ABSTRACT
In discussing women’s participation in politics in Eastern Europe it is important to keep several factors in mind. The first of these is the diversity in the area. The eight countries in the region differ considerably from one another in terms of level of economic development, religious and cultural traditions, and previous social and political history. Women’s opportunities for political action also varied according to the political climate or type of political regime during this period. Women have moved into a somewhat wider range of occupations than in the pre-Communist period, but most women continue to work in highly feminised branches of the economy, such as education and culture, trade and public catering, health, and administrative services. This chapter illustrates, women’s proportion of Communist Party members ranged from approximately 20 per cent in Yugoslavia to approximately 30 per cent in East Germany in the early to mid-1970s.
