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Purpose of political reform 1985 1991. Reform of the political system. Further attempts to restore the economy

In the implementation of the reform political system in the USSR and the development of the political crisis, a number of stages can be distinguished. The first, from March 1985 to January 1987, was held under the slogan "more socialism".

MS Gorbachev in his book “Perestroika and New Thinking” he formulated his position as follows: “Of course, we are not going to change the Soviet government, we will not deviate from its fundamental foundations. But changes are needed, and those that strengthen socialism, make it politically richer and more dynamic” Gorbachev M.S. "Perestroika and new thinking" - M., 1992. - p.163.

Significant changes began in the leadership of the CPSU. The most odious figures from L.I.'s entourage have resigned. Brezhnev. A fight against corruption and abuses began, party leaders discredited themselves were replaced in the localities. For 1985-1986 more than 60% of secretaries of district committees and regional committees were replaced. Representatives of the new nomenklatura elite came to the leadership of the CPSU: E.K. Ligachev, B.N. Yeltsin, A.N. Yakovlev and others, who understand the need for fundamental political and economic reforms. A rethinking of the real state of society began, a reassessment of the historical path traversed by the country, the CPSU took responsibility for the deformations of the previous stages. The mass rehabilitation of the repressed leaders of the party and the Soviet state, representatives of the intelligentsia, a rethinking of their role in the history of the country began. At the same time, the political system of society remained unchanged, the leading role of the CPSU as the only political party, the vanguard of the entire people, was not questioned.

Already in this period, disagreements begin among the supporters of perestroika themselves. The leading core of the party, formed around Gorbachev, in less than two years, was split into opposing groups. Everyone was aware of the need for change, but they understood these changes in different ways.

The first blow to the authority of M.S. Gorbachev was inflicted by the secretary of the Moscow City Party Committee B.N. Yeltsin. In September 1987, he unexpectedly spoke at the solemn Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, dedicated to the upcoming celebration of the 70th anniversary of the October Revolution, with a sharply critical speech. B.N. Yeltsin spoke about the slowness in the implementation of perestroika, criticized the policy of the party secretariat and E.K. Ligachev, and also announced the emergence of a "cult of personality" in the party M.S. Gorbachev. In conclusion, he announced his resignation from the Politburo.

Yeltsin's speech seemed extremely confused and incomprehensible to those present. The participants of the plenum unanimously condemned him. B.N. Yeltsin was removed from his post as secretary of the Moscow city committee. But, as time has shown, this speech was an important political step. Seeing that the country's economy is entering a period of shocks, B.N. Yeltsin outlined his special position, dissociating himself from M.S. Gorbachev. Thus, one of the representatives of the party nomenklatura turned into a leader of radical supporters of reforms, acquired the halo of a people's hero and a fighter against bureaucracy.

E.K. became the leader of another direction in the party. Ligachev. He served as second secretary of the CPSU, was responsible for the personnel policy of the party. Ligachev also spoke about the need for perestroika, advocated the fight against corruption, for restoring order and discipline, but at the same time advocated the preservation of the basic parameters of the socialist economy, for the preservation in the hands of the CPSU of the levers of governing the country. Even Ligachev's opponents recognized his honesty, high morality, and conviction, but objectively his position became more and more conservative. E.K. Ligachev was one of the inspirers of the "anti-alcohol campaign", spoke in defense of socialism, against the denigration of the country's historical past. As the transformations deepened, he became more and more in opposition to the policy of M.S. Gorbachev.

The next stage, 1987-1988, can be characterized as a stage under the slogan "more democracy", in which the class concept of democracy was replaced by a universal (liberal) understanding. Since the CPSU played the leading role in the existing system of administration, it began the reform as well. During this period, cardinal changes take place in the political system of society. Since the CPSU played the leading role in the existing system of administration, it began the reform as well. In June-July 1988, the XIX All-Union Party Conference was held, which determined the path of transformation. (See Appendix 4) The main direction was proclaimed the transfer of power from party bodies to the Soviets of People's Deputies, ensuring the sovereignty of the Soviets at all levels. The congress of people's deputies of the USSR (in the republics - republican congresses) was proclaimed the supreme body of power in the country. The congress elected from among its members the permanent, bicameral Supreme Soviet of the USSR and its chairman. Accordingly, the republican congresses elected the Supreme Soviets of the republics.

The conference proposed a draft of a new law on elections, which was adopted in December 1988. For the first time in the history of Soviet society, elections became alternative (from several candidates). All orders were canceled when nominating candidates for deputies (previously proportional representation of all classes was observed). At the same time, the decisions of the conference were half-hearted, ensuring the preservation of power in the hands of the CPSU (one third of the deputies of the congress were elected from public organizations - the CPSU, trade unions, the Komsomol, etc.; it was envisaged to combine the posts of Chairmen of the Councils of all levels and the corresponding party leaders, subject to their election to these tips).

Elections to the highest authorities opened a new stage - the stage of disengagement in the perestroika camp (1989-1991). It turned out that different political forces put different meanings into this term, which is not at all “we are all on the same side of the barricades”, as MS Gorbachev liked to repeat. During the election campaign, issues of economic and political development of the country were widely discussed. Many secretaries of the regional and city committees of the party, workers of the party apparatus were defeated in the elections, at the same time, a number of figures who were in opposition to the regime, such as academician A.D. Sakharov.

