20 years 1989 - Looking back into the future

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`The phase following the Cold War was an unusual and laudable decade in European history. It expanded the borders of freedom and democracy and made the reunification of Europe possible. Today, we are facing a completely different reality. Even though we have seen the triumph of the capitalist revolution, the democratic revolution is on the decline.` Ivan Krastev, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia

The events of 1989/90 paved the way for democracy in Central and Eastern Europe and simultaneously accelerated the spread of capitalism around the world, albeit in very different forms. Democracy and free market economy were considered the shining stars that countries around the world would strive for as fast as they could. Associated with this was a fundamental shift in the global power structure as well as the model for interpreting world events. The European democratic revolutions in 1989 were thus nothing less than a global turning point.

The bipolar world order of the Cold War became obsolete. Europe once again became a united political and cultural realm even if it was in no way uniform. For many Eastern and Central European nations, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the implosion of the Soviet Union created an opportunity to `return to Europe` in the sense of a shared political past and present. A struggle is underway to create a common Europe which has to answer the question of how democracy can be pushed beyond the limits of the nation state. In this context, the EU doesn't represent all of Europe but it does put Europe in the international spotlight as a political subject.

To what extent are democracy and free market economy still, 20 years later, the undisputed cornerstones of a future political order for Europe and beyond? Liberal democracy, as a guiding principle, is not undisputed today in many countries of the world. In the European Union, the political institutions of the new member states have been more or less successfully transformed. At the same time, developing a democratic political culture is an ongoing process that is by no means linear. This also applies to a certain extent to Western European countries whose party systems are currently in upheaval and facing challenges from right- or left-wing populist movements.

The recent international financial crisis also put the free market economy to the test as a liberal economic order. It strengthens the forces in Europe that demand, with increasing success, more government economic control and monitoring. In this respect, protectionist efforts that aim to fend off global competition are also gaining momentum. The issue of how to bring social security into line with economic and political freedom is moving more and more into the center of the public debate.

This international conference will thus focus, on the one hand, on an overall assessment of the last 20 years: To what extent have the hopes and expectations of 1989 been fulfilled? Where are we in the process of economic, social and democratic transformation? At the same time, we should also look to the future. What are the guiding principles for the future of the European societies?