Questions about Communist state
Short answers, pulled from the story.
What is a communist state and how is it different from a communist society?
A communist state is a form of government combining single-party leadership by a communist party, Marxist-Leninist political philosophy, and an official commitment to building a communist society. A communist society, as Marx envisioned it, is stateless, classless, and moneyless; a communist state is the transitional political arrangement meant to lead toward that goal. No communist state has ever claimed to have achieved communism itself.
Which countries are communist states today?
China, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and Vietnam are the only communist states in the 21st century. With the exception of North Korea, all have moved toward various forms of market economy while retaining a single-party authoritarian political system.
Why do communist states not call themselves communist states?
Communist states generally describe themselves as socialist states because, within Marxist theory, communism presupposes a stateless society, making the term 'communist state' an oxymoron. These states consider themselves in a transitional socialist phase on the way to communism. The term 'communist state' originated with external, largely Western, commentators.
What is the supreme state organ of power in communist states?
The supreme state organ of power (SSOP) is the single national representative body that holds unified state power in communist states. Examples include the Supreme Soviet in the Soviet Union and the National People's Congress in China. The SSOP can interfere in executive, judicial, and procuratorial functions and its ruling party typically holds a majority or all of its seats.
What role did the Russian Revolution of 1917 play in the spread of communist states?
The Russian Revolution of 1917 produced the world's first constitutionally communist state in Soviet Russia, which joined other former imperial territories in 1922 to become the Soviet Union. After World War II, the Soviet Army occupied much of Eastern Europe and helped bring communist parties to power there. The model later spread to China in 1949, and then to Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and Vietnam.
What happened to the communist states of Eastern Europe in 1989?
In 1989, a wave of mostly non-violent revolutions, driven by public pressure and facilitated by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's political reforms known as Perestroika, brought down all communist states of the Eastern Bloc except the Soviet Union. The dissolution of the Soviet Union followed in 1991.