ABSTRACT
For democracy to function, a range of political parties mandated by a broad spectrum of constituencies, ideologies, and policy prescriptions need to be represented in state institutions. Although no opinions should be prohibited in a developing democracy, hate propaganda and racist attacks must be answered and countered by responsible politicians, civic activists, and media outlets. The pervasiveness of politically connected corruption and criminality threatens to obstruct the reform process in the region's fragile democracies. It contributes to the consolidation of special interest groups, corrodes democratic institutions, encourages polarization and radicalism, dissipates public support for the transformation process, and jeopardizes economic stability, competition, and marketization. There are strong indications that the regime in Moscow is seeking to rebuild a broad sphere of influence in parts of Central and Southeastern Europe by forging closer alliances with unstable, authoritarian, anti-American, or criminally connected governments and political forces.
