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People's democracy

2026-07-15T22:22:07Z

162.200.14.56: I have massively reworked this article to be higher-quality and to further elaborate on people's democracy.

'''People's democracy''' is a unique form of socialist political organization that arises as a result of a [[people's democratic revolution]]. The term is synonymous with '''people's democratic state'''. A people's democratic state matures into a [[socialist state]] through the transition of [[capitalism]] to [[socialism]]; it therefore can be considered as a 'transitionary period' between the two.

This article does not cover Mao's similar theory of [[New Democracy (Mao's theory)|new democracy]]; please see that article for information about that subject.
== History ==

=== Lenin's theory of revolutionary-democratic dictatorship ===
In his 1905 work, [[Library:Vladimir Lenin/Two tactics of social-democracy in the democratic revolution|''Two Tactics of Social Democracy in the Democratic Revolution'']], Comrade Lenin spoke of the revolutionary-democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry, an alliance of the [[proletariat]] and [[peasantry]] that would carry out the tasks of the democratic revolution and accelerate the development of capitalism in Russia, without subordinating itself to the bourgeoisie. This was in response to the [[Menshevik]] support of stagism, which stated that Russia required a [[dictatorship of the bourgeoisie]] to undertake the tasks of the bourgeois-democratic revolution before a [[proletarian revolution]] was possible.

According to Lenin, it was not possible for tsarism in Russia to be defeated by the bourgeoisie or capitalists, as it was in their interest to maintain tsarism rather than oppose it.<ref>{{quote|"We must be perfectly clear in our minds as to what real social forces are opposed to 'tsarism'... Such a force cannot be the big bourgeoisie, the landlords, the factory owners, [and the] 'society' which follows the lead of the ''Osvobozhdeniye''... We know that owing to their class position they are incapable of waging a decisive struggle against tsarism; they are too heavily fettered by private property, capital and land... they need tsarism with its bureaucratic, police and military forces for use against the proletariat and peasantry."|Vladimir Lenin|Two Tactics of Social Democracy in the Democratic Revolution, Chapter 6}}</ref> It was therefore only the people: the proletariat and peasantry, that was capable of sincerely waging struggle against tsarism.<ref>{{quote|"The only force capable of gaining 'a decisive victory over tsarism,' is the people, i.e., the proletariat and the peasantry."|Lenin|Two Tactics of Social Democracy, Chapter 6}}</ref> Lenin considered the rural and urban [[petty bourgeoisie]] to be part of 'the people' as well, and distributed them likewise into the peasantry and into the proletariat.<ref>{{quote|"... if we take the main, big forces and distribute the rural and urban petty bourgeoisie (also part of 'the people') between the two."|Lenin|Two Tactics of Social Democracy, Chapter 6}}</ref> The proletariat would carry out the democratic revolution with the peasantry, and the proletariat would carry out the socialist revolution with the semi-proletariat: that is the peasantry and the petty bourgeoisie.<ref>{{quote|"The proletariat must carry to completion the democratic revolution, by allying to itself the mass of the peasantry in order to crush by force the resistance of the autocracy and to paralyse the instability of the bourgeoisie. The proletariat must accomplish the socialist revolution, by allying to itself the mass of the semi-proletarian elements of the population in order to crush by force the resistance of the bourgeoisie and to paralyse the instability of the peasantry and the petty bourgeoisie."|Lenin|Two Tactics of Social Democracy, Chapter 12}}</ref>

Lenin's theory of revolutionary-democratic dictatorship can therefore be considered as the precursor, if not the foundation, to people's democracy.
=== Dimitrov's theory of the united front ===
Comrade [[Georgi Dimitrov]] theorized of a broad united front (also people's front or popular front) against fascism, led by the proletariat but also including the peasantry and urban petty bourgeoisie.<ref>{{quote|"In mobilizing the mass of working people for the struggle against fascism, the formation of a wide anti-fascist People’s Front on the basis of the proletarian united front is a particularly important task. The success of the whole struggle of the proletariat is closely bound up with the establishment of a fighting alliance between the proletariat, on the one hand, and the laboring peasantry and basic mass of the urban petty bourgeoisie who together form the majority of the population even in industrially developed countries, on the other."|Georgi Dimitrov|Dimitrov’s speech to the 7th Congress of Communist International}}</ref> Dimitrov considered the formation of a government based on the people's front to not only be possible but necessary, calling it the 'government of the proletarian united front' (or people's front).<ref>{{quote|"Yes, we recognize that a situation may arise in which the formation of a government of the proletarian united front, or of an anti-fascist People’s Front, will become not only possible but necessary. And in that case, we shall advocate for the formation of such a government without the slightest hesitation."|Dimitrov|Speech to 7th Comintern congress}}</ref> The government of the proletarian united front was to be distinguished from a dictatorship of the proletariat: it was not a government formed as a result of the victory of the proletarian revolution, but rather was to precede the victory of the proletarian revolution; its purpose was as an instrument of struggle against fascism and reaction.<ref>{{quote|"I am not speaking here of a government which may be formed after the victory of the proletarian revolution... but of the possible formation of a united front government on the eve of and before the victory of the revolution... It is primarily a government of struggle against fascism and reaction. It must be a government arising as the result of the united front movement and in no way restricting the activity of the Communist party and the mass organizations of the working class."|Dimitrov|Speech to 7th Comintern congress}}</ref>
=== Experience of World War II and elaboration ===
During World War II, (and in some cases, even before it) many [[communist party|communist parties]] followed Dimitrov's theory of the united front to oppose fascism. In Dimitrov's home country of Bulgaria for instance, the [[Fatherland Front (Bulgaria)|Fatherland Front]] was set up in 1942 as an antifascist alliance. Initially it was a broad popular front, but the work of the [[Bulgarian Communist Party]] helped propel itself as the center of the Front. When Bulgaria was liberated from fascism and the Fatherland Front took over governance of Bulgaria, it therefore can be considered as one of the first people's democracies.

By 1947, Eugen Varga had noted that [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]], [[People's Republic of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]], [[Polish People's Republic|Poland]], [[Czechoslovak Socialist Republic|Czechoslovakia]] and [[People's Socialist Republic of Albania|Albania]] had become what he described as democracies of a new type; they were characterized by the elimination of feudal remnants, the nationalization of large enterprises in the spheres of industry (whilst maintaining [[private property]]), transport and credit, and the lack of a dictatorship of the bourgeoisie (but, on the contrary, a state serving ithe interests of the working people). These were a new kind of state; neither a bourgeois nor a proletarian dictatorship, neither capitalist nor socialist: they were instead hailed as transitioning toward socialism.<ref>''Democracy of a New Type'', Eugen Varga, Labour Monthly (1947)</ref>

A year later, Comrade Dimitrov would reflect on the four years of governance by the proletarian united front, which he now called people's democracy. Dimitrov would define the character of the people's democratic state in four:
# People's Democracy represents the power of the working people (the overwhelming majority of the people), under the leadership of the working class.
# People's Democracy is a transitionary state, destined to ensure the development of the state towards socialism.
# People's democracy is bnuilt in collaboration and friendship with the Soviet Union.
# People's Democracy belongs to the democratic anti-imperialist camp.<ref>''The Essence of a People's Democracy'', Dimitrov</ref>

Comrade [[Rákosi Mátyás]] would elaborate on the experience of people's democracy in [[Hungarian People's Republic|Hungary]], who first summarized it as the 'dictatorship of the proletariat without the Soviet form', and then elaborated on its nature as a two-stage (or phase) affair: the first stage was predominated by the carrying out of the tasks of the bourgeois democratic revolution, the second was predominated by the carrying out of the tasks of the dictatorship of the proletariat. Rákosi emphasized that these two stages overlapped with one another; tasks of the DOTP could be undertaken during the 'bourgeois-democratic stage', as well as tasks of the bourgeois democratic revolution during the 'proletarian stage', hence is why he emphasized the ''predominance'' of these tasks during their named stages rather than mutual exclusivity of these tasks.<ref>The Road of Our People's Democracy, Rákosi. See pages 2, 36 and 37.</ref>
=== Full maturity ===
In the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union|CPSU]]'s 1961 party programme, in contrast with Varga's conception of people's democracy as a new type of state that was neither a proletarian nor a bourgeois dictatorship, people's democracy was held to be a variety of the dictatorship of the proletariat, rather than a new state form.<ref>{{quote|"A new form of political organisation of society, people's democracy, a variety of the dictatorship of the proletariat, emerged."|1961 Programme of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union}}</ref>

Earlier in 1957, the Economics Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR published ''Political Economy'', which would elaborate much on the concepts of the people's democratic revolution and its character, the forms of economy and class in the people's democracies, and the development of socialism in the people's democracies.<ref>''Political Economy, Part III: The Socialist Mode of Production, Section C. The Building of Socialism in the Countries of People's Democracy, Chapter XLI: The Economic System of the People's Democracies in Europe'', USSR Academy of Sciences</ref>
== Processes ==
There are two processes to people's democracy: that being the revolution that establishes it, and the state formation that emerges out of it: the people's democratic state. When the tasks of the people's democratic revolution and people's democratic states are accomplished, the transition towards [[socialist state|socialism]] is complete.
=== People's democratic revolution ===
According to the aforementioned ''Political Economy'', the chief motive forces of the people's democratic revolution are the working class (i.e., proletariat) and peasantry, under the leadership of the former. In the countries of Central and Southeastern Europe, this process had also included the urban petty bourgeoisie and part of the middle bourgeoisie, whilst discluding the landowners and monopolist bourgeoisie.<ref>{{quote|"The chief motive forces of the people's democratic revolution are the working class and the peasantry, under the leadership of the former. During the struggle against fascism in the countries of Central and South-eastern Europe, a national front had been formed which united all the anti-fascist forces, including, besides the working class and the peasantry, the urban petty bourgeoisie and part of the middle bourgeoisie. The revolution eliminated the political rule of the landowners and monopolist bourgeoisie. People's democratic governments came into being, based on an alliance of the working class and the peasantry. The foundations of a State of a new type--the People's Democratic Republic--were laid down."|''Political Economy'', Chapter XLI}}</ref>

The first stage of a people's democratic revolution is firstly anti-imperialist, and secondly anti-feudal.<ref>{{quote|"The people's democratic revolution was in the first place anti-imperialist, since it liberated the enslaved peoples from the imperialist yoke and gave them national independence. In the second place, it was anti-feudal, since it eliminated feudal survivals in the economy and in the political systems."|''Political Economy'', Chapter XLI}}</ref> This stage primarily carries out the tasks of the bourgeois-democratic revolution, but is not ''a'' bourgeois-democratic revolution: the anti-imperialist and anti-feudal revolution leads to a weakening of world imperialism, and creates favorable conditions for socialist revolution.<reF>{{quote|"In the first place, every anti-imperialist and anti-feudal revolution, spearheaded as it is against imperialist oppression, leads to a weakening of the world imperialist system as a whole, shaking its foundations. In the second place, the victory of the anti-imperialist, anti-feudal revolution creates most favourable conditions for going over to the socialist revolution."|''Political Economy'', Chapter XLI}}</ref> The volume of these tasks and the consistency and methods with which they are carried out depend on the historical development and conditions of each country. In Albania for instance, where there remained many feudal elements, more emphasis was put on ''anti-feudalism''.

The second stage of a people's democratic revolution is socialist: the socialist revolution is not a new revolutionary process, but simply the next stage in a revolutionary process started by the working class. The transition to the socialist stage is defined by measures undertaken during the first stage which pave the way towards socialism: the establishment of workers' control over production, confiscation of the property of war criminals, collaborating capitalists and monopolist bourgeoisie, and the weakening of the economic position of the bourgeoisie; state monopoly in trade in the most important commodities and state control of foreign trade: in essence, the nationalization of the means of production.

The people's democratic revolution is complete when the tasks of the bourgeois-democratic revolution have been completed and the transition from capitalism to socialism has truly begun. Thus is created the people's democratic state.

==== Class and Economy under People's Democracy ====
The economy of people's democracies was, in the case of Europe, a transitional economy containing three basic forms: socialist, small commodity, and capitalist. The socialist form of economy was the state or public ownership of industrial enterprises, transport, banks, trade and agricultural equipment. In the people's democracies of Europe for instance, the socialist economy occupied the predominant place in the economy. The small commodity economy includes the farms of the individual working peasantry and also small handicraft production based on the personal labor of its owners. The capitalist economy includes [[kulak]] farms, private trading establishments and private industrial enterprises based on the exploitation of hired labor.

The class nature of the people's democracy is that of the revolutionary-democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry, though alongside the working classes, there exist the bourgeoisie in the form of the kulaks and also private entrepeneurs in trade and industry. People's democracy does not entail a weakening in class struggle, but on the contrary an intensification of it.

==== The People's Democratic State ====
The people's democratic state is defined by its political organization on the basis of Marxist-Leninist principles: that is [[unified state power]] of the [[supreme organ of state power]] under the leadership of the ruling communist party. The precise organization of people's democracy differed from state to state.

The conclusion of the transition from capitalism to socialism coincides with the transition of the people's democratic state to the [[socialist state]]. This transition was completed unevenly in many countries. In Czechoslovakia, it was declared that socialism had been established after just 12 years, while in [[Mongolian People's Republic|Mongolia]], the process had taken 35 years. The only extant people's democracy is [[Laos]], which has described itself as a people's democratic state since 1975. With the exception of the Soviet Union, all socialist states, past or present, have been at first been people's democracies.

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1948–1990)

2025-11-21T19:23:11Z

162.200.14.56: blah blah blah harmonization blah blah blah

{{Infobox country|name=Czechoslovak Socialist Republic|native_name=Československá socialistická republika|image_flag=Czech flag.png|image_coat=Coat of arms of Czechoslovak Socialist Republic.svg|capital=Prague|largest_city=Prague|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]|government_type=Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]] (1948-1960)
Unitary Marxist-Leninist [[socialist state]] (1960-1969)
Federal Marxist-Leninist socialist state (1969-1990)|leader_title1=General Secretary of the [[Communist Party of Czechoslovakia]]|leader_name1=[[Klement Gottwald]] (1948-1953; first)
[[Gustáv Husák]] (1969-1987; longest-serving)
Ladislav Adamec (1989-1990; last)|life_span=1948–1990|image_map=Czechoslovakia map.png|map_width=290|official_languages=Czech Slovak|area_km2=127,900|population_estimate=15,600,000|population_estimate_year=1990}}
The '''Czechoslovak Socialist Republic''' was a [[Socialist state|socialist country]] in [[Eastern Europe]] and a member of the [[Warsaw Pact]].

== History ==

=== Revolution ===
After the [[Second World War]], [[Edvard Beneš]] formed a bourgeois coalition government that included [[Communist Party of Czechoslovakia|KSČ]] members in the cabinet. [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] supported a coalition government in order to avoid angering the [[Imperial core|West]], but [[John J. McCloy]] met with Czechoslovak officials and planned to make Czechoslovakia part of the [[Marshall Plan]], which would put it under [[United States of America|U.S.]] control. In February 1948, the workers' militia and [[Trade union|trade unions]] overthrew Beneš with popular support and created a [[socialist state]].<ref>{{Citation|author=[[Sam Marcy]]|year=1968|title=Czechoslovakia 1968: The Class Character of the Events|chapter=Postscript|chapter-url=https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/writers/marcy/czech/czech06.html|mia=https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/writers/marcy/czech/index.html}}</ref>

=== 1968 counterrevolution attempt ===
{{Main article|Prague Spring}}

== Economy ==
In 1967, industrial production in Czechoslovakia was five times higher than before the Second World War. Industry grew the fastest in [[Slovak Socialist Republic (1969–1990)|Slovakia]], where it increased by 13 times and rose to 20% of the country's total production from only 7% before the war. Czechoslovakia produced more steel per capita than the [[United States of America|USA]] or [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|UK]] and more electricity per capita than [[French Republic|France]].<ref>{{Citation|author=Herbert Aptheker|year=1969|title=Czechoslovakia and Counter-Revolution|title-url=https://archive.org/details/ApthekerCzechoslovakia/page/n8/mode/1up?view=theater|chapter=Socialism's Accomplishments|page=18|city=[[New York City]]|publisher=[[New Outlook Publishers]]}}</ref>

== Foreign relations ==
In the 1960s, Czechoslovakia sent aid to [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]], [[United Arab Republic (1958–1971)|Egypt]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea|Korea]], [[United Republic of Tanzania|Tanzania]], and [[Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945–1975)|Vietnam]].<ref>{{Citation|author=[[Sam Marcy]]|year=1968|title=Czechoslovakia 1968: The Class Character of the Events|chapter=Before the Warsaw Pact intervention|chapter-url=https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/writers/marcy/czech/czech01.html|mia=https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/writers/marcy/czech/index.html}}</ref>

== References ==
[[Category:Former socialist states]]

People's Republic of Bulgaria (1946–1990)

2025-11-21T19:16:45Z

162.200.14.56: Frankly, I am very tired of repeating the same thing over and over again, so hopefully this is self-explanatory given my other edits.

{{Infobox country|name=People's Republic of Bulgaria|native_name=Народна Република България|image_flag=People's Republic of Bulgaria flag.png|image_coat=Socialist Bulgaria coat of arms (1971–1990).png|flag_caption=Flag (1971–1990)|national_anthem=Шуми Марица (1946-1947) Републико наша, здравей! (1947-1951) Българийо мила, земя на герои (1951-1964) Мила Родино (1964-''present'')|capital=[[Sofia]]|largest_city=[[Sofia]]|official_languages=Bulgarian|title_leader=General Secretary|year_leader1=1946-1949|leader1=[[Georgi Dimitrov]]|year_leader2=1949-1954|leader2=[[Vulko Cherenkov]]|year_leader3=1954-1989|leader3=[[Todor Zhivkov]]|year_leader4=1989-1990|leader4=[[Petar Mladenov]]|year_leader5=1990|leader5=[[Aleksandar Lilov]]|title_representative=Head of State|year_representative1=1946-1947 (first)|representative1=[[Vasil Kolarov]]|year_representative2=1990 (last)|representative2=[[Zhelyu Zhelev]]|title_deputy=Head of Government|year_deputy1=1946-1949 (first)|deputy1=[[Georgi Dimitrov]]|year_deputy2=1990 (last)|deputy2=[[Andrey Lukanov]]|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]|government_type=Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]] (1947-1971) Unitary Marxist-Leninist [[socialist state]] (1971-1990)|legislature=[[National Assembly of the People's Republic of Bulgaria|National Assembly]]|established_event1=People's republic established|era=[[Cold War]]|established_date1=15 September 1946|established_event2=[[Library:1947 Constitution of Bulgaria|Dimitrov Constitution]]|established_date2=6 December 1947|established_event3=[[Library:1971 Constitution of Bulgaria|Zhivkov Constitution]]|established_date3=18 May 1971|established_event4=''De facto'' disestablished|established_date4=15 November 1990|established_event5=''De jure'' disestablished|established_date5=12 July 1991|area_km2=110,994|population_estimate=8,987,000|population_estimate_year=1989|HDI_year=1990 report|HDI=0.918<ref>[http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/219/hdr_1990_en_complete_nostats.pdf Human Development Report 1990, p. 111]</ref>|currency=Bulgarian lev|currency_code=BGL|drives_on=right|calling_code=+359|iso3166code=BG}}
The '''People's Republic of Bulgaria''' ('''PRB'''; Bulgarian: Народна Република България ('''НРБ''')'', Narodna Republika Bŭlgariya,'' '''NRB''') was a [[socialist state]] in south-eastern [[Europe]], in the Balkan peninsula, that existed from 1946 to 1990. Its citizens had [[Universal healthcare|free healthcare]] and a retirement of age of 55 for women and 60 for men.<ref name=":02">{{Citation|author=[[Michael Parenti]]|year=2000|title=To Kill a Nation|chapter=Yugoslavia's Future: Is It Bulgaria?|page=192–193|pdf=https://leftychan.net/edu/src/1614706295182-3.pdf|publisher=Verso}}</ref>

==History==

===Counter-revolution===
In 1990, Bulgaria held its first multi-party elections since the [[Second World War]]. The [[Union of Democratic Forces]] coalition received $2 million from the [[National Endowment for Democracy|NED]] to influence the election. Despite Western interference, the [[Bulgarian Socialist Party]] won 47% of the vote compared to 36% for the UDF. Hundreds of observers from Western Europe acknowledged that the election was fair.

On 6 July, President [[Petar Mladenov]] resigned due to a week of protests and a hunger strike outside parliament. Interior minister [[Atanas Smerdijev]] also resigned and parliament elected UDF leader [[Zhelyu Zelev]] as president. Counterrevolutionaries burned down and looted the headquarters of the Socialist Party.

On 23 November, the UDF stormed out of parliament after failing to remove Prime Minister [[Andrey Lukanov]] in a no-confidence motion. The UDF narrowly won the next election, but its cabinet and vice president resigned. In July 1993, protesters prevented the president from entering office for a month.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Blum|year=2004|title=[[Killing Hope]]|chapter=Bulgaria, 1990; Albania, 1991: Teaching communists what democracy is all about|chapter-url=https://williamblum.org/chapters/killing-hope/bulgaria-albania|publisher=Common Courage Press|isbn=9781567512526}}</ref>

== Economy ==

=== Agriculture ===
From fall 1948 to spring 1949, 1,000 agricultural cooperatives were formed in Bulgaria, encompassing 13.3% of households in the country. By March 1949, the country's 1,600 cooperatives took up 5,400 km2 of land.<ref>{{News citation|author=Organ of the Information Bureau of the Communist and Workers’ Parties|title=Development of Agricultural Co-operatives in Bulgaria|date=1949-11-18|url=http://www.directdemocracy4u.uk/people-s-democracy/development-of-agricultural-co-operatives-in-bulgaria|retrieved=2022-04-17}}</ref>

== Living standards ==

=== Education ===
Children between ages 9–13 participated in the [[Dimitrovist Pioneer Organization "Septemberists"|Pioneers]] and youth aged 14–18 participated in the Komsomol.

All universities in Bulgaria were publicly owned under socialism. They were difficult to get into but had free tuition and guaranteed jobs after graduation.<ref name=":0">{{News citation|author=F.S.|newspaper=[[Political Affairs]]|title=An experiment in living socialism: Bulgaria then and now|date=2013-10-02|url=http://politicalaffairs.net/an-experiment-in-living-socialism-bulgaria-then-and-now/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618093545/http://politicalaffairs.net/an-experiment-in-living-socialism-bulgaria-then-and-now/|archive-date=2022-06-18|retrieved=2022-06-27}}</ref>

=== Health care ===
Bulgaria had one of the best medical systems in [[Eastern Europe]] and high-quality medications were available for low prices. Women had three years of partially paid maternity leave.<ref name=":0" />

=== Public transportation ===
Socialist Bulgaria had an excellent public transportation system. Bus tickets only cost four cents, 1/18 of what they now cost in Bulgaria.<ref name=":0" />

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Former socialist states]]

People's Republic of Benin (1975–1990)

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162.200.14.56: Benin never claimed to have established a socialist state; they were a people's democratic state.

