Dr. Wolfgang Gerhardt, H.E. Prinz Turki Al-Faisal, Madeleine Albright, Vaclav Havel at the Forum-2000-Conference in Prague, 2007

Our Project Work in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (Subregion Central Europe and Baltic States)

After the political changes in the region, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF) began supporting the liberal parties, groups and institutions in the Central European and Baltic countries by providing information, training and consulting. Twenty years ago, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were either satellites of or part of the Soviet Union. It was only after 1989 that they started evolving into democratic countries. So far, the high point of their evolutionary process has been the accession of These eight countries as full members of the European Union on May 1^st, 2004.

The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania only gained independence on the principle of national self-determination after the federations they were constituent parts of collapsed in the early 1990s. These eight young democracies share problems, both old and new, which either originate in their totalitarian past but still influence their national identity or are due to their inexperience with an environment of free market economics and still unstable legal and political systems. In this democratic environment, the consolidation and institutionalization processes are still ongoing and require further support from the FNF, which coordinates its project activities in these countries from the project office in Prague.

The objective of our project work in these eight countries is to strengthen the position of the liberal movement and to increase public support for liberalism by a structured presentation of fundamental liberal values such as freedom and competition. In cooperation with its local partners, the Foundation works to support  pluralistic democracy, to maintain the rule of law, to raise awareness of the rule of law and to develop socially responsible market economies. The Foundation?s methods include political consultations, training sessions, and other means of political dialogue.

 

Project Czech Republic

 

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom began its work in the Czech Republic after the Velvet Revolution of November 1989. After many liberal political movements failed during the past few years, the Foundation shifted the focus of its project work towards cooperation with the Liberal Institute in Prague. The current target group includes young politicians and others who can influence society, and the work´s emphasis is on discussions about concrete economical issues and the development of liberal solutions to them, which are then presented to the public through various media. Another important activity is the series of consultations on how to reform the social security system, an issue which, under the current proportional electoral system, has been constantly postponed by a series of weak Czech governments. This political stalemate has existed since 1998 and was one of the reasons for the foundation of the new liberal-conservative party, TOP 09. TOP stands for Tradition, Responsibility and Prosperity and the party already has celebrities with a lot of political potential on board, such as the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Karel Schwarzenberg. Building a common platform for the fractured liberal forces in the Czech Republic is one of the main objectives of our project work in this country.

 

Project Slovakia

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom started work in Slovakia as early as 1991, even before Czechoslovakia split into two separate states in 1992. As in the Czech Republic, the liberal parties in Slovakia are in a difficult situation. At present, the Foundation supports, with program and strategy consultations, not only the Freedom Forum (SF), established in 2004, but also the right-liberal Liga party, founded in 2009, and the new Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) liberal group. Although none of the aforementioned groups is now represented in Parliament, SaS will get a chance to enter during the 2010 elections. SaS is close to the most important partner of the Liberty Foundation in Slovakia, the F.A. Hayek Foundation, an internationally acclaimed think-tank founded by a team of Slovak economists. The thematic focus of the Foundation´s work in Slovakia is, above all, to build a state based on the rule of law, an open civil society, and tolerance towards minorities - especially important in a country with sizable Hungarian (10%) and Roma (2%) minorities.

Project Slovenia

After the changes in Slovenia, organized liberalism managed to establish itself quickly; this is, to an extent, due to the opening of a FNF office in Ljubljana in 1993. Today, after the electoral stability of the partner parties has been proven, project work in this country is co-ordinated from Prague. In the nine cabinets in power since 1990, seven Prime Ministers came from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDS). After a short period in opposition, the party is again represented in the government with a social democratic president, together with the social-liberal "Zares" (or "For Real") party which split from LDS. Both parties are partners of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation and make good use of our resources, their success in the EU Parliamentary Elections being good proof of that. The focus of the Foundation`s work in Slovenia is upon organizing events aiming at: overcoming the political deficits resulting from continuous state planning; deregulation and decentralization of the state; developing an open civil society and observing the rights of minorities.

 

Project Hungary

Dr. A. Bulfon by experimentation

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation was the first German political foundation to commence  work in Hungary, back in 1989. Hungary can be characterized as a country with strong liberal traditions. Nevertheless, work in this country poses challenges since the liberal Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ), which had been part of Prime Minister Gyurscany`s socialist cabinet for six years before it went into opposition in 2008, is now balancing on a political razor`s edge by supporting the new "crisis management experts` cabinet" brought in by Prime Minister Bajnai this year. At the moment, the Hungarian liberals, with their 20 parliamentary mandates, are an important political factor for the two major parties, Hungarian Civic Union (FIDESZ) and the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP), but according to the latest opinion polls it is probable that they will not manage to surpass the 5% threshold in the upcoming 2010 elections. For this reason, the Foundation supports, through consultancy and advice, the stabilization and restructuring of the SZDSZ. Generally speaking, the Foundation`s work in Hungary focuses on nationalism and tolerance for minorities.

 

Project Poland

At the conference "How does the youth of today understand the democratic transformation since 1989 - from liberal point of view?", Wroclaw, 2009

Poland, with over 38 million citizens, has the largest population among the new EU countries and is also Germany`s most important Eastern European neighbour. The focus of our project work in this country is not only the development of a state based on the rule of law and a functioning civil society, but also the re-thinking of the common German - Polish past. We organize information campaigns regarding these issues in cooperation with our partners - the Democratic Party (PD), successor to the Freedom Union (UW), Project: Poland, the Klub Obywatelski (Civic Club) foundation and Fundacja Rozwoju Obywatelskiego (FOR - Foundation for Civic Development) .

Our target groups are: politicians in positions of power, office holders from the liberal unions or their youth and affiliate organizations. Another current task for the Foundation is to enhance the liberal orientation of its partner, the PD, currently in opposition.

Project Baltic States

LIGA-Vice President M. Urmanic, ELDR-Vice President K. Ojuland, LIGA-President R. Nemcsics, ELDR-Representative D. Tanahatoe In the Baltic states, organized liberalism developed successfully since the very beginning of independence. Currently, both Estonia and Lithuania have governments with a liberal presence and are doing their best to control the economic and financial crisis, particularly severe in this region. Estonia`s Prime Minister, Andrus Ansip, is from the liberal Reform party, which is in government together with a partner of the Foundation, the Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica in Estonia. In Lithuania, our partner, the Liberal Movement (LRLS), is represented in the cabinet of Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius. Due to the crisis, the coalition government of Latvia, the christian-liberal "Latvian First Party / Latvian Way" (LPP/LC) fell. Now the partners of the Foundation, LPP/LC, are in opposition but they nevertheless managed to achieve good results both in the European Parliamentary Elections, when the former Prime Minister, Ivars Godmanis, was at the top of the election list, and at the local government elections. An important political issue in the three Baltic countries is the situation with the Russian minorities. That is why the information activities of the Foundation in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, in cooperation with our Baltic partners, are directed not only to the development of states based on the rule of law but also in support of pluralism and towards the integration of these minorities.