Unit 2- Communist and Post-Communist Countries Flashcards
Bourgeoisie
owners of factories and other means of production
Vanguard of the revolution
a group of revolutionary leaders who could provoke the revoltuion in non-capitalist Russia
Democratic centralism
hierarchal party structure in which leaders were elected from below
Co-optation
allocation of power throughout various political, social, and economic institutions
Nomenklatura
the process of filling influential jobs in the state, society, or the economy with people approved and chosen by the Communist Party
Who established market-based socialism in CHina?
Deng Xiaoping. In 1976, following Mao’s death. Chose more gradual path than the USSR’s move to capitalism.
central planning
the ownership of private property and the market mechanism are replaced with the allocation of resources by the state bureaucracy
Difficulties with Communist political economies
Logistical difficulties
Lack of worker incentives q
Russian Political Culture Traditions
Absolute, centralized rule
Extensive cultural homogeneity
Slavophile vs. Westernizer
Equality of Result
Eastern Orthodoxy
Skepticism about Power (except for Putin)
Importance of Nationality
Three Periods in Russian History
A long period of autocratic rule by Tsars
20th century Communist rule
Postt-1991 abrupt change to procedural democracy and free market
Enlightened Despot
one who rules absolutely, but with clear goals in mind
zemstvas
regional assemblies created by Tsar Alexander II
White Army
fought in 1918 Russian civil war. led by Russian military leaders and funded by Allied Powers
New Economic Policy
Lenin’s policy which allowed a great deal of private ownership to exist under a centralized leadership
Central Committee
under USSR, group of 300 Communist party leaders who met about twice a year
Politburo
group of about twelve men who ran USSR the country and their decision were carried out by agencies and departments
General Secretary
head of Politburo who assumed full dictatorial powers
Kulaks
Russian peasents
Two Parts of Stalin’s USSR Plans
Collectivization and industrialization
Gosplan
the Central State Planning Commission
Five Year Plan
set ambitious goals for production of heavy industry such as oil, steal, and electricity
secret speech
Khruschev revealed the existence of a letter written by Lenin before he died in which Lenin denounced Stalin’s rules and practices
deStalinization
reforms that loosened government censorship and decentralized economic decision making
Glasnost
“openness”. allowed more open discussion of political, social, and economic issues as well as open criticism of the government
Democratization under Gorbachev
created a new Congress of People’s Deputies with directly elected representatives and a new position of President that was selected by the Congress
Perestroika
market reforms. authorized some privately owned companies, lease farm lands, price reforms.
Three Branches of Russian Government
President
Prime Minister
Duma
Constitutional COurt
Proletariat
workers
Where are Muslims concentrated in Russia?
- Moscow - laborers who have migrated to Moscow in recent years to find work.
- The Caucuses - Chechnya
- Bashkortostan and Tatarstan -
Russian Beliefs and Attitudes
Mistrust of the government
Statism
Market Reform
Divide between Slavophile and Westernizers
Lack of Civil Society in Russia
Russia has higher voter turnout than the US, but lower than the UK and France.
Most Russians don’t attend church on a regular basis, nor do they belong to sports or recreational clubs, literary or cultural groups, charitable organizations, or labor unions. Only 1% belong to political parties.
Nashi
Russian youth group that supports Putin and has been implicated in harrassing British and Russian embassy. Also combats youthful resistence to government
Asymmetric federalism
some regions are much strong than others, so power is devolved unequally across a country. ex: Russia
Increasing Centralization of Power under Putin
Creation of super-districts that supervise local authorities and are run by presidential appointee.
Removal of governors by president.
Presidential appointment of governors
Move to proportional representative Duma.7
Linkage Institutions in Russia
Growingly weak as media comes under government control and private organizations are weak. United Russia Party is only strong party.
United Russia
Pro-Putin
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
largest opposition party. opposes market reforms.
Liberal Democrats
misnomer. anti-semitic, militaristic, extreme-nationalist
A Just Russia
another opositon party
Patriots of Russia
thought by many to be a party supported by United Russia in order to undermine Communists and A Just Russia
Parties of Power
parties strongly sponsored by economic and political power-holders
State corporatism
the state determines which groups have input into policymaking
Insider privatization
free-enterprise is allowed but only allowed to be run by men seen as loyal to the state
State Corporatism in Russia (Examples)
Gazprom- natural gas company (run by former prime minister Zubkov)
Rosneft- oil company run by Igor Sechin who is the presidential deputy chief of staff
United Aircraft Corporation - run by first deputy prime minister Ivanov
Pravda
official newpaper of USSR that continued as independent newpaper in Russia, but no longer censored largely because it focuses on non-political stories.
Lack of Press Freedom in Russia
journalists that have been critical of the government, like those that worked with Novaya Gazeta, have been killed suspiciously.
The Kremlin took over the only independent television network in the country and then when those independent journalists went to a new station, they shut that station down.
Russian Presidency
Six year terms. term limit of two
Presidential Powers
Appoint the prime minister and cabinent (requires approval of Duma). However, if Duma rejects the President’s nominee three times than the President can dissolve the Duma.