In April 1989, the First Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR opened. The congress elected the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. M.S. was elected its Chairman. Gorbachev. At the congress, an opposition group of deputies began to take shape, the so-called "interregional group", which included the former secretary of the Moscow city committee of the CPSU B.N. Yeltsin, who triumphantly won the elections in Moscow, A.D. Sakharov, T.X. Gdlyan, G.X. Popov, A.A. Sobchak, N.I. Travkin, S.N. Stankevich. T.A. Zaslavskaya and others.

In March 1989, elections were held for the Supreme Soviets of the republics and local Soviets. In these elections, deputies from public organizations were no longer elected. During the elections, political parties and trends opposing the CPSU began to be created. In most regions, they defeated party structures. The Moscow Council was headed by G.X. Popov, Leningradsky - A.A. Sobchak. In June 1990, the First Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR elected the Supreme Soviet of the Republic. B.N. became its chairman. Yeltsin.

In March 1990, the Third Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR adopted a decision on the transition to a presidential system of government. The congress elected M.S. Gorbachev. It was decided to abolish Art. 6 of the Constitution of the USSR, which proclaimed the leading and guiding role of the CPSU in the political system of Soviet society. This finally completed the transfer of power from the hands of party bodies to the hands of the Soviets. In October 1990, the law of the USSR "On public associations" was adopted, recognizing the existence of a multi-party system in the country History of Russia. Tutorial. REA edition. G.V. Plekhanov - M., 2004.- p.194.

With the abolition of Article 6, the CPSU became just one of the political parties (although there were no other parties yet, they were still in the process of formation). This created problems for the functioning and activities of all other state structures and bodies that were previously subordinate to the CPSU and carried out its directives. There was a need to revise the entire political system of the Soviet state. It was unthinkable that the party would unconditionally renounce the power it had wielded for 70 years, so the opposition to M.S. Gorbachev in the ranks of the party itself. M.S. Gorbachev tried to pursue a centrist policy, dissociating himself from both radicals and conservatives. In April 1989, at the Plenum of the Central Committee, 10 people from the Central Committee “voluntarily” resigned at once, E.K. Ligachev, only two of the "Brezhnev" Politburo remained by the end of 1989 (M.S. Gorbachev and E.A. Shevardnadze). In total for 1985-1990. 85% of the leading employees of the Central Committee of the CPSU were replaced.

The 28th (and last) Congress of the CPSU, held in July 1990, became the theater of the most fierce battles. in 1985 to 15 million people. by the summer of 1990, the party actually split at this congress. The so-called “democratic platform” emerged from it and formed an independent party. On the other hand, in June 1990, the Communist Party of the RSFSR was created, standing on orthodox communist positions. In the midst of discussions at the congress, B.N. took the floor. Yeltsin, announcing his withdrawal from the CPSU and suggesting that the party dissolve itself. This speech by the most popular leader dealt a virtually fatal blow to the CPSU. The congress did not overcome the crisis of the party, its program document "Towards Humane, Democratic Socialism" was of a half-hearted, vague character, and tried to reconcile the various trends in the party. (See Annex 6)

B.N. Yeltsin is already openly moving to anti-communist positions, starting a struggle for power. He managed to rally forces of completely different political orientations into a single coalition on the platform of a common struggle against the CPSU. The political convictions of B.N. Yeltsin is rather difficult to trace. He talked about the need for radical reforms, without specifying what he meant. The main slogan of his propaganda campaign was the struggle against the privileges of the party and state nomenklatura, which brought him immense popularity among the people. Supporters of B.N. Yeltsin consisted of a very wide range of political forces: from radical democrats (G.Kh. Popov, A.A. Sobchak), radical nationalists (V.P. Astafiev) to high-ranking representatives of the nomenklatura who saw in B.N. Yeltsin, an authoritarian leader capable of restoring order in the country, whether with or without the CPSU (Yu.V. Petrov - former secretary of the Sverdlovsk regional committee of the CPSU, O.I. Lobov - former chairman of the Sverdlovsk regional executive committee, D.A. Volkogonov - former deputy head of the Political Administration Soviet Army, etc.), thus the political situation in the country, aggravated to the limit, reaches its climax.

USSR in the period of perestroika (1985-1991): reform of the political system

The formation of a multi-party system.

The transition to a multi-party system began in our country with the formation of the so-called "informal" organizations, when the transition to the policy of glasnost was proclaimed. Informal, firstly, because they, as it were, opposed the "formal" organizations - the party, the Komsomol, trade unions, etc.; secondly, because, as it turned out, there were practically no legislative norms in the country on the basis of which it could be registered and receive legal status.

Movements, organizations, clubs associated themselves with ideas that were called liberal, radical, etc., and at the first stage of their activity announced their opposition to the dogmatic part of the apparatus, the administrative-command system as a whole, expressing support for the new initiatives of the reformist part of the party- state leadership.

