroehlein
Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman's recent comments about the media.
A Concrete Example of Muddy Thinking in the Czech Press
Jan Culik
No wonder Czechs do not know what is going on around them in the world.
Lithuanian Parliament Fails to Clean
House
Mel Huang
The failure to strip the parliamentary mandate of convicted member Audrius Butkevicius.
The Phlegm and the Anima
Sam Vaknin
Tony Blair was here in Macedonia a while ago, promising the moon.
Transitional Thoughts
Vaclav Pinkava
I am relaunching my column under a new name: "Kaleidoscope."
Kinoeye
Forget the Fascism - Give us the Schmaltz!
Andrew J Horton
Escapist films of the 1930s by Austrian and German directors
Books and Literature
Traveller's Literary Companion: Eastern and Central Europe
Edited by James Naughton
Reviewed by James Partridge
Book review
Music
Jazz in Lithuania - past and present
Bernd Jahnke
Lithuania is still the jazziest place in Central and Eastern Europe.
The Baltic Buzz: Jazz in
Lithuania
Bernd Jahnke
Lithuania is known to be the jazziest of all the former Soviet Republics.
Lithuanian Jazz
Discography
Antanas Gustys
A discography of some of Lithuania's most exciting jazz recordings.
On Display
Coming Up
in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic States
Mel Huang
Czech RepublicKazi Stastna
Poland
Donosy-English and CER staff
Romania
Catherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 5, 26 July 1999
Theme of the Week: The European Union - Promised land or bad neighbour?
The Issue (#5): Euro-fatalism
Andrew Stroehlein
Public complacency is damaging the project of European integration.
A Green El Dorado?
Andreas Beckmann
Will EU membership mean a cleaner, healthier environment for East
Central Europe?
A Step Backwards for Estonia?
Mel Huang
Why is EU membership important for Estonia at all?
Managing Macedonia's Future
Sam Vaknin
Macedonia's relationship with the EU will not change if the EU does not honour its promises.
Romania's Only Way Ahead
Catherine Lovatt
Romania caught between pleasant-sounding political guarantees
abroad and economic chaos at home.
CER's Regular Columns:
Arranged Marriage with Aborted Honeymoon?
Tomas Pecina
Why is the Czech Republic considered the weakest link in NATO?
Blind Justice
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The rule of law may very well prevail on Hungary on paper, but in
practice it's a different picture.
A Hot Summer in Riga
Mel Huang
Aside from 30C temperatures, the summer has been extremely hot in Riga for other reasons - politics.
The Dark Clouds of NATO
Sam Vaknin
The Assessment of Environmental Impact of Military Activities During the Yugoslavia Conflict - Preliminary Findings.
Contrariwise
Vaclav Pinkava
Do bookshelves reveal national character?
Kinoeye
The Mindless Violence of the Anaesthetised
Andrew J Horton
Gyorgy Szomjas's Gengszterfilm is a dispassionate look at
violence in post-totalitarian Hungary.
It Was a Dark and Stormy
Night
Andrew J Horton
The world premiere of Djordje Milosavljevic's Tockovi
"Tarantino-esque" thriller.
Books and Literature
Jako ptak na drate (Like a Bird on a Wire)
Martin Fendrych
Reviewed by Jan Culik
Book review of a work which speaks volumes about Czech politics,
culture and society.
Music
Willis of Oz
James Lester
Portrait of Willis Conover: host of one of Voice of America's
longest-running, most successful programs.
On Display
Coming Up in
the UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic
States Mel Huang
Czech Republic
Kazi Stastna
Poland
Donosy-English and Joanna Rohozinska
Romania
Catherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 6, 2 August 1999
A Shadow Serbia
Ladka Bauerova
A conference in Bratislava has brought together members of the
international community and Serbia's political opposition.
Twilight Zone or Dead Zone?
Slavko Zivanov
An alternative to Milosevic's autocracy exists at the very core of Serb society and always has.
Princess Diana, Al Fayed, the CIA and a Czech Spook
Jan Culik
Is the former Czech master spy, Karl F Koecher, connected with the grand conspiracy surrounding Princess Diana's death?
A Unique Minority
Micah Jayne
The Sorbs continue to thrive on the border of several Central European cultures and countries.
Theme of the Week: Television in Central and Eastern Europe
The Issue: Garbage in, Money
out
Andrew Stroehlein
This issue of examines the role of television in Central and Eastern Europe in transition.
Screen Test: TV broadcasting in
Hungary.
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The first of a series on Hungarian TV examines the events leading up to privatisation and commercialisation.
Nova TV: Commercial success or
embarrassing failure?
Jan Culik
Recent months have revealed the most dramatic and most comic chapter in the post-Communist history of Czech TV broadcasting.
Surviving on Schlock
Catherine Lovatt
Surviving only with the help of foreign investment many potential
Romanian TV productions are lost in a sea of American leftovers.
CER's Regular Columns
Hitting the Bottle, and the
Road
Mel Huang
High-profile incidents involving alcohol and well-known politicians highlight the problem that alcohol poses for Estonia.
I Undertake to Be Your Loyal
Enemy
Tomas Pecina
Czech concepts of democracy remain only a slightly modified version of Marxist teachings on the class struggle.
Don't Read This!
Vaclav Pinkava
If you read this article and remember any of it, you will be breaking the law.
Macedonia's Losses during Operation
Allied Force
Sam Vaknin
Unless donor conferences and foreign governments meet their pledges, Macedonia will be in dire straits indeed.
Kinoeye
The
Horrors of Heroism: Wladyslaw Pasikowski's Demony wojny wedlug
Goi
Andrew J Horton
Demony wojny wedlug Goi director cares little about the true suffering caused by war and nil about the people of Bosnia.
Boredom and Oppression: Alexandr Rogozhkin's Blokpost
Andrew J Horton
Rogozhkin's film focuses on the tension between Russian soldiers and the local population in the Caucasus.
Books and Literature
Daylight in Nightclub Inferno: Czech Fiction from the Post-Kundera Generation
Edited by Elena Lappin
Reviewed by Kathleen Hayes
Despite a number of shortcomings, this collection is a worthwhile
addition to any library.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Baltic States Mel Huang
Czech Republic Kazi
Stastna
HungaryPaul Nemes
PolandJoanna Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 7, 9 August 1999
Slovakia Becomes Boring
Juraj Lisiak
An inexperienced Clinton crony will soon become the new US ambassador in Bratislava.
Belarusian Paradoxes
Peter Szyszlo
Belarusians are struggling to rebuild their post-Soviet economy, define national identity and understand their place in history.
Debate on Nationalism and National Identity
The Defence of 'Ethnic Hungarians'
Cas Mudde
Successive Hungarian governments have learned to paraphrase nationalist demands in terms of human rights discourse sadly obscuring the reality that there are no ethnic groups.
Hungarians: Different Yet
Tolerant
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Hungary is more tolerant toward minorities than most of her neighbours.