{{Infobox country|name=People's Republic of Benin|image_flag=Flag of Benin (1975–1990).png|image_coat=Emblem of Benin (1975–1990).png|capital=Porto-Novo|largest_city=capital|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]|government_type=Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]]|title_leader=President|year_leader1=1975 – 1990|leader1=Mathieu Kérékou|legislature=[[Revolutionary National Assembly]]|p1=[[Republic of Dahomey]]|s1=[[Republic of Benin|Benin]]|flag_p1=Flag of Benin.svg.png|flag_s1=Flag of Benin.svg.png}}

The '''People's Republic of Benin''' was a [[Socialism|socialist]] state in [[West Africa]] established by Major [[Mathieu Kérékou]] in the developments that followed the 1972 coup d'état, within which Kérékou established a 12 member revolutionary council and arrested the three former presidents of Dahomey. Kérékou announced that the new state ideology would be [[Marxism–Leninism|Marxism-Leninism]] and oversaw the nationalization of major companies and banks while [[French Republic|French]] properties across the country were looted.<ref>{{Citation|author=Noel Dossou-Yovo|year=1999|title=THE EXPERIENCE OF BENIN|title-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20753219|publisher=Paragon House}}</ref>

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Former socialist republics]]
[[Category:History of Benin]]

Democratic Kampuchea (1975–1979)

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162.200.14.56: blah blah blah infobox blah blah

{{Infobox country|name=Democratic Kampuchea|native_name=កម្ពុជាប្រជាធិបតេយ្|image_flag=Flag of Democratic Kampuchea.png|capital=Phnom Penh|largest_city=Phnom Penh|mode_of_production=Semi-feudalism|government_type=Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]] (self-described) [[Utopian socialist]] dictatorship|leader_title1=General Secretary|leader_name1=[[Pol Pot]]|year_start=1975|year_end=1979|common_languages=Khmer}}
'''Democratic Kampuchea''' was a country in [[Southeast Asia]]. It was ruled by [[Pol Pot]].

==History==
[[Pol Pot]] took power in Cambodia in 1975. The [[United States of America|United States]] killed 500,000 Cambodians with aerial bombing and then sanctioned Cambodia. The bombings killed 75% of the country's draft animals and destroyed many rural houses.

Pol Pot executed between 75,000 and 150,000 civilians, including many pro-Vietnamese communists.<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=Challenge-Desafio|title=Pol Pot Was Not and Is Not A Communist|date=1986-02-19|url=https://msuweb.montclair.edu/~furrg/pol/khmerrouge.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220116094937/https://msuweb.montclair.edu/~furrg/pol/khmerrouge.html|archive-date=2022-01-16|retrieved=2022-08-01}}</ref> In 1978, Pol Pot invaded [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Vietnam]] but was overthrown by a Vietnamese counterattack in 1979. He began a US-backed guerrilla warfare campaign against the Vietnamese.<ref>{{Citation|author=Austin Murphy|year=2000|title=The Triumph of Evil|chapter=Introduction|page=53|pdf=https://mltheory.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/austin-murphy-the-triumph-of-evil.pdf|city=Fucecchio, [[Italy]]|publisher=European Press Academic Publishing|isbn=8883980026}}</ref>

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Former states]]
[[Category:Genocides]]

People's Socialist Republic of Albania (1946–1992)

2025-11-21T19:10:59Z

162.200.14.56: add inf. about gov. in infobox

<blockquote>''This article is about the government which existed between 1946 and 1992. For the present country, see [[Republic of Albania]].''</blockquote>{{Infobox country|name=People's Republic of Albania {{small|(1946–1976)}} {{small|Republika Popullore e Shqipërisë|paren=omit}}<hr>People's Socialist Republic of Albania {{small|(1976–1991)}} {{small|Republika Popullore Socialiste e Shqipërisë|paren=omit}}<hr>Republic of Albania {{small|(1991–1992)}} {{small|Republika e Shqipërisë|paren=omit}}|image_flag=Flag of Albania (1946–1992).svg|year_start=1946|year_end=1992|image_symbol=Emblem of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania.png|capital=Tirana|image_map=Map of the PSRoA.png|official_languages=Albanian|religion=[[State atheism]]|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]|government_type=Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]] (1946-1976) Unitary Marxist-Leninist [[socialist state]] (1976-1992)|leader_title1=First Secretary (1946-1985) (1985-1991)|leader_name1= [[Enver Hoxha]] Ramiz Alia|legislature=People's Assembly|HDI_year=1989|HDI=0.790|currency=Franga (1946-1947) Albanian Lek (1947-1991)|calling_code=+355}}
The '''People's Socialist Republic of Albania''' was a [[Marxism-leninism|Marxist-Leninist]] state that existed from 1946 to 1992. The country emerged from the struggle against [[Kingdom of Italy (1922-1943)|Italian fascist]] invaders, and through the leadership of the [[Party of Labour of Albania]]. It was led for most of its existence by [[Enver Hoxha]], whose ideas and leadership formed the branch of Marxism-Leninism known as [[Hoxhaism]].

The People's Socialist Republic of Albania is a generally viewed as complicated case for [[Scientific socialism|scientific socialists]] to analyze. The following assessment of the revolution is given by a University of London study:<blockquote>Overall, how can we characterize communist Albania? Clearly, in spite of considerable economic development relative to its previous level, it remained poor and mostly rural. However, the social agenda of development made much more progress. Education and social security became virtually universal, and health care was available to all. Moreover, traditionally severe discrimination against women was greatly reduced.</blockquote>Some achievements of the communists are acknowledged even by reactionaries:<blockquote>The reduction of long-standing traditions of discrimination against women, and the provision of universal education and primary health-care were achievements which even the regime’s enemies acknowledge.</blockquote>The communists also greatly developed the nation's economy, developed its infrastructure, and liberated it from foreign domination. One of the best summations of the achievements of socialism in Albania is given by the ''Encyclopedia Britannica,'' in its article on Enver Hoxha:<blockquote>Albania’s economy was revolutionized under Hoxha’s long rule. Farmland was confiscated from wealthy landowners and gathered into collective farms that eventually enabled Albania to become almost completely self-sufficient in food crops. Industry, which had previously been almost nonexistent, received huge amounts of investment, so that by the 1980's it had grown to contribute more than half of the gross national product. Electricity was brought to every rural district, epidemics of disease were stamped out, and illiteracy became a thing of the past.

[https://www.britannica.com/biography/Enver-Hoxha Encyclopedia Britannica | Enver Hoxha]</blockquote>

==History==

=== World War II and fascist occupation ===
Prior to [[Second World War|World War II]], Albania was the poorest nation in [[Europe]]. The country had not gone through industrialization, and it was an entirely feudal and agricultural nation. Up to 90% of the total national income was derived from agriculture with only up to 9% of the land under cultivation. About 88% of the people lived in rural areas, but 53% of peasants had no land ownership in 1938,<ref>{{Citation|author=James S. O'Donnell|year=1998|title=A coming of age: Albania under Enver Hoxha|chapter=Albanian economy|page=151|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=DEFB3CE3D4A9D471D4A2EAE045BF5555}}</ref> and over four fifths of the population was illiterate.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Ash|year=1974|title=Pickaxe and rifle: the story of the Albanian people|page=29|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=AD84F6AFB71FC78856EDD02DCEC65C7F}}</ref> At the time, Albania was under the monarchical rule of [[Ahmet Zogu]], which established a political and economical relationship with [[Kingdom of Italy (1922-1943)|fascist Italy]] since 1925, effectively allowing Italy to exploit Albania's mineral resources and export capital there.<ref>{{Citation|author=Federal Research Division|year=1994|title=Albania: a country study|page=30|publisher=United States Library of Congress|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=CCFF74C37F05F54334B086E3FF2ECA38}}</ref>

By 1928, a quarter of Albania was let out in concessions to Italian, [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|British]] and [[United States of America|Statesian]] corporations which profited from oil and mineral resources. From 1925 to 1939, the Italian [[Fascism|fascist]] government lent several loans to Albania which was turned into debts used to extract more concessions in favor of Italian interests, including placing the Albanian army under control of the fascists. On March 1939, the Italian government pressured Zogu to sign a treaty allowing Italian troops in Albanian land, taking control of the country's strategic infrastructure, and allowing Italian farmers to settle in Albania, enjoying full citizenship rights and other privileges.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Ash|year=1974|title=Pickaxe and rifle: the story of the Albanian people|page=28-29|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=AD84F6AFB71FC78856EDD02DCEC65C7F}}</ref> In that year, up to 70% of Albania's exports was headed to Italy.<ref>{{Citation|author=Federal Research Division|year=1994|title=Albania: a country study|page=32|publisher=United States Library of Congress|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=CCFF74C37F05F54334B086E3FF2ECA38}}</ref>

In April 7th, 1939, the Italian fascists invaded Albania with around 40,000 troops. The Albanian army was already under Italian control, and resistance against the invaders was existent, although insufficient, and by April 10th, Albania was almost completely conquered by fascist forces. This act of aggression did not render any protest from the Western powers at the time, and the United Kingdom still maintained the Anglo-Italian agreement signed a year before. The fascist invaders suppressed the Albanian army as an independent force and made it subordinate to the Italian army. The Italians sent agents from Rome to set up the [[Albanian Fascist Party]], with subsidiary organizations for youth, children, women and workers in an attempt to indoctrinate them with fascist ideology.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Ash|year=1974|title=Pickaxe and rifle: the story of the Albanian people|page=30-32|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=AD84F6AFB71FC78856EDD02DCEC65C7F}}</ref>

The Italian effort to [[Colonization|colonize]] Albania brought tens of thousands of Italians into the country from different backgrounds – workers, farmers, teachers, technicians, merchants, industrialists and state officials. By 1940, there were more Italian workers than Albanians. The Italian language was imposed into the education system and the Albanian culture was subjected to "Italianization." Within the first year of colonization, there were nearly 140 Italian capitalist enterprises profiting from cheap labor and exploiting the country's natural resources to fuel the war economy of fascist Italy. Several military bases and strategic roads were built to further Italian aggressive interests in the Balkan region. Albania was quickly turned into a source of raw materials for Italy and a market for Italian goods. The working conditions of the Albanian workers were deplorable, but nonetheless, a handful of Albanian merchants benefited from Italian invasion through speculation.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Ash|year=1974|title=Pickaxe and rifle: the story of the Albanian people|page=32-33|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=AD84F6AFB71FC78856EDD02DCEC65C7F}}</ref>

On 29 November 1944, Albania was liberated from the Italian fascist occupiers. National liberation councils had existed during the war in much of the country but were extended to the north in this period. In early 1945, new elections were held throughout the country. During the war, the fascists destroyed hundreds of villages and over 62,000 houses. All bridges had been destroyed, and roads, seaports, and power stations were badly damaged. The [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Soviet Union]] provided wheat to Albania at the end of the war.<ref>{{Citation|author=Luan Omari, Stefanaq Pollo|year=1988|title=The History of the Socialist Construction of Albania|chapter=Strengthening of the State of People's Democracy and the Beginnings of the Building of the Economic Base of Socialism|page=7–13, 28–29|pdf=https://mltheory2.files.wordpress.com/2021/07/the-history-of-the-socialist-construction-of-albania.pdf|city=Tirana|publisher=8 Nëntori Publishing House}}</ref>

=== Counterrevolution attempt ===
From 1949 to 1953, the USA and UK sent [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] guerrillas into Albania to overthrow the new socialist government. Most of the guerrillas were [[Monarchy|monarchists]] or fascist collaborators.<ref>{{Citation|author=William Blum|year=2002|title=Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower|chapter=A Concise History of United States Global Interventions,
1945 to the Present|isbn=9781842772201|publisher=Zed Books Ltd|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=29EED3C6906FF165E08303B9EAF66B4F|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacedas5bwprytpzcih6tof3ipede5uzmcvt47tfzwp4cptdau6vmjpy?filename=William%20Blum%20-%20Rogue%20State_%20A%20Guide%20to%20the%20World%27s%20Only%20Superpower-Zed%20Books%20Ltd%20%282002%29.pdf|page=110}}</ref>

=== Communist government ===
The People's Socialist Republic of Albania experienced a significant transformation under communist rule, marked by substantial economic reforms and rapid industrial growth. When the communists came to power, they swiftly set about transforming the nation's economy, nationalizing all industries, enacting land reform programs, and establishing a Soviet-style [[planned economy]]. This resulted in impressive economic growth, as well as the rapid development of industry. The average growth of industry from 1951 to 1975 was 82.5% and the share of agriculture decline from 80% during the first five year plan (1951-55) to 36% in the fifth plan (1971-75). The average growth of the net material product from one five-year plan to the next was nearly 44%.<ref>{{Citation|author=Arjan Gjonga|year=1998|title=Mortality Transition in Albania, 1950-1990|page=32-34|quote=Based on the experience of the Soviet Union, the Albanian Communist Government introduced a centrally-planned economic system. By 1951, the government replaced all the existing market forms and mechanisms by central planning. From then on the centralization of the economy was intensified. The planning system was based on Five Year Plans, where all the economic decisions on production, pricing, wages, investments, external and internal trade were made at the beginning of the plan, and remained unchanged for the whole period. Changes between the plans were also minimal in terms of wages and prices.|pdf=http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2870/1/U615819.pdf|publisher=University of London}}</ref>

Infrastructure development was a major focus alongside industrial growth. By 1985, Albania had developed an extensive highway system spanning 6,900 kilometers and a modest rail network of 603 kilometers. The nation also became a leading producer of chrome, ranking first globally in per capita production during the late 1950s and third in total output by the 1980s. Leveraging its abundant river systems, Albania invested heavily in hydroelectric power, achieving an estimated capacity of 2,500 MW, making it second only to Norway in Europe. This capacity facilitated energy agreements with neighboring Yugoslavia and Greece.<ref>{{Citation|author=Arjan Gjonga|year=1998|title=Mortality Transition in Albania, 1950-1990|page=32-33|quote=It was not just that the industry that experienced rapid growth, infrastructure was also developed. The country’s highway system was greatly expanded, and by 1985 consisted of 6,900 kilometres of roads capable of carrying motor vehicle traffic, and with a small rail network of about 603 kilometres. Within industry, the mineral sector and the electricity generation were initially developed. During 1956-60, the production of chrome made great strides, giving Albania first place in the world in per capita production of chrome ore, and later in the eighties the third place in the world for total output. Because of the large number of rivers and their mountainous nature, Albania developed its hydro-electric potential HEP, estimated at 2500 MW, second to Norway within Europe. Thus, in the eighties Albania reached agreement with neighboring countries (Yugoslavia and Greece) to supply them with electricity.|pdf=http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2870/1/U615819.pdf|publisher=University of London}}</ref>

In 1969 direct taxation was abolished, and during this period the quality of schooling and health care continued to improve. It was during this period that Albania achieved full electrification, becoming one of the first nations on Earth (possibly the first, according to some sources) to do so. Electricity was brought to every rural district in the country (the vast majority of the population was rural), and cities were given full power as well.<ref>{{Citation|author=James S. O'Donnell|year=1998|title=A coming of age: Albania under Enver Hoxha|chapter=Albanian economy|page=171|quote=According to the schedule implemented by Enver Hoxha in 1960, Albania was to achieve by 1985, the complete electrification of all the villages and inhabited centers. Later, in December 1967, since only twenty-nine percent of villages were electrified, the Central Committee of the Albanian Party of Labor moved this date up to November 1971, the thirtieth anniversary of the founding of the Albanian Communist Party. However, due to the high priority given to this project, Albania achieved total electrification ahead of schedule on October 25, 1970.|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=DEFB3CE3D4A9D471D4A2EAE045BF5555}}</ref>

However, the economic progress began to falter post-1975. The latter half of the 1980s was characterized by economic stagnation, exacerbated by Albania's increased isolation and significant investments in military and fortification projects. Real GDP growth slowed markedly, with an average annual increase of just 1% from 1980 to 1990, and no growth recorded in the latter half of that decade. This downturn reflected both internal inefficiencies and the broader challenges posed by Albania's isolationist policies.<ref>{{Citation|author=Arjan Gjonga|year=1998|title=Mortality Transition in Albania, 1950-1990|page=33|quote=In contrast with the previous period, the eighties witnessed a marked slowdown in economic activity, which virtually stagnated during the second half of the decade, reflecting Albania’s self-imposed isolation since 1976 and the emergence of serious internal and external imbalances. The real NMP, which had grown by nearly 44% in the previous period 1970-1980, but in 1980-1989 rose only by an average of 1 percent per year, declining from an average of 1.6 percent during 1980-85 to no growth during 1985-90. Real GDP followed a similar pattern, growing by 1 percent during 1980-1990, declining from 2 percent during 1980-85 to a marginal negative growth during 1985-90.|pdf=http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2870/1/U615819.pdf|publisher=University of London}}</ref>

=== Counterrevolution ===
After the PPSh won the elections in March 1991, the [[National Endowment for Democracy|NED]] organized mass protests and a general [[Strike action|strike]] and gave over $100,000 to the opposition, leading the government to collapse in June. The U.S. threatened to refuse all aid from the country if the Communists won the next elections in March 1992. With major U.S. support, the [[Democratic Party of Albania|Democratic Party]] won the 1992 elections.<ref name=":1222">{{Citation|author=[[William Blum]]|year=2002|title=Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower|chapter=A Concise History of United States Global Interventions, 1945 to the Present|isbn=9781842772201|publisher=Zed Books Ltd|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=29EED3C6906FF165E08303B9EAF66B4F|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacedas5bwprytpzcih6tof3ipede5uzmcvt47tfzwp4cptdau6vmjpy?filename=William%20Blum%20-%20Rogue%20State_%20A%20Guide%20to%20the%20World%27s%20Only%20Superpower-Zed%20Books%20Ltd%20%282002%29.pdf|page=133}}</ref>

== Governance==

=== Education ===
Education was a top priority of the communist government, due to the extremely poor educational conditions of the country post-WWII. According to the earlier cited study:<blockquote>The end of the second World War found Albania in a very poor educational state. At that time 80% of the population was illiterate, and in the rural areas this figure reached 90-95%. Illiteracy was widespread in rural areas and in particular among women. Immediately upon seizure of power in 1944, the communist regime gave high priority to opening schools and organizing the whole educational system along communist lines. An intensive campaign against illiteracy started immediately.</blockquote>This resulted in enormous improvements in the educational system:<blockquote>In terms of enrollments, Albania had a broad-based education system, with almost 90% of the pupils completing the compulsory basic 8-year school and 74% of them continuing into secondary school. From these, more than 40% went to the university. According to official figures, at the end of 1972 there were 700,000 schoolchildren and university students, which meant that every third citizen was enrolled in some kind of educational institution. The number of kindergartens in urban areas increased by 112% from 1970 to 1990, while in rural areas it increased by 150%. The number of primary schools in urban areas, for the same period of time, rose 31%, and in rural areas 24%. The total number of secondary schools increased by 291%, and that of high schools by 60%. A similar trend is seen for the number of students that graduated. Thus the number of pupils that graduated from primary schools for the period 1970-1990 increased by 74.8%, for the secondary school, the number rose 914.2%, and for university 147%. Education tuition was free of charge. Students whose families had low incomes were entitled to scholarships, which gave them free accommodation, food, etc.</blockquote>As a result, illiteracy was virtually wiped out across the country:<blockquote>At the end of eighties, Albania had a rate of illiteracy of less than 5%, placing it among the developed countries.</blockquote>This is a remarkable advancement. As the study says:<blockquote>The achievement of universal education must be judged one of the communist regime’s main achievements.</blockquote>

===Healthcare===

Healthcare was another area in which the communists made enormous progress. After WWII, Albania's healthcare situation was rather desperate:<blockquote>As explained earlier in this Chapter, when the communists took over in Albania in 1945, the state of the population's health and the Albanian health system were in a very bad state. Before the War, the health system consisted only of 10 state hospitals and an Institute of Hygiene founded in Tirana in 1938. The number of doctors was very low - only 102 Albanian doctors and a very small number of foreign doctors. Thus, the number of physicians (doctors and dentists) per 10,000 of the population was only 1.17, while the number of beds for 1,000 of population only 0.98.</blockquote>Life expectancy and mortality were among the worst in the world:<blockquote>According to the League of Nations in 1941, the crude death rate for Albania in 1938 was 17.7 per thousand. In a later study a figure on life expectancy at birth is given for 1938 as 38 years. Even these figures are thought not to be accurate, because death registration was not complete. There was no death certificate form, the posting of registers was always in arrears, and very little information on cause of death was recorded. The majority of villagers died without any medical intervention. In the early twenties over half of the country's 2,540 villages had never been visited by a doctor.</blockquote>Because of this, the communists made healthcare a top priority:<blockquote>In order to address this situation, the government starting in 1947, introduced a wide-ranging social insurance and medical scheme. Most medical treatments (thought not the medicines) were provided free. Legislation was introduced to protect the mother and child, and set up the pension scheme, as well as other regulations on sanitary conditions and control, and for the treatment of infectious diseases.</blockquote>As a result of communist healthcare policy, life expectancy increased rapidly in Albania:<blockquote>Most of the improvement in life expectancy at birth occurred in the first decade, when life expectancy at birth increased by 10.4 years for both sexes, more than one year for each year of the decade. In the next three decades mortality continued to improve, although not at the same pace as in the first decade.</blockquote>The following table charts life expectancy in Albania from 1950-1990, as given by the aforementioned study (recall that life expectancy in 1938 was approx. 38 years):
{| class="wikitable"
!''Years''
!''Life Expectancy (Male and Female)''
|-
|1950
|51.6
|-
|1954-55
|55.0
|-
|1960
| 62.0
|-
|1964-65
|64.1
|-
|1969
|66.5
|-
|1975-1976
|67.0
|-
|1979
|68.0
|-
|1989
|70.7
|}
From these statistics, it is clear that the communists achieved an enormous increase in life expectancy, from 38 years in 1938, to 68 years in 1979, an increase of thirty years in just four decades. It continued to improve until 1989, albeit more slowly.

The communists also succeeded in eliminating various infectious diseases which had plagued the country, particularly malaria, which had been the biggest killer in pre-war Albania:<blockquote>A number of endemic diseases were brought under control, including malaria, tuberculosis and syphilis... If one looks at the mortality transition from 1950 to 1990, it is clear that the pattern changes as life expectancy improves. Thus, the infectious and parasitic (tuberculosis included) diseases decline and almost disappear in the seventies and eighties.</blockquote>The Albanian communists made a number of extremely impressive achievements in the field of healthcare. Unfortunately, this too began to suffer at the tail-end of the communist period.

