The East European Political System: The Instruments of Power by Baruch A Hazan

Author:Baruch A Hazan [Hazan, Baruch A]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780367291457
Google: jL-GzQEACAAJ
Goodreads: 53398145
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2020-06-30T00:00:00+00:00

One notices immediately that no specific decisions of the congress have been mentioned in this statement of pledges. “Intensifying combat training” and “improving the education and training methods” are stock phrases used by all East European armies of every occasion. Using them in reference to the congress’ decisions means simply that the army leadership in the GDR subscribes to the decisions adopted by the congress (whatever they are) and expresses loyalty to the party leadership. This is actually the main goal of the post-congress campaign in all East European countries.

In conclusion, the East European communist parties’ congress is an exact copy of the CPSU Congress. It is formally designated in party statutes as the supreme authority within the party, empowered to define the party’s goals and the operational means of their attainment. It does not, however, play any important role in the country’s decision-making process. In fact, all its functions are post factum functions: it legitimizes a policy line that has already been formulated by the party central leadership, “elects” a Central Committee that has already been approved by the Politburo (and probably the CPSU), and adopts decisions that have mostly a propaganda character, and that also have already been formulated by the relevant organs and organizations before the congress convened.

The election of delegates to the congress is a matter of rewarding loyal vassals and outstanding workers or functionaries, and not a question of any specific functional competence or executive capacity. Obedience, loyalty, and adherence to the prescribed procedure are the key concepts governing the election of the delegates. In fact, those are the rules governing the work of the congress. Subsequently, everybody knows in advance the congress’ ritual, and surprises are very rare. It seems that the main function of the congress is to shake up party ranks through the accountability-election meetings, conduct a minor purge, intensify productivity, increase the political awareness of the population, and extract declarations of loyalty to the party and adherence to its policy—in short, a regular propaganda campaign of mobilization-organizational nature. If the congress has any real significance, then it is related to serving as an authoritative forum for declaring the party line, restating it, or announcing marginal changes.

There is yet another forum, which one has to mention, namely, the party conference. National party conferences are a rather rare and irregular event. Article 35 of the BCP statutes provides for such conferences being convened by the BCP Central Committee in the periods between party congresses “to deliberate on important questions of party policy.”98 Similar provisions exist in the statutes of the other East European parties.

The conference usually focuses on some central economic issue, although it may also discuss international issues. Thus, the 7–9 December 1977 RCP National Conference, which served mainly to offer broad approval of the 1976–1980 supplementary economic plan, touched upon some international issues. In his closing speech on 9 December, Ceausescu spoke both on the general international situation and on Romania’s relations with its neighbors.”99 Nevertheless, economic affairs are usually the focal point of the attention of the conference.

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