Initially, the new movements were predominantly intellectual in their composition. But the emergence of new forms of ownership (cooperative, rental) gave rise to unions of cooperators, tenants, the most active part of which also began to raise the question that economic activity alone is not enough to protect their interests and that it is necessary to start organizing political parties.

It was believed that the history of Soviet society coincided with the history of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The most important political and economic decisions were made on behalf of the party, although in reality this was done in a narrow circle of the top party leadership.

The lack of political unity in the ranks of the party nomenklatura, its disunity created the conditions for the disintegration of the system as a whole. Some leaders of the nomenklatura stood on dogmatic positions and were in no hurry to follow in the wake of Gorbachev's innovations. Others prepared "alternate airfields" for themselves as a business. Others were confused. The fourth joined the national movements. Deprived of the remnants of fear that still persisted under Brezhnev, the leaders of the nomenklatura were no longer able to support the regime with the old methods.

Along with this, the country became more and more fully aware that the consistent implementation of the principles of the rule of law implies the possibility of creating other parties, in addition to the CPSU, if they act within the framework of the law and renounce violence as a method of struggle for power. In discussions, in the speeches of some press organs, the idea was increasingly expressed that the legislative, constitutional consolidation of the leading and guiding role of one party does not correspond to the principles of the rule of law.

The ultra-right direction was represented by the "Democratic Union", which advocated a sharp and unconditional change in the model of social development, and parties of a Christian democratic orientation (RCDD, CDU, CDPR).

The liberal direction was represented by the "Democratic Party of the Soviet Union", later transformed into the "Conservative Party", "Democratic Party of Russia" and other democratic parties (DP, RPRF, three parties of constitutional democrats), who came up with the idea of creating a law-based state in Russia. In October 1990, most of them united in the mass socio-political movement "Democratic Russia".

The social democratic direction is represented by the social democratic (SDA, S DPR) and the Socialist parties, which advocated the modernization of society through a system of social reforms. Anarchist parties (AKRS, KAS), which advocated stateless socialism, also gravitated towards this direction.

Common to most of the new parties was that they arose as an anti-CPSU, as an opposition to it, hence - anti-communism (anti-totalitarianism), the rejection of the socialist choice. The same democratic slogans, previously put into circulation by M. Gorbachev, were put forward in the programs of the parties. Therefore, not a single party could offer any serious alternative to the course of "perestroika".

The CPSU remained the central political force opposing the new parties. In 1990-early 1991, three platforms (democratic, Marxist, Bolshevik) were formed in it, each of which offered its own version and its own direction of reforms.

In March 1990, Article 6 of the USSR Constitution on the leading role of the CPSU in society was repealed. By this time, numerous political organizations were already operating in the country. The repeal of Article 6 was a stimulus for the emergence of new parties and movements. After the adoption of the law "On Public Associations" in March 1991, the registration of new parties began. The time of existence of many parties turned out to be short, they disintegrated, merged with other organizations. New political groups and blocs arose, and all of them actively participated in public life THE USSR.

Simultaneously with these processes, there was a process of formation of parties of national-patriotic orientation (National-Patriotic Front "Pamyat", Russian National Democratic Party), speaking from the positions of right-wing radical reorganization of society and aiming at the revival of the Russian nation, united and indivisible Russia.

A mass exit from the CPSU began, a significant part of the communists stopped paying membership dues. In fact, the Komsomol and the pioneer organization ceased their activities as youth and children's structures of the CPSU. This development of events led to the strengthening of the aggressive-reactionary wing of the CPSU, prompting it to take active steps. After the events of August 19-21, 1991, the CPSU as an all-Union organization actually ceased to exist. MS Gorbachev resigned from his duties as General Secretary.

Thus, the formation of the multi-party system during the years of perestroika was contradictory and incomplete. However, this process was positive value for the destruction of the administrative-command system and the emergence of new socio-political relations in the state.

Prehistory of perestroika, "personnel revolution", constitutional reform of 1988-1990, the formation of a multi-party system, national politics and interethnic relations, the August 1991 political crisis and its consequences.

The history of perestroika.

After JI's death. I. Brezhnev, Yu. V. Andropov stood at the head of the party and the state. He was the first of the Soviet leaders to recognize the unresolved nature of many problems. Taking measures to restore elementary order and eradicate corruption, Andropov advocated the preservation and renewal of the system, for its cleansing of obvious abuses and costs. This approach to reform suited the nomenklatura quite well: it gave them a chance to maintain their positions. Andropov's activities were greeted with sympathy in society, gave rise to hopes for changes for the better.

In February 1984, Andropov died, and K. U. Chernenko became the head of the CPSU, and then the state. On the whole, he continued Andropov's course of cleansing and saving the system, but did not achieve success.

Under Chernenko, that wing in the leadership of the party, which advocated a more radical renewal of society, finally formed and strengthened its position. Member of the Politburo M. S. Gorbachev became its leader. March 10, 1985 Chernenko died. Less than a day later, the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU elected MS Gorbachev General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU.

The legacy that the new leadership has inherited has not been an easy one. The ongoing arms race and afghan war not only led to the relative international isolation of the USSR, but also intensified the crisis in the economy, lowered the standard of living of the population. Gorbachev saw a way out in radical systemic reforms in all spheres of the country's life.

