Politburo
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Apolitburo(/ˈpɒlɪtbjʊəroʊ/) orpolitical bureauis the highest political organ of thecentral committeeincommunist parties.[citation needed]The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in non-communist parties, such as the Political Bureau ofHamas.[1]Politburos are part of the governing structure in most former and existingcommunist states.
Names
[edit]The termpolitburoin English comes from theRussianpolitbyuro(политбюро), itself an abbreviation ofpoliticheskoye byuro(политическое бюро'political bureau'). TheSpanishtermPolitburóis directlyloanedfrom Russian, as is theGermanPolitbüro.Chineseuses acalque(Chinese:Chính trị cục;pinyin:Zhèngzhìjú), from which theVietnamese(Bộ Chính trịBộ chính trị), andKorean(정치국, chính trị cụcJeongchiguk) terms derive.
History
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The first politburo was created inRussiaby theBolshevik Partyin 1917 during theRussian Revolutionthat occurred during that year.[2][3]The first Politburo had seven members:Vladimir Lenin,Grigory Zinoviev,Lev Kamenev,Leon Trotsky,Joseph Stalin,Grigori Sokolnikov,andAndrei Bubnov.[4]
During the 20th century, politburos were established in most Communist states. They included the politburos ofthe USSR,East Germany,Afghanistan,andCzechoslovakia.Today, there are five countries that have a politburo system:China,North Korea,Laos,Vietnam,andCuba.[5]
Marxist–Leninist states
[edit]InMarxist–Leniniststates, the communist party claims to be thevanguard of the people,therefore the legitimate body to lead the state. The party selects officials to serve in its politburo, which decides party policy. As aone-party state,party policy invariably becomes national policy.
EachParty Congresselects aCentral Committeewhich, in turn, elects the members of the politburo, secretariat, and ageneral secretary.This process is termeddemocratic centralism.In theory, the politburo is answerable to the Central Committee, however in practice all the authority lies with the politburo.
Trotskyist parties
[edit]InTrotskyistparties, the Politburo is a bureau of the Central Committee tasked with making day-to-day political decisions, which must later be ratified by the Central Committee. Its members are chosen by the Central Committee, who appoints it. The post of General Secretary carries far less weight in this model. See, for example, theLanka Sama Samaja Party.
See also
[edit]- Eastern Bloc politics
- Executive committee
- Orgburo
- Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
- Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party
- Politburo of the Communist Party of Cuba
- Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam
- Politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Politburo of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party
- Politburo of the Party of Labour of Albania
- Politburo of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
- Politburo of the Polish United Workers' Party
- Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea
- Political Bureau of the Central Committee of FRELIMO
- Politburo of the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front
- Presidium
References
[edit]- ^"Politburo".21 March 2018.
- ^"USSR: Communist Party: Politburo".Archontology.org.Archivedfrom the original on 5 January 2020.Retrieved16 June2014.
- ^"Politburo (Soviet political body) – Encyclopædia Britannica".Britannica.24 April 2013.Retrieved16 June2014.
- ^Dmitri Volkogonov,Lenin. A New Biography,translated and edited by Harold Shukman (New York: The Free Press, 1994), p. 185.
- ^"A List of Current Communist Countries".Geography.about. 29 May 2014. Archived fromthe originalon 16 December 2016.Retrieved16 June2014.
External links
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