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Vierzig Jahre nach dem Ungarnaufstand stehen der wissenschaftlichen Aufarbeitung der Ereignisse von 1956 neue Quellen und Möglichkeiten zur Verfügung. Vor diesem Hintergrund gibt der Verfasser einen Überblick über die aktuelle Diskussion zu diesem Thema. Hierbei geht es zunächst um den Charakter des Ungarnaufstandes und um die Beschreibung dieses Ereignisses als Aufstand oder als Revolution. Ein zweiter Fragenkreis betrifft die Bedeutung der ungarischen Revolution von 1956 für die ungarische Politik in der Gegenwart. Abschließend weist der Verfasser auf neue Erkenntnisse zu den Hintergründen der Revolution von 1956 hin, die den internationalen Kontext der Ereignisse in Ungarn, den Entscheidungsprozeß in der Sowjetunion und die Rolle der politischen Akteure in Ungarn betreffen. (BIOst-Wpt)

Offers an overview of the range of policies introduced by governments in East and Central Europe aimed at the privatization of their economies, and assesses the extent to which such policies have been implemented. Explores the different interests involved in the political debates and competitions over privatization; offers a conceptual scheme for further analysis. (Original abstract-amended)

THE AUTHORS ASSESS HUNGARY'S TRANSITION FROM COMMUNISM TO DEMOCRACY AND NOTE RELATIVE SUCCESS CHARACTERIZED BY MULTI-PARTY ELECTIONS, A PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT WITH A CLEAR DIVISION OF POLITICAL FUNCTIONS, FOREIGN INVESTMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF A PRIVATE SECTOR. THEY ATTRIBUTE THIS SUCCESS, IN PART, TO THE REFORM EXPERIENCE OF THE COMMUNIST ERA. THEY CONCLUDE THAT FURTHER PROGRESS IS DEPENDENT ON THE INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT, AS WELL AS ON THE SUCCESS WITH WHICH NEW GOVERNMENTS TACKLE PROBLEMS OF PROPERTY OWNERSHIP, POPULAR CONSULTATION, AND INFORMATION MANAGEMENT.

Aquatic-based processes have not been well studied in tidal freshwater habitats even though they arediverse and highly variable systems. This chapter aims at a synthesis of the state of knowledge about aquaticprimary production in tidal freshwater ecosystems and the main factors that control this process. Suspendedmatter is important in tidal freshwater habitats and it is affected by estuarine processes as well as land use andriver discharge into the tidal freshwater zone from the catchment area. As a result, variation in the amount andquality of suspended matter influences the variability of light availability. The retention and transformationof nitrogen and phosphorus in the tidal freshwater zone is often intense and wetland vegetation has a majorimpact on the silica cycle within the tidal freshwater zone of estuaries. Although the primary producers follow aconstantly changing equilibrium that is influenced by tide action and river discharge, they show characteristicsthat contrast with general ideas about primary producers in estuaries. The scarceness of data, together withweaknesses in methodology to measure or model primary production, is however in striking contrast with thecomplexity and importance of these neglected ecosystems. Nevertheless, within the tidal freshwater zone of theScheldt estuary, two types of phytoplankton communities have been recorded, indicating that a typology forfreshwater tidal systems is waiting to be revealed, taking into account e.g. residence time. The dynamic natureof tidal freshwater habitats implies that static, site-bound legislative protection measures tend to be less efficientthan a functional approach. Comparative estuarine research offers a good opportunity to expand our knowledgeabout the ecological functioning of these important estuarine systems. As an example it is demonstrated here that it is possible to estimate historic suspended matter concentrations.