The Good, the Bad, and the Ambiguous: Women and the Transition from Communism to Pluralism in Romania

Abstract

In Romania, the transition from communism to pluralism, at least from the perspective of gender, has been characterized by stops and starts, by continuity and change, by good and bad, and, in general, by ambiguity. The slow and erratic transition to a market economy, combined with the demands of international lending agencies and the impact of global recession, has affected the nature of the labor force, welfare policies, and government spending. Moreover, the continued influence of former (male) communist elites in the government has affected the nature of political and economic change. On the whole, promoting equality between men and women, let alone gender transformation, has not been a priority for the post-communist governments, except when linked to other processes such as European Union (EU) accession. This reality, along with women’s underrepresentation in politics, kept issues related to women’s rights and gender equality off the legislative table throughout much the 1990s. By contrast, since the mid-1990s women’s rights advocates and Romanian and foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been actively engaged in promoting women’s empowerment through legislative lobbying, service provisions for women and their families, awareness-raising campaigns, and public marches.