Fifty Years of the October Revolution: Effects of Economic Reforms on Communist Systems

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze and compare the current economic reforms in Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union? as three representative cases of the reforms now under way in all the Communist-ruled countries of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union? with a view to finding out whether in addition to their expected effects on the efficiency of their economies these reforms have contributed or are likely to contribute to the hoped for evolutionary de-totalitarianization of Communist systems. In order to be able to assess the actual and po? tential impact of these reforms on the evolution of the Communist social systems within which they operate, a simple model of such evolution will be presented as a tool of comparative analysis. All the existing Communist regimes came into power by various violent means in conjunction with the first and second world wars, be? ginning with the October Revolution in 1917. Under the firm leadership, and by the imposed example, of Moscow all Communist regimes de? veloped essentially similar totalitarian systems in which all the important social decision-making was concentrated in the monolithic political center of the authoritarian party leadership. In addition, Moscow was the world? wide center of this totalitarian bloc. After World War II three events and decisions introduced into the totalitarian monotony of Communist regimes major changes that have been interpreted as having prepared and set off real beginnings of an incipient evolution toward de-totalitarianization. The first of these events was the expulsion of the Yugoslav party from the Cominform in 1948. This break not only disturbed the cohesion of international Communism but also triggered a series of changes in the Communist system of Yugo? slavia which thus became the pace-setter of the incipient evolution. The sudden death of Stalin in 1953 hastened the process of alienation, and increased independence, from Moscow of other Communist regimes and parties as well as the process of de-Stalinization in the Soviet Union itself. Since 1964, finally, we are witnessing gradual introduction and implementation of deeper and broader economic reforms in all the Com? munist-ruled countries of Eastern Europe and in the Soviet Union itself. 54