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In the light of broader discussions about international intervention and democratic transitions, this panel will discuss the reported "democratic rollback" in Eastern Europe. Although the region boasts multi-party electoral systems, market reforms and plural media, basic components of resilient democratic systems remain under threat. In what some call "electoral authoritarianism" governments across the region are politicizing welfare provision, re-centralizing power, and targeting dissenters. Panelists with on-the-ground knowledge of conditions in Bulgaria, Poland, Russia and the countries of the former Yugoslavia will discuss the prospects for democracy 25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the lessons for advocates of democratic transition elsewhere.

Panelists:

Vladimir Milcin, Director, Open Society Foundation, Republic of Macedonia

Linda Cook, Professor of Political Science, Brown University

Anthony Levitas, Senior Fellow, Watson Institute

Lilia Topouzova, Post-doctoral fellow, Pembroke Center, Brown University