Theme of the Week:
Homosexuality in Central and Eastern Europe
A Queer Taboo
Andrew Stroehlein
Since the fall of Communism, everything else has come out of the closet - why not gay and lesbian issues?
Gay Outlaws in Romania
Catherine Lovatt
With same-sex relationships against the law, Romania's attitude to homosexuality is decidedly puritan.
Being Gay in Hungary: A few facts and figures
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The bare facts about gay life in Hungary and the links to explore further.
Kinoeye: Special on gay cinema
Cupid's Arrow Blunted by Bureaucracy?
Karoly Makk's Egymasra nezve
Andrew J Horton
A 1982 Hungarian film about lesbian love and the corruption of
Communism astounded audiences on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
The Straight and Narrow Path: David
Ondricek's Septej
Andrew J Horton and Kazi Stastna
With its cliche portrayals of homosexuality and cowardly approaches toward drugs and sex, Septej is a step backward.
CER's Regular Columns:
The Cost of Joining the Club
Michael Kopanic
The challenge for the current Slovak government is to convince the citizens that the present-day sacrifices are worth the price.
No Pulse 99
Jan Culik
Impuls 99, aims to save Czech society but does little more than fulfil the need of some Czech intellectuals to pompously pontificate in public.
The Solow Paradox
Sam Vaknin
Economies in transition should avoid information technology until a functioning marketplace is there to counter its growth-suppressing effects.
Artistic Revolution
Vaclav Pinkava
Art and architecture in Prague. From the merely revolving to the
downright revolting.
On Doormats, Men and the Quality of
Thieves
Tomas Pecina
Czechs seem to be measuring their living standards not by what they have but rather by what others don't have.
"No one's jamming their
transmission..."
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Second part of a series on Hungarian television examining privatisation and the scandals surrounding it.
The Other Brussels Target
Mel Huang
NATO as perhaps greater goal then EU membership for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Books and Literature
The Grandmother
Bozena Nemcova
Reviewed by James Partridge
Babicka deserves its status as a Czech classic not nearly as well known outside the Czech lands as it should be.
One Third Publishers
Sampling of current and upcoming treats of a small press
based in the Czech Republic.
Music
Rebellion at the Fringes
Wojtek Kosc
Over the past ten years, the independent music scene in Poland has undergone a major transformation.
On Display
Actions Speak Louder than
Words
A review of Dan Puric's Toujours L'Amour
Catherine Lovatt
Using a mixture of music, dance and mime Toujours L'Amour
delivers a humorous exploration of love and relationships.
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK over the next few weeks.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Baltic
States Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Poland Joanna Rohozinska and
Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and David
Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 8, 16 August 1999
Bringing up Jews in Bohemia
Matthew Roth
A new generation of Czechs is turning to Orthodox Judaism and finding new ways to incorporate it into the traditionally secular Czech environment.
Confronting Jewishness
Peter Krasztev
Young Jews from the post-Holocaust "third generation" in Central Europe are reaffirming their Jewish identity.
Theme of the Week: Consumerism
The Issue: The Convenience
Revolution
Andrew Stroehlein
Consumerism also has its positive effects. Paramount among these is the improvement of women's lives and ultimately their standing in society.
Hungarian Shopping
Burnout.
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Even in Communist times, Hungary was something of a consumer society.
From DIY to a Service Economy in
the Czech Republic
Vaclav Pinkava
Czechs are losing their inclination toward inventiveness as their DIY economy becomes a service economy.
Czech Freedom to
Consume
Andreas Beckmann
"We have learned the freedom to consume very well." - An interview with Yvonna Gaillyova.
CER's Regular Columns
Latvia's Pension Tension
Mel Huang
No one doubts there is a crisis in Latvia's social services sector.
On Guilty Poems, Librettos
and Photographs
Tomas Pecina
Shakespeare was lucky to have been English; had he been Czech, he could easily have ended up guilty of writing his plays under the wrong Queen...
Eclipsing Romania's
Woes
Catherine Lovatt
Two Minutes and Twenty-Three Seconds
Superstition and science joined together for the total eclipse in Romania, as the country was distracted for a few minutes from its economic and political problems.
Czech Media and Civil Society: A
survey
Jan Culik
The instruments of speech for the nation have been paralysed, and there is no systematic public debate about the most important issues of public interest.
The Bad Blood of Kosovo
Sam Vaknin
Was the Kosovo conflict a result of the legacy of Serbian history?
Special Report
Zelezny Pulls the Plug on Nova
TV
Jan Culik
The conflict between Vladimir Zelezny, the licence holder of Central nd Eastern Europe's most successful commercial TV station, Nova, and the station's American service providers came to a head.
Kinoeye
The
Dictatorship of Love: Viacheslav Sorokin's Totalitarnii roman
Andrew J Horton
Are Croatian women getting fed up with macho nationalism?
Cream Cake Nationalism: Snjezana Tribuson's Tri muskarca Melite Zganjer
Andrew J Horton
This film explores the authoritarian and paternalistic nature of both private and civic relationships in the Soviet Union.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
The Baltic States Mel Huang
HungaryPaul Nemes
PolandJoanna Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 9, 23 August 1999
Central European Security Issues through the Belarusian Prism
Peter Szyszlo
Despite debates the fact remains that Belarusian foreign policy
revolves around the East, while paying much less attention to the West.
Ten Years Later
Slawomir Majman
Communist Poland departed amid the hum of office fans, the clink of spoons stirring sugar into countless cups of coffee and the rustle of ballots falling into ballot boxes.
White-haired Whiners?
Catherine Miller
Czech newspaper article condemning a recent pension increase has set off a ripple of public debate on the elderly in the Czech Republic.
Theme of the Week: Nuclear Power in Central and Eastern Europe
Lithuania's Nuclear
Dilemma
Mel Huang
Lithunia must choose between maintaining self-sufficiency and
potentially incurring the wrath of the EU.
Ghost Town: Chernobyl twelve years on
Andrew J Horton
Life in the 30km exclusion zone around Chernobyl still continues.
CER interviews a film documentarist about his visit to the area to record the lives of ordinary people.
Forward to the Past
Andreas Beckmann
As Western societies are having serious second thoughts about
nuclear energy it seems to be gaining its second wind in Central and Eastern Europe.
CER's Regular Columns
Charming Rascal or Arch
Villain?
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Hungary's most notorious bank robber, Attila Ambrus, has fascinated the country.
Thick with Castles
Vaclav Pinkava
Visit some of the pleantiful castles in the Czech Republic might keep the elderly and infirm out of politics.
Ten Years After
Mel Huang
23 August 1989, some one million Balts linked hands and created one of the longest human chains in history.
A Singer in a Minefield
Tomas Pecina
Under Communism, few Czechs would even think of demanding courageous moral and political stances from their hairdressers, but such is not the case with members of the artistic community.