"Personnel Revolution".

The new leadership came to power without a clear concept and program of change. Gorbachev later admitted that at first, only the improvement of the orders established over the past decades and the correction of "individual deformations" were envisaged. With this approach, one of the main areas of change has become a change in leadership cadres.

In January 1987, the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU recognized the need to select personnel on the basis of the main criterion - their support for the goals and ideas of perestroika. The change of party and state leaders accelerated under the pretext of fighting conservatism. Moreover, as economic reform proved unsuccessful, criticism of the "conservatives" intensified.

In 1985-1990. there was a massive replacement and "rejuvenation" of the party-state cadres both at the central and local levels. At the same time, the role of local leaders, surrounded, as before, by close and devoted people, grew. However, very soon the initiators of perestroika considered that the country's problems could not be solved by simply replacing personnel. Serious political reform was needed.

Constitutional reform 1988-1990

In January 1987, the Central Committee of the CPSU took measures to develop elements of democracy in the party and in production. Alternative elections of party secretaries, elections of heads of enterprises and institutions were introduced. However, these innovations have not been widely adopted. The issues of reforming the political system were discussed at the XIX All-Union Party Conference (summer 1988). Its decisions, in essence, provided for the combination of "socialist values" with the political doctrine of liberalism. From courses new history and the history of Russia, remember what you know about the essence of liberalism as a political doctrine.

In particular, a course was proclaimed towards the creation of a "socialist legal state", the separation of powers (one of which was called the CPSU), the creation of Soviet parliamentarism. To do this, Gorbachev proposed to form a new supreme body of power - the Congress of People's Deputies, to turn the Supreme Soviet into a permanent parliament. This was the main task of the first stage of the constitutional reform. They changed the electoral legislation: the elections were supposed to be held on an alternative basis, to make them two-stage, a third of the deputy corps to be formed from public organizations.

One of the main ideas of the XIX Party Conference was the redistribution of power functions from party structures to Soviet ones. It was proposed to combine the posts of party and Soviet leaders of different levels in one hand.

From the report of M. S. Gorbachev at the XIX All-Union Party Conference

The existing political system proved unable to protect us from the growth of stagnation in economic and social life in recent decades and doomed the reforms undertaken at that time to failure. The increasing concentration of economic and managerial functions in the hands of the party political leadership has become characteristic. At the same time, the role of the executive apparatus was hypertrophied. The number of persons elected to various state and public bodies, reached a third of the adult population of the country, but at the same time, their bulk was excluded from real participation in solving state and public affairs.

In the spring of 1989, elections were held for people's deputies of the USSR under a new electoral law. At the First Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR (May-June 1989), Gorbachev was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Relatively free elections of deputies led to the fact that the political initiative passed to them.

From the election platform of A. D. Sakharov. 1989

1. Elimination of the administrative-command system and its replacement with a pluralistic one with market regulators and competition. The elimination of the omnipotence of ministries and departments ...
2. Social and national justice. Protection of the rights of the individual. The openness of society. Freedom of belief...
3. Eradication of the consequences of Stalinism, the rule of law. Open the archives of the NKVD - MGB, publish data on the crimes of Stalinism and all unjustified repressions ...

At the second stage of the constitutional reform (1990-1991), the task of introducing the post of President of the USSR was put forward. At the III Congress of People's Deputies in March 1990, M. S. Gorbachev became the leader. However, the initiators of these changes did not take into account that the presidential system of power cannot be organically combined with the system of power of the Soviets, which assumed no separation of powers, and the sovereignty of the Soviets.

The task of building a state of law was also set, in which the equality of citizens before the law is ensured. To this end, the 6th article of the Constitution of the USSR, which secured the leading position of the CPSU in society, was canceled. This opened up an opportunity for the formation of a multi-party system in the country.

Formation of a multi-party system.

As the political initiative of the CPSU was lost, the process of formation of new political forces intensified in the country. In May 1988, the Democratic Union proclaimed itself the first "opposition" party of the CPSU. In April of the same year, popular fronts arose in the Baltics. They became the first real independent mass organizations. Later, similar fronts arose in all the union and autonomous republics. Educated parties reflected all the main directions of political thought.

The liberal trend was represented by the Democratic Union, Christian Democrats, Constitutional Democrats, Liberal Democrats, and others. The largest of the liberal parties was the Democratic Party of Russia, which took shape in May 1990. Republican Party formed in November 1990 Russian Federation. On the basis of the movement of voters "Democratic Russia", created during the elections of people's deputies of the USSR in the spring of 1989, a mass socio-political organization took shape.

The socialist and social democratic trends were represented by the Social Democratic Association, the Social Democratic Party of Russia, and the Socialist Party. The foundation was laid for the formation of nationalist political parties and public organizations, into which, in particular, the popular fronts of the Baltic and some other republics were transformed.

With all the diversity of these parties and movements, the center of the political struggle, as in 1917, again found itself in two directions - communist and liberal. The communists called for the predominant development of public property, collectivist forms of social relations and self-government (however, the mechanisms of these transformations were discussed in the most general form).

