Communist state is a term used by many political scientists to describe a form of government in which the state operates under a one-party system and declares allegiance to Marxism-Leninism or a derivative thereof. This is a list of notable political scientists See the List of political theorists for those who study politics without using the Scientific method. A system of government is a term that refers to the set of political Institutions by which a Government of a State is organized in order to exert its powers A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population. A single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a type of Party system Government in which a single Political party Marxism-Leninism is a Communist ideological stream that emerged as the mainstream tendency amongst the Communist parties in the 1920s as it was adopted Communist states may have several legal political parties, but the Communist Party is constitutionally guaranteed a dominant role in government. A Political party described as a communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of Communism through a communist form of A constitution is a system for government often Codified as a written document that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity Consequently, the institutions of the state and of the Communist Party become intimately entwined.

What separates Communist states from other one-party systems is the fact that ruling authorities in a Communist state refer to Marxism-Leninism as their guiding ideology. For Marxist-Leninists, the state and the Communist Party claim to act in accordance with the wishes of the industrial working class; for Maoists, the state and party claim to act in accordance to the peasantry. Working class is a term used in academic Sociology and in ordinary conversation to describe depending on context and speaker those employed in specific fields or types A peasant is an agricultural worker who subsists by working a small plot of ground Both systems claim to have implemented a democratic dictatorship of the proletariat, and both claim to be moving towards the gradual abolition of the state and the implementation of communism. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based These claims have been strongly disputed by opponents of the historical Communist states, including communists who do not subscribe to Marxism-Leninism or who regard these states as bastardizations of the ideology. An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics

Communist states have also been criticized with one-party dictatorship, totalitarian control of the economy and society, repression of civil liberties,^[1] centralized economic planning resulting in enormous economic failures, including shortages of vital products, sometimes to the extent of famine,^[2] militarism, and propaganda to cover up the failures of the government. A single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a type of Party system Government in which a single Political party A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic Form of government in which the Government is ruled by a Dictator. Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a concept used to describe Political systems where a State regulates nearly every aspect of public and private ^[3]

Most Communist states adopted centrally planned economies. A planned economy or directed economy is an Economic system in which the Government or Workers' councils manages the Economy. . For this reason, Communist states are often associated with economic planning in both popular thought and scholarship. However, there are exceptions. The Soviet Union during the 1920s and Yugoslavia after World War II allowed limited markets and a degree of worker self-management. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The 1920s is sometimes referred to as the " Jazz Age " or the " Roaring Twenties " when speaking about the United States and Canada The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian, Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian: World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including More recently, China and Vietnam have introduced far-reaching market reforms since the 1980s. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989.

The policies adopted by Communist Parties ruling over communist states have been a source of political debate for much of the 20th century. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on However, this article describes the political structure of communist states, not the specific policies implemented by their governments. See Criticisms of Communist party rule for more information on the arguments surrounding those policies. This article only discusses criticisms that are specific to Communist states and not necessarily to other forms of socialism

Usage of the term

A map of countries who declared themselves to be socialist states under the Marxist-Leninist or Maoist definition (in other words, "Communist states") at some point in their history. The map uses present-day borders. Note that not all of these countries were Marxist-Leninist or Maoist at the same time.

The term Communist state originated in the West during the Cold War. The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the It was coined to describe the form of government adopted by several countries in Eastern Europe and East Asia who followed the political model of the Soviet Union. Eastern Europe is a general term that refers to the Geopolitical region encompassing the easternmost part of the European continent. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 These countries were ruled by parties which typically used the name "Communist Party of [country]. " Since the separation of Party and State became very blurred in those countries, it seemed logical to name them "Communist states," by analogy with the Communist parties that ruled them.

Communists however dispute the validity of the term Communist state. Within Marxist theory, world communism is the final phase of history at which time the state would have withered away^[4] and therefore "communist state" is a contradiction in terms under premises of this theory. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. World communism has a meaning close in meaning to ‘international communism’ which has usually been equated to the Comintern (Communist International Current states are either in the capitalist or socialist phase of history - making the term "socialist state" preferable to Communists - and the role of the Communist Party (i. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution The term socialist state (or socialist republic, or workers' state) can carry one of several different (but related meanings In strictly speaking any e. the vanguard party) is to pull a nation toward the communist phase of history. A vanguard party is a Political party at the forefront of a mass action movement or revolution

Heterodox Marxists have also opposed the usage of the term "communist state. " Since the 1930s, anti-Stalinist Marxists have argued that the existing communist states did not actually adhere to Marxism, but rather to a perversion of it that was heavily influenced by Stalinism. The 1930s were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression. Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 This critique was based on a variety of arguments, but nearly all anti-Stalinist communists argued that the Soviet model did not represent the interests of the working class. As such, Trotskyists referred to the Soviet Union as a "degenerated workers' state," and called its satellites "deformed workers states. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. In Trotskyist political theory the term degenerated workers' state has been used since the 1930s to describe the state of the Soviet Union after Stalin 's Satellite state is a political term that refers to a country which is formally independent but under heavy influence or control by another country In Trotskyist political theory deformed workers' states are states where the Bourgeoisie has been overthrown through Social revolution, the industrial "

