In the states of Central and Eastern Europe especially the pressure of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs), or in other
words the organisations of civil society, was the determinant factor for reaching the democratic changes in the society. People
resisted totalitarism not as individuals but as the members of student movements, churches, trade unions, women's societies,
unions for journalists' and cultural people etc. Those were independent civic initiative unions with the aim of obtaining the
directing of state to the democratic path of development. As an example the Solidarnost union in Poland or the Rahvarinne in
Estonia and the other Baltic states can be mentioned. They were the most genuine NGOs acting for the realization of the big
joint idea and goal - lust for freedom of the people. In case of undemocratic government exactly the structures of civil society
have the large importance in spreading information, exposing misuses, revealing people not following the legislation etc.

Knowing that there are serious discussions taking place in the world on topics of civil society, one cannot talk today about a
unique definition of civil society but summarizing the thoughts of the authors one can have a view of what is meant by civil
society in the world.
Civil society represents the sphere of organized social life that is voluntary, self-organizing, largely self-maintaining, autonomous
from the state  and limited by the rules enforced by itself. Civil society is the middle link standing between the private sphere
and the state and means the collective ravishment of people into the public sphere to express their interests, will, passions and
ideas; to exchange information; to gain mutual goals; to present requirements to the state and keep the state officials responsible
for people. But civil society does not only limit the state power, it also helps along in case the state power is based on
respecting laws.

Civil society means limitless amount of formal and informal organisations. They include economical alliances; cultural
organisations (i.e. religious, ethnical and other alliances that protect the collective rights, values, faith, belief and symbols of
people); informational and educational organisations; organisations based on interests (i.e. planned to favour or protect their
members' mutual interests - for example the interests of employees, veterans, pensioners etc); development organisations
(organisations that unite individual resourses in order to better the infra-structure, institutions and quality of life in the society);
organisations oriented to a certain theme or sphere (environment protection movements, movements protecting women's rights,
movements to implement land reform, unions for owners or renters, or consumer protection unions); citizen unions (formed in
non-party way to improve political system and make it more democratic through the human rights monitoring, training and
mobilizing of electors, election observations, anti-corruptional efforts and other analogous undertakings). The list is far from
exhaustible. All the organisations of civil society more or less carry through the social control of the society and they develop
the social values of high importance - freedom and pluralism.

Non-governmental organisations - what and why?

NGOs are defined as non-governmental independent not-for-profit organisations that realize their statutory goals. The goals
can be the rendering of services whether to the members of the organisation or the public that guarantees the better meeting of
interests and wishes of the receiver of service.

Life has prooved that everything in this world cannot be fixed by the state or the private enterprise and market. Of its structure,
interests and needs the society is more complexed and more factors must be taken into consideration. State is clumsy and
byrocratic for the elaboration and solving of many problems. The aim of private enterprise is making profit and it functions well
in the spheres where it is possible to profit. At the same time there are lots of problems in the society that need to be dealt with
and solved but what would not or cannot be done by the state, enterprise on the other hand is not interested since it does not
bring along monetary profit.
In democratic states this kind of problems are dealt by the NGOs where people can on the basis of free will elaborate their
ideas and help along to the development of society, to the realization of their members variety of needs, wishes and interests.
For many people it is a possibility to join for action and realize their own ideas and interests. NGOs are able to act effectively
and dynamically proceeding only from the emerging needs.

Democratic functions of civil society

Civil society has got a lot of functions. Hereby I would only present some of them.
The first and main democratic function of civil society is to be the delimiter of state power and therefore to control the state
from the society's side, which means the organisations of civil society are the democratic political institutions that are the most
effective means to implement the control.

Many civic organisations have the clearly expressed goals for developing democracy.
The observations of multi-party elections by the civil society organisations have been very critical about deceit or fraud, they
have also had an importance in increasing electors trust, affirming the legality of election results, or in some cases even bringing
out the government's deceit in connection with the winner of elections.

NGOs and think-tank organisations in many states work on the reform of election system, the democratization of political
parties, the de-centralization of government and the increasing of its openness of activity, the intensifying of legality and raising
of government's feeling of responsibility.

During the transition period the human rights organisations play an important role in carrying out juridical reform, improving the
situation of prisons and increasing the respect of society for individual freedoms and minority rights.

And finally - important is also the role of NGOs that they are performing: they develop the social values of high importance -
freedom and pluralism in the society.