Ceausescu's Return
Catherine Lovatt
In a symbolic attempt to disassociate Romania from the Ceausescu era, many of the Ceausescu possessions have been auctioned.
Czech Public TV: The
yellow-bellies
Jan Culik
In this second article in this series on Czech media and civil society, we see how politics and cowardice triumphed over journalistic standards at the nation's public television station last year.
Between Omerta and Vendetta
Sam Vaknin
The language of business in countries in transition is suffused with the criminal parlance of violence.
Kinoeye
Dreaming a Bad Reality:
Rychle pohyby oci and the legacy
of Jaromil Jires
Andrew J Horton
One of the most incomprehensible Czech films of the decade, this films relatively high profile derives from a Czechoslovak surrealist classic of the country's darkest days.
Books and Literature
Confronting Jewishness
Part 2 - Generating a Generation
Peter Krasztev
In this, the second of three parts, we will look at how selected authors view their Jewishness and how they came to this consciousness.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul NemesPolandJoanna Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 10, 30 August 1999
Ready for the
Chop
Rudolf Hermann
Poland's antiquated and inefficient farming sector urgently needs a drastic overhaul.
Nothing but
Nation
Pavel Tychtl
Czech polititians seem to be curiously unwilling to work constructively towards EU accession.
Theme of the Week: The Political Spectrum
The Failure of Pure
Democracy
Catherine Lovatt
The extremes of the Romanian political spectrum are crippling democracy.
Battle of the Vaclavs
Andrew Stroehlein
In Czech political thinking, left, right and centre are not nearly as important as Vaclav, Vaclav and Vaclav.
CER's Regular Columns
Post-moralism
Vaclav Pinkava
Blackmail is one key reason why morality, even in private life, does have something to do with public office.
UK: Central Europeans Keep
Out!
Jan Culik
British bureaucracy, when dealing with foreigners applying for permission to enter the country, seems to be even worse than those in East and Central Europe, and it is encouraging Central European racism.
The Poets and the Eclipse
Sam Vaknin
Intellectuals in the Balkans exert no moderating influence on their societies; on the contrary, they radicalize, dramatize, poison and incite.
Kinoeye
Summer of Discontent:
Jan Hrebejk's Pelisky
Andrew J Horton
Pelisky is a socio-historical analysis of the end of the Prague Spring in 1968 as well as a humorous portrait of how acutely embarrassing parents can be.
Catching in the Rye:
Roman Vavra's Co chytnes v zite
Andrew J Horton
Documentarist Roman Vavra's 1998 feature debut, Co chytnes v zite was well-received but is more modest and less adventurous than Pelisky.
Books and Literature
Confronting Jewishness
Part 3 - Tradition and normality
Peter Krasztev
In this, the final part of this series, we will look at how these authors view the concepts of tradition and normality.
A Lovely Tale of Photography
Petr Nadas
This week, CER brings you
an excerpt from the unique "film novella" A Lovely Tale of
Photography from Hungarian writer Petr Nadas - a hallucinatory piece of prose-poetry.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul NemesPolandJoanna Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 11, 6 September 1999
Strays and Stereotypes
Joanna Rohozinska
Stereotypes of Romania and Romanians abound. The most damaging is that they are a backward culture, simultaneously ignorant and corrupt, and that NATO and EU accession conditions will introduce a structure to overcome these flaws.
It All Started with a Picnic...
Paul Nemes
Glasnost and perestroika, did away with the only factor that ultimately held the Soviet empire together - fear. A key moment in the breaking of this grip of terror on Central and Eastern Europe was a picnic arranged on the Hungarian-Austrian border on 19 August 1989.
A Different Kind of Paper
Wojtek Kosc
Though nothing new, the meaning of "alternative press" has changed. It is no longer associated with politics, but has diversified to almost exclusively cover arts, literature and ecology.
Retribution in Kosovo
Natasa Kandic
Notes from Natasa Kandic, director of the Fund for Humanitarian Law in Belgrade, describe some of the difficulties in the investigation of atrocities perpetrated by both sides in the conflict and suggest the fate of many of the new disappeared.
Theme of the Week: One Year after the Ground-breaking Slovak Elections.
A Year of New Government
Sharon Fisher
If Slovakia does not receive recognition for its efforts - in the form of an invitation to first-round EU enlargement talks at the Helsinki summit in November - Dzurinda's pro-Western government could collapse.
CER's Regular Columns
Epizodiac
Vaclav Pinkava
22 years after his first blockbuster, George Lucas's retrospective Star Wars Episode I, The Phantom Menace, currently the third (second?) highest grossing movie of all time, is opening in Czech cinemas.
On Czechs, the Great
Myth-Makers
Tomas Pecina
Few nations have created so many myths about themselves as the Czechs. As with other national mythologies, Czech myths mostly concern the history and self-perception of the ethnic group.
Homo balkanus
Sam Vaknin
How does one respond to a torrent of belligerent correspondence from people in the Balkans, arguing against the belligerence of people in the Balkans?
Moldova: Barely a state
Catherine Lovatt
Sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, politically unstable Moldova finds itself economically dependent on outside support and in a vulnerable position.
Kinoeye
Getting in Gear:
Janez Burger's V leru
Andrew J Horton
Slovenia is not noted for the high quality of its cinema. However, V leru (Idle Running, 1998) was one of the festival's more interesting films.
Chekhov's
Post-perestroika Russia:
Sergei Sniezhkin's Cvety
kalenduly
Andrew J Horton
Not all literary films are based on books or plays. Sniezhkin's film evokes the spirit of Chekhov and shows how little Russia has changed since his time.
Books and Literature
The Good Girl, 1970 and a Bit
Eva Hauserova
Overcoming Borders - both physical and mental.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul NemesPolandJoanna Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 12, 13 September 1999
A Victory for the Media?
Marina Blagojevic
In ex-Yugoslavia, the media served to deconstruct commonalities and helped to create that matrix of non-negotiable differences demanding that "something must be done."
Special Report
The Czech Republic 1992 to
1999:
From unintentional political birth to prolonged political
crisis
Andrew Stroehlein
with Jan Culik, Steven Saxonberg and Kazi Stastna
This is an extensive account of the first years of the young Czech Republic.
EMU: Why Do It?
Rob Smith
In our second article in the series, we
address how EMU came to be the essential next step in the development of Western Europe.
The Wine Time
Jeffrey Brown
This is the time of
vinobrani - the wine festival.
Theme of the Week: Environmental Movements.
CZECH REPUBLIC: A Quiet Revolution
Andreas Beckmann
Following the darkest days of the Klaus era, the Czech environmental movement is coming into its own.
RUSSIA: Working with Russia
John Massey Stewart
How much of the vast sums of money the West has poured into Russia been spent effectively?
ROMANIA: An der schoenen, braunen Donau
Catherine Lovatt
Once a thriving ecosystem, the Danube River has become a cancerous brown scar across Eastern Europe. Can anything save this situation?
