The diffusion of public interest mobilisation

A historical sociology perspective on advocates without members in the post-communist Czech Republic

Bibliographic Data

ID6254903
AuthorsOndřej Císař (0000-0002-8106-3171, Masaryk University, corresponding author)
Year2013
Volume29
Issue1
Pages69-82
Publication date2013-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueEast European Politics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2159-9165 • E-ISSN: 2159-9173
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/21599165.2013.766171
OpenAlexW1974112870
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited39

The paper proposes an explanation for the boom in advocacy organisations in the Czech Republic after the collapse of the Communist regime in 1989. There has been a major increase in the number of professional advocacy organisations, accompanied by an influx of "post-materialist" issues. In the first half of 1990s, American and European state and non-state actors promoted these issues. Since the end of 1990s, European Union funds have taken over as the most important source of funding. Foreign funding has thus created conditions conducive to the emergence and development of advocacy-based activism in the Czech Republic. Moreover, advocacy organisations are presented in the paper as the locus of a new type of politically oriented activism, which is no longer based on mobilisation, but rather on transactions. Keywords: civil societyCzech RepublicCzechoslovakiademocratisationEast-Central Europe Acknowledgement This paper has been prepared as part of the research project Collective Action and Protest in East-Central Europe (code GAP404/11/0462) funded by the Czech Science Foundation. Notes According to the USAID, this group includes Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Slovakia (USAID Citation2006). Officials from the following organisations were interviewed: Rainbow Movement; Greenpeace Czech Republic and Europe; Nesehnutí; Transparency International Czech Republic and Europe; Gender Studies; Anarcho-feminist Group; European Network Against Racism; Amnesty International Czech Republic and Europe; Friends of the Earth Europe; European Trade Union Confederation; European Women's Lobby; CEE Bankwatch Network; Council of the Government of the Czech Republic for Human Rights; Counselling Centre for Citizenship, Civil and Human Rights; League of Human Rights. Comparatively, unions excel the most in aggregation of individual contributions. According to the Czech SMOs Survey, 83% of trade union organisations derive at least 50% of their revenues from individual contributions, while almost 60% obtain at least 80% of their revenues from this source. Additional informationNotes on contributorsOndřej Císař Current address: Department of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

Boom · Communism · Czech · Economic policy · Economics · European union · Materialism · Perspective (graphical · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science · Gender Politics and Representation · Law · Nonprofit Sector and Volunteering · Public Administration · Social Policy and Reform Studies