===Social security===

The social security system was a major priority of the communist government. Based on the Soviet model, the communists developed a cradle-to-grave social welfare system throughout the nation:<blockquote>Social Insurance was first introduced by the Albanian communist government in 1947. The initial social security scheme covered approximately 75,000 people. The social insurance program was administered by state organisations and covered medical care, compensation for disability, old-age pensions, family allowances, and rest and recreation. Several modifications were made latter to the basic program. The law of 1953 provided a program closely resembling that of the Soviet Union, i.e. a classic cradle-to-grave system of social security. For a number of years trade unions administered a large number of social insurance activities. In 1965 the state took over the administration of all phases except those for rest and recreation facilities.</blockquote>Maternity leave and disability insurance were provided:<blockquote>If people lost their capacity to work totally or partially, they were granted invalidity pensions. The amount of the pension varied between 40-85% of the wage depending on the scale of invalidity, cause of invalidity and the number of years that the person had been working. Pregnant women were given eighty-four days leave under normal circumstances and were paid at 95% of their wage if they had worked for more than five years and 75% if they had worked less than five. The pregnancy leave period was extended to six months in 1981. Workers could stay at home for limited periods to care for the sick and during this period received 60% of their pay.</blockquote>Old-age pensions were also provided to all retired workers:<blockquote>Old-age pensions were based on age and years of work. Payments were calculated at the rate of 70% of the worker’s average monthly wage. Two exceptions were the veterans of the Second World War and the Party leaders who received an additional 10%. The law also provided for widow’s and orphan’s pensions.</blockquote>All workers were guaranteed time off from work, with pay:<blockquote>All insured persons were entitled to a paid vacation. The duration of the vacation depended on the type of work and the length of active employment.</blockquote>Childcare insurance was also an aspect of the social security system:<blockquote>When children under seven years of age were ill, one of the parents was permitted up to ten days leave during a three month period. A one-time payment was made to the family for each child that was born. In case of death a fixed sum was paid to the family for funeral expenses.</blockquote>Eventually, the system was expanded to include peasants in farming cooperatives:<blockquote>From 1st July 1972 the system of pensions and social security was extended to cover peasants working in agriculture cooperatives. This aimed at the narrowing of the differences between urban and rural areas. Some agricultural cooperatives had already introduced some forms of pensions and social insurance providing help for their members in old age and when they were unable to work. The financing of this social security system in the rural areas came from the contributions of the cooperatives with some subsidization from the state.</blockquote>The provision of a cradle-to-grave social welfare system is an enormous achievement, and one of the main advances made by the communist government.

===Women's rights ===

Pre-war Albania was one of the most reactionary societies on Earth with regards to women's rights:<blockquote>For most women, traditional Albanian life was characterized by discrimination and inequality compared with men, reinforced by a wide range of cultural norms... In the immediate pre-war period there were just 21 female teachers in the country, a couple of women doctors and no female engineers, agronomists or chemists. Only 2.4 percent of secondary school students were girls.</blockquote>The Code of Leke (the traditional pre-war Albanian code of law relating to women) was harshly discriminatory. Even murder of a pregnant woman was punished differently depending on the sex of the fetus she was carrying:<blockquote>... the dead woman [is] to be opened up, in order to see whether the fetus is a boy or a girl. If it is a boy, the murderer must pay 3 purses [a set amount of local currency] for the woman's blood and 6 purses for the boy's blood; if it is a girl, aside from the three purses for the murdered woman, 3 purses must also be paid for the female child.</blockquote>In order to rectify this situation, the communists placed an enormous emphasis on women's rights:<blockquote>When the communists came to power they considered the emancipation of women as an important political measure, linking it with the destiny of socialism and communism... Equality between men and women was stressed continuously and was even included in the Constitution. The Introduction to the Constitution of the PSR of Albania says that “In the unceasing process of the revolution, the Albanian woman won equality in all fields, became a great social force and is advancing towards her complete emancipation." Article 41 of the constitution says: “The woman enjoys equal rights with a man in work, pay, holidays, social security, education, in all social-political activities as well as in the family.”</blockquote>Women became an active part of the workforce, while previously they had been almost entirely excluded:<blockquote>Equal rights included amongst others the equal right to have a job. Subsidized day-care nurseries and kindergartens, launderettes and canteens at both workplace, and in residential areas were provided, to make it easier for mothers to work. By 1980 women made up 46% of the economically active population, an increase over one quarter compared with 1960.</blockquote>Women also made huge advanced in access to education, as well as in positions of government power:<blockquote>Educational opportunities for women also improved considerably. Table 2.5 shows the increase in the percentage of students who were women graduating from university according to specialties. The table shows that the increase in the percentage during the period 1960-1990, for women engineers was 258.6%, while that for agronomists was 206%, for economists 192%. The same policy was adopted for the participation of women in governing of the country.</blockquote>Edwin E. Jacques discusses this issue in his book ''The Albanians: An Ethnographic History from Prehistoric Times to the Present:''

*[https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/The_Albanians.html?id=IJ2s9sQ9bGkC&redir_esc=y Google Books | The Albanians: An Ethnographic History from Prehistoric Times to the Present]

According to Jacques, during the Cultural and Ideological Revolution, women were encouraged to take up ''all'' jobs, including government posts, which resulted in 40.7% of the People's Councils and 30.4% of the People's Assembly being made up of women, including two women in the Central Committee by 1985. In 1978, 15.1 times as many females attended eight-year schools as had done so in 1938 and 175.7 times as many females attended secondary schools. By 1978, 101.9 times as many women attended higher schools as in 1957.

The People's Socialist Republic of Albania made a number of enormous achievements in terms of women's rights. Even the most reactionary of commentators have acknowledged this. For example, take the following article from the ''Telegraph,'' authored by a reactionary writer who grew up in communist Albania:

*[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/growing-up-under-communist-rule-made-me-the-tough-feminist-i-am/ The Telegraph | Growing Up Under Communist Rule Made Me the Tough Feminist I Am Today]

As she says in the article:<blockquote>Inspired by the ongoing debate on women’s inequalities, I have recently reflected on my own childhood politics and have come to the surprising conclusion that the place to look for solutions to gender inequality is the Communist model.</blockquote>She comments on the communist encouragement of women in the workforce:<blockquote>The Communist promise that women should be equal players in the workforce was not an empty one. Women were positively encouraged by government campaigns to embark on all professions, including “manly” jobs, building on the fact they had fought in large numbers alongside the men as partisans during the Second World War. To achieve this they were given trainee-ships, professional qualifications and scholarships... Growing up, I never encountered any suggestion that women in these professions were in any way less capable than men by virtue of their gender and additional role as mothers. On the whole, they faced no barriers of gender discrimination. I remember my parents and their friends frequently praising excellent female doctors and teachers... This form of equal partnership was commonplace in the Albanian society I grew up and importantly women’s role in the family informed how women were viewed in the workplace and vice-versa. If men suggested that women should be relegated to the house they were mocked for their anachronistic ideas.</blockquote>When even a reactionary writer whose parents sent her to clandestine Italian lessons (the language of the fascist occupiers) is praising the communist policies towards women's rights, that is a strong indication of their success.

== Further reading ==

* [[:Category:Library works about Albania|All library works about Albania]]
* [[:Category:Library documents from Albania|All library documents from Albania]]

==References==
[http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2870/1/U615819.pdf University of London | Mortality Transition in Albania: 1950-1990]

[https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/The_Albanians.html?id=IJ2s9sQ9bGkC&redir_esc=y Google Books | The Albanians: An Ethnographic History from Prehistoric Times to the Present]

[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/growing-up-under-communist-rule-made-me-the-tough-feminist-i-am/ The Telegraph | Growing Up Under Communist Rule Made Me the Tough Feminist I Am Today]

[https://www.britannica.com/biography/Enver-Hoxha Encyclopedia Britannica | Enver Hoxha]
<references />
[[Category:Hoxhaism]]
[[Category:Former socialist states]]

Lao People's Democratic Republic

2025-11-21T19:08:25Z

162.200.14.56: Laos is a people's democratic state, not a socialist state.

{{Infobox country
| name = Lao People's Democratic Republic
| native_name = ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ
| image_coat = Emblem of Laos.svg
| image_flag = Flag of Laos.svg
| symbol_type = Emblem
| image_map = Laos (orthographic_projection).svg
| map_width = 220px
| capital = [[Vientiane]]
| largest_city = capital
| government_type = Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[people's democracy|people's democratic state]]
| established_event1 = Establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic
| established_date1 = 2 December 1975
| population_estimate = 7,749,595
| population_estimate_year = 2022
| leader_title1 = President
| leader_name1 = [[Thongloun Sisoulith]]
| leader_title3 = Prime Minister
| leader_name3 = [[Sonexay Siphandone]]
| leader_title2 = Vice President
| leader_name2 = [[Bounthong Chitmany]] [[Pany Yathotou]]
}}
'''Laos''', officially, the '''Lao People's Democratic Republic''' ('''LPDR'''), is a modern-day socialist country, established in Southeast Asia after having achieved independence through its liberation movement led by [[Kaysone Phomvihane]] (a figure analogous to [[Vietnam]]'s [[Ho Chi Minh]]).<ref>{{News citation|journalist=Andre Barahamin|date=2017-11-05|title=The hero of Laos: Kaysone Phomvihane|url=https://rallu.xyz/2017/11/05/the-hero-of-laos-kaysone-phomvihane/}}</ref>

The Laotian constitution states that the [[Lao People's Revolutionary Party|LPRP]] "is a people’s democratic state" defending "the interests of the multi-ethnic people of all social strata with the [[Proletariat|workers]], [[Peasantry|farmers]] and intelligentsia as key components."<ref>Constitution of Lao People's Democratic Republic ([https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Laos_2003.pdf?lang=en PDF])</ref>

The Lao People's Democratic Republic is one of only five [[Socialism|socialist]] states in the world today (alongside [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Vietnam]], [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea|People's Korea]] and [[People's Republic of China|China]]). The Lao PDR adheres to [[Marxism–Leninism]] and [[Kaysone Phomvihane Thought]] as its guiding ideology.

== History ==

=== Early history ===
In 1353, King [[Fa Ngum|Tiao Fangum]] founded the [[Kingdom of Lan Xang]], laying the foundations for the country of Laos. The Kingdom needed to defend its independent existence from its neighbors such as [[Kingdom of Thailand|Thailand]] and [[Republic of the Union of Myanmar|Myanmar]] on many different occasions. Notable events in pre-modern Laotian history include: the victory of Muong Khuc in 1536, when King [[Phothisalat]] defeated armies invading the country under the Ayuthaja(Thai) King; victory of King [[Sayasetha]], in 1563 and 1569, against invading Myanmarese; a twenty-four year long struggle at the end of the 16th century against Myanmarese domination which resulted in the then Laotian king, who was their vassal being overthrown. <ref name=":4">{{Citation|author=Kaysone Phomvihane|year=1981|title=Revolution in Laos: Practice and Prospects|title-url=https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Revolution_in_Laos|city=Moscow|publisher=Progress Publishers|isbn=978-0828520171}}</ref>

Starting from the eighteenth century, when the Laotian feudal power declined, the country was splintered, leaving room for Thai feudal lords to successfully invade. Decades long struggle ensued against foreign domination, which peaked under the leadership of [[Tiao Anouvong]] in 1827-1828. Although the struggle was not completely victorious, the brave struggle of the Laotian people was marked down in their history.<ref name=":4" />

=== French colonization ===
The [[French Republic (1870–1940)|French]] colonialists invaded Laos in 1893 and secured the assistance of [[Comprador]] Feudalists against popular uprisings. In 1898, Laos was incorporated into [[French Indochina (1887–1954)|French Indochina]]. Many instance of national revolt took place against colonial rule. Some nationwide and others more limited: [[Pho Cadouad]]'s uprising took place in 1901-1902 at the heart of Laos, concurrent with the the long lasting uprising under the leadership of [[Ong Keo]] and [[Ong Kommadam]] which persisted for 36 years, from 1901 to 1937 in the country's south. The Lu people's resistance in Sing country from 1914 to 1918, the Meo people's struggle lead by [[Tiao Pha Patchay]] from 1918-1922 in a number of the northern provinces and the Thais resistance in the Sam Neua province in 1916, and many others. But owing to historical and international conditions, the uprisings were not able to cast off the French yoke.<ref name=":4" />

On 9 March 1945, [[Japanese empire|fascist Japan]] annexed French Indochina. After the [[Second World War]], the Laotian monarchy began to support the independence movement against the French.<ref name=":1">{{News citation|author=Morgan Artyukhina|newspaper=[[Liberation School]]|title=Mung Lao: A Portrait of The Lao People’s Democratic Republic|date=2017-09-22|url=https://www.liberationschool.org/mung-lao-a-portrait-of-the-lao-peoples-democratic-republic/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308162610/https://www.liberationschool.org/mung-lao-a-portrait-of-the-lao-peoples-democratic-republic/|archive-date=2021-03-08|retrieved=2022-05-22}}</ref> Laos declared independence from France on 12 October 1945. <ref name=":2">{{Citation|author=[[Kaysone Phomvihane]]|title=Revolution in Laos: Practice and Prospects|chapter=The Long Road to Victory|page=11–15|pdf=https://www.marxists.org/archive/kaysone/revolution-in-laos.pdf}}</ref>

=== Revolution and civil war ===
{{Main article|Laotian Civil War}}
France recolonized Laos in 1949 with the help of the [[United States of America|USA]] and [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|UK]]. [[Souphanouvong]] founded the [[Pathet Lao]] in 1950 as the successor of anti-French [[Nationalism|nationalist]] groups.<ref name=":3">{{Web citation|author=Devin Cole|newspaper=[[Workers World]]|title=A revolutionary salute to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic|date=2022-02-10|url=https://www.workers.org/2022/02/61652/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517204840/https://www.workers.org/2022/02/61652/|archive-date=2022-05-17|retrieved=2022-12-27}}</ref>

The [[Lao People's Revolutionary Party|Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP)]], led by [[Kaysone Phomvihane]] and Souphanouvong, waged a war of liberation against the [[Kingdom of Laos (1953–1975)|Kingdom of Laos]] and its allies, including the United States. The three forces in the Laotian Civil War were the [[Monarchism|monarchists]] led by [[Boun Oum]], the [[Liberalism|liberals]] led by [[Souvanna Phouma]], and the [[Communism|communist]] Pathet Lao.<ref name=":1" /> In 1954, communist forces liberated the province of Phongsaly and most of Luang Prabang from French colonizers, forcing the French to give Laos independence under King [[Sisavang Vong]].<ref name=":3" />

The [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] and [[United States Department of State|State Department]] organized coups in Laos in 1958, 1959, and 1960.<ref name=":12">{{Citation|author=[[William Blum]]|year=2002|title=Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower|chapter=A Concise History of United States Global Interventions, 1945 to the Present|isbn=9781842772201|publisher=Zed Books Ltd|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=29EED3C6906FF165E08303B9EAF66B4F|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacedas5bwprytpzcih6tof3ipede5uzmcvt47tfzwp4cptdau6vmjpy?filename=William%20Blum%20-%20Rogue%20State_%20A%20Guide%20to%20the%20World%27s%20Only%20Superpower-Zed%20Books%20Ltd%20%282002%29.pdf|page=116}}</ref> During the civil war, the US military dropped 2.5 million tons of bombs on Laos between 1964 and 1973<ref name=":0">{{News citation|newspaper=[[Socialist Voice]]|title=Laos: Building the foundations of socialism|date=2018-05-02|url=https://socialistvoice.ie/2018/05/laos-building-the-foundations-of-socialism/|retrieved=2022-04-23}}</ref>—more than they dropped in all of World War II,<ref>{{News citation|journalist=Ralph McGehee|date=1995-10-09|title=Bombing Laos|url=|newspaper=|archive-url=http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/54/057.html|archive-date=|retrieved=2021-12-31}}</ref> killing hundreds of thousands and turning a quarter of Laotians into refugees. 78 million unexploded bombs remained after the war, which still kill or injure 50 civilians every year.<ref>{{News citation|journalist=Rebecca Wright|date=2016-09-06|title='My friends were afraid of me': What 80 million unexploded US bombs did to Laos|url=https://www.cnn.com/2016/09/05/asia/united-states-laos-secret-war/|newspaper=CNN|archive-url=|archive-date=|retrieved=2021-31-21}}</ref> The CIA also spent $500 million training Hmongs to fight on behalf of the monarchy.

The United States withdrew from Laos after the [[National Liberation Front of South Vietnam|Viet Minh]]'s victory in [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Vietnam]] in April 1975. In December 1975, the Pathet Lao took power and established a socialist republic in Laos, abolishing the monarchy.<ref name=":1" />

=== Independence ===
After liberation, Kaysone would dominate Laotian politics until his death in 1992.<ref>{{News citation|journalist=Andrew Nette|date=1996-03-27|title=LAOS: Kaysone – Big in Life, Bigger in Death|url=http://www.ipsnews.net/1996/03/laos-kaysone-big-in-life-bigger-in-death/}}</ref> Laos signed a 25-year friendship treaty with Vietnam in 1977.<ref name=":1" /> The First Five-Year Plan began in 1981, but only achieved an economic growth rate of 5% per year. In 1986, Laos began the [[New Economic Mechanism]], based on the [[New Economic Policy]] of the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|USSR]].<ref name=":0" /> By the end of the Second Five-Year Plan, rice production had doubled and sugar production had increased by 40%.<ref name=":1" />

== Economy ==
The main investors in Laos's economy are [[People's Republic of China|China]], Vietnam, and the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea|DPRK]]. Mining takes up 7% of the Laotian economy and includes gold, silver, copper, tin, and potash mines. Industry takes up 28.6% of the economy.<ref name=":1" /> Hydroelectric power forms 30% of Laos's exports, and Laos is projected to be able to export 14.6 gigawatts of electricity to neighboring countries by 2025.<ref name=":3" />

=== Working conditions ===
Working hours are limited to 48 hours per week or eight hours per day. Paid sick leave, vacation time, and maternity leave are all provided.<ref name=":1" /> Workers are well-represented in [[Trade union|trade unions]] and workers' councils.<ref name=":3" />

== Geography ==
[[File:Laos 2003 Physical Map.jpg|alt=Physical Map of Laos. The North has many mountains and hills while the south is flat and tropical|thumb|Physical Map of Laos]]
Laos is a landlocked country and straddled between the tropical monsoon climate which prevails in the Southern half of the country and the temperate and mountainous climate of the North.

== Governance ==

=== Constitution ===

The Constitution of the Lao People's Republic was first published in 1991, amended in 2003, amended a second time in 2015, and amended a third time on March 28, 2025.<ref>{{Citation|title=Constitution of the Lao People's Democratic Republic|title-url=https://www.laoofficialgazette.gov.la/index.php?r=site/display&id=2353|publisher=Lao Official Gazette of the Ministry of Justice}}</ref> Among the changes included in 2025 are the unconditional recognition of Lao diaspora as "an inseparable part of the national community". Villages were reclassified as "community-based organizations", superceded by subdistricts which administrate multiple villages. The amendment also affirms a commitment to a building the national economy in a way that is "environmentally friendly in accordance with green and sustainable development principles, with the aim of improving the material and spiritual living standards of the people."<ref>{{Web citation|author=Dino Santaniello|newspaper=LinkedIn|title=2025 Constitution of Laos: Key Reforms Introduced in the Draft Confirmed|date=Published Mar 28, 2025|url=https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/2025-constitution-laos-key-reforms-introduced-draft-dino-santaniello-ryhhc|archive-date=https://web.archive.org/save/https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/2025-constitution-laos-key-reforms-introduced-draft-dino-santaniello-ryhhc|retrieved=September 14, 2025|quote=This recognition is now enshrined in Article 47 of the Constitution:

“The State protects the lawful rights and interests of Lao citizens residing abroad.

The State considers Lao people living abroad as an inseparable part of the national community.

The State encourages, promotes, and creates conditions for Lao people residing abroad to preserve and promote the nation’s cultural heritage, maintain good relations with their families and homeland, and contribute to the country’s development."

Article 86 of the Constitution provides:

“The Lao People's Democratic Republic divides local administration into three levels: the Provincial level, the District level, and the Subdistrict level.

As for villages, they are community-based organizations.”

Article 13 now reads:

“The national economy of the Lao People's Democratic Republic is a market economy oriented toward socialism, comprising multiple economic sectors and various forms of ownership that coexist on a long-term basis, on the basis of equality, both in competition and cooperation, under the law. It is based on the construction of an independent and self-reliant economy, the promotion of a knowledge-based economy, and the integration of the economy with regional and international frameworks, in order to ensure that the national economy expands continuously and in a stable manner, is linked to social development, and is environmentally friendly in accordance with green and sustainable development principles, with the aim of improving the material and spiritual living standards of the people.”}}</ref>

=== Efforts against malnutrition ===
In recent years, the issue of malnutrition is still present in Laos, though the government has made inroads in combating this problem with the help of UNICEF.<ref>(October 19, 2018) https://laotiantimes.com/2018/10/19/nutrition-kids-unicef-xepon-laos/</ref> In addition, Laos has tackled such problems as inequality and poverty in its aim to shed its Least Developed Country Status by 2024. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and as ''The Laotian Times'' reports, "Lao PDR’s Human Development Index (HDI) value which is calculated based on the life expectancy, level of education and income per capita of a country’s people, has increased by over 50% since 1990."<ref>(October 30, 2018) [https://laotiantimes.com/2018/10/30/progress-inequality-push-education-laos/ Inequality, Disasters Risks to Development as Progress Pushed in Laos: UNDP]</ref> From 1992 to 2008, the poverty rate decreased from 46% to 28%.<ref name=":0" /> Laos is also the only [[Association of Southeast Asian Countries|ASEAN]] member to give up luxury state cars in a move by Lao Prime Minister [[Thongloun Sisoulith]] to reclaim all Lao leaders' luxury vehicles.<ref>Yap, Jasmina (February 23, 2017) [https://laotiantimes.com/2017/02/23/laos-only-asean-member-give-up-luxury-state-cars/?platform=hootsuite "Laos Only ASEAN Member To Give Up Luxury State Cars"]</ref>

== Politics ==

=== International solidarity ===
In 1977, Vietnam and Laos signed a 25-year treaty of friendship, and Vietnamese advisors provided much-needed expertise in government and economic policies. Vietnam and Laos fit together, as the common saying goes, “like lips and teeth.” Laos grew closer to Vietnam as its primary trade partner and only route to the sea. The [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Soviet Union]] provided most foreign aid to Laos and especially the Laotian armed forces.<ref name=":1" />

== Further reading ==

* ''[[Library:Revolution in Laos|Revolution in Laos: Practice and Prospects]]'' (Kaysone Phomvihane)

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Marxist-Leninist states]]
[[Category:Asian countries]]

Republic of Cuba

2025-11-21T19:07:39Z

162.200.14.56: harmonize with other socialist state articles

{{Infobox country
| name = Republic of Cuba
| native_name = República de Cuba
| image_coat = Coat of arms of Cuba.svg
| image_flag = Flag of Cuba.svg
| image_map = Orthographic map of Cuba.svg
| map_width = 220px
| capital = [[Havana]]
| largest_city = capital
|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]| government_type = Unitary [[Marxist–Leninist]] [[socialist state]]
| established_event1 = Start of Statesian occupation
| established_date1 = 10 December 1898
|established_event2=Victory of the [[Cuban Revolution]]|established_date2=1 January 1959| population_estimate = 11,193,470
| population_estimate_year = 2019
| leader_title1 = First Secretary, President
| leader_name1 = [[Miguel Díaz-Canel]]
| leader_title2 = President of National Assembly of People's Power
| leader_name2 = Esteban Lazo Hernández
| leader_title3 = President of Council of Ministers
| leader_name3 = Manuel Marrero Cruz}}
'''Cuba''', officially the '''Republic of Cuba'''<ref group="lower-alpha">Spanish: República de Cuba</ref> is a [[Socialism|socialist]] country in [[North America]] comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Guided by [[Marxist-Leninist|Marxist–Leninist]] ideology, Cuba is led by the [[Communist Party of Cuba]] (PCC), the [[vanguard]] of the Cuban [[Proletariat|working class]].