HUNGARY: Where There's Muck There's Brass
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Hungary's now flourishing green movement has had only a relatively
small impact and the primary reason for its broader acceptance is EU
accession.
CER's Regular Columns
Fisheye Lens
Vaclav Pinkava
If immortality is ever invented, it will be on sale to the highest bidder. And the highest bidder will be the greatest criminal boss - someone like Stalin, no doubt.
Czechs versus Word-charm
Tomas Pecina
Some argue that of all the Central and East European nations, Czechs are most prone to be charmed by words.
Quis Custodiet Ipsos
Custodes ?
Sam Vaknin
The West keeps sending money East, and it keeps disappearing in a
tangle of fear and corruption.
Nova TV: The saga continues
Jan Culik
The latest sad chapter in the unfolding story of Nova.
A Friendly Invasion
Mel Huang
Scottish football and Estonian independence.
Kinoeye
A Century of Dreaming:
Jan Jakub Kolski's Historia kina w Popielawach
Andrew J Horton
Jan Jakub Kolski's mystical
and folklorish films stand apart from the general flow of Central European cinema.
Books and Literature
War in the Woods: Estonia's
Struggle for Survival, 1944-1956
By Mart Laar
Reviewed by Mel Huang
War in the Woods tells the story of Estonia's "Forest Brothers" - the freedom fighters that took to the woods after the second Soviet occupation, which started in 1944.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul Nemes
PolandJoanna
Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
Baltic StatesMel Huang
Volume 1 Issue 13, 20 September 1999
To Be a Belarusan in Bialystok
Wojtek Kosc
Belarusans in Poland are experiencing the effects of overt
anti-Belarusan policies.
The Conquest of Pragmatism
Joanna Rohozinska
A new chapter in Polish-Lithuanian relations.
Manifestly Refreshing
Kazi Stastna
Two of "The Last Underground" organisers explain why there is little hope that such projects will become a regular part of the Prague arts scene anytime soon.
A Victory for the Media? (part 2)
Marina Blagojevic
The Serb and the Western media's construction of the Kosovo conflict.
Working with Russia (part 2)
John Massey Stewart
In this installement the problems of gaps and duplication of these efforts are addressed.
Theme of the Week: Environmental Movements.
CZECH REPUBLIC: The Big Yawn
Andreas Beckmann
Decentralization could just possibly bring big changes to Czech
society - but who cares?
CZECH REPUBLIC: Not Just Prague
Andrew Stroehlein
Mistakenly, the Czech Republic is usually assumed to be simply Prague and Czechs, an urban people.
ESTONIA: The Emergence of Tartu
Mel Huang
Up and coming Tartu is challenging Tallinn's dominance.
CER's Regular Columns
Indiscriminate Visas?
Vaclav Pinkava
Who decides which Czechs will get visas to Britain - and on what basis?
The War of the Hypocrites
Tomas Pecina
The latest developments in Czech-Roma relations have put the Roma in a lose-lose situation.
Herzl's Butlers
Sam Vaknin
Europe is filled with small nations; there are two schools of thought in dealing with the thorny problems they create.
Mixed Czech Nuts
Jan Culik
After the news from the Czech Republic over the past few weeks, it seems hardly surprising that an increasing number of people are turning off their televisions, hiding their money in mattresses and voting for the Communists.
Running toward Helsinki
Mel Huang
Estonia may have jeopardised its position as a front-runner for EU
membership.
Waiting for the Pay-back
Catherine Lovatt
Romania is still waiting to reap the rewards of its support of the NATO bombing campaign of Yugoslavia.
Oh Give Me a Home...
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
The number of people taking up mortgages in Hungary is increasing; however, the number of repossessions has reached epidemic proportions.
Kinoeye
A Deafening Silence: Ivo
Trajkov's Minulost
Andrew J Horton
Among other contradictions, this film recreates the world of the deaf, not only through the use of plot, camerawork and editing, but also by means of sound.
Books and Literature
Colloquial Czech:
The Complete Course for Beginners (second edition)
By James Naughton
Reviewed by Neil Bermel
One of the mainstays of Czech language teaching and learning for the last twelve years has now been thoroughly revised and republished.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Culture Round-up
Poland's Week in
Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 13
September 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul Nemes
PolandJoanna
Rohozinska
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
LithuaniaMel Huang
LatviaMel Huang
EstoniaMel Huang
Volume 1 Issue 14, 27 September 1999
Democracy's Disappointment
Pavel Tychtl
Central and Western Europe share a high level of disillusionment with democracy.
Czech Intellectuals and
"Post-Communism"
Andrew Stroehlein
Czech intellectuals describe the post-Communist decade by relying
heavily on historical arguments, avoiding the reality of Czech society.
A Victory for the Media? (part 3)
Marina Blagojevic
The Serb and the Western media's construction of the Kosovo conflict.
Working with Russia (part 3)
John Massey Stewart
This installment looks at stories of success and failure, and what can be learned from both.
Theme of the Week: Women and Feminism
HUNGARY: The Invisible
Majority
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Contrary to the Cosmopolitan ideal marital violence and rape are still depressingly common.
REGION: Women on the Web
CER Staff
A list of important Internet resources on feminism in Central and
Eastern Europe.
CZECH REPUBLIC: A Quiet
Ascent
Dagmar Kotlandova Koenig
Czech women's remarkable upward journey through higher education over the last 100 years.
CER's Regular Columns
A Time to Laugh
Vaclav Pinkava
The resurgence of pub humour could be indicative of a continued
economic slump.
The Honorary Academic
Sam Vaknin
Sad state of academia, plagued with cronyism.
More Moribund Manouevering
Jan Culik
Yet another chapter in the convoluted history of TV Nova.
Historical Regicide
Mel Huang
A new report suggests collusion between inter-war Estonian President Konstantin Pats and the Soviets.
Tolerant Transylvania
Catherine Lovatt
Transylvania proves not to be the hotbed of ethnic conflict that some predicted.
Kinoeye
A Fatalistic Feminism: Dorota Kedzierzawska's Nic
Andrew J Horton
Despite the rhetoric of Communism, gender equality has not been a
feature of Central European life in the past.
Books and Literature
Women of Prague:
Ethnic
Diversity and Social Change from the Eighteenth Century to the
Present
By Wilma A Iggers
Reviewed by Kathleen Hayes
This is a book one can hardly put down and one that will be of interest to those who have no special knowledge of the Czech lands or of Central Europe.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Poland's Week in
Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 20
September 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
HungaryPaul Nemes
PolandJoanna
Rohozinska and Donosy-English
RomaniaCatherine and David Lovatt
LithuaniaMel Huang
LatviaMel Huang
EstoniaMel Huang
Volume 1 Issue 15, 4 October 1999
Pricking Havel's Bottom
Jan Culik
Interview with John Keane, author of an unauthorised biography of Vaclav Havel.
Turning Yellow
Steven C Johnson
Latvia's irresponsible press revealed in the wake of the recent
pedophile scandal.
