Democratic Consolidation: Ruptures and Negotiated Transitions. The Carnation Revolution in Portugal and the Round Table Talks in Poland
The Third Wave of Democratization, a term coined by Samuel P. Huntington, refers to the third major wave of democratization in history. It started in 1974, in Portugal, with the Carnation Revolution and it includes the democratic transitions in Latin America in the 1980s, Asia Pacific countries (Philippines, South Korea, and Taiwan) from 1986 to 1988, Eastern Europe after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and sub-Saharan Africa beginning in 1989. A total of more than 60 countries that went through some form of democratic transition.
According to Samul P. Huntington, in his book The Third Wave: Democratization
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A decrease of the legitimacy of the authoritarian regimes, mostly related to the increased popular expectations and poor economic or military performance.
2. The global economic growth helped less developed economies: economic modernization implemented structural changes in the societies, increasing urbanization, education, and a rising middle class, triggered a new group of social movements and a new pressure for democratic governance.
3. The changes in the Catholic Church emphasized the individual rights over the authoritarian rule.
4. Regional Contingency Factor – demonstration effects – when a successful democratic consolidation in one country opens a road to other countries to democratize.
5. External factors, mostly the efforts by the European Union and the US to spread the democracy.
However, and despite the similarity of causes that led the democratization in the Third Wave, the processes and the types of transitions were different. As a matter of fact, the same author concerns three major processes:
1. Transformation - A top-down (elite-controlled) change from within government
2. Transplacement - Negotiated reform of regime and government.
3. Replacement - Regime breakdown (rupture) and the collapse of
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The government invited to the table the banned trade union Solidarnosc. A negotiated to a democratic transition had begun at that table, and despite the polish communists hope to reach an effective agreement without major changes in the political power structure, the talks radically changes the shape of the Polish government. After two months, the “Round Table Agreement” was signed, and shortly after (in June) elections were held, giving 99% of the seats in the Senate (upper chamber) and all the 35% of available seats for free elections in the Sejm (lower chamber) to Solidarnosc. However, some obstacles regarding the creation of the new Constitution put the country in a deadlock, most probably because of the Solidarnosc minority in Sejm, and the new Constitution was only approved in