978-0133974850 Chapter 11 Part 1

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Chapter 11. Communism, Postcommunism, and the Good Society

Chapter Overview

This chapter begins by discussing the main features shared by communist regimes in the

twentieth century. The first is rule by a communist party that controls the state. In communist

parties, power is concentrated in the hands of a very small number of leaders who determine

public policy for a country. Communist parties have a separate organizational structure from

states in communist regimes. Public policy is made in the top ranks of the party and implemented

by state agencies. The second feature of communist regimes is a state-owned, centrally planned

economy in which state planners determine what is produced, the quantities produced, and the

prices of products.

The chapter then discusses China and Russia as postcommunist regimes. Russia is no longer

ruled by a communist party, but its current politics and economics have been strongly affected by

decades of communist party rule. China is still ruled by a communist party, but China is no

longer a communist country as communist countries were defined for most of the twentieth

century.

Russia is a personalist regime whose president rules without effective constitutional or

organizational constraints on his power. Citizens have no recourse to independent courts or

guarantees of free and fair elections. Multiparty elections are held on a regular basis, but

electoral rules are tilted strongly in favor of the ruling party. The regime has benefited from a

political culture in which many Russians support a strong ruler and a paternalistic state. President

Putin and his allies benefit from an economy heavily dependent on exports of oil and gas and

riddled with corruption.

China is a one-party regime. The leaders of its Communist Party are as firmly committed to

retaining party rule as party leaders were in the first decades of communist rule in China. They

use very different means of doing so. They rely on markets and international trade to produce

economic growth, have become more flexible in their ideology, and seek to co-opt economic and

social elites. The party has also allowed more personal freedom as long as citizens do not use

their freedom to organize to challenge party rule. These changes have won the support of many

Chinese for the Chinese Communist Party. But the consequences of its policies include growing

economic inequality, pervasive corruption, and extreme environmental damage. These problems

have led to numerous protests.

The chapter ends with a comparison of capabilities between Russia and China. Although Russia

has a higher per capita income, China has rapidly closed the gap in infant mortality and literacy.

It has a far superior safety record as measured by homicides. Russia scores higher on democracy.

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Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this chapter students will be able to do the following:

11.1 Understand the impact of the collapse of the Soviet Union on the remaining communist

regimes.

11.2 Describe the two main features of communist regimes in the 20th century and explain the

flaws of centrally planned economies based on state-owned firms.

11.3 Describe the history, state, relations between state and society, political culture, and political

economy of Russia.

11.4 Describe the history, state, relations between state and society, political culture, and political

economy of China.

11.5 Compare and contrast capabilities in Russia and China.

Chapter Outline

I. INTRODUCTION

A. The chapter is divided into four parts

4. Comparison of capabilities in Russia and China

1. In the twentieth century, communist regimes shared two features

a. Communist party control of the state

b. State-owned and centrally planned economies

4. The Communist Party and the state had separate organizations

a. Party leaders made policy decisions

5. Tight party control over organizations in society

a. No other political parties were allowed to compete

b. Trade unions and other organizations were controlled by the party

c. Surveillance, arrests and terror using KGB

B. State-owned, centrally planned economies

1. Industrial firms were all owned by the state

2. Central planners coordinated the firms’ activities

a. What to produce

b. How much to produce

c. Price of products

3. Farms were collectively owned or owned by the state

a. State told farms what to produce

b. Prices of crops set by state

4. Trade mainly with other countries controlled by communist parties

5. Flaws in state-owned, centrally planned economies

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6. Few incentives to increase productivity

a. Workers knew they would not lose their jobs

b. Managers had no competition from other firms

c. Best way to meet quotas was to use time-tested production methods

III. RUSSIA

A. Introduction

1. Largest land area of any country

2. Population of approximately 142 million—little less than half that of the U.S.

3. In 2012, largest producer of natural gas and second-largest producer of oil

4. Approximately 80 percent of the population is ethnically Russian, but more

than 100 different ethnic groups make up the rest of the population

5. Many assumed it would adopt free markets and become a democracy

6. Instead it has become an authoritarian personalist regime

B. Historical background

1. Autocratic czarist regime that ruled Russia since 16th century collapsed in

1917 during World War I

2. Lenin led the Bolsheviks in the Russian Revolution of 1917

3. Bolsheviks had no blueprint of what to do and devised policies after taking

power

a. Suppressed other parties, giving Communist Party a monopoly of power

b. Created a security force, later to become the KGB, to collect intelligence,

arrest and terrorize opponents

c. Nationalized banks and large businesses, but left large parts of the

economy in private hands

4. Stalin’s revolution from above

a. Economic revolution from above

i. Agriculture collectivized and resistance crushed by force

ii. Ended private ownership of banks and firms and created a state-

owned, centrally planned economy

iii. Economy used to produce power plants, steel, railways at expense of

consumer goods

b. Expansion of the power of the KGB to destroy remaining opposition to

Stalin in the party, state, and military

5. Changes after Stalin

a. Stalin’s successors designed a less personalized, more collegial form of

governance to limit the powers of one individual

b. Soviet politics became more stable, and the economy grew in 1950s and

1960s

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c. Most outside observers viewed the Soviet Union as a “superpower” along

with the United States

d. Soviet economic growth slowed to a crawl in the 1980s

e. Mikhail Gorbachev’s efforts to reform the Soviet Union led to its collapse

b. President Putin’s goal was to centralize power in Moscow and create what

is known as a “power vertical”