The liberals (they called themselves democrats) advocated the privatization of property, freedom of the individual, a system of full-fledged parliamentary democracy, and a transition to a market economy.

The positions of the liberals, who sharply criticized the vices of the obsolete system, seemed more preferable to the public than the attempts to justify the existence of the former relations undertaken by the leadership of the CPSU. In June 1990, the Communist Party of the RSFSR was formed, the leadership of which took a traditionalist position.

From the speech of I. K. Polozkov, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the RSFSR. 1991

The so-called democrats succeeded in substituting the goals of perestroika and seized the initiative from our party. The people are being deprived of their past, their present is being destroyed, and no one has yet clearly said what the future holds for them... There can be no talk of any multi-party system in our country now. There is the CPSU, which stands for socialist perestroika, and there are leaders of a few political groups who ultimately have one political face - anti-communism.

By the 28th Congress of the CPSU, the party itself had arrived in a state of split. Three main currents were clearly traced: radical-reformist, reformist-renovationist, traditionalist. All of them were presented in the leadership of the CPSU. However, the congress not only failed to overcome the crisis in the party, but also contributed to its deepening. Exit from the party became massive. From 1985 to the summer of 1991, the membership of the CPSU was reduced from 21 to 15 million people. Attacks on Gorbachev and the perestroika course became more frequent in the leadership of the CPSU. In April and July 1991, a number of members of the Central Committee demanded the resignation of the general secretary.

National policy and international relations.

The democratization of society and the policy of glasnost made the aggravation of what seemed to be a long-term solution of the national question inevitable. Prominent activists of national movements returned from imprisonment and exile. Some of them considered the current moment the most suitable for starting an active struggle for self-determination. Back in December 1987, in response to the appointment of G. Kolbin instead of the dismissed leader of Kazakhstan D. Kunaev, Kazakh youth staged mass protests in Alma-Ata, which were dispersed by the authorities. On February 20, 1988, at an extraordinary session of the Regional Council of Nagorno-Karabakh (NKAR), it was decided to petition the Supreme Soviets of Azerbaijan and Armenia to withdraw the region from Azerbaijan and include it in Armenia. This decision was supported by mass rallies and strikes in the NKAO. The response to this decision was the pogroms and extermination of Armenians in the suburbs of Baku - the city of Sumgayit.

Troops were brought in to rescue the people. In April 1989, in Tbilisi, a demonstration of supporters of Georgia's secession from the USSR was dispersed by the Soviet army.

On March 11, 1990, the Supreme Council of Lithuania adopted the Act on the Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Lithuania.

On June 12, 1990, the First Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty.

All this forced the leadership of the USSR to take measures to draw up a new Union Treaty. Its first draft was published on July 24, 1990. At the same time, forceful measures were taken to preserve the Union. In April 1990, the economic blockade of Lithuania began. On the night of January 12-13, 1991, the troops brought into Vilnius occupied the Press House and the buildings of the Committee on Television and Radio Broadcasting.

August 1991 political crisis and its consequences.

By the summer of 1991, most of the Union republics of the USSR had adopted laws on sovereignty, which forced Gorbachev to speed up the development of a new Union Treaty. Its signing was scheduled for August 20. The signing of the new Union Treaty meant not only the preservation of a single state, but also the transition to its real federal structure, as well as the elimination of a number of state structures traditional for the USSR.

In an effort to prevent this, conservative forces in the country's leadership attempted to disrupt the signing of the treaty. In the absence of President Gorbachev, on the night of August 19, 1991, the State Committee for the State of Emergency (GKChP) was created, which included Vice President G. Yanaev, Prime Minister V. Pavlov, Defense Minister D. Yazov, KGB Chairman V. Kryuchkov, Minister of the Interior B. Pugo and others. The State Emergency Committee introduced a state of emergency in certain regions of the country; announced disbanded power structures that acted contrary to the Constitution of the USSR; suspended the activities of opposition parties and movements; banned rallies and demonstrations; established tight control over the media; sent troops to Moscow.

The leadership of the RSFSR (President B. Yeltsin, head of government I. Silaev, first deputy chairman of the Supreme Council R. Khasbulatov) addressed the Russians, in which they condemned the actions of the GKChP as an unconstitutional coup, and declared the GKChP and its decisions illegal. At the call of the President of Russia, tens of thousands of Muscovites took up defensive positions around the White House of Russia. On August 21, an emergency session of the Supreme Soviet of Russia was convened, which supported the leadership of the republic. On the same day, Soviet President Gorbachev returned to Moscow. Members of the GKChP were arrested.

The weakening of the central government led to the strengthening of separatist sentiments in the leadership of the republics. Most of the republics after the events of August 1991 refused to sign the Union Treaty. In December 1991, the leaders of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Belarus announced the termination of the Union Treaty of 1922 and their intention to create the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It united 11 former Soviet republics (excluding Georgia and the Baltic countries). In December 1991, President Gorbachev resigned. The USSR ceased to exist.

