40-616: Former General Secretary of the CPSU Former President of the Soviet Union Secretariate (1985–1991) Presidency (1990–1991) Foreign policy Post-leadership [REDACTED] Green Cross International is an environmentalist organisation headquartered in Geneva , Switzerland, founded by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993. Today, member organisations are in 30 countries. Its primary mission
80-405: Is a form of organisation that Trotskyists, Marxist-Leninists, and other democratic centralists abide by, both when having seized the government and also while trying to seize it. Most communist parties have a democratic centralist structure. In party meetings, a motion (new policy or amendment, goal, plan or any other kind of political question) is moved (proposed). After a period of debate, a vote
120-607: Is also stated in Article 3 of the current constitution of the People's Republic of China : Article 3. The state organs of the People's Republic of China apply the principle of democratic centralism. The National People's Congress and the local people's congresses at different levels are instituted through democratic election. They are responsible to the people and subject to their supervision. All administrative, judicial, and procuratorial organs of
160-667: Is permitted in all forms. Once a resolution is being carried out, discussion and criticism which may disrupt unity in performing the action is forbidden, to ensure that the action is not derailed. In several socialist states, related practices were also adopted to ensure freedom of discussion, such as Mao's "Don't Blame the Speaker". Some Trotskyist and orthodox Marxist perspectives describe "deficient" forms of democratic centralism as "bureaucratic centralism," often those espoused by Marxist-Leninists. According to these views, bureaucratic centralism de-prioritises democracy, and thus fails to serve
200-598: Is taken. If one vote clearly wins (gaining a share of 60% or above among two options, for example) all party members are expected to follow that decision, and not continue debating it. The goal is to avoid decisions being undermined by participants whose views are in the minority. In the development of socialism in the Soviet Union and China, it was implemented in response to rapid political developments, which required faster mechanisms of decision-making. Before an issue has been voted on and carried out, discussion and criticism
240-794: Is the organisational principle of communist states and of most communist parties to reach dictatorship of the proletariat . In practice, democratic centralism means that political decisions reached by voting processes are binding upon all members of the political party . It is mainly associated with Leninism , wherein the party's political vanguard of revolutionaries practice democratic centralism to select leaders and officers, determine policy, and execute it. Democratic centralism has primarily been associated with Marxist–Leninist and Trotskyist parties, but has also occasionally been practised by other democratic socialist and social democratic parties such as South Africa's African National Congress . Scholars have disputed whether democratic centralism
280-483: Is to "respond to the combined challenges of security, poverty, and environmental degradation to ensure a sustainable and secure future". William Bridge serves both as Chairman of Green Cross International and CEO of Global Green USA . Green Cross International was founded by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993, building upon the work started by the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil. On 6 June 1992,
320-748: The First and the Second Internationals, held the Soviet Union in a central position and functioned as one big body instead of many independent communist parties in different countries. The Leninist practice of democratic centralism was introduced during the Republic of China era to the Kuomintang in 1923. It was allied with the Chinese Communist Party during the Warlord Era and received support from
360-624: The October Revolution and the Russian Civil War , the Bolshevik leadership, including Lenin, instituted a ban on factions in the party as Resolution No. 12 of the 10th Party Congress in 1921. It was passed in the morning session on 16 March 1921. Trotskyists sometimes claim that this ban was intended to be temporary, but there is no language in the discussion at the 10th Party Congress suggesting such. The Group of Democratic Centralism
400-592: The October Revolution , the job of the party secretary was largely that of a bureaucrat. Following the Bolshevik seizure of power, the Office of the Responsible Secretary was established in 1919 to perform administrative work. After the Bolshevik victory in the Russian Civil War , the Office of General Secretary was created by Vladimir Lenin in 1922 with the intention that it serve a purely administrative and disciplinary purpose. Its primary task would be to determine
440-758: The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1903 as did Leon Trotsky , in Our Political Tasks , although Trotsky joined ranks with the Bolsheviks in 1917. The Sixth Party Congress of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party (Bolsheviks) held at Petrograd between 26 July and 3 August 1917 defined democratic centralism as follows: After the successful consolidation of power by the Communist Party following
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#1732872869362480-659: The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). From 1924 until the country's dissolution in 1991, the officeholder was the recognized leader of the Soviet Union . Prior to Joseph Stalin 's accession, the position was not viewed as an important role in Vladimir Lenin's government and previous occupants had been responsible for technical rather than political decisions. Officially,
