Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0414/04143.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 35KB | 543 lines

$Unique_ID{COW04143}
$Pretitle{299}
$Title{Yugoslavia
Chapter 4E.   The League of Communists}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Stephan L. Burg}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{party
presidium
organizations
central
leadership
regional
political
congress
social
organization}
$Date{1982}
$Log{Figure 16.*0414301.scf
}
Country:     Yugoslavia
Book:        Yugoslavia, A Country Study
Author:      Stephan L. Burg
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1982

Chapter 4E.   The League of Communists

     Although the Tito-led coalition in control of the LCY at the Tenth Party
Congress in 1974 restored much of the basic organizational structure common to
all ruling communist parties, the LCY did not reproduce the "shadow
ministries" characteristic of other central party apparatuses, for it remained
organizationally distinct from the state administration. It remained a highly
federalized organization in which power and authority was divided between
center and region. Changes adopted at the Eleventh Party Congress in 1978
reflected the continuing tension between center and region inside the party
itself. These changes also suggested, however, the emergence of a renewed
effort by at least some part of the leadership to further democratize
inner-party life.

     The Tenth Party Congress retained a large Presidium as the de facto
leading organ of the party and created for it an Executive Committee of six
secretaries drawn from the Presidium and six members drawn from the Central
Committee. The Presidium was composed of four members from each republic, and
two from each autonomous province and the party organization in the military.
The presidents of each of the regional organizations were made members of the
Presidium ex officio. The Central Committee, eliminated as the result of the
changes of the late 1960s, was reestablished as the "highest organ of the LCY
between two congresses."

     Most of the delegates to the Tenth Party Congress were elected on a
proportional basis according to party membership by commune party
organizations. A certain number of delegates were appointed by the regional
and military party organizations. This formula was retained in the rules
adopted at that congress. Those rules also retained regional control over the
selection of candidates for the Central Committee, Presidium, and Executive
Committee. Moreover it is apparent that control over cadres' assignments in
the party also remained in the hands of the regional leaderships.

     The party structure adopted at the Tenth Party Congress in 1974 remained
basically unchanged until the Eleventh Party Congress in 1978. The Presidium
elected after the Eleventh Party Congress was significantly smaller than its
predecessor. Prior to the congress it had consisted of forty-eight members;
the post-congress Presidium, sitting in mid-1981, was composed of twenty-four:
three from each republic, two from each province, one from the party
organization in the military, and the president of the LCY. The new Presidium
comprised the most authoritative individuals in political life, including the
presidents of each of the eight regional party organizations. All had been
members of the earlier Presidium. Their continuation in office required a
change in the party statute exempting this organ, and all the regional
presidiums as well, from the requirement that at least one-third of the
membership of leading organs be "renewed" at each election. Dolanc was elected
secretary of the Presidium, continuing the pattern of his increasing power
that began in January 1972. Nine members of the Central Committee were
selected to serve as "executive secretaries" of the Presidium but were not
elected to Presidium membership (see fig. 16).

     These changes partially confirmed earlier rumors about creation of a
politburo-like central party organ, although the new Presidium was
substantially larger than the rumored body. According to the statute adopted
at the congress the new Presidium was to perform a primarily
political/directive role. Each of its members is responsible for "specific
issues and tasks." Each of the "executive secretaries" of the Presidium also
has a "concrete responsibility for specific areas of work," but their role is
limited to "operational work on the carryingout of policy...." This division
of labor in the Presidium undoubtedly increased the operational efficiency of
this smaller body and thereby strengthened it.

     Other changes in the statute also reinforced the authority of the new
Presidium. A lengthy and entirely new section on democratic centralism, for
example, emphasized the authority of the central party organs "as the unified
political leadership of the entire League of Communists of Yugoslavia." It
also emphasized the "equal responsibility" of the republican, provincial, and
military party organizations that elect the members of these organs "for the
construction and execution of the unified policy of the League...." The
statute adopted at the Eleventh Party Congress also reversed the trend toward
increasing emphasis on the influence of regional organizations over the
central organs in the formation of policy that had been evident since 1964. It
defined the role of the regional party organizations in a manner emphasizing
the influence of the unified party program and policies, as determined by
central organs, over the formulation of regional policies.

[See Figure 16.: Formal Structure of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia,
1981]

     The power of the central leadership was strengthened by the addition of
two new subsections to the existing article on democratic centralism. The
first of these permits the party leadership to "extend help to the membership
and to basic organizations" of the party, and the second mandates "permanent
and direct democratic communication" with sociopolitical, social, and
self-managing organizations and delegations. Together, these additions
increased the authority of the central party leadership to monitor
developments throughout the party and society and to intervene wherever it
decided to do so.

     The new statute also prohibited exclusion from the party of any member
of the Central Committee without the agreement of the committee itself. It
required that when such an exclusion is under consideration, the Presidium
must be informed and must be involved in the decision. This provision
increased the relative autonomy of central party organs-including the
Presidium-by insulating the members from punitive action by their regional
party organization.

     The manner in which these changes were carried out strengthened the
importance of the formal rules of procedure. The decision to create a smaller
Presidium with its own "executive secretaries" and to abolish the existing
executive committee had been made as early as November 1977. That it was not
implemented until the congress in June 1978 stands in sharp contrast to
earlier periods, when even more sweeping changes in the organization of the
central party had been carried out with little regard for existing rules of
procedure. This adherence to formalities undoubtedly reflected a lack of
urgency associated with this change. But it also ensured that this change
would contribute to, rather than undermine, the authority of the central party
leadership by emphasizing the importance of adhering to agreed-on rules of
procedure.

     As had been the case at the 1974 Tenth Party Congress, however, actions
strengthening the central party leadership were accompanied at the Eleventh
Party Congress by significant actions strengthening the power and authority of
the regional party leaderships. The new statute established that the president
of the LCY nominates the members of the Presidium "on the basis of prior
consultations with the presidiums of the central and provincial committees"
and the leadership of the military party organization. Similarly, it required
that representatives of the central committees of the republican party
or