A Not Entirely Harmonious Success
Niall O'Loughlin
Just as everyday life has continued smoothly for Slovenians, so has the development of contemporary music.
Working with Russia (part 4)
John Massey Stewart
The investment into solving Russia's vast environmental problems has been notable. But has the money been spent wisely?
Theme of the Week: The Uses of History
REGION: Reckoning and
Reconciliation
Joanna Rohozinska
The danger caused by the blurring of lines between history and
historiography in East Central Europe.
CZECH REPUBLIC: Making
History
Andrew J Horton
Czech directors have often looked to the past for their subject matter.
CER's Regular Columns
Living by Numbers
Vaclav Pinkava
The university degree has become a necessary prop without which you are
a complete nobody.
The Doctor's Postbag
Sam Vaknin
with Emilija Geleva
Dr Vaknin defends his articles in correspondence with a friend, a
government advisor in the region.
The Doctor's Postbag
Tomas Pecina
If Czechs want a better life, they should stop complaining and raise merry hell.
It's Never Too Late
Mel Huang
Age should play no role in the prosecution of the Baltic States' war criminals.
Fishing for a Marshall Plan
Catherine Lovatt
Romania has developed a programme which they hope will help bring
stability and security to the Balkans.
Books and Literature
PROSE: Eva
By Daniela Drazanova
Czech-born writer Daniela Drazanova paints a bleak picture of one
couple's emigre life in Cleveland.
On Display
Coming Up in the
UK
Andrew J Horton
Central and East European culture in the UK.
Culture Round-up
Poland's Week in
Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 27
September 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
CroatiaSasa Cvijetic
EstoniaMel Huang
HungaryPaul Nemes
LatviaMel Huang
LithuaniaMel Huang
PolandJoanna
Rohozinska and Donosy-English
RomaniaCatherine
and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 16, 11 October
Trouble on the Island of the
Blessed
Magali Perrault
The success of Joerg Haider is often imprecisely explained by the
failure of the Austrians to face up to their role as Hitler's "willing executioners."
At the Second Crossroads
Sasa Cvijetic
The process of democratic transition in Croatia has been more complex than in the other countries of post-Communist Europe.
Democracy's Disappointment
Pavel Tychtl
Current Czech democracy suffers from a variety of shortcomings.
After the First Wave
Robert Smith
Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe looks set to happen in several waves.
Working with Russia (part 5)
John Massey Stewart
The investment into solving Russia's vast environmental problems has been notable. But has the money been spent wisely?
Theme of the Week: Health
Operation Successful, Patient Dead
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
According to a recent survey, patient satisfaction with hospital care seems to be in line with the EU average. But scratch the surface and you'll quickly reveal the crisis in the Hungarian healthcare.
A Meek Protest
Jan Culik
The recent Czech doctors strike was very mild, so much so that most patients hardly noticed.
CER's Regular Columns:
Modern-day Pirates
Mel Huang
Estonia is awash with pirates - pirates of music, video and software.
Ten Years after What?
Catherine Lovatt
President Emil Constantinescu controversially declared that the
collapse of Communism "meant no revolution."
The Dance of Jael
Sam Vaknin
People feel cheated by their post-Communist systems. Envy is the
central emotion.
Panoramic Hindsight
Vaclav Pinkava
People who do learn from history are condemned to watch others repeat it.
The Educated Poor
Jan Culik
The decline in the living standards of university educated people in the Czech Republic has been sharp in the 1990s.
Kinoeye
This week, Kinoeye examines the most recent film by the acclaimed Polish actor and director, Jerzy Stuhr, Tydzien z zycia mezczyzny (A Week in a Life of a Man, 1999).
What a Piece of Work is a Man!
Artur Kosinski
Stuhr, one of Krzysztof Kieslowski's favourite actors, directs himself in the leading role once again in his third film, a study of how the facade of success is riddled with the cracks of human fallibility.
I Made a Film About
Weakness...
Lukasz Maciejewski
At the Kazimierz Dolny film festival, Stuhr spoke to the press about his latest film, its making and how his films stand relative to
Kieslowski's.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK over the next few weeks.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Poland Joanna Rohozinska and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 17, 18 October, 1999
SUMMARY OF THE NEW EC PROGRESS
REPORT
CER Staff
Summaries of the European Commission's annual Progress Report as a whole and as it pertains to each country in the region.
Grinning and Bearing It
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
For Hungary European integration continues to be seen as the sole means of guaranteeing peace and prosperity.
Masochistic Murmur
Kazi Stastna
The negative EC Report only seems to be driving those in Czech politics and the media to sigh "We told you so."
Symbolic Meeting of "5+1"
Mel Huang
Estonia trying to unite the front-running EU aspirant countries before the Helsinki summit of the European Council.
Newslinks: Tory Threat to EU
Expansion?
Nikhat Rasheed
Links to articles.
Newslinks: Brussels and Prague
Robert Young
Links to articles and resources dealing with Prague's lacklustre drive
for EU membership.
Interview
A Different Sort of Dissidence
Joanna Rohozinska
Adam Michnik talks about Polish politics and the media.
Feature
At the Second Crossroads
Sasa Cvijetic
Examining Croatia's political parties and the political landscape on
the eve of elections.
CER's Regular Columns:
The Czech Dilemma, or the Merits of
Honesty
Tomas Pecina
In the Czech Republic the lesson of the past decade has been that
honesty does not pay.
The Myth of Greater Albania
Sam Vaknin
Reality doesn't support the concept, or myth, of Greater Albania.
The Carpathian Godfathers
Catherine Lovatt
Local businessmen and mafia gangs have come into violent conflict in
Brasov.
The Flutter-by Effect
Vaclav Pinkava
A short discussion of chaos theory, Czech fairytales and, in a
roundabout way, Czech politics.
Reminiscing Revolutionaries
Jan Culik
Last week's historians' conference in Prague dedicated to the tenth
anniversary of the Velvet Revolution seems to have been little more than a
celebratory feast run by victors.
Kinoeye
The Revolution Was
Televised
Harun Farocki and Andrej Ujica's Videograms of a Revolution
Ray Privett
When Romania rose up against Ceausescu in 1989, the TV cameras were
there to capture it all and now to be replayed.
Books and Literature
Two by Ewald Murrer
James Partridge
Two books by Czech writer Ewald Murrer, The Diary of Mr Pinke
and Dreams at the End of the Night, are rather disappointing
Ewald Murrer: Five Poems
Translated from Czech by James Naughton.
Music
Bulgarian Folk
Sue Bagust
Professor Rice spent thirty years travelling around Bulgaria,
collecting folk music and talking to musicians the result of which is a
book and accompanying CD.
On Display
The Sixth Next Wave
Prague's Next Wave theatre festival
Catherine Miller
Nothing new at the alternative theatre festival.
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Poland's Week in Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 11
October 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe:
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 18, 25 October 1999
More Aid, Fewer Strings
David M Kotz
A successful Western policy on aid to Russia lies with fewer, not more,
restrictions on its use.