5. Authoritarian power sharing

a. President Putin created a system of personal rule in which he is the

ultimate authority

b. Personal relationships rather than constitutional rules determine who has

power

c. President Putin governs with the help of an inner circle of trusted advisers

d. In addition to this inner circle, he relies on other high ranking officials,

most importantly those in the Federal Security Service (FSB)

e. Politics is largely about struggles among rival networks comprised of

wealthy business people and high ranking state officials to accumulate

power and wealth

f. Two main networks

i. One centered on FSB, managers of large state owned enterprises in oil

and gas, conservative leaders of Russian Orthodox Church who are

critical of Western values

ii. Other is business people and officials more sympathetic to markets and

who want closer ties to West

iii. Members of both networks in struggle to increase their wealth and

influence over state policies

iv. Putin is the arbiter among these competing networks but has generally

favored the one centered on the FSB

v. Since 2012, Putin has increasingly sided with the network centered on

the FSB

6. A weak state

a. State is centralized but remains weak; World Bank ranks it below Brazil

and China in effectiveness and far below Germany, Great Britain and

Sweden

b. Corruption is a major cause of state weakness

c. In rankings of corruption done by Transparency International, Russian

corruption is worse than that of several poor sub-Saharan African

countries

D. State and society

1. Like other authoritarian leaders, President Putin uses three main strategies to

control society

a. Providing benefits

i. Funneled rising revenues from oil sales into the economy

ii. Members of Russia’s middle class benefited from increased incomes

iii. Main beneficiaries were members of Putin’s inner circle and of

networks allied with Putin

b. Using rigged multiparty elections

i. The dominant political party is United Russia

ii. Other political parties are allowed to participate in elections because

allowing limited competition provides useful information about public

preferences and grievances

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iii. Multiparty elections allow regime to maintain Russia is a democracy

iv. Elections are managed to ensure that United Russia wins

c. Using repression

i. Stripped the oligarchs of political power

ii. Suppressed independent groups including those advocating human

rights, those protesting environmental destruction, and social media

iii. Arrests, trials, and imprisonment to silence critics

2. By 2011, Putin was losing popular support despite these efforts to control

society for three main reasons

a. Growing anger over corruption, especially among middle class

b. No way for citizens to hold officials accountable or to change the regime

c. Increase in number of citizens having self-expression values

3. Large scale political protests in late 2011 and early 2012, but not sustained

a. Protestors lacked organizations capable of effective, sustained collective

action

b. Middle class not united in political views against Putin

4. In 2014, Putin’s popularity began to rise

a. Initially because of the Summer Olympics in Sochi, Russia, in which

Russian athletes did extremely well

b. Public approval increased even more after Putin’s decision to seize Crimea

from the Ukraine in the name of protecting ethnic Russians

c. His growing popularity made it easier for him to suppress critics by calling

them anti-Russian and puppets of the United States

E. Political culture

1. Shaped by long history of authoritarian rule

2. Collapse of Soviet Union and emergence of Russia as an independent country

seemed to promise a democratic future

a. Majority of Russians supported the idea of a multiparty democracy in

1991

b. Since then, support for democracy has ebbed

c. Democracy came to be associated with unstable politics, economic

disruption, and falling living standards

d. Many Russians welcomed President Putin’s leadership with improved

standards of living, greater political stability, and greater Russian

influence in the world

3. Three dimensions of political culture

a. Pride in nationality

i. 46 percent of Russians proud of nationality, which is lower than level

in U.S., but higher than that in Germany or China

ii. Three versions of nationalism including desire to expand Russia’s

control over countries formerly part of the Soviet Union, xenophobic

nationalism toward ethnic minorities, and moderate nationalism

rejecting imperial or xenophobic nationalism

b. Citizens’ view of their role in the political process

i. Many Russians say they have little say in politics, and in 2011 61%

took no interest in politics

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ii. In 2012, a majority favored a strong leader who did not have to bother

with parliaments and elections

c. What citizens expect from government

i. Many Russians want a paternalistic state that looks out for them

ii. In surveys, many more Russians say the state should take care of

ensuring that everyone is cared for than say people should take more

responsibility to provide for themselves

4. Putin’s use of political culture to build support

a. Appeals to citizens who have a paternalistic view of state

b. Draws selectively on Russian culture and values of the Russian Orthodox

Church to reinforce obedience to the ruler

c. Calls for a “Russia for Russians,” to appeal to Russians hostile to ethnic

minorities

d. Presents himself as the defender of Russian identity against decadent

Western values

e. Uses a version of imperialistic nationalism to justify seizure of Crimea in

the name of protecting ethnic Russians living there

f. Appeals to Russian pride by increasing the influence of Russia in

European and world affairs

F. Political economy

1. A country’s political economy is defined by the way in which politics and

economics interact to produce income and wealth and how income and wealth

are distributed among the population.