The Republic of Cuba is one of only five socialist states in the world today (alongside [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Vietnam]], [[Lao People's Democratic Republic|Laos]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea|People's Korea]] and [[People's Republic of China|China]]). It began as a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]-style [[planned economy]], but after the [[overthrow of the Soviet Union]] and subsequent loss of influence of the [[Warsaw Pact|socialist bloc]], Cuba became more vulnerable to the [[United States of America|United States]] [[United States embargo against Cuba|embargo]] and dependent of foreign trade and capital. Since then, it has been promoting extensive market reforms.<ref>{{Citation|author=[[Communist Party of Cuba]]|year=1997|title=Economical resolution of the 5th Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba|pdf=https://www.pcc.cu/sites/default/files/tesis-resoluciones/2020-07/resolucion_economica_v_congreso.pdf|trans-title=Resolución económica V Congreso del Partido Comunista de Cuba|trans-lang=Spanish}}</ref>

Cuban healthcare is widely renowned throughout the world, achieving success in virtually every critical area of public health and medicine.<ref>Carol Lynn Esposito (2018). ''Against all odds: Cuba achieves healthcare for all – An analysis of Cuban healthcare.'' The Journal of the New York State Nurses' Association, volume 45, number 1. ([https://www.nysna.org/sites/default/files/attach/1142/2017/08/2017-08-01nysnaJournalv45n1.pdf#page=31 PDF link to journal])</ref> Cuba also promotes a healthcare diplomacy by sending doctors to underdeveloped nations which do not have advanced healthcare systems, as well as impressive innovation in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.<ref>John M. Kirk (2015). ''Healthcare without borders: Understanding Cuban medical internationalism.'' University Press of Florida. ([http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=0F7B2ED4B81FB72B92FC080A9B28365A Library Genesis link])</ref><ref name=":3">World Health Organization (2015). ''[https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/mtct-hiv-cuba/en/ WHO validates elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis in Cuba]''.
</ref><ref>Alexandra Sifferlin (2014). [https://time.com/3556670/ebola-cuba/ ''Why Cuba is so good at fighting ebola'']. Time Magazine.</ref>

Cuba's exports around $1.21B mainly of rolled tobacco (23.8%), raw sugar (17.5%), nickel mattes (11%) and hard liquor (8.07%) and its main export partners are [[People's Republic of China|China]] (38.2%), [[Kingdom of Spain|Spain]] (10.5%), [[Kingdom of the Netherlands|the Netherlands]] (5.44%) and [[Federal Republic of Germany|Germany]] (5.37%). Cuba imports $5.28B of machinery and appliances (16.7%), electrical machinery and equipment (9.27%) and cereals (7.21%) from Spain (19.2%), China (15%), [[Italian Republic|Italy]] (6.2%) and [[Canada]] (5.4%).<ref name=":4">{{News citation|date=2019|title=Cuba exports, imports and trade partners|url=https://oec.world/en/profile/country/cub?depthSelector2=HS2Depth|newspaper=The Observatory of Economic Complexity|retrieved=2022-02-09}}</ref>

== History ==

=== Pre-colonization (~3000 BCE – 1492)===
The earliest discovered evidence of human activity on the island of Cuba dates back to approximately 4000 B.C., with various other archaeological findings ranging from 3000 to 2000 B.C. The earliest European contact with native inhabitants of Cuba took place when Christopher Columbus raided the easternmost tip of the island in 1492, at first assuming it was an Asian peninsula. Unfortunately, because the Cuban natives either did not use codices or other writing systems, or such evidence was destroyed by the Spanish, all firsthand knowledge of pre-colonial Cuba has been derived from the eyewitness testimony of Columbus and other Spanish colonizers.

According to these accounts, the various tribal communities scattered across the island at the end of the fifteenth century were twenty-nine small, independent chiefdoms; Cuba's principal inhabitants at the time of the Spanish conquest were the Guanajatabey and Taíno peoples, with the latter divided between the Ciboney and so-called “Taíno proper”. The best estimates are that there were between 50,000 and 300,000 indigenous peoples at the time.<ref name=":1">Clifford L. Staten (2005). 'Early Cuba: Colonialism, Sugar and Nationalism: Cuba to 1868' in ''The history of Cuba.'' Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9781403962591 ([http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=DE11DAA6342FE92307FDE6B81E5FD1CF Library Genesis link])</ref> However, there is an important caveat; in the Caribbean, the genocide of native population was so successful, the relentless destruction of their architecture and culture so complete, that the oldest available sources on the culture of these islands are journals kept by the Spanish invader. As a result, the grandeur, development, cultural complexity and achievements of the civilizations of that region may very well be vastly under-researched, understated, and underestimated.

Out of the three distinct groups, the Guanajatabeyes had arrived the earliest; they are thought to have had inhabited the island of Cuba since at least 2000 BCE, while the Taíno and Ciboney were Arawak tribes that migrated to the Caribbean from the South American mainland and Floridan peninsula, respectively. Guanajatabey society was limited to archaic hunter-gatherer communities no larger than a few hundred individuals, and they lived on seafood, rodents, birds and other small animals, as well as the many wild fruits available in Cuba such as guava and guanabana. They did not live in houses, huts or anything other than natural caves in western Cuba.

The Ciboney, by contrast, were the largest indigenous group of the island. They had migrated in the 1400s from the West Indies, and had 3 [[Class society|class divisions]] between them; chiefs (''caciques''), a small middle class that acted as advisers to the chiefs, and commoners. The Ciboney were fishers, hunters and agriculturally advanced enough to cultivate fruits, beans, peanuts, corn and cassava. They lived in straw, palm-thatched houses, with intricate carved furniture and weaved fabrics; they used tobacco in religious ceremonies, and baked cassava and used pepper to preserve meat.<ref name=":1" /> After the Spanish occupation, tobacco became an important item for export.<ref>Rex A Hudson (2002). 'Historical setting', in ''Cuba: a country study.'' Washington, DC: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. ISBN 0844410454 ([http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=142F24F3CC4D8CB7F8D59D5DE4CB87CB Library Genesis link])</ref> At some point, the technologically superior Ciboney had subjugated the Guanajatabeyes, whose tools were largely bone-based.<ref name=":1" />

=== Spanish colonization (1492–1898) ===
In the next 70 years after Columbus' arrival in 1492, most of the indigenous peoples on the island were killed, largely due to Spanish systematic genocide, but also due to diseases brought by the Spanish, such as smallpox, typhus, influenza and measles.<ref name=":1" /> Spanish colonialism in the Americas was motivated mostly by the Crown's desire for gold, silver and other precious metals. The settlers also had immediate interests for these travels, as they were to receive a share of the exploited value.<ref>Eric Williams (1984). 'Gold and sugar' in ''From Columbus to Castro; The History of the Caribbean, 1492–1969.'' London: A. Deutsch. ISBN 0233000909 ([http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=C49308A6134FF8E1D444F122DA05CCCF Library Genesis link])</ref> In 1510, Diego Velázquez, one of the richest settlers in Spain, was in charge of colonizing Cuban territory, beginning the conquest with a prolonged reconnaissance and conquest operation, plagued by bloody incidents. To safeguard trade, [[Monarchy of Spain (1516–1700)|Spain]] decided to organize large fleets that would have the port of Havana as an obligatory stopover point, strategically located at the beginning of the Gulf Stream. Its prime exports were coffee, sugar, and tobacco. The Spanish aristocracy imported many African [[Slavery|slaves]] for this colony.

The Taíno leader [[Hatuey]] began a resistance movement against Spain in 1511. The Spanish captured, tortured, and executed him in 1512.<ref name=":92">{{Citation|author=[[Nick Estes]], et al.|year=2021|title=Red Nation Rising|chapter=Anti-Indianism|page=30|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacechp4anuu3vkx7ttze5vwtbbslqpqkouqemkpa5xui27eulvyntx2?filename=Nick%20Estes%2C%20Melanie%20Yazzie%2C%20Jennifer%20Nez%20Denetdale%2C%20David%20Correia%20-%20Red%20Nation%20Rising_%20From%20Bordertown%20Violence%20to%20Native%20Liberation-PM%20Press%20%282021%29.pdf}}</ref>

From 1790 to 1820, more African slaves were introduced into Cuba than in the previous century and a half. With a population that in 1841 already exceeded a million and a half inhabitants, the Island harbored a highly polarized society. Between an oligarchy of Creole landowners and Spanish merchants and the slave masses. Slavery was an important source of social instability, not only because of the frequent rebellion by slaves—both individually and in groups—but also because the repudiation of the said institution gave rise to conspiracies with abolitionist purposes, none of which were indigenous-led.

In the 1810s, Cuban slave owners contacted the U.S. consul and tried to join the [[United States of America|United States]] in order to prevent a revolution like in [[Republic of Haiti|Haiti]].<ref name=":122">{{Citation|author=[[Domenico Losurdo]]|year=2011|title=Liberalism: A Counter-History|chapter=Crisis of the English and American Models|page=152|publisher=Verso|isbn=9781844676934|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=5BB3406BC2E64972831A1C00D5D4BFE4|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacebhsj2yxuoudkhkjp6lzgr5jvgyhu76zxe4gw3d65gpg32a6nded4?filename=Domenico%20Losurdo%2C%20Gregory%20Elliott%20-%20Liberalism_%20A%20Counter-History-Verso%20%282011%29.pdf}}</ref>

Around 1850 the colony received an influx of lower-class Spanish immigrants, but even they were treated poorly by the aristocracy: sixteen or eighteen-hour workdays, seven days a week, were common, and work conditions in the tobacco industry were rife with poor pay, monotony, and health hazards.

=== U.S. colonization (1898–1959) ===
After the [[Spanish–Statesian War]], Spain and the United States signed the Treaty of Paris (1898), by which Spain ceded [[Puerto Rico]], the [[Republic of the Philippines|Philippines]], and [[Guam]] to the United States for the sum of US $20 million and Cuba became a colony of the United States. In 1901, the USA added the [[Platt Amendment]] to the Cuban constitution, allowing the USA to invade Cuba at will and preventing Cuba from making international treaties. It took over 45 square miles of territory at [[Guantánamo Bay concentration camp|Guantánamo Bay]]. Sugar production grew from 15% to 70% of total production from 1902 to 1929 as Cuba became a U.S. [[Neocolonialism|neocolony]].<ref name=":02">{{Citation|author=David Vine|year=2020|title=The United States of War|chapter=Going Global|page=191–3|city=Oakland|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=9780520972070|lg=http://library.lol/main/191568BFAC73F009132DB00ECD0F0F05}}</ref>

The United States occupied Cuba from 1906 to 1909, in 1912, and again from 1917 to 1922.<ref name=":0222">{{Citation|author=David Vine|year=2020|title=The United States of War|chapter=The Military Opens Doors|page=|city=Oakland|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=9780520972070|lg=http://library.lol/main/191568BFAC73F009132DB00ECD0F0F05}}</ref>:210 It annulled the Platt Amendment in 1934 but continued to occupy Guantánamo Bay.<ref name=":0222" />:219

The [[Popular Socialist Party of Cuba]] was formed in Havana in 1925. It was later renamed the "Communist Revolutionary Union". In 1961 the party merged into the Integrated Revolutionary Organizations (ORI), the precursor of the current [[Communist Party of Cuba]].

==== Batista regime (1940–1959) ====
While the [[reactionary]] right-wing dictatorship of [[Fulgencio Batista]] reign saw relatively high GDP growth, human development indicators portray dismal social conditions, particularly among the rural peasants. Batista's regime left the majority of the Cuban people mired in poverty and illness, reporting a 91% malnutrition rate among agricultural workers.<ref name=":0">Andrea Carter (2013). ''Cuba's food-rationing system and alternatives''. Cornell University. ([https://www.coralgablescavaliers.org/ourpages/users/099346/IB%20History/Americas/Cuba/Cuba_s%20Food%20Rationing.pdf PDF link])</ref> 20,000 Cubans were killed under Batista's dictatorship.<ref>{{News citation|author=Elio Delgado Legon|newspaper=Havana Times|title=Massacres during Batista’s Dictatorship|date=2017-01-26|url=https://havanatimes.org/diaries/elio/massacres-during-batistas-dictatorship/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126194624/https://havanatimes.org/diaries/elio/massacres-during-batistas-dictatorship/|archive-date=2022-01-26|retrieved=2022-04-28}}</ref>

The mortality rates of the general population was usually high. Poor hygiene, inefficient sanitation and malnutrition contributed to the infant mortality rate of 60 per 1000 lives, maternal mortality rate of 125.3 per 1000, and a life expectancy of 65 years.<ref>LA Binn (2013). ''[https://caribbean.scielo.org/scielo.php?pid=S0043-31442013000300015&script=sci_arttext&tlng=pt Cuba: healthcare and the revolution]''. West Indian Medical Journal.</ref><ref name=":6">{{Citation|author=The World Bank|title=Life expectancy at birth, total (years) - Cuba|title-url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN?locations=CU}}</ref> In contrast, Cuba today has an infant mortality rate of 3.8 deaths per 1000 lives as of 2021,<ref>Macotrends. ''[https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CUB/cuba/infant-mortality-rate Cuba infant mortality rate 1950-2021]''</ref><ref>{{Citation|author=The World Bank|title=Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) - Cuba|title-url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=CU}}</ref> a maternal mortality rate of 36 per 100,000 live births as of 2017,<ref>Macrotrends. [https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CUB/cuba/maternal-mortality-rate ''Cuba maternal mortality rate 2000-2021'']</ref> and a life expectancy of 79 years as of 2021.<ref>Macrotrends. [https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CUB/cuba/life-expectancy ''Cuba life expectancy 1950-2021'']</ref><ref name=":6" />

The rural population in Batista's era suffered from dismal health conditions, having only one rural hospital for the whole island, and only 11% of farm workers drank milk.<ref>C. William Keck, Gail A. Reed (2012). ''The curious case of Cuba''. {{Doi|10.2105/AJPH.2012.300822}}</ref> The infrastructure of households was also extremely underdeveloped under Batista. In a 1953 census, 54% of rural homes had no toilets of any kind. Only 2.3% of rural homes had indoor plumbing, compared with 54.6% of urban homes. In rural areas, 9.1% of houses had electricity, compared with 87% of houses in urban areas. Illiteracy and unemployment were widespread according to the same census, showing that nearly one-quarter of the people 10 years of age and older could not read or write and the unemployment rate was 25%.<ref name=":0" /> In 1958, under the Batista dictatorship, half of Cuba's children did not attend school.<ref>Jonathan Glennie. [https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2011/aug/05/cuban-development-model “Cuba: A development model that proved the doubters wrong”]. ''The Guardian,'' 5 August 2011.</ref>
===Revolutionary movement (1953–1959)===
{{Main article|Cuban Revolution}}
Due to the inertia and inability to govern of the bourgeois political parties, a movement of a new type was born, headed by [[Fidel Castro]], a young lawyer whose first political activities had developed in the university environment and the ranks of orthodoxy. On July 26, 1953, a crew of revolutionaries, including Fidel Castro, assaulted Fort Moncada but failed. Nonetheless, the Cuban working classes were growing increasingly restless, and consequently, the neocolonial government (headed by Fulgencio Batista) suppressed trade unions, strikes, and censored much of the press. The failed attack inspired the creation of The [[26th of July Movement]], a Cuban vanguard revolutionary organization and later a political party led by Fidel Castro.

In 1955, Fidel Castro was introduced to [[Che Guevara]]. During a long conversation with Fidel on the night of their first meeting, Guevara concluded that the Cuban's cause was the one for which he had been searching and before daybreak, he had signed up as a member of the July 26 Movement.

On 2 December 1956, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara along with 82 men landed in Cuba, having sailed in the boat Granma from Tuxpan, Veracruz, [[Mexican United States|Mexico]], ready to organize and lead a revolution. Attacked by Batista's military soon after landing, many of the 82 men were either killed in the attack or executed upon capture; only 22 regrouped in the Sierra Maestra mountain range. While in the Sierra Maestra mountains the guerrilla forces attracted hundreds of Cuban volunteers and won several battles against the Cuban Army. By January of 1959, the Cuban masses had successfully overthrown the neocolonial government and Batista fled to Europe.

The Cuban Revolution was not an explicitly socialist revolution when it began, but was instead a national liberation movement; inspired by Che and his own brother [[Raúl Castro|Raúl]], Fidel Castro announced he was a Marxist–Leninist in 1961, and that the Cuban revolution was now a socialist revolution that adhered to Marxist–Leninist ideology.

===Socialism (1959–present)===
The republic era of Cuba began after the Cuban Revolution successfully took power. Shortly after the victory of the revolution, Cuba carried out a profound agrarian reform which ended ''latifundia'' [a highly unequal land estate system] in the island and distributed land to thousands of formerly landless small farmers. Initiatives in the cities were also made. Urban reform brought a halving of rents for Cuban tenants, opportunities for tenants to own their housing, and an ambitious program of housing construction for those living in marginal shantytowns. New housing, along with the implementation of measures to create jobs and reduce unemployment, especially among women, rapidly transformed the former shantytowns.<ref name=":2">Oxfam (2002). ''Cuba: social policy at the crossroads.'' ([https://s3.amazonaws.com/oxfam-us/www/static/oa3/files/OA-Cuba_Social_Policy_at_Crossroads-en.pdf PDF link])</ref>

The Cuban revolution has also made great strides in eliminating discrimination and inequality. In the last 40 years Cubans have greatly reduced differences in income between the lowest and the highest paid persons. Women have benefited significantly from the revolution as they have educated themselves and entered the labor force in large numbers. The differences among Cubans of different races have also been reduced.<ref name=":2" />

In 1960, [[Anastas Mikoyan]] visited Cuba, and the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Soviet Union]] agreed to buy sugar from Cuba. The Soviet Union gave over $100 million to Cuba to build its chemical industry. Overall, the Soviet Union gave over $600 million to Cuba in addition to hundreds of millions more from Eastern Europe and a $60 million loan with 0% interest from China. The USSR trained over 3,000 Cubans in agricultural science and mechanization and 900 engineers and technicians.<ref name=":022">{{Citation|author=[[Vijay Prashad]]|year=2017|title=Red Star over the Third World|chapter=Colonial Fascism|page=110–113|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzacecu7gb2ei65us6ip3r2ugcgkblneqcftbm456mb6bzvprkbqk55qm?filename=Vijay%20Prashad%20-%20Red%20Star%20Over%20the%20Third%20World-LeftWord%20Books%20%282018%29.pdf|city=New Delhi|publisher=LeftWord Books}}</ref>

Fidel Castro became First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in 1961. He was replaced in 2011 by his brother Raúl Castro. [[Miguel Díaz-Canel]] replaced Raúl in 2021.

==== CIA invasion of the Bay of Pigs and Operation Mongoose ====
In 1961, the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] sent Cuban exiles to attempt a counterrevolution against Castro. They killed over 2,000 Cubans but were defeated and the revolution survived. After the invasion failed, they enacted [[Operation Mongoose]] and secretly performed terrorist attacks against civilians in an attempt to destabilize Cuba. In 1976, reactionary Cuban exiles bombed Cubana de Aviación Flight 455, killing everyone on board.<ref>{{Citation|author=Peter Kornbluh|year=2005|title=LUIS POSADA CARRILES: THE DECLASSIFIED RECORD|chapter=|section=|page=|quote=|pdf=|city=|publisher=|isbn=|doi=|lg=|mia=|title-url=https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB153/|chapter-url=|trans-title=|trans-lang=}}</ref>

==== Attempted colour revolution ====
In 2021, [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] and pro-[[Imperialism|imperialist]] protestors [[2021 Cuban protests|took to the streets]] with support from US entities including the CIA.<ref>https://www.cubasupport.ie/latest/the-cia-insists-on-promoting-a-color-revolution-in-cuba/</ref>

== Economy ==
For decades, Cuba had a Soviet-style planned economy, and like the DPRK, was reluctant to engage in market reforms. However, after the overthrow of the Soviet Union, the resulting loss of economic aid, and Cuba's relative isolation, made it more vulnerable to the sanctions against it and it became dependent on foreign trade and capital; in the late 2000s and early 2010s, it began implementing market reforms. However, in spite of the market reforms, Cuba's economy is largely centrally-planned, as prices and wages are still set by the government. Despite the economic blockade enforced by the US, Cuba has largely succeeded in providing a decent quality of life for its people and maintaining economic development. As of 2020, Cuba has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the world, of just 1.59%.<ref>[https://www.statista.com/statistics/388644/unemployment-rate-in-cuba/ Cuba: Unemployment rate from 1999 to 2020]. ''Statista''.</ref> Compared to the vast majority of developing countries in [[Latin America]], Africa and southern Asia, Cuba scores extremely well on virtually all indicators of socioeconomic development: life expectancy, access to healthcare and housing, education levels, employment rates, status of women and infant mortality rates.<ref>Clifford L. Staten (2005). 'Cuba and its people' in ''The history of Cuba.'' Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9781403962591 ([http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=DE11DAA6342FE92307FDE6B81E5FD1CF Library Genesis link])</ref>

In 2019, the Cuban government began promoting non-agricultural cooperatives to help expand the economy.<ref>[https://en.granma.cu/cuba/2019-09-10/legislation-governing-non-agricultural-cooperatives-updated Legislation governing non-agricultural cooperatives updated] by [[Granma (newspaper)|Granma]], the official newspaper of the [[Communist Party of Cuba]]</ref>

===Exports===
Cuba exports a total of $1.21 billion as of 2019. Its exports are composed of rolled tobacco ($287M), raw sugar ($211M), nickel mattes ($134M), hard liquor ($97.3M), and zinc ore ($78.4M). The most common export destinations are [[People's Republic of China|China]] ($461M), [[Spain]] ($127M), [[Netherlands]] ($65.5M), [[Germany]] ($64.7M), and [[Cyprus]] ($48.9M).<ref name=":4" />

===Imports===
Cuba imports a total of $5.28 billion as of 2019. Its imports are composed of machinery and appliances ($884M), poultry meat ($286M), wheat ($181M), soybean meal ($167M), corn ($146M), and concentrated milk ($136M). The most common import partners for Cuba are Spain ($1.01B), China ($790M), [[Italy]] ($327M), [[Canada]] ($285M), and [[Russia]] ($285M).<ref name=":4" /> The Cuban economy is heavily reliant on food imports, with 70% to 80% of its food requirement being imported from outside.<ref name=":5" />

===Sustainable development and environmental preservation===
[[File:Human Development vs Ecological Footprint.jpg|alt=Graph showing that Cuba excels in having a low ecological for its high human development index |thumb|Human Development vs Ecological Footprint, showing that Cuba is among the most ecologically friendly countries compared to its HDI rating]]
Cuba is the most sustainably developed country worldwide, achieving high levels of social performance with low levels of ecological impact.<ref>Jason Hickel (2019). ''The sustainable development index: Measuring the ecological efficiency of human development in the anthropocene.'' Ecological Economics. {{Doi|10.1016/j.ecolecon.2019.05.011}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|author=World Wildlife Fund|title=The Other Cuban Revolution|title-url=https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?1944/the-other-cuban-revolution}}</ref><ref>[https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/As-World-Burns-Cuba-Number-1-for-Sustainable-Development-WWF-20161027-0018.html As world burns, Cuba number 1 for sustainable development: WWF]. ''Telesur''.</ref>

== Politics ==
In the constitution of Cuba, the [[Communist Party of Cuba]] (PCC) is the "superior leading political force of society and the state",<ref>''2019 Constitution of Republic of Cuba''. Article 5. [http://www.cubadebate.cu/cuba/constitucion-republica-cuba/ Link (Spanish)]</ref> and its role is fundamental in setting the country's national policy, but it shares power with several other state organs:

* [[National Assembly of People's Power]] (NAPP),<ref group="lower-alpha">Spanish: Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular</ref> considered the maximum authority of the state, mainly exercises legislative functions.<ref>''2019 Constitution of Republic of Cuba''. Articles 102 & 103. [http://www.cubadebate.cu/cuba/constitucion-republica-cuba/ Link (Spanish)]</ref>
The National Assembly of People's Power is the supreme organ of State power. It represents and expresses the sovereign will of all the people. It is the only body with constituent and legislative power in the Republic. It is made up of deputies elected by the free, direct and secret vote of the voters, in the proportion and according to the procedure determined by law.