A Depressing Decade
Greg Nieuwsma
For the Roma, the ten years since the Revolution in 1989 have been
anything but velvet.
Theme of the Week: Post-Yugoslav Culture
Vrooom's Torpedo Music
Robert Young
Mixing everything from cabaret to drum 'n' bass.
The Impossibility of Independence
Anja Susa
An analysis of the current state of Yugoslav theatre.
The Pursuit of Unhappiness
Ales Debeljak
Slovenia serves as an example of the necessity to develop a
cosmopolitan attitude which is characterized by a reflection of both local
cultural tradition and international codes of expression.
Erosion or Survival
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
CER talks to Alpar Losoncz, who lectures on and in the region about how
Vojvodinian Hungarians are holding on to their culture.
Vignettes of Violence
Andrew J Horton
Post-Yugoslav cinema can scarcely avoid portraying violence given the
country's recent history. Directors have shown varying attitudes to the
subject, however.
Another Truth
Maria Vidali
Are the Serbs really the "baddies" of Europe? Recent documentaries
challenge this tired old cliche.
Young Croatian Film
Ivo Skrabalo
Just when it seemed like the Croatian film industry would vanish
altogether, a new group of young directors has brought a surprising wave of
optimism.
Cutting It Short
Andrew J Horton
Yugoslavia's fragile industry of short and experimental films was
honoured with two showings at the recent Raindance Film Festival in
London.
Let Them Eat Cake
Hrvoje Turkovic
Further comments on Kinoeye's cake- and gender-analysis of Tribuson's
Tri muskarca Melite Zganjer.
Focus on Fiks Fokus
Andrew J Horton
A talk with the art director of Fiks Fokus, an innovative Belgrade
production company weathering hard times.
CER's Regular Columns:
The Mioritic Space
Catherine Lovatt
A look at poet and philosopher Lucien Blaga's attempts to define
notions of "Romanianness" through a complex and mystical theory of cultural
influences and collective unconsciousness.
Pigeons
Vaclav Pinkava
Are Czechs really a "dove-like nation"? And what is a dove, anyway?
Deflating Election Experience
Mel Huang
Estonia held its final elections of the millennium for all local
councils on 17 October in quite an unspectacular fashion. As both
politicians and voters remained burnt out from the hard-fought general
elections in March earlier this year, the local elections seemed a bit of
an anticlimax.
Race Relations
Jan Culik
Rather than indulging in hypocritical posturing, we should simply admit
that Czech-Romani relations suffer from serious and complex problems, and
these should be tackled from both sides.
The Myth of Greater Albania: From
Illyrium to Skanderberg
Sam Vaknin
Part 2 of this series exploring the convenient myth of a Greater
Albania and the real history of the country.
Books and Literature
Fantasies of Salvation
Steven Saxonberg
In his recent book Fantasies of Salvation: Democracy, Nationalism
and Myth in Post-Communist Societies, Vladimir Tismaneanu tries to
explain the rise of nationalism and anti-liberal ideologies by discussing
the political psychology of post-Communism.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Hungary Paul Nemes
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 19, 1 November 1999
Ukraine: None of the Above
Sarah Whitmore
Ukraine's third presidential election offers twice as many candidates
as the last one but even less choice.
A Scorecard for Czech Lustration
Kieran Williams
What has the controversial Czech lustration law achieved exactly?
Romania: Great Expectations, Slim
Chances
Calin Cosmaciuc
Despite Kosovo's promise, it soon became clear that Western integration
remains no more than a distant aspiration.
Poland: Deported, Scattered or
Missing
Greg Nieuwsma
Though a scant two per cent of the country's citizens today, Poland's
Ukrainians, Belarusians, Germans and Jews comprise a vital part of
20th-century Polish history.
Theme of the Week: Refugees and Migration
Overview: Shifting Borders, Shifting
Roles
Pavel Tychtl
Today, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe are key players in
the Europe-wide effort to control migration.
To Be a Refugee in the Czech
Republic
Carol Sanford
Stories of refugees in the Czech Republic.
Safe Haven?
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Asylum offered by Hungary to non-Europeans suffering persecution
doesn't guarantee a safe haven.
Wronging the Roma
Catherine Lovatt
Abuse and discrimination have forced many Roma to leave Romania.
The Welcome Refugees
Paul Nemes
The West was rather more liberal in opening its borders after the 1956
Hungarian exodus than it is in most refugee crises.
CER's Regular Columns:
Flogging a Dead Horse?
Vaclav Pinkava
A controversial new statue in Prague speaks volumes about the current
situation in the Czech Republic today.
Completing the Circle?
Jan Culik
Communists take the lead in the opinion polls a mere ten years after
the fall of Communism.
The Myth of Greater Albania: From
Ottomans to Americans
Sam Vaknin
The third installment of this history of Albania charts the decline
during the Ottoman years and the partition at the hands of the Great
Powers.
Kinoeye
Interview: Her Story, A
History
Marta Meszaros's Kisvilma - Az utolso naplo
Andrew Princz
Marta Meszaros is is in the process of making a new Diary prequel,
documenting her early childhood in Stalin's Soviet Union and the death of
her father.
Music
Rock Estonian Style
Mel Huang
Throughout Ruja's 17-year existence, this groundbreaking band kept a
distinct Estonian flavour and became the best-loved cult rock band in the
country.
On Display
Frana Sramek's Leto on stage
again
Catherine Miller
A recent performance of Frana Sramek's Leto (Summer, 1915)
attempts to warm up the chilly autumn nights in Prague, but it soon leaves
its
audience snoozing in a torpor of soothing sunshine.
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Poland's Week in Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 25
October 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Hungary Paul Nemes
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 20, 8 November 1999
Chernobyl in Slow Motion
Peter Szyszlo
In the first of a three-part series, we
tally the current costs and looming dangers caused by the old Soviet empire's
mismanagement of its radioactive waste.
Lessons in Democracy
Greg Nieuwsma
Slovakia, its minorities and the European Union.
Theme of the Week: Education
Teaching Morality
Robin Healey
In their struggle to adapt to post-1989 reality Czech universities have
given very little moral
guidance to their students.
Hungarian University in Transylvania
Catherine Lovatt
The debate about the re-creation of the Hungarian Bolyai
University began in 1997, raising issues of national identity, ethnicity
and minority rights.
Ljubljana University: Between hopes and
anxieties
Ales Debeljak
Despite certain improvements, stubborn problems linger in Slovenia's
university and educational system.
CER's Regular Columns:
Profound Disillusionment
Jan Culik
A recent survey has shown that Czechs are deeply disillusioned with
their politicians and their political parties.
The Myth of Greater Albania: From King
Zog to a brave new
world
Sam Vaknin
The final installment of this history of Albania takes us from the
scramble for power which resulted in the ascension of King Zog to the
present day.
