Civil society and the public sphere. Historical trajectories in Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria

This paper seeks to explain the current attacks on civil society in Central-Eastern Europe by means of a comparative historical sociology of the public sphere. I relate current populist discourses targeting liberal civil society practitioners in Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria to the historical developments of the public sphere in those countries from the emergence of the modern political sphere (late 19th century) till today. In all three cases I consider contemporary rhetoric as possibly misrepresenting but nevertheless reflecting deeper social grievances, stemming from long-lasting social cleavages and their contested political expressions.The Polish public sphere is seen as dominated by the intelligentsia and by “fratricidal” struggles within this group. In conditions of a concealed fracture between the intelligentsia and the popular classes the external other of Polishness (usually Jews) and a populist discourse, which claims to represent the entire and true nation, helped to unify the nation as an inter-class political community. Hungary is a case of a dual stratification order – the emerging urban elites have been Europeanized, but old gentry elites sought to mobilize rank-based hierarchies and provincial political constituencies in the name of a true Hungarianess. This split was epitomized by a populist vs. urbanist cleavage, re-staged several times and skilfully used by the Fidesz party to mobilize the voters. In Bulgaria peasant egalitarianism was for decades solidified by successful state socialism. The history of alienated state bureaucracy, and conspiratorial, non-transparent power brokerage after transition contributed to a wide-spread understanding of liberal NGO activity as “corrupted” foreign involvement.