2. Russia made transition from a state-owned, centrally-planned economy to a

mix of state and markets in the 1990s.

3. President Boris Yeltsin attempted to make the transition from the failing

Soviet economy to a market economy as quickly as possible using four

strategies known collectively as shock therapy.

a. Let markets set prices rather than government planners

b. Slash state spending to cut government budget deficits

c. Encourage foreign direct investments

d. Sell state owned-firms to private investors

4. None of the policies worked as expected.

5. The economy stabilized and economic growth returned under the leadership of

President Putin.

6. Much of this growth was due to rising world prices for oil and gas, and these

7. Consequences of this new political economy:

a. Growing income inequality

8. Economic vulnerability

a. Oil and gas exports have driven most of Russia’s growth.

b. Sustaining this growth will be increasingly difficult.

i. Yields from existing oil fields have begun to decline and opening new

fields will be very expensive.

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9. Political vulnerability

i. Declining oil and gas prices cut into government revenues, which have

enabled Putin to buy support from state employees and pensioners.

ii. Declining oil and gas revenues will make it more difficult to balance

competing networks of extremely wealthy Russians and high-level

officials.

iii. Declining revenues will also make it more difficult to maintain social

peace in poorer regions of Russia and in predominantly Muslim

regions.

iv. In summary, declining revenues will make it more difficult for

President Putin to solve the twin problems of power-sharing and

authoritarian control.

IV. CHINA

A. Introduction

1. Largest population of any country—approximately 1.3 billion

2. Since 1980, one of fastest economic growth rates in history

3. Second-largest economy in world measured by purchasing power parity

4. Problems of growing income inequality and extensive environmental damage

B. Historical background

1. Imperial China

a. Traces origins to 221 BC

b. Centralized state that ruled area larger than continental United States

c. Restricted European trade access

d. Forced to open China to trade following defeat by British in the Opium

War (1839–1843)

e. Other European countries also demanded access to trade

g. Japanese invasion in 1937 gave the Chinese Communist Party, now led by

Mao Zedong, the opportunity to regroup

i. Nationalists forced to retreat into the interior of China

ii. Communists used the war years to build support

h. Civil War

i. After the Japanese were defeated by the United States, civil war

began

ii. Communist troops drove the Nationalists out of China

iii. October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong announces founding of People’s

Republic of China

3. Mao’s China (1949–1976)

a. Following the Soviet model

i. Chinese followed the Soviet economic model

ii. By mid-1950s, Mao became increasingly critical of the Soviet

model and initiated dramatic changes in China

b. Great Leap Forward (1958–1960)

i. Goal to catch up economically with West in 15 years

ii. Used mass mobilization of peasants and workers

iii. Now remembered mainly for its spectacular failures, including a

famine that resulted in the deaths of an estimated 30 million people

iv. Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping took lead in restoring economic

growth.

c. Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966–1976)

i. Mao believed that these leaders’ policies were counterrevolutionary

ii. Launched the Cultural Revolution to purge the country of “capitalist

roaders” and rid China of old culture, habits, ideas, and customs

iii. Cultural Revolution ended in chaos, with rival Red Guards fighting

each other

iv. After Mao’s death in 1976 new leaders set China on new course

4. Deng Xiaoping’s reforms and consequences

a. Deng Xiaoping emerged as new leader of China

b. Initiated major new “reform and opening” economic policies

i. Dismantled collective farming—replaced with family farming

ii. Opened China to world markets and trade

iii. Allowed privately owned businesses

iv. Allowed businesses jointly owned by private entrepreneurs and

local governments

c. Policies led to rapid economic growth

5. Tiananmen Square protests (1989)

a. Deng’s economic reforms brought benefits to many but also created anger

at the corruption that benefited Communist Party elites

b. Student protestors filled Tiananmen Square in Beijing

c. PLA suppressed protests with great loss of life

6. China since Deng Xiaoping

a. After Deng’s death in 1997, Chinese leaders continued his basic strategy

i. Rely on markets and international trade to drive economic growth

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ii. Maintain Chinese Communist Party control

b. Central issue is how this strategy can continue to work

c. Rapid economic growth has created groups in society with expectations

that may potentially challenge Communist Party rule

C. The state

1. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) controls the state

2. Political power is in the hands of the party’s leader and a small number of

other top party officials

3. Central party institutions

a. Politburo (24 members) and the Politburo’s Standing Committee (7

members) are where major policies are decided

b. Secretariat

i. Headed by general secretary, who is always the leader of the party

ii. Secretariat has responsibilities for overseeing implementation of

party decisions and managing party’s personnel

iii. General secretary is expected to step down after two terms in office

c. Central Committee (around 200 members)

i. In party constitution, this body elects the members of the Politburo

and Secretariat

ii. In practice, it simply approves names given to it by the Politburo

iii. Party constitution also gives it a policy-making role, but this exists