It is elected for a five-year term. This term may only be extended by agreement of the Assembly itself in case of war or by virtue of other exceptional circumstances that prevent the normal holding of the elections and while such circumstances subsist.

When constituting itself for a new legislature, it elects its President, Vice President and Secretary from among its deputies. The law regulates the form and procedure by which the Assembly is constituted and carries out that election. The National Assembly of People's Power elects, from among its deputies, the Council of State, made up of a President, a First Vice President, five Vice Presidents, a Secretary and twenty-three other members. The President of the Council of State is head of state and head of government.

The Council of State is responsible to the National Assembly of People's Power and renders an account of all its activities. Local Bodies of Popular Power The Assemblies of Popular Power, constituted in the political-administrative demarcations into which the national territory is divided, are the local superior bodies of State power, and, consequently, are invested with the highest authority for the exercise of state functions in their respective demarcations and for this, within the framework of their competence, and adjusting to the law, they exercise government. In addition, they contribute to the development of activities and compliance with the plans of the units established in their territory that are not subordinate to them, in accordance with the provisions of the law. The Local Administrations that these Assemblies constitute, direct the economic, production and service entities of local subordination, with the purpose of satisfying the economic, health and other welfare, educational, cultural, sports and recreational needs of the community of the territory to which the jurisdiction of each extends. For the exercise of their functions, the Local Assemblies of People's Power rely on the People's Councils and on the initiative and broad participation of the population, and they act in close coordination with the mass and social organizations.

The Popular Councils are constituted in cities, towns, neighborhoods, and rural areas; they are invested with the highest authority for the performance of their duties; they represent the demarcation where they operate and at the same time are representatives of the municipal, provincial and national bodies of Popular Power. They actively work for efficiency in the development of production and service activities and for the satisfaction of the welfare, economic, educational, cultural and social needs of the population, promoting their greater participation and local initiatives to solve problems. their problems. They coordinate the actions of existing entities in their area of action, promote cooperation between them and exercise control and supervision of their activities. The Popular Councils are constituted from the delegates elected in the circumscriptions, who must choose among themselves who presides over them. The representatives of the mass organizations and the most important institutions in the demarcation can belong to them.
* Council of State,<ref group="lower-alpha">Spanish: Consejo de Estado</ref> an organ of the National Assembly which implements the decisions of NAPP and exercises control and oversight of state organs.<ref>''2019 Constitution of Republic of Cuba''. Article 120–122. [http://www.cubadebate.cu/cuba/constitucion-republica-cuba/ Link (Spanish)]</ref>
The Council of State is the body of the National Assembly of People's Power that represents it between one session and another, executes its agreements and fulfills the other functions that the Constitution attributes to it. It has a collegial character and, for national and international purposes, holds the supreme representation of the Cuban State. All the decisions of the Council of State are adopted by the favorable vote of the simple majority of its members. The mandate entrusted to the Council of State by the National Assembly of People's Power expires when the new Council of State elected by virtue of its periodic renewals takes office.
* Council of Ministers,<ref group="lower-alpha">Spanish: Consejo de Ministros</ref> exercises the executive functions and directs political, economical, cultural, scientific and social activities based on the decisions of the NAPP.<ref>''2019 Constitution of Republic of Cuba''. Articles 133–137. [http://www.cubadebate.cu/cuba/constitucion-republica-cuba/ Link (Spanish)]</ref>
The Council of Ministers is the highest executive and administrative body and constitutes the Government of the Republic. The number, name and functions of the central ministries and agencies that are part of the Council of Ministers is determined by law. It is made up of the Head of State and Government, who is its President, the First Vice President, the Vice Presidents, the Ministers, the Secretary and the other members determined by law. The President, the First Vice President, the Vice Presidents and other members of the Council of Ministers determined by the President, make up its Executive Committee. The Executive Committee can decide on the issues attributed to the Council of Ministers, during the periods that mediate between one and another of its meetings. The law regulates the organization and functioning of the Council of Ministers. The Council of Ministers is responsible and renders an account, periodically, of all its activities before the National Assembly of People's Power.
* National Defense Council,<ref group="lower-alpha">Spanish: Consejo Nacional de Defensa</ref> is constituted and prepared since peacetime to lead the country in the conditions of a state of war, during war, general mobilization or a state of emergency.<ref>''2019 Constitution of Republic of Cuba''. Articles 218–219. [http://www.cubadebate.cu/cuba/constitucion-republica-cuba/ Link (Spanish)]</ref>

=== Elections ===
[[File:Cuban election.png|thumb|Elementary schoolers guarding a ballot box in La Corbata]]
Elections in Cuba take place at three levels: municipal, provincial and national. There are also two types of elections: general and partial. All citizens and permanent residents sixteen years and older are allowed to vote, without any registration or effort on the part of the citizens. In order to make elections fair, candidates cannot spend money on their campaigns.<ref name=":9">{{Web citation|author=Calla Walsh|newspaper=[[Multipolarista]]|title=US youth observe Cuba’s elections – and learn about real democracy|date=2022-12-02|url=https://multipolarista.com/2022/12/02/cuba-elections-democracy/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221204145258/https://multipolarista.com/2022/12/02/cuba-elections-democracy/|archive-date=2022-12-04|retrieved=2022-12-04}}</ref> The PCC is not involved in either nominating or electing candidates,<ref name=":8">{{Citation|author=Arnold August|year=2013|title=Cuba and its neighbours: democracy in motion|chapter=Elections in contemporary Cuba|lg=http://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=79273783E814B6A8747EA24710D15F0C}}</ref> and party membership is not required to run for office. The most recent elections had a voter turnout rate of 73%, and elections are always held on weekends so people do not have to choose between work and voting. Each municipality must have at least two candidates running for election so no one runs unopposed. If no candidate wins a majority, a runoff occurs the following week.<ref name=":9" />

==== Nominations ====
The [[Committees in Defense of the Revolution]], with more than 8.4 million members, and the the [[Cuban Federation of Women]], which includes more than 85% of Cuban women 15 and older, nominate candidates for elections.<ref name=":9" />

==== Partial elections ====
The partial elections happen every two and a half years at the municipal level.<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=Granma|title=How do elections work in Cuba?|date=2018-02-20|url=https://en.granma.cu/cuba/2018-02-20/how-do-elections-work-in-cuba}}</ref> Through the neighborhood constituencies, neighbors directly nominate people from among themselves by show-of-hands, and from among these nominees, citizens elect delegates to the Municipal Assembly of People's Power via secret ballot.<ref name=":8" />

==Governance==
===Education===
Cuba has a public education system from the primary to the superior levels, free to its citizens. Around 12% of Cuba's GDP is invested in public education, the highest percentage on GDP devoted to education worldwide.<ref>World Bank (2010). ''[https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS?locations=CU&most_recent_value_desc=true Cuba – Government expenditure on education, total (% of GDP)]''.</ref> The literacy rate of the adult population is 99.75%, the highest in Latin America.<ref>World Bank (2012). [https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS?locations=CU ''Cuba – Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above)''].</ref> One of the most significant developments in Cuban education was the National Literacy Campaign of 1961, spearheaded by [[Che Guevara]], a campaign recognized as one of the most successful initiatives of its kind, which mobilized teachers, workers, and secondary school students to teach more than 700,000 persons how to read. This campaign reduced the illiteracy rate from 23% to 4% in the space of one year.<ref name=":2" />

===Healthcare===
Cuba's healthcare system is based on public investment and universal provision. Around 11% of its GDP is devoted to healthcare, the highest among Latin American countries.<ref>Richard S. Cooper, Joan F Kennelly, Pedro Orduñez-Garcia (2006). ''Health in Cuba.'' International Journal of Epidemiology. {{Doi|10.1093/ije/dyl175}}</ref> As a result of this, free healthcare is guaranteed for all citizens, and Cuba's health indicators are highly ranked both regionally and globally.<ref name=":0" /> Besides the investment, another important factor of success in Cuban healthcare model is its strategy.<ref>Richard S. Cooper, Joan F Kennelly, Pedro Orduñez-Garcia (2006). ''Health in Cuba.'' International Journal of Epidemiology. {{Doi|10.1093/ije/dyl175}}</ref> Cuban doctors focus on preventative medicine to prevent disease before it occurs.<ref>{{News citation|author=Jack Guy|newspaper=Culture Trip|title=Why Cuba Has the Best Doctors in the World|date=2017-11-29|url=https://theculturetrip.com/caribbean/cuba/articles/why-cuba-has-the-best-doctors-in-the-world/|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref> Cuban medicine has made some impressive achievements, such as eliminating mother-to-child HIV and syphilis transmission<ref name=":3" /> and creating a vaccine for lung cancer.<ref>{{News citation|author=Sarah Zhang|newspaper=The Atlantic|title=Cuba's Innovative Cancer Vaccine Is Finally Coming to America|date=2016-11-07|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/11/cubas-lung-cancer-vaccine/505778/|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref>

In 2008, Cuba authorized free sex reassignment surgery for [[Transphobia|transgender people]].<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=[[BBC]]|title=Cuba to provide free sex-change|date=2008-06-07|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7441448.stm|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref>

In the Cuban capitol city of Havana, the Latin American School of Medicine offers free tuition, accommodation, and board. Some Statesian students attend this school.<ref>{{News citation|date=2022-02-02|title=Meet the U.S. Students Studying Medicine For Free in Cuba|url=https://youtu.be/h7g2T3BWg9E|newspaper=[[Breakthrough News]]}}</ref>
====Nutrition====
With a rate of undernourishment of only 2.5%,<ref>World Bank (2018). ''[https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SN.ITK.DEFC.ZS?locations=CU Cuba – Prevalence of undernourishment (% of population)].''</ref> Cuba is one of only 17 nations worldwide to have a score lower than 5 on the Global Hunger Index.<ref>Global Hunger Index (2020. ''[https://www.globalhungerindex.org/cuba.html Cuba].''</ref> Statesians are more than twice as likely to die from malnutrition than Cubans.<ref>Our World in Data (2017). ''[https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/malnutrition-death-rates?tab=chart&country=CUB+USA Death rate from malnutrition, 1990 to 2017 (Cuba and United States)].''</ref>

Over the last 50 years, comprehensive social protection programs have largely eradicated poverty and hunger. Food-based social safety nets include a monthly food basket for the entire population, school feeding programs, and mother-and-child health care programs.<ref name=":5">United Nations World Food Program. [https://www1.wfp.org/countries/cuba ''Cuba''].</ref> The average Cuban consumes approx. 3300 calories per day, far above the Latin American and Caribbean average. Approx. 2/3 of nutritional needs are met by monthly food rations, while the rest is bought independently.<ref>FAS, USDA (2008). ''Cuba’s food & agriculture situation report.'' ([https://thecubaneconomy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Cuba%E2%80%99s-Food-Agriculture-Situation-Report-USDA-2008.pdf PDF link])</ref>

== Family code ==
On September 25th, 2022, Cuba enacted a progressive Families Code through a popular referendum. The code legalizes same-gender marriage and adoption, ensures free and accessible abortions, and recognizes various family structures. It mandates shared housework, strengthens domestic violence protections, and grants the right to choose caretakers with legal safeguards. The law challenges the perception of [[disability]], emphasizing societal barriers. Children gain more autonomy, replacing "parental authority" with "parental responsibility." The democratic process involved extensive public discussions, with the National Assembly revising the code 25 times based on people's feedback before unanimous approval and popular ratification.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Fight Back! News|title=The Cuban people approve revolutionary Families Code|date=2022-09-27|url=https://fightbacknews.org/articles/cuban-people-approve-revolutionary-families-code|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240203163224/https://fightbacknews.org/articles/cuban-people-approve-revolutionary-families-code|archive-date=2024-02-03|retrieved=2024-02-03}}</ref> Initially, both maternity and paternity leave spanned 12 months. However, in 2024, they were extended to 15 months with full pay, and the prerequisite of having worked for 75 days to access economic and social benefits was eliminated.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Prensa Latina|title=Cuba approves increase of social benefits for maternity|date=2024-01-24|url=https://www.plenglish.com/news/2024/01/24/cuba-approves-increase-of-social-benefits-for-maternity/|archive-url=/web/20240203165318/https://www.plenglish.com/news/2024/01/24/cuba-approves-increase-of-social-benefits-for-maternity/|archive-date=2024-02-03|retrieved=2024-02-03}}</ref>

==Common misconceptions==

===Cuban "exiles" to the USA===
A common [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] trope against Cuban socialism is the question of Cuban immigrants who depart to the US. Socialism in Cuba is portrayed as a dystopia which fuels migrants to look for an alternative in the [[United States of America|United States]]. The first wave of migrants happened in 1959 to 1962, just after the Cuban Revolution, motivated by the political turmoil in the island. The vast majority of these migrants were allies of the Batista dictatorship, including military officers, large landowners or wealthy business owners who lost their property in the island,<ref name=":7">{{Textcite|author=Jorge Duany|year=1999|title=Cuban communities in the United States: migration waves, settlement patterns and socioeconomic diversity|pdf=|publisher=Pouvoirs dans la Caraïbe|lg=|web=https://journals.openedition.org/plc/464}}</ref> prompting the bourgeois media to dub it as the "Golden exile." The second wave of migrants happened from 1965 to 1973, and the migrants still over-represented the wealthy sections population. Together, these two migrant waves represent over 51% of all population migrated from Cuba to the United States.<ref name=":7" />

The exile narrative also omits the fact that there is a circular migration and return of many of the migrated. The "exile" narrative is a remnant of the [[Cold War]] era, a propaganda narrative used to belittle and distort the Cuban reality.<ref>{{Textcite|author=Katarzyna Dembicz|year=2020|title=The end of the myth of the Cuban exile? Current trends in Cuban emigration|pdf=http://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/international/article/download/9429/9286|publisher=International Studies. Interdisciplinary Political and Cultural Journal. Vol. 25, No. 1/2020|lg=}}</ref> Besides the political motivation behind the first waves of migration, since the 90s there is an economic reason behind the migration waves, mainly related to the blockade promoted by the US and the [[overthrow of the Soviet Union]], which immensely affected the Cuban economy.

== Further reading ==

* [[:Category:Library works about Cuba|All library works about Cuba]]

== External links ==

* [https://www.gacetaoficial.gob.cu/sites/default/files/goc-2022-o99.pdf 2022 Family Code]

==References==
<references />

=== Notes ===
<references group="lower-alpha" />
[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Global south]]
[[Category:Marxist-Leninist states]]
[[Category:Cuba]]
[[Category:Countries sanctioned by the US]]
[[Category:Countries targeted by imperialist aggression]]
[[Category:Countries invaded by the United States]]

Democratic People's Republic of Korea

2025-11-21T19:06:08Z

162.200.14.56: DPRK is a socialist state, not a people's republic/people's democratic state.

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{{Infobox country
| name = Democratic People's Republic of Korea
| native_name = 조선민주주의인민공화국
| image_coat = Emblem of the DPRK.svg
| image_flag = Flag of the DPRK.svg
| symbol_type = Emblem
|national_anthem=애국가 ''Aegukka'' ("The Patriotic Song")| image_map = Democratic People's Republic of Korea (orthographic_projection).svg
| map_caption = Territories of Korea presently occupied by the United States are shown in light green.
| map_width = 220px
| capital = [[Pyongyang]]
| largest_city = capital
|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]| government_type = Unitary ''[[Juche]]'' [[socialist state]]
| established_event2 = Founding of the DPRK
| established_date2 = 9 September 1948
| established_event1 = Start of partial US occupation
| established_date1 = 8 September 1945
|area_km2=120,540| population_estimate = 25,845,400 (77,048,000 including Koreans under [[neocolonialism|neocolonial]] occupation)
| population_estimate_year = 2020
|unemployment=2.8%<ref name="UNdata">UNData (2021). ''[https://data.un.org/en/iso/kp.html DPRK – UNData]''</ref>|GDP_nominal=$16.3 billion<ref name="UNdata">UNData (2021). ''[https://data.un.org/en/iso/kp.html DPRK – UNData]''</ref>|GDP_nominal_per_capita=$639.6<ref name="UNdata">UNData (2021). ''[https://data.un.org/en/iso/kp.html DPRK – UNData]''</ref>|GDP_nominal_year=2021|export=$1.1 billion<ref name="UNdata">UNData (2021). ''[https://data.un.org/en/iso/kp.html DPRK – UNData]''</ref>|export_year=2020|import=$3.46 billion<ref name="UNdata">UNData (2021). ''[https://data.un.org/en/iso/kp.html DPRK – UNData]''</ref>|import_year=2020|HDI=.785 (High)|currency=Korean People's Won|currency_code=KPW|drives_on=right|calling_code=+850|iso3166code=KP|cctld=.kp| leader_title1 = General Secretary of the Workers' Party
| leader_name1 = [[Kim Jong-un]]
| leader_title2 = President of the Presidium
| leader_name2 = [[Choe Ryong-hae]]
| leader_title3 = First Vice Chairman of the State Affairs Commission
| leader_name3 = Choe Ryong-hae
| leader_title4 = Premier of the Cabinet
| leader_name4 = [[Kim Tok-hun]]
| leader_title5 = Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly
| leader_name5 = Pak Thae-song
}}
The '''Democratic People's Republic of Korea''' ('''DPRK'''; Korean: 조선민주주의인민공화국, ''Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk''), sometimes referred to as '''People's Korea''' and incorrectly, but best-known, as '''North Korea''', is a socialist country in [[East Asia]]. [[Korea]] is one nation, but the southern half of Korea is occupied by the [[United States of America|US]]-backed [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] [[Republic of Korea]], also known as Capitalist Korea. DPRK's capital city is [[Pyongyang]].

The DPRK is led by the [[Workers' Party of Korea]] (WPK) and the [[Democratic Front for the Reunification of Korea]]. According to its constitution, the DPRK is an "independent [[socialist state]]", guided by the ideology of [[Juche]] which is a derivative of [[Marxism–Leninism|Marxism–Leninism]] originally codified by [[Kim Il-sung|Kim Il-Sung]].<ref>Articles 1 and 3 of the [https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Peoples_Republic_of_Korea_1998.pdf?lang=en Constitution of the DPRK]</ref>

While the DPRK distanced itself from [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics|USSR]]'s ideological leadership in the 1960s, some authors still consider it a [[Marxism–Leninism|Marxist–Leninist]] socialist state.<ref>{{Textcite|author=Thomas Stock|year=2019|title=North Korea’s Marxism-Leninism: fraternal criticisms and the development of North Korean ideology in the 1960s|pdf=|lg=http://libgen.gs/scimag/ads.php?doi=10.1215%2F21581665-7258081&downloadname=|doi=10.1215/21581665-7258081}}</ref>

In 2017, DPRK's Minister of Foreign affairs, Ri Yong Ho, stated at the [[United Nations]] General Assembly that "The U.S. had put [[Economic sanctions|sanctions]] against our country from the very first day of its foundation, and the over 70-year long history of the DPRK can be said in a sense a history of struggle, persevering along the road of self-development under the harshest sanctions in the world." Ri also stated that the essence of the situation of the Korean peninsula is a confrontation between the DPRK and the US, where the DPRK tries to defend its national dignity and sovereignty against the hostile policy and nuclear threats of the US, and points out that it was the US who first introduced [[Nuclear weapon|nuclear weapons]] to the Korean peninsula. Ri stated that "The very reason the DPRK had to possess nuclear weapons is because of the U.S., and it had to strengthen and develop its nuclear force onto the current level to cope with the U.S. [...] Our national nuclear force is, to all intents and purposes, a war deterrent for putting an end to nuclear threat of the U.S. and for preventing its military invasion".<ref name=":0">Ri Yong Ho, DPRK Minister for Foreign Affairs. [https://gadebate.un.org/sites/default/files/gastatements/72/kp_en.pdf "Statement by H.E. Mr. RI YONG HO, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea at the General Debate of the 72 Session of the United Nations General Assembly."] New York, 23rd September 2017. gadebate.un.org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220709114619/https://gadebate.un.org/sites/default/files/gastatements/72/kp_en.pdf Archived] 2022-08-28.</ref>

Minister Ri also clarified DPRK's nuclear policy by quoting [[Kim Jong-un]] as saying that international justice can only be achieved when the [[Anti-imperialism|anti-imperialist]] independent countries are strong enough, and that possession of nuclear deterrence by the DPRK is a righteous self-defensive measure taken as an ultimate option, pursuant to this principle, and further clarified that the DPRK "do[es] not have any intention at all to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against the countries that do not join in the U.S. military actions against the DPRK."<ref name=":0" />

DPRK representative Kim Song stated at the 2021 UN General Assembly, "If the U.S. wants to see the Korean war, the most prolonged and long-lasting war in the world, come to an end, and if it is really desirous of peace and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula, it should take the first step towards giving up its hostile policy against the DPRK by stopping permanently the joint military exercises and the deployment of all kinds of strategic weapons which are levelled at the DPRK in and around the Korean peninsula."<ref name=":1">Kim Song. [https://estatements.unmeetings.org/estatements/10.0010/20210927/f9hI1UVcyVQ6/Ina2tpqa5rlW_en.pdf "Statement by Head of the DPRK Delegation H.E. Mr. KIM SONG, Permanent Representative of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the United Nations At the General Debate of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly."] New York, 27 September 2021. UNmeetings.org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220828072554/https://estatements.unmeetings.org/estatements/10.0010/20210927/f9hI1UVcyVQ6/Ina2tpqa5rlW_en.pdf Archived] 2022-08-28.</ref>