The history of perestroika. After the death of L.I. Brezhnev, Yu.V. stood at the head of the party and the state. Andropov. He was the first of the Soviet leaders to recognize the unresolved nature of many problems. Taking measures to restore elementary order and eradicate corruption, Andropov advocated the preservation and renewal of the system, for its cleansing of obvious abuses and costs. This approach to reform suited the nomenklatura quite well: it gave them a chance to maintain their positions. Andropov's activities were greeted with sympathy in society, gave rise to hopes for changes for the better.

In February 1984, Andropov died, and K.U. became the head of the CPSU, and then the state. Chernenko. On the whole, he continued Andropov's course of cleansing and saving the system, but did not achieve success.

Under Chernenko, that wing in the leadership of the party, which advocated a more radical renewal of society, finally formed and strengthened its position. Its leader was Politburo member M.S. Gorbachev. March 10, 1985 Chernenko died. Less than a day later, the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU elected MS Gorbachev General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU.

"Personnel Revolution". At the April plenum (April 23, 1985) new leader of the country issued a statement about the economic crisis that hit the country, the need to "renew socialism". It was then that the word "perestroika" was first used.

"Apparently, comrades, we all need to rebuild. Everyone."

M.S. Gorbachev

Over the next few months, in the speeches of the new General Secretary, a list of misfortunes that befell Soviet society takes pride of place.

It was planned to transform socialism, first of all, by accelerating the socio-economic development of the country. It was supposed to make more active use of the achievements of science and technology, to decentralize the management of industry and agriculture, introduce cost accounting at enterprises, significantly strengthen the order and discipline in production. It was planned to raise the machine-building industry, on the basis of which it was supposed to begin the reconstruction of the entire national economic complex.

Restoration of order and discipline began with a very unpopular decree on the fight against drunkenness, issued in May 1985. The ill-conceived actions of the authorities led to the cutting down of vineyards, and the restriction of the sale of alcohol - to a sharp increase in sugar consumption. The fight against bribery intensified, during which a number of leaders in the center and in the field were replaced. Under the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU, a commission was created for the rehabilitation of those repressed in the 1930-1959s. as a result of her work, N.I. Bukharin, A.I. Rykov, A.V. Chayanov and many others.

On January 1987, the long-prepared Plenum opened. Gorbachev delivered a report "On Perestroika and the Party's Personnel Policy." It identified the following areas:

¾ the beginning of the transformation of the CPSU from a state structure into a real political party ("We must resolutely abandon managerial functions unusual for party bodies");
¾ promotion of non-partisans to leadership positions;
¾ expansion of "intra-party democracy";
¾ changing the functions and role of the Soviets, they were supposed to become "genuine authorities on their territory";
¾ holding elections to the Soviets on an alternative basis (elections since 1918 have been voting for a single candidate for each seat).

In 1987, the head of the USSR announced the party's course towards glasnost and democratization of society, censorship was lifted, many new periodicals appeared, and the so-called "book boom" took place. "The heralds of perestroika" are weekly publications - the newspaper "Moscow News" and the magazine "Ogonyok". One of the most striking moments of this period was the anti-Stalinist campaign in the press, and other figures of the Soviet era were later criticized.

Constitutional reform 1988-1990 In January 1987, the Central Committee of the CPSU took measures to develop elements of democracy in the party and in production. Alternative elections of party secretaries, elections of heads of enterprises and institutions were introduced. However, these innovations have not been widely adopted.

The issues of reforming the political system were discussed at the XIX All-Union Party Conference (summer 1988). its decisions, in essence, provided for the combination of "socialist values" with the political doctrine of liberalism.

In particular, a course was proclaimed towards the creation of a "lawful state", the separation of powers, and the creation of Soviet parliamentarism. To do this, Gorbachev proposed to form a new authority - the Congress of People's Deputies, to turn the Supreme Soviet into a permanent parliament. This was the main task of the first stage of the constitutional reform. They changed the electoral legislation: the elections were supposed to be held on an alternative basis, to make them two-stage, a third of the deputy corps to be formed from public organizations.

One of the main ideas of the XIX Party Conference was the redistribution of power structures to the Soviet ones. It was proposed to combine the posts of party and Soviet leaders of different levels in one hand.

From the report of M.S. Gorbachev at the XIX All-Union Party Conference

“The existing political system proved unable to protect us from the growth of stagnation in economic and social life in recent decades and doomed the reforms undertaken at that time to failure. An increasing concentration of economic and managerial functions in the hands of the party political leadership became characteristic. At the same time, the role of the executive apparatus was hypertrophied. The number of persons elected to various state and public bodies reached a third of the adult population of the country, but at the same time, their bulk was excluded from real participation in solving state and public affairs.

In the spring of 1989, elections were held for people's deputies of the USSR under a new electoral law. The 1st Congress of People's Deputies was held in May-June 1989. Gorbachev was elected chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Relatively free elections of deputies led to the fact that the political initiative passed to them.

From the election platform of A.D. Sakharov. 1989

"1. Elimination of the administrative-command system and its replacement by a pluralistic market regulators and competition. Elimination of the omnipotence of ministries and departments ...

Social and national justice. Protection of the rights of the individual. The openness of society. Freedom of belief...

Eradication of the consequences of Stalinism, the rule of law. Open the archives of the NKVD-MGB, publish data on the crimes of Stalinism and all unjustified repressions.