Kinoeye
Your Heart Is Beating Too
Loudly
Andrew J Horton
Lev Kuleshov's Velikii uteshitel' has a curious place in film
history due perhaps to the director's adventurous, and ultimately
misunderstood use of overlapping plots and sentimental slush as means of
satirical and subversive comment on Stalin's brutal brand of Communism.
Music
Arks and Labyrinths
Nicholas Reyland
At the end of the 1950s, Poland's contemporary classical music scene
was transformed from neo-classical backwater to avant-garde frontier.
On Display
A photography exhibit on the Kosovo
conflict
Robert Young
Testimonies of NATO War Crimes in Yugoslavia
photography exhibit, held in the dilapidated Yugoslav Embassy in
Prague's Mala Strana, leaves some sides of the story undisclosed.
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Poland's Week in Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 1
November 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Hungary Paul Nemes
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 21, 15 November 1999
The Unbearable Lightness of Being an
Intellectual
Sasa Cvijetic
After undergoing several phases intellectuals in Central Europe are
afraid to exercise their critical role, often acting as courtesans serving
the post-Cold War establishment.
Living in a Policy Vacuum
Maria Vidali
The exodus of Albanian emigrants to Greece has strained relations
between the two countries, a fact not helped by the lack of concrete
policies on either side.
Chernobyl in Slow Motion
Peter Szyszlo
Second instalment of our three-part series examines the effects of
mishandling of radioactive waste has had on Russia's surrounding
waters.
Revival and Struggle
Greg Nieuwsma
Although Hungary's Jews are enjoying a cultural blossoming, its Roma
haven't found things quite so rosy. We continue our look at minorities in
Central Europe today.
Theme of the Week: Cities
BERLIN: Building Homes, Building
Politics
Juan Jose Gomez Gutierrez
After World War II, Berlin lay in ruins and extensive redevelopment was
needed. The results on either side of the Wall were very different.
KATOWICE: A Tale of Many Cities
Wojtek Kosc
Poland's Silesia region is facing both the difficult legacy of its
industrial past and the equally difficult prospect of its future.
PRAGUE: From Precariousness to
Disaffection
Isabelle Le Rouzic
The homeless in Prague.
PRAGUE: Dysfunctional
Decision-making
Andreas Beckmann
The 9 September adoption of a master plan that will guide development,
has done little to resolve fundamental differences and will simply usher in
the next series of battles for the city's future.
SOFIA: Saving Sofia
Paul Csagoly
Sofia's green claim to fame is threatened as parks are slowly being
destroyed to open up space for commercial developments.
BUDAPEST: A Sustainable City?
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Sustainability is a fairly new concept and not just in Hungary.
Budapest's Second City?
Andrew Princz
On 12 November, Central Europe's largest multi-use facility to date
opened.
An Interview with Jozsef
Finta
Andrew Princz
As architect of the Westend City Centre and many of Budapest's other
major real estate developments of the past decade, Jozsef Finta is the man
shaping today's Budapest.
CER's Regular Columns:
TV Nova, the Health Secretary and Other
Problems
Jan Culik
An analysis of some major programmes broadcast on Czech radio and
television over the past few weeks clearly shows the principles by which
the Czech media operate.
A Beginning, Not an End
Mel Huang
The collapse of the Wall was one of the most potent catalysts for the
increase in activities of the Baltic national movements.
Is Transition Possible?
(or Can
Socialist Professors of Economics Teach Capitalism?)
Sam Vaknin
Capitalism is more than just a theoretical construct, and this fact is
a major impediment to the democratization of former Communist
countries.
Kinoeye
Andrzej Wajda's Pan
Tadeusz
Wojtek Kosc
Wajda's latest offering, an adaptation of a well-loved Polish literary
classic, shows that he has not lost his touch with the passing years.
Books and Literature
Poetry: Marcin Swietlicki
Translated by Kirsty Hooper
Translations from Swietlicki's latest collection of poetry,
Schizma (Gladyszow, 1999).
The 1998 Parliamentary
Elections and Democratic Rebirth in Slovakia
Translated by Kirsty Hooper
Translations from Swietlicki's latest collection of poetry,
Schizma (Gladyszow, 1999).
On Display
A photography exhibit on the Kosovo
conflict
Robert Young
Testimonies of NATO War Crimes in Yugoslavia
photography exhibit, held in the dilapidated Yugoslav Embassy in
Prague's Mala Strana, leaves some sides of the story undisclosed.
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Poland's Week in Culture
Wojtek Kosc
Highlights of cultural events in Poland for the week starting 8
November 1999.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 22, 22 November 1999
Hitler Lives
Anthony Ozuna
I saw Hitler yesterday on the metro in Prague.
A New Era: Macedonia's New
President
Zhidas Daskalovski
The victory of Boris Trajkovski also means that Slobodan Milosevic has
lost another battle in the Balkans.
Chernobyl in Slow Motion
Peter Szyszlo
The third and final installment looks at further efforts to deal with
the problem of radioactive waste as well as new developments since
glasnost.
Theme of the Week: Prostitution
CZECH REPUBLIC: Taxing the
Professionals
Kazi Stastna
Dubi is no longer the roadside peepshow it once was, and state
authorities are getting ready to tax the gals into oblivion, or at least
out of sight.
HUNGARY: A Green Light to Red-light
Districts
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
A new law sets out the parameters for the partial legalisation of
prostitution in Hungary.
CER's Regular Columns:
Evaluating a Decade
Jan Culik
While the majority of Hungarians and Poles are generally pleased with
their post-Communist lot, Czechs are divided equally on the issue of
transition.
Latvia's Campaign against Democracy
Mel Huang
In the past few weeks the development of Latvia's political culture
took an abrupt and disastrous turn.
Lessons in Transition
Sam Vaknin
What do countries in transition need to do to encourage outside
investment? The answers are surprisingly simple.
Restless in Romania
Catherine Lovatt
Romania is gripped by strikes and public protests - and not for the
first time.
Kinoeye
Night of the Fallen
Andrew J Horton
Fred Kelemen's Abendland. Bleak, sparse and uncompromising,
Kelemen's third film continues his exploration of the lives of the
dispossessed.
INTERVIEW: Hope Isn't
Something I Deal With
Andrew J Horton
Kelemen is not ashamed to say that he finds the concept.
Books and Literature
REVIEW: The Life of Edvard
Benes, 1884-1948: Czechoslovakia in Peace and War
Zbynek Zeman
Reviewed by: Richard Crampton
Zbynek Zeman is much too good a historian to fall into the vogue for
Benes-bashing.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Czech Republic Carolina
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Poland Joanna Rohozinska
and Donosy-English
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 23, 29 November 1999
Apologists Rejoice!
Kieran Williams
It's no secret that Prague Castle has been on the offensive to
discredit John Keane's new critical biography of Vaclav Havel.
Unfortunately, Keane seems to have shot himself in the foot before the
battle's even begun.
