%0 Book Section %B The Routledge Handbook of International Local Government %D 2019 %T Civic Engagement in Local Politics in Central Europe %A Potluka, Oto %A Kalman, Judit %A Ida MusiaƂkowska %A Piotr Idczak %X Civic engagement and civil society participation in political decision-making is important for efficient and sustainable public policies. However, this behaviour is difficult to achieve and maintain in countries such as post-socialist societies that have passive social attitudes and low levels of general trust. This chapter describes the development and current character of local political systems, decentralisation and civic engagement in four countries in Central Europe: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia. It concentrates on civil society, direct and indirect forms of political participation, the development of civil-society organisation advocacy and citizen opinions about their likelihood of influencing policy. It highlights the low general trust and social capital, passive attitudes, and low voter turnout in these countries compared to other countries in Europe. These features are a legacy of the communist past and are attributable to the negative socioeconomic consequences of the transition process and disillusionment about democratic development. As a result, the development of civil participation in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia has been slower than in other parts of Europe. %B The Routledge Handbook of International Local Government %7 Richard Kerley, Joyce Liddle, Pamela T. Dunning %I Routledge %C London %P 344-360 %@ 9781315306261 %G eng %U https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781315306278/chapters/10.4324/9781315306278-23 %& 23 %R 10.4324/9781315306278 %0 Book %D 2014 %T Local Participation in Visegrad Countries: How Are Politicians Rooted in the Civil Society? %A Potluka, Oto %A Piotr Idczak %A Ida MusiaƂkowska %A Kalman, Judit %A Spacek, Martin %A Kostal, Ctibor %A Ovadek, Michal %A Tholtova, Barbora %K Bratislava %K Budapest %K civil society %K civil society organisations %K European Union %K leaders %K local elections %K local participation %K Poznan %K Prague %K regions %K Visegrad Countries %X

This year, the Visegrad countries celebrate together twenty ve years since the socio, economic and political changes lead in collapse of totalitarian regimes. But the political transition brought also problems and new challenges not know previously. The rst free elections were held in the Visegrad countries that time and their inhabitants could choose their political representatives. Many of them came originally from the civil society and revolution movements. However, the political decision-making became disconnected from the civil society over time. We study the present rootedness of local political representatives in the civil society measured by their membership and leadership in civil society organisations in all four Visegrad countries. We are as well interested in engagement of activists from the civil society in an institutionalised political life, i.e. political parties and political movements. The purpose of this book is to discuss development of local democracy, local development initiatives and local social capital in growing urban areas in post-transition countries in which the civil society was almost absent or very weak twenty ve years ago. This publication comes up with overviews of the situation in four cities, one in each of the Visegrad countries. First the Polish case of Poznan is discussed. Then three capital cities follow: Czech Prague, Slovakian Bratislava and Hungarian Budapest.

%I IREAS %C Praga %P 109 %G eng %U http://www.ireas.cz/images/projekty/lea/lea_publikace.pdf