In 1965 [[Che Guevara]] said that the DPRK "was a model to which revolutionary [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]] should aspire".<ref>{{Web citation|author=Stephen Gowans|newspaper=What's Left|title=Understanding North Korea|date=2007-03-03|url=https://gowans.blog/2007/03/03/understanding-north-korea/|archive-url=https://archive.is/2esBE|archive-date=2022-08-19|retrieved=2025-08-21}}</ref><ref>{{Textcite|author=Bruce Cumings|year=2005|title=Korea’s place in the sun: a modern history|pdf=|publisher=W.W. Norton & Company; p. 404|lg=}}</ref>

==History==

=== Early history and Japanese occupation ===
{{Main article|Korea}}

===Division of Korea===
Following the defeat of [[Japanese Empire|Japan]] and the end of the [[Second World War]], Japan lost control of its colonies, including what was formerly the [[Korean Empire]]. As a result of negotiations between the Soviet Union and the United States, the [[Korea|Korean Peninsula]] was divided into occupation zones along the 38th Parallel North. Although there was an attempt at establishing the [[People's Republic of Korea]], the nascent state was outlawed by U.S. forces. In the northern zone, the Soviets allowed Koreans to govern themselves, and a system of people's committees developed into a full provisional government.<ref name=":12">{{Citation|author=Stephen Gowans|year=2018|title=Patriots, Traitors and Empires: The Story of Korea’s Struggle for Freedom|chapter=The Patriot State|page=88–93|pdf=https://ipfs.io/ipfs/bafykbzaced4iiga4ngtxusr2civjxewbili5jne2sbpefbx2s3im2kphattzc?filename=Stephen%20Gowans%20-%20Patriots%2C%20Traitors%20and%20Empires_%20The%20Story%20of%20Korea%E2%80%99s%20Struggle%20for%20Freedom-Baraka%20Books%20%282018%29.pdf|city=Montreal|publisher=Baraka Books|isbn=9781771861427|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=8435F6FF91279531705764823FDC2A7F}}</ref> Originally, the division of Korea was not intended to be an actual dividing line nor a border to split the country, but simply meant as designated areas where Soviet and U.S. forces would be temporarily assisting Korea as it stabilized after liberation from Japan and formed an independent Korean state. However, the U.S. sought to prolong Korea's division in order to form Korea into a state subordinate to U.S. interests, pushing for separate elections in the south despite opposition from the [[The people|masses]] and despite attempts among the Korean populace to form a unified nation.<ref name=":9" />

Under conditions in which the U.S. imperialists were occupying south Korea and foreign and domestic [[Reactionary|reactionaries]] were gathered together in the occupied zone and opposing the founding of a unified independent Korean state, the policy of constructing a powerful democratic base in the northern half of Korea was adopted. The formation of a broad united front to rally the masses of people in all walks of life was the first question to be solved. Thus, early in 1946, a [[united front]] was formed of different parties and groupings, democratic forces of various social strata.<ref name=":9" />

=== Democratic and economic reforms in the north ===
On the basis of the people's committees, the Provisional People's Committee of North Korea (Korean: 북조선림시인민위원회; Hanja: 北朝鮮臨時人民委員會) was formed on February 8 of 1946.<ref>[https://dprktoday.com/news/43457 "북조선림시인민위원회." ("North Korea Provisional People's Committee.")] 조선의 오늘, 주체109(2020)년 2월 8일. DPRK Today, February 8, Juche 109 (2020). [https://web.archive.org/web/20231004150520/https://dprktoday.com/news/43457 Archived] 2023-10-05.</ref><ref>[https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0070131 “북조선임시인민위원회(北朝鮮臨時人民委員會).”] Encyclopedia of Korean Culture. [[Archived]] 2023-10-05.</ref> The leaders of the Korean resistance agreed to make Kim Il-sung the new leader of Korea, and he became president of the provisional government on 8 February 1946.<ref name=":12" />

In March of 1946, the [[20-Point Platform]] (Korean: 20개조정강) for realizing Korea's [[Anti-imperialism|anti-imperialist]], anti-[[Feudalism|feudal]] [[Democracy|democratic]] reforms was announced, including such items as thorough liquidation of all remnants of Japanese imperialist rule, waging an implacable struggle against reactionary and anti-democratic elements, carrying out land reform, [[Nationalization|nationalizing]] important industries, direct and equal suffrage, and the institution of free medical care for the poor, among other points.<ref>Kim Han Gil. [https://archive.org/details/ModernHistoryOfKorea/page/n1/mode/2up "Modern History of Korea."] Foreign Languages Publishing House. Pyongyang, Korea, 1979.</ref><ref>[http://www.jajusibo.com/58698 <nowiki>“[헌법으로 보는 북한-서문] 사회 전 분야의 방향이 제시된 20개조 정강.” ("[North Korea as seen through the Constitution - Preface] A 20-point platform that sets out the direction for all areas of society.")</nowiki>] 자주시보, 2022-02-25. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220707211557/http://www.jajusibo.com/58698 Archived] 2022-07-07.</ref><ref name=":15">[https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=767 <nowiki>“[북 현대사] 북조선림시인민위원회와 토지개혁 (4).” ("[North Korea Modern History] North Korea Provisional People’s Committee and Land Reform (4)")</nowiki>] 통일시대. April 6, 2022. [https://web.archive.org/web/20231004152620/https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=767 Archived] 2023-10-04.</ref> On November 3, 1946, the first democratic election in the history of Korea was held in the north, and the People's Committee of North Korea (Korean: 북조선인민위원회; Hanja: 北朝鮮人民委員會), which was no longer provisional, was created in February of 1947, functioning as the organ of the [[dictatorship of the proletariat]].<ref name=":9" />

The new government redistributed land from [[Landlord|landlords]] and Japanese officials to [[Peasantry|peasants]], nationalized large companies, shortened the work day to eight hours (seven for dangerous occupations), banned [[Child labour|child labor]], established social security and paid vacations, and enforced gender equality.<ref name=":12" />

As a result of land reform, feudal landownership, which was the social and economic base of the undemocratic reactionary forces, was done away with in the rural villages of the north. At the time, the matter of land reform was of great concern, due to a large percentage of Korea's population being peasant farmers, many engaged in [[sharecropping]] and being [[Exploitation|exploited]] in feudal relations as well as by Japanese colonialism.<ref name=":15" /> In addition to land reform, the nationalization of key industries was undertaken, wiping out the political and economic bases of imperialists and domestic reactionaries and promoting the general rehabilitation and development of the national economy in the wake of the Japanese colonial period. The Provisional People's Committee implemented the Law on the Nationalization of Important Industries in August 1946. Under it, all large factories, mines, power stations, railway transport, telecommunication facilities, banks and commercial and cultural establishments were made the property of the Korean people. Factories and other enterprises which had been owned by pro-Japanese elements were confiscated without compensation and became the property of the people, to be used for their own benefit rather than for the extraction of Korea's wealth for imperial Japan's benefit. Democratic reforms, beginning with the Labor Law and the Law on the Equality of the Sexes, were enforced, putting an end to unlimited exploitation of the working class and liberating women from feudal subordination.<ref name=":9" />

Author [[Kim Byong Sik]] describes the changes in social, economic, and class relations in the north during this time, noting that as a result of the reforms following liberation, capitalist economic relations were reduced to a small scale in limited areas of the economy, while socialist economic relations became dominant in all areas of the economy:<blockquote>Radical changes were effected in social, economic and class relations in the northern half of the Republic, a people’s democratic system was established and a powerful revolutionary base for an all-Korea victory was founded. In other words, all colonial and semi-feudal components were removed, and socialist economic relations, based on state and cooperative economy, came to occupy a leading position in all areas of the people’s economy, with capitalist relations confined to only small commodity production by private farms and handicraft enterprises in urban areas and to some commerce and small-scale industry. Concerning class relations, landlords, comprador capitalists, pro-Japanese elements and traitors were eliminated and working people became the masters of the country, the leading role of the working class increased and the worker-peasant alliance was consolidated. In this way, the balance of forces developed decisively in favor of the revolution.<ref name=":9" /></blockquote>As the above author later notes, by 1947 state-controlled industry accounted for 80.2% of industrial output, and private industry for only 19.8% of industrial output. In addition, mining was completely state-controlled. Industrial production jumped 70 per cent, and labor productivity 51 per cent, in fiscal 1947 in comparison with the previous year. 1947 was the first year in which an [[Planned economy|economic plan]] was implemented. 1948 also saw a successfully implemented economic plan.

=== Founding of Korean People's Army ===
The Provisional People's Committee trained national cadres and prepared a revolutionary armed force to defend the people's democratic system, establishing the [[Korean People's Army]] on February 8, 1948.

=== Reactionary regime forms in the south ===
Throughout this time, reactionary and imperialist forces in the U.S.-occupied portion of Korea had been seeking ways to prolong Korea's division in order to form a state which was subordinate to U.S. interests and in which anti-communist forces would remain in power. As democratic reforms were taking place in the north and the base of power was being removed from feudal landlords, Japanese collaborators, and other reactionary forces in the north, the reactionaries were moving south, some of them forming right-wing anti-communist paramilitary groups such as the [[Northwest Youth League]] (Korean: 서북청년회), who later committed atrocities against ordinary citizens in the name of the southern regime, and many of whom went on to become police and members of the local government.<ref>Flenniken, Lauren. [https://www.jejuweekly.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1435 “The Northwest Youth League.”] Jejuweekly.com. 2011-04-10. [https://web.archive.org/web/20231005035904/https://www.jejuweekly.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1435 Archived] 2023-10-05.</ref> Among the imperialists' plans was the plan to hold a separate election in the south, which was opposed by many of the Korean masses.

In this context, Kim Il Sung submitted the draft Provisional Constitution of Korea for discussion by all the people north and south and he proposed the election of an all-Korea supreme legislative assembly through a general, direct, equal and secret ballot. At the same time he called on the political parties and social organizations of south Korea to hold a south-north joint conference to oppose the separate election and to discuss ways and means of saving the nation. In response to this call, a joint conference was held in Pyongyang on April 20, 1948, with attendants representing a range of political orientations. A resolution was adopted to boycott the separate elections. At the time of the controversial separate election held in May 1948, more than 140 polling stations and a number of police stations were destroyed and burned. The U.S.-backed southern regime resorted to fascist terror to suppress the opposition. After proceeding with the elections, the regime formed as a puppet regime consisting of collaborators, landlords, and subservient capitalists.<ref name=":9" />

===Founding of the DPRK ===
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea was founded on 9 September 1948. The illegitimate government of the occupied portion of Korea (often referred to as South Korea, or [[Republic of Korea]]) had been established earlier the same year, when dictator [[Syngman Rhee]], who was referred to as an "imported expatriate" and "extreme rightist" in a CIA document of the time,<ref>[https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/220065.pdf?v=d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e "March 18, 1948 Central Intelligence Agency, ORE 15/48, 'The Current Situation in Korea'"]. ''Wilson Center Digital Archive''. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220729051304/https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/220065.pdf?v=d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e Archived] from the original.</ref> came to power due to U.S. influence despite many Koreans opposing the holding of separate elections in the south. In DPRK, Kim Il-Sung became the first [[Premier of the DPRK]], a position he would hold until 1972. DPRK soon requested for U.S. and Soviet troops to leave Korea. The Soviets left on 25 September, but the U.S. occupiers refused to leave.<ref name=":1102">{{Citation|author=Stephen Gowans|year=2018|title=Patriots, Traitors and Empires: The Story of Korea’s Struggle for Freedom|chapter=The Political Partition of Korea|page=114|pdf=https://ipfs.io/ipfs/bafykbzaced4iiga4ngtxusr2civjxewbili5jne2sbpefbx2s3im2kphattzc?filename=Stephen%20Gowans%20-%20Patriots%2C%20Traitors%20and%20Empires_%20The%20Story%20of%20Korea%E2%80%99s%20Struggle%20for%20Freedom-Baraka%20Books%20%282018%29.pdf|city=Montreal|publisher=Baraka Books|isbn=9781771861427|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=8435F6FF91279531705764823FDC2A7F}}</ref>

The Occupied Korean government was hostile to socialism and to the DPRK. Even though Western media accuses the DPRK of initiating the [[Fatherland Liberation War]] (often referred to as the Korean War), numerous acts of violence were perpetrated by the illegitimate southern government that were tantamount to war—namely the [[Jeju Uprising|massacre on Jeju Island]] that targeted communists. The people of Jeju had been protesting the formation of a separate southern regime and the holding of separate elections in the south, but were eventually violently suppressed by the US-backed southern regime. The death toll was composed of thousands of civilians, many of whom were not affiliated with the [[Workers' Party of South Korea]] or communism at all. In addition, the [[Yeosu-Suncheon rebellion]] of 1948 was a rebellion among soldiers in the south who began guerrilla-style fights against the military, as the rebelling soldiers refused to participate in the brutal suppression of the Jeju uprising. Suppression of this rebellion by the southern regime led to hundreds of civilian deaths.<ref>[https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/332032.html “439 Civilians Confirmed Dead in Yeosu-Suncheon Uprising of 1948.”] Jan. 8, 2009. Hankyoreh. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230614174428/https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/332032.html Archived] 2023-06-14.</ref> Furthermore, paramilitary groups from the Republic of Korea illegally crossed the border into the DPRK on multiple occasions.

In DPRK, a two-year economic plan for 1949-1950 was adopted on the basis of the previous plans of 1947 and 1948, with plans for furthering the socialist transformation of the economy as well as the continued correction of distortions in the economy which were the result of the colonial period. However, this plan had to be suspended due to the escalation of the war in 1950.<ref name=":9" />

===Fatherland Liberation War===
[[File:CIA document pages 1 and 2.jpg|thumb|1950 CIA document stating that after the Korean People's Army entered Seoul, more than 50% of students were actively aiding communists, many volunteering for the army, and that the working class of Seoul generally supported the north.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=CIA Reading Room|title=SUBJECT: The Korean Situstion|date=1950-07-19|url=https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/1950-07-19b.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608142706/https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/1950-07-19b.pdf|archive-date=2021-06-08|retrieved=2025-08-21}}</ref>]]
{{Main article|Fatherland Liberation War}}
During the Fatherland Liberation War, DPRK forces almost repelled the illegal occupation army; however, the [[United Nations]] and the United States sent extra forces to fight DPRK troops. Western forces pushed DPRK forces all the way to the border of the newly formed [[China|People's Republic of China]], which had itself repelled reactionary [[Kuomintang]] forces from the [[People's Republic of China|mainland]]. PRC forces intervened to protect Korean sovereignty, repelling Western troops once more as part of the War to Resist the U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea campaign. The majority of the fighting during the rest of the [[Fatherland Liberation War]] took place near the 38th Parallel North, with only minor border changes occurring after a ceasefire was signed. The DPRK technically remains at war with its illegitimate southern neighbour as no truce has been signed between the two.
[[File:Thatched huts go up in flames after B-26 bombers unload napalm bombs on a village near Hanchon, North Korea, on May 10, 1951 (AP photo).png|thumb|Thatched huts go up in flames after B-26 bombers unload napalm bombs on a village near Hanchon, DPRK, on May 10, 1951.]]
Virtually all of the major cities in DPRK were severely damaged and hundreds of thousands of civilians killed by U.S. saturation bombing during the war. The tonnage of bombs dropped on the north was about the same as the total dropped by the U.S. against Japan during the Second World War. By 1952, the bombing was so complete that the U.S. Air Force had run out of targets. According to an AP News article, the U.S. dropped 635,000 tons of bombs on Korea during the war, most of it in the north, including 32,500 tons of [[napalm]]. In the present day, DPRK citizens continue to find unexploded ordinance and be injured by old bombs that were dropped by the US and UN forces, and have to evacuate areas and send in bomb squads where such bombs are found, as well as educate citizens, especially children, about the explosives.<ref>Talmadge, Eric. [https://apnews.com/article/international-news-asia-pacific-ap-top-news-north-korea-dd6256bad51e458cb2e8a1bf64b5c2b6 “64 Years after Korean War, North Still Digging up Bombs.”] AP NEWS. Associated Press. April 22, 2021. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230313163201/https://apnews.com/article/international-news-asia-pacific-ap-top-news-north-korea-dd6256bad51e458cb2e8a1bf64b5c2b6 Archived] 2023-03-13.</ref>

US sanctions on DPRK began in conjunction with the 1950 escalation of the war, with the US imposing an export ban on DPRK and forbidding financial transactions by or on behalf of DPRK. This began with U.S. President [[Harry S. Truman]] ordering naval blockade of Korean coast and imposing a total trade embargo against the DPRK in June of 1950. This was followed by the Trading with the Enemy Act in December 1950, to terminate all US economic contacts with the DPRK and freezing its assets. Truman also imposed an embargo against China, freezing Chinese assets in US at this time. In 1952, an embargo was imposed on all exports of industrial equipment and raw materials.<ref name=":2">Gary Clyde Hufbauer (PIIE), Jeffrey J. Schott (PIIE), Kimberly Ann Elliott (PIIE) and Barbara Oegg (PIIE). [https://www.piie.com/commentary/speeches-papers/case-50-1-and-93-1 “US and UN v. North Korea: Case 50-1 and 93-1.”] 2016. Peterson Institute for International Economics. May 1, 2008. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220909082604/https://www.piie.com/commentary/speeches-papers/case-50-1-and-93-1 Archived] 2022-09-09.

‌</ref>

===Post-Fatherland Liberation War===
[[File:Pyongyang after U.S. Air Force bombing.jpg|thumb|Pyongyang after its destruction by U.S. Air Force bombing during the war.]]
[[File:Chollima monument at night.jpg|thumb|The Chollima Monument at night, with the [[Pyongyang]] skyline in the background.]]
Following the war, the people of DPRK were faced with the task of converting the armistice into a lasting peace, rebuilding the destroyed economy as soon as possible, improving the people's living conditions, and strengthening the country politically, economically, and militarily as the base of the Korean revolution and converting it into a powerful material force for the reunification of Korea.

The sixth plenum of the Central Committee of the Korean Workers' Party was called on August 5, 1953 to consider these pressing tasks. A decision was made to promote postwar rehabilitation and development of the people's economy in three basic stages, according to a proposal by Kim II Sung. The first stage would be a period of six months to a year in which preparations and adjustments would be made for general rehabilitation. In the second stage, a Three Year Plan would be carried out to recover the economy to pre-war levels. In the third stage, a Five Year Plan would be worked out to complete the first stage of industrialization, to lay the foundation for socialist industrialization.<ref name=":9" /> Author Kim Han Gil writes that the general task of laying the foundations of socialism was largely defined in two aspects: [[Relations of production|production relations]] and [[productive forces]]. In the first aspect, the task was to transform all the relations of production along socialist lines. In the second aspect the task was to establish the solid foundation of an independent national economy while laying the foundation for industrialization.<ref>Kim Han Gil. [https://archive.org/details/ModernHistoryOfKorea/mode/1up?q=peasant&view=theater "Modern History of Korea."] Foreign Languages Publishing House, Pyongyang, Korea, 1979.</ref>

A focus was placed on developing heavy industry as a priority, while simultaneously developing light industry and agriculture. Heavy industry was needed in order to maintain an independent national economy and to make the development of light industry and agriculture possible, while light industry and agriculture were necessary for improving the living conditions of the people, impoverished by the wartime destruction.<ref name=":9" />

After nine months, the first stage of the three-stage recovery and development plan was successfully carried out. During this stage, several thousands of temporary houses were built in the towns and countryside and rehabilitation and construction in the countryside were started. Prices were lowered, cities began being rebuilt, factories were restored and repaired, and various industrial and agricultural enterprises went into operation, beginning with the Kangson Steel Works, Songjin Steel Works, Sunghori Cement Factory and Komusan Cement Factory, with various enterprises in light industry such as Nampo Glass Factory and Pyongyang Spinning Mill being prepared for full-scale operation.<ref name=":9" />

Following this preparatory stage, the Party proposed a Three Year Plan for 1954-1956, the second stage of the recovery and development plan adopted after the war's end. The Three Year Plan aimed to restore the economy to pre-war levels, further raise the peoples' living standards, as well as correct the distortions of the economy resulting from the Japanese colonial period, and to continue developing heavy industry to lay a basis for socialist industrialization. The plan aimed to increase industrial production beyond 1949 levels, to produce grain at 1949 levels (the highest recorded previous grain production), further mechanization of agriculture, and to double the output of foodstuff and daily necessities compared to 1949 levels, as well as a five-fold increase in the production of cotton fabrics and a three-fold increase in production of rubber shoes. According to ''Modern Korea'', these aims were met in two years and four months, and by the end of January 1955, industrial production of state-run and cooperative enterprises exceeded the level set for 1956 in the Three Year Plan. Additionally, on the basis of results accomplished during an experimental period in 1953-1954, the trend toward agricultural cooperatives was phased into a mass movement in 1956, and by the end of February 1956, 14,651 agricultural cooperatives were organized, comprising 65.2% of total farm households and accounting for 62.1% of the total land under cultivation.<ref name=":9" />

After the armistice agreement, the US continued to prohibit all US economic contacts with DPRK in line with its general strategic controls against socialist countries.<ref name=":2" />

In 1988, South Korean and the US eased isolation of People's Korea by opening bilateral dialogue and allowing limited export of goods to the North for humanitarian purposes. Some travel restrictions were also lifted on a case-by-case basis. However, in that same year, DPRK was added to the [[U.S. State Department]] [[State Sponsors of Terrorism]] list.<ref name=":3">[https://nodutdol.org/sanctions-of-empire/ "제국의 제재 - Sanctions of Empire."] Nodutdol. October 20, 2020. [https://nodutdol.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Sanctions-of-Empire.pdf PDF]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220520095404/https://nodutdol.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Sanctions-of-Empire.pdf Archive].</ref><ref>[https://www.state.gov/reports/country-reports-on-terrorism-2019/democratic-peoples-republic-of-korea/ “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”] United States Department of State.</ref>

A unified team under the name Korea (KOR) competed in 1991 World Table Tennis Championships and FIFA World Youth Championship with athletes from both North and South Korea. In 1991, the team used the Unification Flag and the anthem "Arirang".

In 1992, the ROK announced suspension of the "Team Spirit" military training exercise normally conducted each year in conjunction with US forces stationed in South Korea. On January 22, US Undersecretary of State Arnold Kanter and Korean Workers' Party Secretary Kim Yong Sun held the first of a series of bilateral talks, focusing on the future of US–People's Korean relations and unification issues on the peninsula. However, following difficulties regarding the Joint Nuclear Control Committee, the US and ROK decided to conduct the Team Spirit exercise after all, and DPRK refused to negotiate bilateral nuclear inspections unless the Team Spirit exercise would be cancelled. By 1993, the US and South Korea confirmed that Team Spirit would proceed as planned, and DPRK ended negotiations.<ref name=":2" />

In July 1993, President [[Bill Clinton]], during a visit to the South Korean side of the DMZ, warned that the United States would respond to DPRK use of nuclear weapons with massive conventional or nuclear retaliation. In later January/early February of 1994, US officials in Washington let it be known they were considering transferring Patriot missiles to South Korea as a defensive move. In Seoul, a Defense Ministry official called for the resumption of Team Spirit unless the North agreed to full nuclear inspections. The US warned DPRK that unless it would allow inspections, it would bring a sanctions resolution before the UN Security Council.<ref name=":2" />

In July 1994, Kim Il-sung passed away at the age of 82.