Clinton's Pep-talk in Sofia
Zhidas Daskalovski
On 22 November, tens of thousands of cheering people gathered in Sofia
to hear Bill Clinton tell them "you too shall overcome." Why didn't he
deliver the same message to Macedonia?
Reversing Xenophobia
Paul Nemes
Two weeks ago, the Hungarian component of the new "rainbow coalition"
met for their annual conference to assess how the reversal of Meciar's
xenophobic policies is proceeding.
A Decade of Change... to Come
Robin Healey
Czech universities have gone through significant changes over the past
decade. They will need to go through even more in the next.
Taxing the Professionals (part 2)
Kazi Stastna
Czech social workers are having to face some of the industry's less
glamorous aspects head-on.
Theme: Regional Lumping
Why the "Baltic States"?
Mel Huang
Over the years, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, have been lumped
together as the "Baltic states." But why?
Nomen est Omen?
Sasa Cvijetic
There has hardly been a notion in this century as burdened by negative
connotation as "the Balkans."
To File the World
Wojtek Kosc
The emerging system of lumping in Europe is becoming clear: EU on the
one side and non-EU on the other.
Re-defining East and West
Catherine Lovatt
H J Mackinder's "heartland" theory has been used to explain the
geopolitics of much of the 20th century. Did 1989 throw a spanner in the
works?
A "Kidnapped Central Europe"
Magali Perrault
In many respects, the Austrian experience between the end of the Second
World War and the collapse of the Communist bloc in 1989 is the reverse
story - the tale of a "kidnapped Central Europe."
CER's Regular Columnists
A Fistful of Impressions
Jan Culik
Insights from talking to readers.
In the Wake of Broken Promises
Sam Vaknin
Will prejudice alone kill the Macedonian economy?
Kinoeye
An Obsession with Image
Andrew J Horton
Polish cinema has, perhaps, successfully out-trashed any of its Central
European neighbours when it comes to low-quality film-making.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 24, 6 December 1999
Chechnya: An Honorary Baltic State
Mel Huang
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have shown great solidarity with the
Chechen cause against Moscow.
A Fractured Identity
Karen M Laun
The Lemko of Poland
Post-Com Pre-fab
Paul Csagoly
The housing development in Central and Eastern Europe.
Czech Protest, December 1999
Jan Culik
The problem is that the current student protest is quite vague.
Kazi Stastna
Sappy, romantic and pitifully nationalistic.
Andrew Stroehlein
Czech politicians generally ignore petitions.
Letter
Too Clever by Half
John Keane
Professor Keane replies to Kieran Williams's extensive critique of his
new book on Vaclav Havel.
Theme: The Upcoming Helsinki Conference
Enlargement and Hungary
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
Last week's resolution in the European Parliament addresses a pragmatic
agenda, restoring a sense of proportion to the run up to Helsinki.
All Green for Polish Accession?
Randy M Mott
What might be needed is a more systematic, transparent approach with
greater public involvement.
CER's Regular Columnists
Political Turmoil in Moldova
Catherine Lovatt
Moldova is a state hounded by instability and infighting.
The Caveman and the Alien
Sam Vaknin
The West's two-faced approach to corruption in the East.
Kinoeye
A Fascinating Trickle
Andrew J Horton
Although the number of films released is only a trickle, interest in
the cinema of the two Romance language countries of Central Europe is
increasing.
Books and Literature
Hungarians Read Their Way To
Success
Carolyn Chapman
The Hungarian publishing industry has undergone a complete
transformation in the past ten years.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Polish Cultural Review
Wojtek Kosc
Events and exhibitions in Poland.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Romania Catherine and
David Lovatt
Volume 1 Issue 25, 13 December 1999
EUROPE: Return to Helsinki
Martin D Brown
The Helsinki let down.
ENVIRONMENT: From Puppet Master to
Listless Puppet
Andreas Beckmann
Who continues to care aboud the environment in the Czech Republic.
POLAND: The Pro-Government Church
Mariusz Janicki
The Catholic Church is balancing between its support of the government
and the discontented.
Slice of Life
Postcard from Ul'yanovsk
Derek S Hutcheson
Travelogue .
Letters
Pulp Faction
Kieran Williams
Kieran Williams answers his critic and continues to wait for answers.
On Cavemen and Aliens
Susan Smolens
Sam Vaknin's article last week was spot on: one can only be cynical of
the West's intentions in the East.
Theme: The Year
Hungarian Hopes
Gusztav Kosztolanyi
1999 in Hungary proved to be a year where history was made as well as
commemorated and celebrated.
Croatia's Crossroads
Sasa Cvijetic
At the end of 1999, Croatia finds itself with neither a President nor a
Parliament.
Baltic Rollercoaster
Mel Huang
From significant political shifts and economic collapse to EU hopes and
regional pork wars, 1999 was an eventful year in the Baltics.
Romania's Hardships
Catherine Lovatt
Despite economic collapse, political instability and civil unrest not
everything is negative.
Success Abroad, Questions at Home
Michael J Kopanic
For Dzurinda's coalition to be strong over the next few years, his team
will have to overcome much higher hurdles on the domestic front.
Czech Republic: Rising Discontent
Jan Culik
With the economy bordering on crisis and politicians incapable of
fixing the country's problems, the Czech public became increasingly
discontent throughout 1999.
CER's Regular Columnists
Schengen's Iron Curtain
Zhidas Daskalovski
The EU's Schengen agreement, however, has created a barrier as
effective as the Iron Curtain ever was.
The Magla Vocables
Sam Vaknin
For the residents of former Communist countries speech is a method of
establishing distance and fending off communication and contact.
The Elders of Zion
Sam Vaknin
Anti-Semitism is only one species in the zoo of rumours, conspiracy
theories and meta histories.
Kinoeye
INTERVIEW: Young Hungarian
Cinema:
"We are working on it"
Andrew J Horton
CER talked to the young Hungarian director Csaba Bollok.
Hungary's New Waves
Andrew J Horton
Hungary has, perhaps, the strongest cinematic tradition of all Central
European countries. Has it produced any masterpieces this decade? Does it
even matter?
Books and Literature
Intellectuals and Politics in
Central Europe
Sean Hanley
Intellectuals and Politics in Central Europe, provides uneven
coverage of a variety of themes and cases, juxtaposing insightful analysis
with potted history and abstruse theorising.
REVIEW: Everyday
Stalinism
Joanna Rohozinska
Review of Sheila Fitzpatrick's latest contribution to Soviet social
history.
On Display
Coming Up in the UK
Andrew J Horton
Details of selected Central and East European cultural events in the UK
over the next few weeks.
Last Week's News in Central Europe
Austria Magali Perrault
Croatia Sasa Cvijetic
Estonia Mel Huang
Hungary Paul Nemes
Latvia Mel Huang
Lithuania Mel Huang
Poland Joanna Rohozinska and Donosy English
Romania Catherine and David Lovatt