520-414: The Communist Party of the Soviet Union at the Central Committee plenum on 14 September that same year. Khrushchev subsequently outmanoeuvred his rivals, who sought to challenge his political reforms . He was able to comprehensively remove Malenkov, Molotov and Lazar Kaganovich (one of Stalin's oldest and closest associates) from power in 1957 , an achievement which also helped to reinforce the supremacy of
560-548: The Communist Party. When the Supreme Soviet was not in session, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet performed its ordinary functions. It also had the power to issue decrees in lieu of law. Nominally, if such decrees were not ratified at the Supreme Soviet's next session, they were considered revoked. However, ratification was usually a mere formality, though occasionally even this formality was not observed. Thus, decisions made by
600-598: The General Secretary solely controlled the Communist Party directly. However, since the party had a monopoly on political power , the General Secretary de facto had executive control of the Soviet government . Because of the office's ability to direct both the foreign and domestic policies of the state and preeminence over the Soviet Communist Party, it was the de facto highest office of the Soviet Union. Before
640-581: The German Social Democratic Party , inspired by remarks made by the social democrat Jean Baptista von Schweitzer . Lenin described democratic centralism as consisting of "freedom of discussion, unity of action". The doctrine of democratic centralism served as one of the sources of the split between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks . The Mensheviks supported a looser party discipline within
680-550: The Leninist principle of democratic centralism. According to the regulations of the Party, democratic centralism is performed following these rules: The Lao People's Revolutionary Party which governs the nation of Laos applies democratic centralism. The party's centralised and hierarchical organisational structure is based on democratic centralism, which was conceived by Vladimir Lenin . This structure entails that lower party organs obey
720-654: The Netherlands, the Russian Federation , Switzerland, and the United States. The initial concept envisaged an international body to provide assistance to countries in ecological trouble. The organisation's stated mission is to: Other organisations are affiliated with GCI in 30 countries. GCI holds these statuses: General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union The general secretary of
760-401: The Party's top leaders de facto had the force of law. The democratic centralist principle extended to elections in the Soviet Union . All socialist countries were—either de jure or de facto — one-party states . In most cases, the voters were presented with a single list of unopposed candidates, which usually won 90 percent or more of the vote. The Third International , in contrast with
800-610: The Rio Earth Summit delegates asked Gorbachev to establish Green Cross International, and around the same time, Swiss National Council MP Roland Wiederkehr founded "World Green Cross", with similar aims. The two organisations merged in 1993, becoming Green Cross International, which was formally launched in Kyoto , Japan, on 18 April 1993. In 1994, the first Green Cross National Organisations (GCNOs) joined GCI in The Hague , including Japan,
840-503: The Secretariat, which also included Nikita Khrushchev , among others. Under a short-lived troika consisting of Malenkov, Beria, and Molotov , Malenkov became Chairman of the Council of Ministers , but was forced to resign from the Secretariat nine days later on 14 March. This effectively left Khrushchev in control of the government, and he was elected to the new office of First Secretary of
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#1732872869362880-473: The Soviet Union . Trotsky attributed his appointment to the initial recommendation of Grigory Zinoviev . This view has been supported by several historians. According to Russian historian, Vadim Rogovin , Stalin's election to the position occurred after the Eleventh Party Congress (March–April 1922), in which Lenin, due to his poor health, participated only sporadically, and only attended four of
920-488: The Soviet Union as General Secretary until 1990, when the Communist Party lost its monopoly of power over the political system. The office of President of the Soviet Union was established so that Gorbachev could still retain his role as leader of the Soviet Union. Following the failed August coup of 1991 , Gorbachev resigned as General Secretary. He was succeeded by his deputy, Vladimir Ivashko , who only served for five days as Acting General Secretary before Boris Yeltsin ,
960-523: The Soviet Union. The organizational structures of the Kuomintang would remain in place until the democratization on Taiwan in the 1990s and would serve as a structural basis of several Taiwanese political parties such as the Democratic Progressive Party . Since 1945, the Chinese Communist Party's constitution has defined the party's view of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism
1000-488: The composition of party membership and to assign positions within the party. The General Secretary also oversaw the recording of party events, and was entrusted with keeping party leaders and members informed about party activities. When assembling his cabinet, Lenin appointed Joseph Stalin to be General Secretary. Over the next few years, Stalin was able to use the principles of democratic centralism to transform his office into that of party leader, and eventually leader of
1040-510: The decisions of the higher ones, such as the LPRP Central Committee . It also entails a ban on internal party factions. In the end, every decision-making organ has to be guided by the principle of collective leadership , a process that emphasises collegial decision-making, in contrast to one-person dominance. LPRP General Secretary Kaysone Phomvihane, in a speech to the 5th National Congress in 1991, stated "that our Party's democracy