Issue decrees that have the force of law. (creation of the state-owned United Aircraft Corporation)
Dissolve the Duma
Selection of Prime Minister
Unlike in UK, Prime ministers are not appointed because they are leaderrs of the majority party but rather because they are most likely career bureaucrats that are chosen because of their technical expertise or loyalty to the president
Federation Council
Consists of two members from each of the 89 federal administrative units. One member is selected by the governor of the region and the other by the regional legislature. Mostly powerless except to delay legislation. May be overridden by 2/3 vote in Duma
Constitutional Court
Nineteen members appointed by the president and confirmed by the Federation Council and are supposed to make sure that all laws and decrees are constitutional. relatively weak
Dynastic cycles
long periods of rule by a family punctuated by times of chaos, when the family lost its power and was challenged by a new and ultimately unsuccessful ruling dynasty
Mandate of Heaven
the right to rule as seen by the collective ancestral wisdom that guided the empire from the heavens above
Maoism
idealistic and egalitarian, which, though endorsing centralized power exercized through top-level party leadership, it stressed the importance of staying connected to peasents through a process called mass line
Mass line
requires leaders to listen to and communicate with ordinary folks as a matter of legitimacy
Historical Traditions of Chinese Government
Authoritarian Power- centralization of power among one person or a small group of people. government as something one is subject to not a participant in.
Confucianism- emphasized the importance of order and harmony, encouraged Chinese citizens to submit to the emperors power, and reingforced the emperors responsibility to fulfill his duties conscientiously
Bureaucratic hierarchy based on scholarship/meritocracy
Middle Kingdom
belief that China is the center of all civilization
Deng Xiaoping Theory
a practical mix of authoritarian political control and economic privatization
Geographic Influences on China
Access to oceans/ports
Many large navigable rivers
Major geographical and climate split between north and south
Geographic isolation of the western part of the country
Mountain ranges, deserts, and oceans thtat seperate China from other countries
Historical Eras of China
Dynastic rule
Resistance to Imperialism
Maoism
Deng Xiaoping Theory
Major THemes During Chinese Revolutionary Era
Nationalism - desire to reestablish Chinese independence and greatness
Establishing a new political community - choice of new kind of government in absence of dynasties
Socioeconomic development
Cadres
party workers at the lowest level
Maoist Factions after Mao’s death
Radicals - supported the radical goals of the Cultural Revolution
Military
Moderates- emphasized economic modernization and limited contact with other countries
Four Modernizations
industry, agriculture, science, and military
Changes under Deng Xiaoping
“open door” trade policy
reforms in education
institutionalization of the revolution into more beuracratic and decentralized government
Han Chinese
the people that historically form the basis of China’s identity
Chinese Minorities
Most are located in the five autonomous regions of China.
Ex: Tibetj, Uyghurs
Xinhua
China’s official news media
Hukou
China’s taditional household registrtation system that makes it difficult to move from one place to another
Guanxi
personal connections
Chinese Factions
Conservatives
Liberals
“Princelings”
Chinese Communist Youth League
Conservatives
oppose movement towards democracy and support crackdowns on organizations and individuals who act too independently
Liberals
more accepting of political liberties and democratic movements
Princelings
an aristocracy of families with revolutionary credentials from the days of Mao Zedong
Chinese Communist Youth League
seen as promoters of the concerns of the urban and rural poor
Fang-shou
a tightening up, lossening up cycle that includes Economic Liberalization, Political movements, and CCP response
Danwei
social units usually based on a person’s place of work
People’s Daily
the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the CCP
Parallel Hierarchies in China
CCP
state/government
People’s Liberation Army
Dual role
vertical supervision of government by the next higher level of government and horizontal supervision of government by the Communist Party at the same level
Chinese President and Vice President
serve five year terms and are limited to two terms. largely ceremonial , always held by senior party leaders.
Premier
head of government, formally appointed by the president, always held by a member of the Standing Committee
People’s Court
four-tiered court system in China that is organized hierarchically… 99% of all cases that come to trial end in conviction and often end in deaht penalty.
People’s Procuratorate
public prosecutors and defenders in China
Recent Democratic Reforms in China
Some input from the National People’s Congress is accepted by the Politburo
More emphasis is placed on laws and legal procedures
Village elections are now semi-competitive
One Child Policy
system of incentives and penalties designed to assure that couples produced only one child
Iron Rice Boawl
cradle-to-grave health care, work, and retirement security
People’s Communes
large collective farms that were used during Maoist China
Household responsibility system
individual families take full charge of the production and marketing of crops. after paying government taxes and contract fees to the villages, families may consume or sell what they produce.
Township and village enterprises
rural factories and businesses that vary greatly in size, and are run by local government and entrepreneurs
Economic problems in CHina
Unemployment and inequality
Inefficiency of the state sector
Pollution
Product Safety
Special Economic Zones
regions where foreign investors were given preferential tax rates and other incentives