===Arduous March===
The period of economic crisis, floods, and famine in DPRK known as the Arduous March (Korean: 고난의 행군) lasted from approximately 1994 to 1998. Compounding factors such as the [[overthrow of the Soviet Union]] (and subsequent worldwide economic shifts), unprecedented natural disasters, and economic sanctions imposed on the DPRK all contributed to the severity of the crisis at that time. The thriving Korean economy, which had exceeded south Korea's in production of electricity, coal, fertilizer, machine tools and steel even into the 1980s, was thrown into turmoil as it faced these factors in the 1990s.<ref>Kim, Crystal. [https://www.liberationnews.org/north-koreans-mourn-death-of-html/ “North Koreans Mourn Death of Leader Kim Jong Il.”] Liberation News, 22 Dec. 2011, Accessed 10 Apr. 2023. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230410044940/https://www.liberationnews.org/north-koreans-mourn-death-of-html/ Archived] 2023-04-10.</ref><ref>[https://www.north-korea-travel.com/north-korean-history.html “North Korean History 1980s & 1990s | KTG® Tours.”] North-Korea-Travel.com.</ref>

The imperialist United States and its allies took advantage of this period, attempting to make the situation more deadly and more economically devastating via economic sanctions, to push DPRK into total collapse. It was at this time that the "military-first" policy of Songun (Korean: 선군; Hanja: 先軍) was initiated under the leadership of Kim Jong Il, in response to the constant threat of military aggression from the United States aimed at DPRK's destruction. The policy came of the determination that maintaining a strong military was essential for the defense of the country and the protection of its socialist system, and that the military was the backbone of the revolution and that it was necessary to give military affairs priority in order to proceed with socialist construction.<ref>[https://exploredprk.com/articles/the-evolution-of-dprks-socialist-lifestyle/ "The Evolution of DPRK’s Socialist Lifestyle."] Explore DPRK. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230928110755/https://exploredprk.com/articles/the-evolution-of-dprks-socialist-lifestyle/ Archived] 1012-09-28.</ref><ref name=":14">Ri Jong Chol. "Songun Politics in Korea." Foreign Languages Publishing House. Pyongyang, Korea, Juche 101 (2012). [https://web.archive.org/web/20230523072842/https://kkfonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Songun-Politics-In-Korea.pdf <nowiki>[PDF]</nowiki>]</ref><ref>[https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1435 <nowiki>"[북현대사] 선군정치의 시작." ("[North Modern History] The beginning of Songun politics.")</nowiki>] 한반도정론: 북 바로알기. 통일시대. 2023-02-27. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230927173059/https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1435 Archived] 2023-09-27.</ref>

During this time, DPRK deployed the People's Army to major construction sites as well as rural areas for flood recovery and food production, in order to overcome the Arduous March in each region and sector. Notably, they were able to construct important infrastructure such as the Anbyon Youth Power Station at this time, erected by the service personnel of the People's Army in spite of harsh environmental conditions. Rather than yielding to the economic pressures imposed by the U.S. in combination with the environmental disasters and the worldwide economic upheavals, DPRK endured the hardships, defended the socialist system, and built structures of lasting value.<ref>[https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1421&page=2&total=125 <nowiki>"[북현대사] 고난의 행군과 강계정신" ("[North Modern History] Arduous March and Ganggye Spirit")</nowiki>], 한반도정론: 북 바로알기. 통일시대. 2023-02-18. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230927171532/https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1421&page=2&total=125 Archived] 2023-09-27.</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/juche-destiny/page/n75/mode/2up "Man's Destiny and Juche Idea."] Foreign Languages Publishing House. Pyongyang, Korea, Juche 101 (2012).</ref><ref name=":14" /> The end of the Arduous March was declared in October 2000.<ref>[https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1544 <nowiki>"[북현대사] 36년 만에 열린 조선로동당 제7차 대회" ("[North Modern History] The 7th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea held after 36 years").</nowiki>] 한반도정론: 북 바로알기. 통일시대. 2023-05-06. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230928173958/https://www.tongiltimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=1544 Archived] 2023-09-28.</ref>

===6.15 Declaration and ROK's "Sunshine Policy"===
[[File:President Kim Dae-jung and Chairman Kim Jong-il join hands at Inter-Korean summit.jpg|thumb|[[Republic of Korea|South Korean]] President [[Kim Dae-jung]] and Chairman [[Kim Jong-il]] join hands at the 2000 Inter-Korean summit, which resulted in the 6.15 Inter-Korean Joint Declaration.]]
The South Korean policy towards DPRK from the late 1990s to mid 2000s is known as the "Sunshine Policy" and is primarily associated with the [[Kim Dae-jung]] administration (1998–2003) and the [[Roh Moo-hyun]] administration (2003–2008). During this time, a notable attitude of reconciliation between north and south Korea was expressed by south Korean leadership.

On June 13-15, 2000 leaders of the ROK and DPRK meet for the first time since the war. South Korean president Kim Dae-jung and DPRK leader Kim Jong-il signed an agreement calling for family reunions, economic cooperation, social and cultural exchanges and follow-up governmental contacts between the North and South to ease tensions.<ref name=":2" /> This is known as the June 15th North–South Joint Declaration or the 6.15 Inter-Korean Joint Declaration.

The date "6.15" would subsequently become a popular reference among the Korean reunification movement. Additionally, the phrase ''uri minjok kkiri'' (Hangeul: 우리 민족끼리), which can be translated as "among our nation" or "between our people" can be found in the joint document signed by Kim Dae Jung and Kim Jong Il at the 6.15 talks. The phrase implies the idea of solving the questions of unification and peace on the Korean peninsula without the influence or meddling of outside powers. The numbers "6.15" and the phrase "uri minjok kkiri" can frequently be seen and heard in Korean unification-oriented media, publications, and activism.

===2000s–present===
[[File:Kim-Jiang.jpg|thumb|Kim Jong-il with [[People's Republic of China|Chinese]] president, [[Jiang Zemin]] in 2000.]]
In 2002, President Bush's State of the Union address singled out [[Islamic Republic of Iran|Iran]], [[Republic of Iraq|Iraq]] and DPRK as the so-called "[[Axis of Evil]]" for their supposed pursuit of weapons of mass destruction.<ref name=":2" />

According to Nodutdol, in 2018, 3,968 people in the DPRK, who were mostly children under the age of 5, died as a result of shortages and delays to UN aid programs caused by sanctions.<ref name=":3" />

Talks between General secretary [[Kim Jong-un]] and former U.S. [[President of the United states|President]] [[Donald Trump]] began on June of 2019 to discuss disarmament and potential reunification with the [[Republic of Korea]].

In January 2020, South Korean President [[Moon Jae-in]] expressed interest in developing tourism to People's Korea, but the US ambassador Harry Harris blocked this effort. Harris claimed that "independent" tourism plans would have to undergo US consultation. He emphasized that the items inside South Korean tourists' luggage could violate sanctions, demonstrating the extent of US interference in inter-Korean affairs.<ref name=":3" />

[[Yoon Suk Yeol]]'s presidency in the Republic of Korea (2022-present) marks a turn away from rapprochement with the North. Yoon has abandoned Sunshine Policy and strengthened ties with the US, shown most overtly in his April visit to the Pentagon.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Jim Garamone|newspaper=U.S. Department of Defense|title=South Korean President Yoon Visits Pentagon, Discusses Deterrence|date=2023-04-27|url=https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3377397/south-korean-president-yoon-visits-pentagon-discusses-deterrence/|retrieved=2024-3-3}}</ref> Since 2022, the Republic of Korea has stepped up joint military exercises with the United States,<ref>{{Web citation|author=Hyonhee Shin|newspaper=Reuters|title=Defence chiefs of U.S., S.Korea vow to step up drills to counter North|date=2023-01-31|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/austin-south-korea-yoon-seeks-greater-us-nuclear-assurances-2023-01-30/|retrieved=2024-3-3}}</ref> covertly sent artillery shells to Ukraine (via the United States to avoid official state policy against sending weapons to an active warzone),<ref>{{Web citation|author=Lee Bon-young, Kwon Hyuk-chul|newspaper=Hankyoreh|title=WaPo: Seoul supplied more shells to Ukraine than all of Europe|date=2023-12-06|url=https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_international/1119320|retrieved=2024-3-3}}</ref> and suspended a military agreement with the North designed to deescalate tensions.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Jean Mackenzie|newspaper=BBC|title=North Korea spy satellite: South partially suspends military deal after launch|date=2023-11-22|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-67494007|retrieved=2024-3-3}}</ref> In response to the ROK's apparent inseparability from US occupation, the DPRK announced in January that it was ending its long-standing policy of peaceful reunification with the ROK.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Justin McCurry|newspaper=The Guardian|title=Unification with South Korea no longer possible, says Kim Jong-un|date=2024-01-15|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/16/unification-with-south-korea-no-longer-possible-says-kim-jong-un|retrieved=2024-3-3}}</ref> This demonstrates a recognition that a "[[Library:The governance of China/Chapter 10: "One Country, Two Systems"|one country two systems]]" style reunification with the South is no longer possible, as the North would never accept such a reunification if the US military was still allowed to occupy the peninsula. Reunification is only possible with the end of US military occupation and dismantling of the ROK state.

==== Nuclear weapons program ====
The DPRK joined the [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty]] in 1985. It withdrew in 1993 according to the terms of the treaty in order to preserve its sovereignty against U.S. aggression.<ref name=":11022">{{Citation|author=Stephen Gowans|year=2018|title=Patriots, Traitors and Empires: The Story of Korea’s Struggle for Freedom|chapter=Byungjin|page=208–214|pdf=https://ipfs.io/ipfs/bafykbzaced4iiga4ngtxusr2civjxewbili5jne2sbpefbx2s3im2kphattzc?filename=Stephen%20Gowans%20-%20Patriots%2C%20Traitors%20and%20Empires_%20The%20Story%20of%20Korea%E2%80%99s%20Struggle%20for%20Freedom-Baraka%20Books%20%282018%29.pdf|city=Montreal|publisher=Baraka Books|isbn=9781771861427|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=8435F6FF91279531705764823FDC2A7F}}</ref>

Since the beginning of the DPRK nuclear tests in 2003, the [[George W. Bush|Bush]] and [[Barack Obama|Obama]] regimes respectively lifted some sanctions to facilitate negotiations around DPRK denuclearization, and then reinstated them when the negotiations failed to produce the results desired by the US.<ref name=":3" />

The DPRK detonated its first nuclear bomb on 2006 October 9. The invasions of [[Republic of Iraq|Iraq]] and [[Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (1977–2011)|Libya]] proved this decision correct when those countries fell to [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization|NATO]] occupation after giving up their nuclear programs.<ref name=":11022" />

==Economy==
The DPRK has maintained one of the most centralized economies in the world since the 1940s. For several decades, it has followed the Soviet pattern of five-year plans with the ultimate goal of achieving self-sufficiency. DPRK is also one of the most sanctioned countries in the world, and has been subject to sanctions since just after its foundation. The economy is heavily nationalized. Food and housing are extensively subsidized by the state, education and healthcare are free, and the payment of taxes was officially abolished in 1974.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Zak Brown|newspaper=Anti-Imperialism.org|title=Towards a concrete analysis of the DPRK|date=2023-11-18|url=https://anti-imperialism.org/2013/11/18/towards-a-concrete-analysis-of-the-dprk/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200118135119/https://anti-imperialism.org/2013/11/18/towards-a-concrete-analysis-of-the-dprk/|archive-date=2020-01-18|retrieved=2023-03-12}}</ref> The DPRK follows policy of ''[[Byungjin]]'', meaning it simultaneously develops its nuclear weapons program and the economy.<ref>{{News citation|author=Ankit Panda|newspaper=[[The Diplomat]]|title=Is North Korea’s ‘Byungjin Line’ on the US-China Strategic Agenda?|url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/06/is-north-koreas-byungjin-line-on-the-us-china-strategic-agenda/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321104122/https://thediplomat.com/2015/06/is-north-koreas-byungjin-line-on-the-us-china-strategic-agenda/|archive-date=2022-03-21|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref>

A 2020 book published in DPRK summarizes the DPRK's economic line of development as follows: "The DPRK has consistently adhered to the line of building an independent national economy in economic construction. In Juche 42 (1953) it put put forward the basic line of socialist economic construction, developing heavy industry preferentially and ensuring the simultaneous development of light industry and agriculture. True to this line, it laid solid material and technological foundations for an independent national economy. In the 1960s when the hostile forces’ moves of aggression became undisguised, the WPK advanced the line of simultaneously carrying on economic construction and building up defences, thus establishing a socialist industrial state while increasing its defence capabilities."<ref>[https://archive.org/details/dprk-photobook/page/n53/mode/1up "DPRK Photobook."] Foreign Languages Publishing House, Printing Plant of Foreign Languages Publishing House, October Juche 109 (2020).</ref>

According to DPRK's constitution, the DPRK regards the steady improvement of the material and cultural standards of the people as "the supreme principle of its activities", and holds that the state "shall provide all the working people with every condition for obtaining food, clothing and housing." Furthermore, the constitution states that DPRK's economy relies on socialist relations of production and on the foundation of an independent national economy, with the means of production owned in some cases by the state and in other cases owned collectively by social cooperative organizations. The eventual goal of the DPRK is to "combine the two forms of property in an organic way", and to gradually transform the means of production owned by cooperative organizations into the property of the people as a whole (i.e., into state property), based on the voluntary will of the social cooperative organizations' members. While the means of production are under the ownership of the working class in the form of state property and social cooperative organizations, property that is owned and consumed by individual citizens is also legally protected, including products of individual sideline activities such as products from kitchen gardens and income from other legal economic activities. This type of personal property is protected by the state and guaranteed by law the right for people to inherit it.<ref name=":11">[https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Socialist_Constitution_of_the_Democratic_People%27s_Republic_of_Korea_(2019) "Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (2019)."] Wikisource. [https://manoa.hawaii.edu/koreanstudies/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/DPRK-Constitution-2019-EN.pdf <nowiki>[PDF]</nowiki>] on manoa.hawaii.edu.</ref>

=== Socialist economic management ===
Throughout DPRK's development, systems of socialist economic management and methods of work have been developed, adapted to the country's particular needs. Notable among them is the Taean (or Daean) work system, an industrial management system which grew out of the Chongsanri agricultural management system. Each system has been described by north Korean author and politician [[Kim Byong Sik]] as implementations of the [[mass line]] in production, which were developed in response to DPRK's changing needs as it transitioned away from individualistic, bureaucratic capitalist-style management toward collective socialist-style management in production. As Kim Byong Sik explains, "the Daean work system means, in a word, to embody the mass line in economic control; to get rid of survivals of capitalism in economic management such as bureaucracy, over-centralization and individualism, and to implement the Chongsanri spirit and method, enabling workers to contribute to the maximum in accelerating [[socialist construction]]."<ref name=":9">[[Kim Byong Sik]]. [https://archive.org/details/ModernKoreaKimByongSik/ "Modern Korea: The Socialist North, Revolutionary Perspectives in the South, and Unification."] International Publishers, 1970.</ref>

Each method is named after a location in which it saw early implementation: Chongsanri refers to Chongsanri Cooperative Farm in Kangso county, South Pyongan province, while the Taean work system is named after Taean Electric Machine Factory.<ref name=":9" />

Kim Il Sung noted that in the DPRK's early development, the factory management system "still retained many capitalist elements" despite being socialist. These lingering capitalist elements in management led to bureaucracy, departmentalism, and individualism hampering the activity and initiative of the workers, as well as led to a lack of cooperative spirit between workshops and to insufficient worker participation in management. Quoted in Kim Byong Sik's ''Modern Korea'', Kim Il Sung described the problem as follows: <blockquote>It must be admitted that the old system of factory management, though socialist, still retained many capitalist elements. Bureaucracy, departmentalism, and individualism were found in large measure. Superiors shouted commands at their subordinates in a bureaucratic manner instead of going to help them; a spirit of cooperation between workshops was lacking; and among some people there was a tendency toward individualism of the “You attend to your business, I’ll stick to mine!” variety. Therefore, under the old system of work, it was not possible to give full play to the activity and initiative of workers, people busied themselves for nothing, and no sizable achievements were made in production.<ref name=":9" /> </blockquote>Kim Byong Sik adds that in factories administered exclusively by managers, the lingering capitalist elements were the most concentrated. In such factories, workers lacked interest in whether production was going well or not because they did not have sufficient participation in management. The managers who held sole decision-making powers engaged in arbitrary control, subjective discretion, and other bureaucratic methods, and so the workers felt their job was to "work for eight hours, as assigned, and then go home" which gave little room for stimulating their "political, moral and material interest" in their work or giving full play to their creativity and talent. Therefore it was necessary to bring factory management in line with a socialist management system. In contrast with the lingering capitalist style of management, in the Daean work system, the people cooperate with each other and work units help one another in economic management, with the essential purpose of the Daean work system being to enable people to give maximum play to their revolutionary enthusiasm and creative talent, to increase production, and to control and to manage the economy through promoting comradely accommodation and close cooperation among producers and producing units. Kim Byong Sik also notes that the Daean work system, as a socialist management system, is a prototype of communist economic management, stating "it is clear that economic management in a communist society will take the form of collective management by millions of conscious, communist working people."<ref name=":9" />

=== Special Economic Zones ===
Foreign trade surpassed pre-crisis levels in 2005 and continues to expand. The DPRK has a number of special economic zones (SEZs) and Special Administrative Regions where foreign companies can operate with tax and tariff incentives while DPRK establishments gain access to improved technology.<ref>{{News citation|title=Special Economic Zones in the DPRK|url=https://www.ncnk.org/resources/briefing-papers/all-briefing-papers/special-economic-zones-dprk}}</ref><ref>{{News citation|title=North Korea’s Special Economic Zones: Plans vs. Progress|url=https://www.38north.org/reports/2015/11/nk-sez-plans-vs-progress/}}</ref>

=== Economic sanctions ===
''See also: [[Economic sanctions#Democratic People's Republic of Korea]]''

The US first imposed sanctions on DPRK during the 1950s.<ref name=":2" /> The United States has repeatedly targeted the DPRK with sanctions, citing its nuclear weapons program as their reason.<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=[[TeleSur]]|title=US Reps Pass "Harshest Sanctions Ever" Against North Korea|date=2017-10-25|url=https://wp.telesurtv.net/english/news/US-Reps-Pass-Harshest-Sanctions-Ever-Against-North-Korea-20171025-0006.html|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref> Following the country’s 2006 nuclear test, the US, EU, and others added more stringent sanctions, which have periodically intensified since then. In 2017, sanctions imposed by the UN caused thousands of DPRK workers who had been working abroad to be forced to return to DPRK as well as led to the closure of numerous DPRK companies and joint ventures.<ref>[https://www.asianews.it/news-en/North-Korean-workers-leave-China-because-of-UN-sanctions-41942.html “North Korean Workers Leave China because of UN Sanctions.”] Asianews.it. 2017. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220909073331/https://www.asianews.it/news-en/North-Korean-workers-leave-China-because-of-UN-sanctions-41942.html Archived] 2022-09-09.</ref> Sanctions now target oil imports, and cover most finance and trade, and the country’s key minerals sector.<ref>Galant, Michael. [https://cepr.net/cepr-sanctions-watch-may-june-2022/ “CEPR Sanctions Watch, May-June 2022”] Center for Economic and Policy Research. July 8, 2022. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220907145545/https://cepr.net/cepr-sanctions-watch-may-june-2022/ Archived] 2022-09-07</ref> However, 49 countries, including [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]], [[Islamic Republic of Iran|Iran]], and [[Syrian Arab Republic|Syria]] have violated these sanctions and traded with the DPRK anyways.<ref>{{News citation|author=Rishi Iyengar|newspaper=[[CNN]]|title=Report: 49 countries have been busting sanctions on North Korea|date=2017-12-06|url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/12/06/news/north-korea-sanctions-countries-violation/index.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508065837/https://money.cnn.com/2017/12/06/news/north-korea-sanctions-countries-violation/index.html|archive-date=2021-05-08|retrieved=2022-04-24}}</ref>

According to Foreign Policy in Focus, sanctions on DPRK have "demonstrably failed." FPIF notes that sanctions didn’t deter DPRK from pursuing a nuclear weapons program, nor have they been subsequently responsible for pushing it toward denuclearization, and adds that DPRK has been under sanctions for nearly its entire existence and it doesn’t have a strong international economic presence that can be penalized, and "has been willing to suffer the effects of isolation in order to build what it considers to be a credible deterrence against foreign attack."<ref>Feffer, John. 2021. [https://fpif.org/the-problem-of-sanctions-against-north-korea/ “The Problem of Sanctions against North Korea.”] Foreign Policy in Focus. November 22, 2021. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220909072424/https://fpif.org/the-problem-of-sanctions-against-north-korea/ Archived] 2022-09-09. ‌</ref>

==Government==

===Central government===
The highest organ of state power is the [[Supreme People's Assembly]], which is elected for a term of five years. It elects a Speaker and Deputy Speaker to preside over its sessions. While the Supreme People's Assembly is not in session, the Presidium is the highest organ of state power. It consists of a President, Vice-Presidents, and other members.

The Supreme People's Assembly also elects a [[State Affairs Commission]] consisting of a Chairman, multiple Vice-Chairmen, and other members and a Cabinet consisting of a Premier, Vice-Premiers, Chairmen, Ministers, and other members. The Premier organizes the work of the cabinet and is the head of government of the DPRK.<ref name=":6">{{Citation|author=12th Supreme People's Assembly|year=2016|title=Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea|title-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Socialist_Constitution_of_the_Democratic_People%27s_Republic_of_Korea_(2016)|chapter=State Organs}}</ref>

===Local government===
Provinces, cities, and counties elect local people's assemblies for a term of four years. The local people's assembly elects a speaker to preside over its sessions and a local people's committee. Local people's assemblies and committees are subordinate to the Supreme People's Assembly and Cabinet.<ref name=":6" />

== Administrative divisions ==
[[File:Provinces of Korea.png|thumb|333x333px|Provinces of Korea.]]
DPRK is divided into nine provinces, the direct-administered capital city, and three special cities.

The nine provinces (Korean: 도; Hanja: 道) of DPRK are [[Chagang Province|Chagang]], [[North Hamgyong Province|North Hamgyong]], [[South Hamgyong Province|South Hamgyong]], [[North Hwanghae Province|North Hwanghae]], [[South Hwanghae Province|South Hwanghae]], [[Kangwon Province|Kangwon]], [[North Pyongan Province|North Pyongan]], [[South Pyongan Province|South Pyongan]], and [[Ryanggang Province|Ryanggang]].

