The spirit of '89

IS it possible to dispense with revolution and its violence, its terror and its achievements? Is it normal to think that human rights and democracy bear the stamp of a time and locality specific to one social and historical setting? Is it logical thus to deny them their principal quality, their universality? How is it possible to import consumer goods, cultural debris and weapons from Europe and at the same time to refuse to import principles that are as important as flour or sugar? There are those who accuse Europe, which wants to generalize respect for human rights and the establishment of democratic political systems, of wanting "to perpetuate colonial domination"!