At the second stage of the constitutional reform (1990-1991), the task of introducing the post of President of the USSR was put forward. At the III Congress of Deputies in March 1990, M.S. Gorbachev. However, the initiators of these changes did not take into account that the presidential system of power cannot be organically combined with the system of power of the Soviets, which assumed not the separation of powers, but the absolute power of the Soviets.

The task of building a state of law was also set, in which the equality of citizens before the law is ensured. For this, the 6th article of the Constitution of the USSR, which secured the leading position of the CPSU in society, was canceled. The repeal of this article led to the legalization of existing political parties and the formation of new ones. Various social democratic and political parties began to operate.

Formation of a multi-party system. As the political initiative of the CPSU was lost, the process of formation of new political forces intensified in the country. In May 1988, the Democratic Union proclaimed itself the first "opposition" party of the CPSU. In April of the same year, popular fronts arose in the Baltics. They became the first real independent mass organizations. Later, similar fronts arose in all the union and autonomous republics. The formation of the party reflected all the main directions of political thought.

The liberal trend was represented by the Democratic Union, Christian Democrats, Constitutional Democrats, Liberal Democrats, and others. Democratic Party of Russia. In November 1990, the Republican Party of the Russian Federation emerged. On the basis of the movement of voters "Democratic Russia", created during the elections of people's deputies of the USSR in the spring of 1989, a mass socio-political organization took shape.

With all the variety of parties and movements in the center of the political struggle, as in 1917, there were again two directions - communist and liberal.

The communists called for the predominant development of public property, collectivist forms of social relations and self-government.

In June 1990, the Communist Party of the RSFSR was formed, the leadership of which took a traditional position.

From the speech of I.K. Polozkov, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the RSFSR. 1991

“The so-called democrats have succeeded in replacing the goals of perestroika, seizing the initiative from our party. The people are being deprived of their past, their present is being destroyed, and no one is yet intelligibly saying what the future holds for them… There can be no question of any multi-party system in our country now. There is the CPSU, which stands for socialist perestroika, and there are leaders of a few political groups that ultimately have one political face - anti-communism.

By the 28th Congress of the CPSU, the party itself had fallen into a state of split. The congress not only failed to overcome the crisis in the party, but even contributed to its deepening. Exit from the party became massive.

In the leadership of the CPSU, attacks on Gorbachev and the perestroika course became more frequent. In April and July 1991, a number of members of the Central Committee demanded the resignation of the general secretary.

The reform of the political system, carried out by Gorbachev, steadily led to an even greater activation of the national movement. On May 18, 1989, Lithuania was the first of the USSR republics to adopt the Declaration of Sovereignty. In June, there were bloody clashes between Uzbeks and Meskhetian Turks in the Ferghana Valley in Uzbekistan. On March 11, 1990, the Supreme Council of Lithuania adopted the Act on the Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Lithuania. On June 12, 1990, the First Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty.

August 1991 political crisis and its consequences. By the summer of 1991, most of the Union republics of the USSR had adopted laws on sovereignty, which forced Gorbachev to speed up the development of a new Union Treaty. Its signing was scheduled for August 20. The signing of the new Union Treaty meant not only the preservation of a single state, but also the transition to its real federal structure, as well as the elimination of a number of state structures traditional for the USSR.

The leadership of the RSFSR issued an appeal to the Russians, in which they condemned the actions of the State Emergency Committee and declared its decisions illegal. At the call of the President of Russia, tens of thousands of Muscovites took up defense around the White House of Russia. On August 21, an emergency session of the Supreme Soviet of Russia was convened, which supported the leadership of the republic. On the same day, Soviet President Gorbachev returned to Moscow. Members of the GKChP were arrested.

The weakening of the central government led to the strengthening of separatist sentiments in the leadership of the republics. Most of the republics after the events of August 1991 refused to sign the Union Treaty. In December 1991, the Leaders of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Belarus announced the termination of the Union Treaty of 19222 and their intention to create the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It united 11 former Soviet republics. In December 1991, President Gorbachev resigned. The USSR ceased to exist.

Experiencing growing difficulties in the economy, since the summer of 1988, the country's leadership headed by M. S. Gorbachev decided - not without hesitation - to reform the ossified political system of the USSR, which they regarded as the main link in the "braking mechanism". Another circumstance pushed him to reforms: the emergence of alternative options for social transformations, as well as their “carriers” - new political forces that threatened to blow up the CPSU monopoly on power in the future.

At the first stage, the goal of the political reform was to strengthen the leading role of the CPSU in society through the revival of the Soviets, crushed under its iron heel, by introducing elements of parliamentarism and separation of powers into the Soviet system.

In accordance with the decisions of the XIX All-Union Conference of the CPSU (June 1988), a new supreme body of legislative power was established - the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR and the corresponding republican congresses. Elections of deputies were held in 1989-1990. on an alternative basis (only at the union level, a third of the deputy seats were reserved for direct nominees of the party itself and public organizations led by it). The permanent Supreme Soviets of the USSR and the republics were formed from among the people's deputies. A new post was introduced - the chairman of the Council (from the Supreme to the district). The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU M. S. Gorbachev (March 1989) became the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, B. N. Yeltsin became the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR (May 1990).

