Social Structure
Moscow Embassy Cable, If Solidarity Takes Charge, What Will the Soviets Do?
In June 1989, Poland held its first semi-free elections in which the Communist Party was overwhelmingly defeated by opposition leaders. Following the election, U.S.
Secretary of State Cable, Solidarity-Government Dialogue
In June 1989, Poland held its first semi-free elections since the inception of communism after World War II, in which the Communist Party was soundly defeated by the opposition.
Warsaw Embassy Cable, Conversation with General Kiszczak
For the United States government, the rapid changes unfolding in Poland were a source of hope and excitement but also considerable anxiety.
Minutes of the Meeting of the Polish Citizens' Parliamentary Club
Poland's first semi-free elections in early June 1989 indicated Poles' strongly anti-Communist and pro-Solidarity sentiments, as evidenced by the solid defeat of Communism.
Minutes from a Meeting of the Presidium of the Citizens' Parliamentary Club
In June 1989, Poland held its first semi-free elections since the beginning of Communist Party rule following World War II, in which Communism was soundly defeated by Solidarity activists.
Lithuanian Communist Party Declares Independence
In this proclamation, the political leaders of the Lithuanian national movement made a formal break with the Soviet Communist Party, and by implication with the Soviet government itself.
Uzbek Minister on Restoring Order in Tashkent
This interview with V. Kamalov, minister of internal affairs of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic, echoes a perception similar to that of S.A.
Turkmen Party's Niazov Discusses Ethnic Issues
In this interview, published just days after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Communist leader in Turkmenistan, S. A. Niyazov, offered a stiff defense of the existing structure of the Soviet Union.
Latvian Group Wants Full Political Independence
This report describes the demands of the Latvian Popular Front, one of the coalition groups that emerged across the Soviet Union, but most aggressively in the Baltic states, during the last years of the Soviet regime.
Communist Party's Role in Estonia's Fate Revealed
In this selection, a member of the Communist Party in Estonia articulates a new role for Communists as leaders of the movement for national self-determination within the existing structures of the Soviet Union.