The Fall of the Eastern Bloc

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The Fall of the Eastern Bloc

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	November 9 2009 is a day of celebration across Europe as millions look back on an amazing event that shook the world on that date in 1989. Back then communism in Europe was crumbling and pressure was mounting on East German authorities to open checkpoints at the infamous Berlin Wall which divided the historic city. Click here to find out more about the Berlin Wall. And on that fateful night tens of thousands of jubilant Germans finally breached the concrete barrier, sparking some of the wildest celebrations the world had ever seen. Family and friends wept with joy as they embraced loved ones who they had been separated from for decades. Ecstatic crowds clambered on top of the wall and hacked away chunks of the hated 96 mile long divide. Nothing was going to take away their new found freedom, and within weeks the totalitarian regimes that had kept Europe separated since the end of World War II had all collapsed. The fall of the Berlin Wall symbolically marks the end of communism, but its demise actually began almost a decade earlier at a shipyard in the Polish city of Gdansk.
	Poland: from Gdansk to Berlin In August 1980 a strike there for workers’ rights led by electrical technician Lech Walesa sparked a wave of protests across Poland which led to the creation of a trade union – Solidarity. The Polish government, fearing intervention from their military masters in the Soviet Union, soon clamped down on Solidarity and arrested its leaders. However, the workers’ movement wouldn’t die and in February 1989 the Polish authorities were eventually forced to negotiate with Walesa and his colleagues. Previous attempts at reform in Eastern Europe had been crushed by Soviet tanks, but under Mikhail Gorbachev’s reformist leadership the USSR was no longer prepared to use military might to prop up communist regimes in its satellite states.
	Hungary: Iron Curtain torn Other nations in Eastern Europe began to respond to growing waves of protest organised by citizens who sensed that freedom from communism was within reach. In May 1989 Hungarian soldiers tore down the barbed wire and electric fence that separated the country from Austria and allowed its people to cross over to the west. Three months later two million people from Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia stood together in a 400 mile long human chain in protest at Soviet rule.
	Czechoslovakia: the Velvet Revolution In Czechoslovakia the government was desperately trying to stamp out pro-democracy protests as its citizens also demanded freedom. It was becoming obvious that the days of oppressive rule in Europe were coming to an end. Despite its inevitability, the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9 still came as something of a surprise. A botched televised press conference by the East German authorities declared that citizens would be granted immediate access to the west. The idea was that border crossings would be regulated, but within minutes of the broadcast thousands of freedom-hungry Berliners gathered at the wall and the vastly outnumbered guards were forced to open the checkpoints. The next day Bulgarian Communist Party leader Todor Zhivkov was ousted after 34 years in power as regimes in east Europe toppled one by one. By the end of the month the peaceful Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia had forced its communists out of power sparking mass celebrations in Prague's central Wenceslas Square.
	Romania: a bloody end Sadly, not all the revolutions were without bloodshed. In Romania brutal dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, ordered security forces to open fire and kill protestors on the streets. Army generals sided with the protestors and despite dozens of deaths the December revolution was a success. Within days the Romanian leader and his wife, Elena, were brought to trial and executed at a military base on Christmas Day. The collapse of communism was all but complete by the end of 1989, and citizens throughout Europe looked forward to a new era of democratic freedom.
	New challenges The collapse of communism was all but complete by the end of 1989, and citizens throughout Europe looked forward to a new era of democratic freedom. However, the path to prosperity was paved with problems. The new governments in East Europe were inexperienced and ill-equipped to deal with capitalism. Many countries plunged into poverty, suffering high unemployment, hyper inflation and unstable currencies. Criminal gangs and corruption flourished, particularity in Balkan countries dependent on trade with the former states that made up Yugoslavia. Growing ethnic tension there had sparked wars between Serbia and neighbouring nations that had previously been tightly held together by maverick communist leader, Josip Broz Tito. The future of Europe was uncertain, and the newly independent states looked west for direction. The countries of the European Union were willing to welcome new democracies from the east into the fold, but their instability was a cause of concern.
	Germany reunified Germans naturally wanted reunification as soon as possible and less than a year after the fall of the Berlin Wall - October 3 1990 - East and West Germany became one nation again for the first time since the end of World War II. But while the union was welcomed, it changed the balance of power in Europe – and the EU member states had not forgotten the dangers of unrestrained power. The British in particular were worried that a united Germany with a population of over 80 million might re-evaluate its role in Europe, particularly since the USSR was no longer the superpower it had been. They needn’t have been concerned. Under Chancellor Helmut Kohl, the Germans showed admirable political responsibility by supporting a French proposal to sign up to the European Monetary Union – the forerunner of the Euro currency. The move towards European monetary union was already well under way before the 1989 revolutions in East Europe, but German reunification was to give it a significant push forward.
	The Euro arrives An EU summit held in Madrid just months before the collapse of communism had accepted a plan by Jacques Delors, then President of the European Commission, for the introduction of the Euro currency The Germans were cool on the idea as the Deutschmark was one of the strongest global currencies but a strategic agreement was reached in which, in return for EU support of reunification, Germany accepted it being dropped in favour of a common European currency. The euro was included in the Maastricht Treaty, signed in 1992, and was one of several criteria that former communist states would have to accept to join the EU family of nations.
	Coming in from the cold Ten of them applied for membership of the European Union and in 2004, under the Irish EU Presidency, east and west Europe moved closer than ever before when eight of them met the strict conditions of the accession process and became member states Ireland invested much time and expertise in helping the new member states prepare for membership. Many of them were inspired by our success in Europe and aim to replicate the Irish experience which shows how a small nation can use its influence in a positive way to promote the interests of its citizens. By becoming EU members the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia proved that they were ready to fully embrace democracy and a free market economy. On January 1, 2007, they were joined by Romania and Bulgaria and while both countries face some temporary restrictions on working abroad the accession of the two Balkan states will help bring stability to a previously volatile region.
	Unfinished business The nations that made up communist Yugoslavia plunged into vicious ethnic cleansing wars during the ‘90s but after hostilities ended they could see how their neighbours had carved out a future for themselves through being part of the EU. Countries like the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Croatia are now candidate countries and others like Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia know they have to work towards meeting strict criteria guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities in order to join.
	Looking to the future The accession of the former communist nations to the EU is a natural progression on their path to freedom, and it’s also helped consolidate European stability by filling a potentially dangerous security vacuum left after the Cold War. The new member states have adopted EU standards meaning free trade, improved human rights and cross border co-operation in the fights against drugs and organised crime. Europe is now a safer and more peaceful place following the fall of the Berlin Wall. Now that really is something to celebrate. Find out more about EU enlargement here.