1080-399: The interests of the proletariat. The text What Is to Be Done? from 1902 is popularly seen as the founding text of democratic centralism. At this time, democratic centralism was generally viewed as a set of principles for the organizing of a revolutionary workers' party. However, Vladimir Lenin 's model for such a party, which he repeatedly discussed as being "democratic centralist", was
1120-471: The lowest to the highest, their accountability to the people, and the obligation of lower bodies to observe the decisions of higher ones." For much of the time between the era of Joseph Stalin and the 1980s, the principle of democratic centralism meant that the Supreme Soviet , while nominally vested with great lawmaking powers, did little more than approve decisions already made at the highest levels of
1160-510: The newly elected President of Russia , suspended all activity in the Communist Party. Following the party's ban, the Union of Communist Parties – Communist Party of the Soviet Union (UCP–CPSU) was established by Oleg Shenin in 1993, and is dedicated to reviving and restoring the CPSU. The organisation has members in all the former Soviet republics . Democratic centralism Democratic centralism
1200-411: The party secretariat due to his age, was rejected by the party congress, as delegates were unsure about Stalin's intentions. In the end, the congress formally abolished Stalin's office of General Secretary, although Stalin remained the highest-ranked party secretary and maintained ultimate control of the party. When Stalin died on 5 March 1953, Malenkov was considered to be the most important member of
1240-566: The position of First Secretary. In 1964, opposition within the Politburo and the Central Committee, which had been increasing since the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis , led to Khrushchev's removal from office. Leonid Brezhnev succeeded Khrushchev as First Secretary, but was initially obliged to govern as part of a collective leadership , forming another troika with Premier Alexei Kosygin and Chairman Nikolai Podgorny . The office
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1280-455: The scandal and remained in his post. After Lenin's death, Stalin began to consolidate his power by using the office of General Secretary. By 1928, he had unquestionably become the de facto leader of the USSR, while the position of General Secretary became the highest office in the nation. In 1934, the 17th Party Congress refrained from formally re-electing Stalin as General Secretary. However, Stalin
1320-423: The state are created by the people's congresses to which they are responsible and under whose supervision they operate. The division of functions and powers between the central and local state organs is guided by the principle of giving full play to the initiative and enthusiasm of the local authorities under the unified leadership of the central authorities. The Communist Party of Vietnam is organized according to
1360-540: The twelve sessions of the Congress. Some historians have regarded the premature death of prominent Bolshevik Yakov Sverdlov to have been a key factor in facilitating the elevation of Joseph Stalin to the position of leadership in the Soviet Union. In part, because Sverdlov served as the original chairman of the party secretariat and was considered a natural candidate for the position of General Secretary. Prior to Lenin's death in 1924, Stalin's tenure as General Secretary
1400-481: The unity of a definite action; it rules out all criticism which disrupts or makes difficult the unity of an action decided on by the Party." By the Brezhnev period , democratic centralism was described in the 1977 Soviet Constitution as a principle for organizing the state: "The Soviet state is organized and functions on the principle of democratic centralism, namely the electiveness of all bodies of state authority from
1440-437: Was a group in the Soviet Communist Party who advocated different concepts of party democracy. In On Party Unity , Lenin argued that democratic centralism prevents factionalism. He argued that factionalism leads to less friendly relations among members and that it can be exploited by enemies of the party. Lenin wrote of democratic centralism that it "implies universal and full freedom to criticise, so long as this does not disturb
1480-418: Was already being criticized. In Lenin's final months, he authored a pamphlet that called for Stalin's removal on the grounds that Stalin was becoming authoritarian and abusing his power. The pamphlet triggered a political crisis which endangered Stalin's position as General Secretary, and a vote was held to remove him from office. With the help of Grigory Zinoviev and Lev Kamenev , Stalin was able to survive
1520-441: Was implemented in practice in the Soviet Union and China, pointing to violent power struggles, backhanded political maneuvering, historical antagonisms and the politics of personal prestige in those states. Socialist states, such as the former Soviet Union and present-day China, have made democratic centralism the organisational principle of the state, and the political power principle being unitary power . Democratic centralism
1560-453: Was re-elected to all the other positions he held, and remained leader of the party without diminution. In the 1950s, Stalin increasingly withdrew from Secretariat business, leaving the supervision of the body to Georgy Malenkov , possibly to test his abilities as a potential successor. In October 1952, at the 19th Party Congress , Stalin restructured the party's leadership. His request, voiced through Malenkov, to be relieved of his duties in
1600-527: Was renamed to General Secretary in 1966. The collective leadership was able to limit the powers of the General Secretary during the Brezhnev Era . Brezhnev's influence grew throughout the 1970s as he was able to retain support by avoiding any radical reforms. After Brezhnev's death, Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko were able to rule the country in the same way as Brezhnev had. Mikhail Gorbachev ruled
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