Not every country ruled by a Communist party is viewed as a Communist state. As noted above, the term Communist state has been created and used by Western political scientists to refer to a specific type of one-party state. Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems Communist parties have won elections and governed in the context of multi-party democracies, without seeking to establish a one-party state. A multi-party system is a system in which three or more political parties have the capacity to gain control of government separately or in coalition Examples include Republic of Nicaragua (in the 1980s), Republic of Moldova (presently), and the Indian states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. Nicaragua (ˌnɪkəˈrɑgwə officially the Republic of Nicaragua () is a representative democratic republic and the largest nation in Central America The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova ( Republica Moldova) is a Landlocked country in Eastern Europe, located between Romania India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Kerala ( Malayalam: {{Kerala in Malayalam}}; West Bengal ( Bengali: পশ্চিমবঙ্গ Poshchim Bônggo poʃtʃim bɔŋgo is a state in eastern India. ( Bengali script: ত্রিপুরা is a state in North-East India. These countries and states do not fall under the definition of a Communist state.

State institutions

Communist states share similar institutions, which are organized on the premise that the Communist Party is a vanguard of the proletariat and represents the long-term interests of the people. A vanguard party is a Political party at the forefront of a mass action movement or revolution The doctrine of democratic centralism, which was developed by Lenin as a set of principles to be used in the internal affairs of the Communist party, is extended to society at large. Democratic centralism is the name given to the principles of internal organization used by Leninist political parties and the term is sometimes used as a synonym for any Leninist According to democratic centralism, all leaders must be elected by the people and all proposals must be debated openly, but, once a decision has been reached, all people have a duty to obey that decision and all debate should end. When used within a political party, democratic centralism is meant to prevent factionalism and splits. When applied to an entire state, democratic centralism creates a one-party system. A single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a type of Party system Government in which a single Political party ^[5]

The constitutions of most Communist states describe their political system as a form of democracy. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system ^[6] Thus, they recognize the sovereignty of the people as embodied in a series of representative parliamentary institutions. Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principles of the people's representatives TalkParliament#Screen-size. -->A  parliament is a Legislature, especially in those Communist states do not have a separation of powers; instead, they have one national legislative body (such as the Supreme Soviet in the Soviet Union) which is considered the highest organ of state power and which is legally superior to the executive and judicial branches of government. Separation of powers, a term ascribed to French Enlightenment Political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu, is a model for the Governance A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation The Supreme Soviet of the USSR (Верхо́вный Сове́т СССР Verkhóvnyj Sovét SSSR) was the highest legislative body in the Soviet Union in ^[7] Such national legislative politics in Communist states often have a similar structure to the parliaments that exist in liberal republics, with two significant differences: First, the deputies elected to these national legislative bodies are not expected to represent the interests of any particular constituency, but the long-term interests of the people as a whole. Second, in contradiction to Marx's advice, the legislative bodies of Communist states are not in permanent session. Rather, they convene once or several times per year in sessions which usually last only a few days. ^[8]

When the national legislative body is not in session—that is, most of the time—its powers are transferred to a smaller council (often called a "Presidium"), which combines legislative and executive power, and, in some Communist states, acts as a collective head of state. The Presidium or Præsidium (from Latin praesidium meaning protection or defense so plural presidia or praesidia is the name for the Executive committee Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a Monarchic or Republican Nation-state The Presidium is usually composed of important Communist Party members and votes into law the resolutions of the Communist party.

Another feature of Communist states is the existence of numerous state-sponsored social organizations (trade unions, youth organizations, women's organizations, associations of teachers, writers, journalists and other professionals, consumer cooperatives, sports clubs etc. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming ) which are integrated into the political system. In some Communist states, representatives of these organizations are guaranteed a certain number of seats on the national legislative bodies. In all Communist states, the social organizations are expected to promote social unity and cohesion, to serve as a link between the government and society, and to provide a forum for recruitment of new Communist Party members. ^[9]

Communist states maintain their legitimacy by claiming to promote the long-term interests of the whole people, and Communist parties justify their monopoly on political power by claiming to act in accordance with objective historical laws. Therefore, political opposition and dissent is regarded as counter-productive or even treasonous at worst. Dissent is a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or Opposition to an Idea (eg In Law, treason is the Crime that covers some of the more serious acts of disloyalty to one's sovereign or Nation. Some Communist states have more than one political party, but all minor parties are required to follow the leadership of the Communist Party. Criticism of proposed future policies is usually tolerated, as long as it does not turn into criticism of the political system itself. However, in accordance with the principles of democratic centralism, Communist states usually do not tolerate criticism of policies that have already been implemented in the past or are being implemented in the present. ^[10] However, communist states are widely seen as being de facto dictatorships by historians and sociologists, since the elections they held tended to be heavily rigged. ^[11]

Notes

See also

• List of socialist countries, which includes a list of current and former communist states
• List of current communist states
• List of communist parties
• Criticisms of Communist party rule

External links

• Bookrags website