CERC Public Seminar: 'Pacted Transitions and the Environment: A Comparison of Democratisation in Spain and Bulgaria'

Thursday 10 October 1:00–2:00pm
Room 212, Level 2, 234 Queensberry Street, The University of Melbourne

presented by

Thomas O’Brien

(PhD Candidate, Department of Political Science, University of Melbourne)

Abstract

Spain and Bulgaria both experienced a form of elite negotiated pacted transition to democracy in the latter part of the twentieth century. Spain moved from bureaucratic-authoritarianism to democracy following the death of General Francisco Franco in November 1975, while Bulgaria began the transition in 1989 with the removal of Todor Zhivkov and subsequent reformation of the Bulgarian Communist Party. While the preceding regime types differed the mode of transition was similar, with the elite ‘voluntarily’ submitting to the democratisation process. In the absence of a true ruptura the elite was able to maintain a degree of control over the political system, potentially limiting opportunities for the emergence of civil society. It has been noted that societal pressure can lead to improved environmental outcomes as the regime is forced to deal with these issues. The environment is chosen in order to judge how society has reacted and adjusted to regime change and how the elite have addressed societal demands. The paper considers the events surrounding the regime changes and how these have shaped the development of the respective democratic regimes, with an eye to the effect on the environment. This will in turn provide some indication of the longer-term effects of the mode of transition on the ensuing regimes.

Biography

Thomas is a PhD student in the Department of Political Science at the University of Melbourne. His PhD research is concerned with environmental politics in transitional regimes, which is where this presentation is derived from. He completed undergraduate and postgraduate study in New Zealand and worked in the Ministry of Health before coming to Melbourne.