The Downfall Of Communism In Eastern And Central Europe

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problem inherent in this
type of monumental change is that, according to Ulrich K. Preuss, "In
almost all the East and Central European countries, the collapse of
authoritarian communist rule has released national, ethnic, religious and
cultural conflicts which can not be solved by purely economic policies"
(47). While tremendous changes are evident in both the governmental and
economic arenas in Europe, these changes cannot be assumed to always be
"mutually reinforcing" (Preuss 47). Generally it has been theorized that
the most successful manner of addressing these many difficulties is the
drafting of a constitution. But what is clear is the unsatisfactory
ability of a constitution to remedy the problems of nationalism and ethnic
differences. Preuss notes that when the constitutional state gained favor
in North America, it was founded on the principle of the unitary state; it
was not designed to address the lack of national identity which is found
throughout Europe - and which ...

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integrity of a nation state
(48).

With such problems as these to contend with in re-engineering their
entire economic and political systems, the people of East Germany seemed to
be in a particularly enviable position. Economically, they were poised to
unite with one of the richest countries, having one of the strongest
economies, in the entire world. In the competition for foreign investment,
such an alliance gave the late German Democratic Republic a seemingly
insurmountable lead over other nations. In regards to the political
aspects of unification, it effectively left a Germany with no national or
ethnic minorities, as well as having undisputed boundaries. As well, there
was ...

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