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Email this citationCIAO DATE: 10/05
Lessons Not Learned: Problems with Western Aid for Law Reform in Postcommunist Countries
Wade Channell
April 2005
Abstract
The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the subsequent breakup of the Soviet Union presented an unparalleled opportunity for fundamental political and economic change in more than two dozen countries. As postcommunist countries sought to attain the economic development of their Western neighbors, it became clear that the existing framework of laws and institutions would not support the desired growth. Reformers and development experts soon identified a panoply of gaps and shortcomings in financial resources, human resources, and organizational capacity, all of which appeared ripe for outside assistance.
North American and Western European governments responded rapidly to the fall of communism by creating a variety of financial and technical assistance programs for both Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Working through international financial institutions such as the World Bank and bilateral donor agencies such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Germany's Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), among others, they have sought to ensure successful transitions to free-market economies and democratic government. A priority area for donor efforts has been the establishment of the rule of law, which donors commonly define as accountable, transparent government that equitably enforces laws and regulations through an independent judiciary to create a "level playing field" for economic actors.