Even earlier (since the middle of 1987), a policy of “glasnost” was proclaimed, i.e., a mitigation of censorship over the media controlled from above, the elimination of “special depositories” in libraries, the publication of previously banned books, etc. However, it soon became clear that the party apparatus, which has long lost its flexibility and adaptive capabilities, is not able to keep the flow of free speech in line with the officially confirmed “socialist choice”.

The political reform dealt a severe blow to the party nomenklatura: government structures began to be created through free elections. Significant powers were granted to members of local self-government, as a result of which, in 1989, Article 6 was abolished. Constitution of the USSR, which secured the dominant role of the party in the state leadership.

In 1990, M. Gorbachev abolished the post of General Secretary, establishing the presidency instead, which indicated the desire to get as close as possible to the democratic structure of Europe. The new course proposed by Gorbachev assumed the modernization of the Soviet system, the introduction of structural and organizational changes in economic, social, political and ideological mechanisms.

3.Economic reform

Economic reforms in Russia (1990s)- economic reforms implemented in the 1990s in Russia. These include, in particular, price liberalization, foreign trade liberalization and privatization.

The key in the reform strategy is M.S. Gorbachev was the acceleration of economic growth, scientific and technological progress, an increase in the production of means of production, the development social sphere. The priority task of economic reforms was recognized as the accelerated development of mechanical engineering as the basis for the re-equipment of the entire national economy. At the same time, emphasis was placed on strengthening production and performance discipline (measures to combat drunkenness and alcoholism); control over product quality (law on state acceptance).

Well-known economists (L.I. Abalkin, A.G. Aganbegyan, P.G. Bunin and others) were involved in the development of the reform, it was carried out in accordance with the concept of self-supporting socialism.

The reform project included:

Expanding the independence of enterprises on the principles of cost accounting and self-financing;

Gradual revival of the private sector of the economy, primarily through the development of the cooperative movement;

Renunciation of the monopoly of foreign trade;

Deep integration into the global market;

Reducing the number of sectoral ministries and departments between which it was supposed to establish partnerships;

Recognition of equality in the countryside of the five main forms of management (collective farms, state farms, agro-combines, rental cooperatives, farms).

The implementation of the reform was characterized by inconsistency and half-heartedness. In the course of the reforms, there was no reform of credit, pricing policy, or a centralized supply system.

However, despite this, the reform contributed to the formation of the private sector in the economy. In 1988, the Law on Cooperation and the Law on Individual Labor Activity (ITA) were adopted. Under the new laws, an opportunity was opened for private activity in more than 30 types of production of goods and services. By the spring of 1991, over 7 million people were employed in the cooperative sector and another million in self-employment. The reverse side of this process was the legalization of the "shadow economy".

In 1987, the Law on State Enterprise (Association) was adopted. Enterprises were transferred to self-sufficiency and self-financing, receiving the right to foreign economic activity, the creation of joint ventures. At the same time, most of the manufactured products were still included in the state order and, therefore, were withdrawn from free sale.

Under the Law on Labor Collectives, a system of electing heads of enterprises and institutions was introduced.

Changes in agriculture began with the reform of state farms and collective farms. In May 1988, it was announced that it was expedient to switch to a lease contract in the countryside (under a land lease agreement for 50 years with the right to dispose of the resulting products). By the summer of 1991, only 2% of the land was cultivated and 3% of the livestock were kept on lease terms (based on the 1989 law on lease and lease relations). In general, no major changes were achieved in agricultural policy. One of the main reasons was the nature of government food policy. For many years, prices for basic foodstuffs were kept at a low level with low growth rates of agricultural production, which was facilitated by subsidies from both the producer (up to 80%) and the consumer (1/3 of the Russian budget) of food. The deficit budget could not cope with such a load. Laws on the transfer of land to private ownership and the increase in household plots were not adopted.

Economic reforms in Russia in the 1990s were due to the protracted economic crisis that took place in the USSR in last years his existence. The fall in oil prices in the context of an inefficient rigid state-planned system of the economy and extremely high spending on the defense complex led to an increase in the food and general economic crisis in the country. By 1990, the food crisis began to enter an acute phase. The shortage of essential goods became more and more acute, and huge queues arose. The economic results showed the inconsistency of the ongoing reforms. Remaining within the framework of the socialist economic system (general planning, distribution of resources, state ownership of the means of production, etc.), the national economy of the country also lost the administrative-command levers of coercion on the part of the party. At the same time, market mechanisms were not created.

In the mid-1980s, the leadership of the USSR came to the conclusion that it was necessary to put an end to the fifteen-year "stagnation" through the acceleration of the country's socio-economic development. The need for acceleration was justified by four factors: first, acute, unresolved social problems (food, housing, consumer goods, healthcare, environmental); secondly, the threat of breaking the military-strategic parity; thirdly, the need to restore the country's economic independence, primarily in terms of strategic supplies; finally, the threat of an economic crisis. New course of domestic policy. first announced at the April (1985) plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, was approved by the XXVII Party Congress and embodied in the plans of the XII Five-Year Plan.