Pyongyang is designated as the capital city, or the direct-administered city (Korean: 직할시; Hanja: 直轄市) while three other cities, namely [[Rason]], [[Nampo]], [[Kaesong]], are special cities (Korean: 특별시; Hanja: 特別市).

A 2014 demographic survey of DPRK, conducted as a joint project between DPRK's Central Bureau of Statistics and the [[United Nations]] Population Fund, found that the majority of the country's population resides in four contiguous provinces: South Pyongan (17% of population), Pyongyang (14%), South Hamgyong (13%), and North Pyongan (12%). Together, these four contiguous provinces account for over 55% of the country's population. The highest population density area was in the capital city of Pyongyang, while the lowest population density was in Ryanggang. It was also found that more than six out of ten persons reside in urban areas in the country, at 61.2% of the population, while 38.8% of the population lives in rural areas.<ref>Central Bureau of Statistics, Pyongyang and United Nations Population Fund. [https://archive.org/details/2014SDHSReportEFinal "Democratic People's Republic of Korea Socio-Economic, Demographic and Health Survey, 2014."] December, Juche 104 (2015).</ref>

DPRK's method of administrative division is similar to that in south Korea, as both are based on the common system in Korea as a whole, having its roots in the mid-Goryo dynasty in the 11th century.<ref>DPRK Explained. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWmNve0oUkU “DPRK Provinces EXPLAINED - Part One | North Korea’s Provinces.”] YouTube Video.</ref>

As a result of the division of Korea, three provinces, namely Hwanghae, Gyeonggi, and Kangwon, were split due to being on the line of division. The smaller portions of post-division Hwanghae and Gyeonggi provinces were mostly incorporated into nearby provinces, with the larger part of Hwanghae ending up in DPRK and the larger part of Gyeonggi in south Korea. However, Kangwon was divided roughly in half, and as a result, both DPRK and south Korea have a Kangwon province, romanized as Kangwon in DPRK and Gangwon in the south.

==Foreign relations==
Article 17 of the DPRK's constitution states that independence, peace, and friendship are the basic ideals of the foreign relations of the DPRK. Additionally, the constitution holds that the state "shall establish diplomatic as well as political, economic and cultural relations with all friendly countries, on the principles of complete equality, independence, mutual respect, non-interference in each other’s affairs and mutual benefit" and "promote unity with people all over the world who defend their independence, and resolutely support and encourage the struggles of all people who oppose all forms of aggression and interference and fight for their countries’ independence and national and class emancipation."<ref name=":11" />

DPRK does not reject foreign exchange, nor reject foreign knowledge, nor adhere to an [[Isolationism|isolationist]] policy, nor does it aim to promote national [[chauvinism]].<ref>{{Citation|author=Kim Il Sung|title=Collected Works Volume 17|chapter=On Further Developing the Chollima Workteam Movement|page=276|quote=In educating the working people in socialist patriotism, care should be taken to prevent the growth of tendencies to national chauvinism and restorationism. One may be apt to head for chauvinism on the plea of building an independent national economy by one’s own efforts and promoting national pride. If we steer in the direction of chauvinism as Regent Taewongun pursued a policy of national isolation, we will come to reject international exchange and advanced science and technology from other countries and, accordingly, hinder the development of our country.|pdf=https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf}}</ref> Rather, DPRK upholds [[proletarian internationalism]], [[national liberation]], and [[anti-imperialism]], and aims for international exchanges based in mutual respect. Speaking on DPRK's attitude toward international exchange and the study and adoption of foreign knowledge, Kim Il Sung clarifies that it is not DPRK's position to reject foreign things, but rather to adopt them critically and non-[[Dogmatism|dogmatically]], with Korea's sovereignty and particular conditions in mind: "What we are opposing is the [[Nihilism|nihilistic]] attitude of looking down upon our nation, while looking up to foreign countries, as well as the dogmatist attitude of uncritically swallowing up foreign things in disregard of the actual conditions of our country."<ref>Kim Il Sung. [https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf "On Improving Education in Universities."] April 18, 1963. Collected Works, Volume 17.</ref>

Kim Il-sung has said that completing the Korean revolution is the internationalist duty of the Korean people, and explained that, in the modern conditions where imperialism and borders still exist (as opposed to a stateless, communist future), and in conditions where Korea currently remains divided and antagonized by imperialism, DPRK's socialist patriotism is "indispensable for us who have to drive out the US imperialist aggressors and accomplish the national-liberation revolution", and that "the Korean revolution is the internationalist duty devolving on the Korean people. For this reason, only when the Korean people satisfactorily carry out the Korean revolution as their first priority, will they be performing their internationalist duty faithfully."<ref name=":13">Kim Il Sung. [https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf "Our People's Army Is an Army of the Working Class, An Army of the Revolution; Class and Political Education Should Be Continuously Strengthened."] February 8, 1963. Kim Il Sung Collected Works, Volume 17. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230403214034/https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf Archived] 2023-04-03.</ref>

Opposing chauvinism and promoting proletarian internationalism, Kim Il-sung has emphasized that care should be taken to prevent the growth of national chauvinism when promoting socialist patriotism, explaining that DPRK should not pursue a chauvinist policy or national isolation, and that Koreans should be educated in the spirit of internationalism "to fight in close unity with many other peoples of the world" against imperialism as well as against both right and left opportunism.<ref>Kim Il Sung. [https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf "On Strengthening the Work of Factory Party Committees And Further Developing the Chollima Workteam Movement."] Collected Works Volume 17. May 15, 1963. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230403214034/https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/cw/17.pdf Archived] 2023-04-03.</ref> While in the present day, defense of national sovereignty and socialist patriotism holds importance in DPRK, Kim Il-sung notes: "Needless to say, it will be another matter after imperialism is completely overthrown and socialism and communism emerge victorious throughout the world in the future, and the boundaries of nations vanish and states cease to exist."<ref name=":13" />

=== Support for anti-imperialist liberation ===
[[File:DPRK Che Guevara poster.png|thumb|Korean poster of [[Ernesto Guevara|Che Guevara]]]]
The DPRK's revolutionary government has supported other liberation struggles around the world. The support has at times included material support such as providing weapons and military training to various movements, hosting delegations representing various liberation struggles, as well as gestures and expressions of solidarity such as in speeches at the UN General Assembly and support for liberation movements written about in official DPRK publications.

The DPRK trained two thousand guerrilla fighters from twenty-five countries from the mid-1960s to the late 1980s, including members of the [[Japanese Red Army]], [[Palestinian Liberation Organization]], and the [[Official Irish Republican Army]]. The training in these camps lasted from six to eighteen months, and during that time, the DPRK military taught foreign revolutionaries Korean martial arts. The foreign revolutionaries were also put through training such as running through the mountains at night while carrying one hundred pound sandbags.<ref name=":7">[https://apjjf.org/2015/13/12/Benjamin-Young/4303.html “Juche in the United States: The Black Panther Party’s Relations with North Korea, 1969-1971.”] 2015. The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230325033325/https://apjjf.org/2015/13/12/Benjamin-Young/4303.html Archived] 2023-03-25. </ref>

DPRK has supported liberation struggles in [[Africa]] both materially and through expressions of solidarity.<ref>[https://libya360.wordpress.com/2017/04/17/president-kim-il-sungs-immortal-contributions-to-african-liberation/ President Kim Il Sung’s Immortal Contributions to African Liberation] APRIL 17, 2017 by Internationalist 360º on libya360.wordpress.com </ref> President Kim Il Sung was a staunch opponent of both [[Republic of South Africa|South African]] and [[Zionism|Zionist]] [[apartheid]].<ref name=":8">[https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1006972472015708160.html <nowiki>“Thread by @Uhusofree: ‘a Quick Thread on the DPRK and African and Diaspora Liberation Movements. I Hope It Reaches Someone Who Didn’t Know Before. President Kim Il […].’”</nowiki>] Threadreaderapp.com. Thread Reader. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230325040407/https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1006972472015708160.html Archived] 2023-03-25.</ref>

When [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s government in [[Republic of Ghana|Ghana]] was overthrown in a CIA-backed coup in 1966, Kim Il-sung sent a letter to Nkrumah shortly afterword, stating, "We are especially enraged at the reactionary coup d’état which took place in Ghana at the instigation of the imperialists [...] The imperialists engineer similar plots and perpetrate subversive activities against progressive countries everywhere. We resolutely condemn the machinations of the imperialists against the just cause of the peoples for national liberation, independence and progress. We express our unreserved support to your Excellency’s determination to fight for the freedom of Ghana on your return to Africa."<ref>Nkrumah, Kwame. [https://archive.org/details/san_0975/page/160/mode/1up?view=theater&q=Pyongyang ''Dark Days in Ghana''. "Appendix."] 1968.</ref>

On March 31, 1970, nine members of the Japanese Red Army (JRA) hijacked a Japan Air Lines plane and landed it in Pyongyang. These nine members eventually settled in a housing complex on the outskirts of Pyongyang and the DPRK government used the JRA connection to send money and arms to various Third World-oriented organizations, such as the PLO, the [[Red Army Faction]], and the [[Italian Red Brigades]].<ref name=":7" />

During the 1980s, the DPRK sent free weapons to Cuba.<ref>{{News citation|author=David Iocanangelo|newspaper=Latin Times|title=Fidel Castro Says North Korea Sent Cuba Free Weapons During Cold War|date=2013-08-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200118135109/https://www.latintimes.com/fidel-castro-says-north-korea-sent-cuba-free-weapons-during-cold-war-130279|archive-date=2020-01-18}}</ref>

DPRK Minister of Foreign Affairs Ri Yong Ho's 2017 UN General Assembly statements of solidarity with Cuba, [[Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela|Venezuela]], and [[Syrian Arab Republic|Syria]] and condemning [[State of Israel|Israel]]:<blockquote>My delegation takes this opportunity to extend strong support to and solidarity with the Cuban government and people who are fighting to defend national sovereignty and realize international justice against the high-handedness, arbitrariness and unilateral embargo of the U.S.

We also express strong support to and solidarity with the government and people of Venezuela who are fighting to defend the national sovereignty and the cause of socialism.

The unjust and contemptible acts such as turning a blind eye to the heinous acts of Israel while condemning in every manner only the Syrian government fighting to protect its national sovereignty and security should not be tolerated any longer.

The DPRK government will certainly defend peace and security of the country with its powerful nuclear deterrence and also contribute to safeguarding world peace and security.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>The DPRK representative Kim Song at the 2021 UN General Assembly spoke on the DPRK delegation extending "its full support and encouragement to the Cuban government and people who continue to move forward holding aloft the banner of socialism in the face of the U.S. moves to impose illegal sanctions and blockade and to undermine Cuba from within" and expressed "constant support to and solidarity with the independent countries including Syria and [[State of Palestine|Palestine]] and their peoples in their unyielding struggle to defend the national dignity, sovereignty and territorial integrity."<ref name=":1" />

=== Support for Black liberation in the United States ===
[[File:Korean BPP poster.png|thumb|Korean poster of [[Huey P. Newton|Huey Newton]]]]
Kim Il-sung praised the [[Black Panther Party]] (BPP) for their "just struggle to abolish the cursed system of racial discrimination of the US imperialists".<ref>{{Web citation|author=Tania Branigan|newspaper=The Guardian|title=How Black Panthers turned to North Korea in fight against US imperialism|date=2014-06-19|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/19/black-panthers-north-korea-us-imperialism|archive-url=https://archive.is/yJajx|archive-date=2022-09-13|retrieved=2025-08-21|quote=Meanwhile, the then leader Kim Il-sung hailed the American party’s “just struggle to abolish the cursed system of racial discrimination of the US imperialists”.}}</ref> The Black Panther Party sent a delegation to the DPRK to meet with President Kim Il Sung and other officials to exchange ideas.<ref name=":8" />{{Better source needed|helper-text=Twitter is not a reliable source}} Numerous examples of writings in support of the DPRK and against U.S. imperialism can be found in BPP publications, while many articles in support of the BPP and denouncing U.S. imperialism and systemic racism can be found in DPRK publications.

In addition to specific support of the BPP, it is common to find DPRK publications calling out and denouncing the United States as racist, and voicing support for Black people and other racial minorities of the U.S. in their struggle against it. For example, DPRK state media commented on the shooting of [[Trayvon Martin]], stating: "The U.S. true colors as a kingdom of racial discrimination was fully revealed by last year’s case that the [[Florida]] Court gave a verdict of not guilty to a white policeman who shot to death an innocent Black boy." DPRK has also made commentary on the case of [[George Floyd protests|George Floyd]], emphasizing the hypocrisy for the US to preach about human rights while perpetrating racial oppression against its own citizens. An official from Central Committee stated via the state newspaper [[Rodong Sinmun]]: "Demonstrators enraged by the extreme racists throng even to the White House. This is the reality in the U.S. today" and further stated "American liberalism and democracy put the cap of leftist on the demonstrators and threaten to unleash even dogs for suppression."<ref>[https://www.youngpioneertours.com/dprk-black-civil-rights-movement/ “North Korea and the Black Civil Rights Movement.”] Young Pioneer Tours. December 23, 2020. [https://web.archive.org/web/20221129235716/https://www.youngpioneertours.com/dprk-black-civil-rights-movement/ Archived] 2022-11-29.</ref>

===DPRK-US relations===
The core of US policy toward DPRK has been summarized in a 2008 book from DPRK as follows: "The US attempt to crush the DPRK and realize domination over the whole Korean peninsula constitutes the core of its policy towards the DPRK and the key to its building of a foundation on which to achieve world hegemony."<ref>[https://archive.org/details/terrorismwar/page/n1/mode/1up?view=theater "The United States: 'War Against Terrorism'."] Foreign Languages Publishing House, Pyongyang, Korea. Juche 97 (2008).</ref>

In a 2021 speech to the United Nations General Assembly, the DPRK's representative Kim Song stated, "In the course of the DPRK-U.S. showdown spanning over half a century, we have been very much accustomed to the U.S. military threats, and we know well how to deal with the U.S., the most hostile country. We have learned the mode of existence to cope with the U.S. hostile policy and accumulated rich experience."<ref name=":1" /> The representative further characterized the DPRK-US relationship in the following way:<blockquote>From the first day of the foundation of the DPRK, the U.S. has not recognized our sovereignty, treating us as an enemy state, and openly showed its hostility towards the socialist system chosen by our people. The U.S. designated the DPRK as a "communist state" and a "state of non-market economy", and it completely blocked, both institutionally and legislatively, the establishment of relations between the DPRK and the U.S. in the fields of politics, economy and trade, under the unreasonable pretexts of "human rights issue", "proliferation of the WMD", "sponsoring of terrorism", "oppression of religion", "money laundering" and etc.

If it is not a hostile policy, should it be called a "friendly policy"?

The U.S. hostile policy against the DPRK finds its clearest expression in its military threats against us. Not a single foreign troop, not a single foreign military base exists in the territory of the DPRK. But in south Korea, almost 30,000 U.S. troops are stationing at numerous military bases, maintaining a war posture to take military action against the DPRK at any moment. The DPRK has no record of having conducted a military exercise even a single time around the U.S., but the U.S. has annually staged all sorts of war drills on and around the Korean peninsula and in the Korean waters for the last several decades, by mobilizing army, naval and air forces across the world including the U.S. troops in south Korea, and it has threatened us through military demonstrations of intimidating nature while deploying numerous armaments to south Korea from time to time.<ref name=":1" /> </blockquote>The representative also noted that the possible outbreak of a new war on the Korean peninsula is contained "not because of the U.S.’s mercy on the DPRK" but because the DPRK "is growing reliable deterrent that can control the hostile forces in their attempts for military invasion".<ref name=":1" />

Kim Yo Jong, First Vice Department Director of Central Committee of Workers’ Party of Korea, in response to being called a “rogue state” by the US Defense Secretary, has been quoted by Nodutdol as saying, "the sufferings imposed upon us by the U.S. have now turned into the hatred for the U.S., and this hatred would drive us to break through the blockade of persistent sanctions led by the U.S. and to live our own way by our own efforts."<ref name=":3" />

The 2018 book ''Origin of the Korean Question'' published in DPRK analyzes the USA's long history of imperialist aggression toward Korea, even prior to the division of the Korean nation into north and south. The book explains: "From the first days of its emergence from the sea of blood of [[American Indians]], the US waged ceaseless wars of conquest with the ambition of territorial expansion. [...] Having accomplished transition from capitalism to imperialism by achieving [[Primitive accumulation of capital|forced initial accumulation of capital]] through aggression and plunder, in the 19th century the US and European powers made their colony of extensive regions in Africa, America, Southeast Asia and on the shores of the Pacific. Not satisfied with it, they plunged into a competition for seizing before anyone else Korea, [[Qing dynasty (1636–1912)|Qing China]] and Japan that had been still outside of any other country's influence. [...] The US, a latecomer in this competition, tried to contain the intervention of other powers in the Far East; its primary efforts in the Far East were directed to Korea." The authors further explain that towards the end of the Second World War, the US began to advocate a "new order of the US-led world," backpedaling on its commitments to the [[Anti-fascism|anti-fascist]] Allied Powers, and that since then, it has openly pursued policy of stamping out socialism on the globe and seeking to achieve world supremacy. The authors note that the Asia-Pacific area has since become the center of global trade and that the US has a "huge economic dependence" on it. Due to the growing influence of Asian economies, the US is "hell bent on winning control over Asia", and has determined that it must dominate the Korean peninsula, a regional strategic point politically, militarily and economically, in order to complete its goal of hegemonic power. For this reason, the US regards it as a major goal to stamp out the DPRK and dominate the Korean peninsula as a whole, setting the DPRK as a major target in the "axis of evil", and "resorting to every means to internationalize the Korean question", treating the issue arbitrarily in international arenas such as the UN, in collaboration with its satellite countries.<ref name=":10">[https://archive.org/details/origin-of-the-korean-question-foreign-languages-publishing-house-pyongyang-juche-107-2018/ "Origin of the Korean Question."] Foreign Languages Publishing House, Pyongyang, Juche 107 (2018).</ref>

Describing the history of the USA's imperialist designs on Korea, which continues to this day in modern Korea-US relations, the book's authors note that the USA has had its eyes on Korea since the 1800s, due to the importance of Korea's strategic position, the Korean peninsula being good springboard for advance into Asia. Additionally, the authors explain that the USA was compelled toward imperialist expansion by the fact that its industry demanded overseas markets for selling its products, and that the USA saw Korea as a suitable market for its commodities. Finally, Korea was seen as a key location where ships from the USA could refuel on their way to China. Several incidents, such as the criminal intrusion of the USA's ship ''General Sherman'' into the [[Taedong river]] in 1866, which, demanding "trade" and refusing to leave, perpetrated theft, violence, and kidnapping and killing of Koreans until Pyongyang citizens finally were able to set the boat on fire and sink it, was followed by other incidents with USA's naval vessels continuing to intrude into Korean territory as well as conducting illegal gold prospecting in Korea.<ref name=":10" />

Eventually, after a Korea-US treaty was made in 1882, the US won many privileges including the extraterritorial right and "most favoured nation" treatment. Thus the US moved to reduce Korea to its commodity market, a source of precious metals and other raw materials, and an object of capital investment. The US capitalists brought surplus goods like old firearms, petroleum, tobacco and drops to sell them at exorbitant prices, meanwhile purchasing Korea's precious metals including gold and silver at low prices. Over time, [[Christianity|Christian]] missionaries promoted pro-US sentiment and sent "bourgeois sycophants" and "traitors to the nation" such as future dictator [[Syngman Rhee]] to the US to study, "at the expense of part of the colossal wealth obtained by bleeding the Korean people white."<ref name=":10" />

By 1905, in a meeting referred to as the [[Taft-Katsura agreement]], the USA's secretary of war and soon-to-be president, [[William Howard Taft]], and Japan's prime minister [[Katsura Taro]] had a confidential discussion in which they expressed their respective views on control over nations in the Pacific, with Japan emphasizing that it had no designs on the [[Republic of the Philippines|Philippines]], and the USA expressing that it would be "logical" for Japan to assert control over Korea. The USA's secretary of war and future president expressed his view that "the establishment by Japan of a [[suzerainty]] over Corea to the extent of requiring that Corea enter into no foreign treaties without the consent of Japan" would directly contribute to "permanent peace" in East Asia.<ref>[https://www.icasinc.org/history/katsura.html "The Taft-Katsura Agreed Memorandum, July 29, 1905."] ICAS Historical Document, Institute for Corean-American Studies. [https://www.icasinc.org/history/katsura.pdf PDF] of document. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230829070912/https://www.icasinc.org/history/katsura.pdf Archived] 2023-08-29.</ref><ref>[https://kls.law.columbia.edu/content/korea-legal-history "Korea: A Legal History: Taft-Katsura Agreed Memorandum."] Korean Legal Studies. Columbia.edu. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230829072908/https://kls.law.columbia.edu/content/korea-legal-history Archived] 2023-08-29.</ref> The authors of ''Origin of the Korean Question'' point out that in the Taft-Katsura Agreement, the US recognized Japan's protection of Korea and, in return, Japan promised not to interfere with the US supremacy over the Philippines. Placing this agreement in the context of the USA's series of aggressions and intrusions into Korea, its imperialistic trade relations, its promotion of pro-US bourgeois ideology through Christian missionaries, and its disregard for agreements made in the 1882 Korea-US treaty, it demonstrates the USA's longstanding record of aggressive, imperialist self-interest in its dealings with Korea as a key country for the US to subjugate on its path to imperialist world hegemony. In line with this history, the authors evaluate that the US of the present day spreads misinformation about the DPRK and misuses the UN and other international apparatuses to "isolate and suffocate the recalcitrant country that aspires after independence [...] to bring the Korean people to their knees by internationalizing the Korean question at all costs in pursuit of its world strategy."<ref name=":10" />

===DPRK-ROK relations===
[[File:Unification vs Peaceful Coexistence 2016-2021.png|thumb|Attitudes in South Korea towards unification vs peaceful coexistence with DPRK, according to the 2021 KINU Unification Survey.<ref name=":5">Dr. Sang Sin Lee, et. al. [https://www.kinu.or.kr/pyxis-api/1/digital-files/87cb5812-a81a-4fdc-824c-8d359544e8f7 "KINU Unification Survey 2021: Executive Summary."] July, 2021. Korea Institute for National Unification.</ref>]]
Among the political leadership, bourgeoisie, and working people of South Korea, there is variation in attitudes toward DPRK. For the majority of South Korea's history, its leaders have been far-right anti-communist military dictators as well as corrupt oligarchs. A handful of ROK presidents are notable for their "Sunshine Policy" stance toward DPRK, a stance of reconciliation. Most notably associated with this attitude are Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun. The more recent president, [[Moon Jae-in]], has been described as having revived certain elements of the Sunshine Policy era. However, his presidency was followed by the right-wing [[Yoon Suk-yeol]] who took office in 2022, and has a much more aggressive pro-US stance.

In regard to public opinion in South Korea, the 2021 KINU Unification Survey<ref name=":5" /> reported that positive responses to the question “If North Korea open the borders to each other and cooperate on political and economic matters, such a state can be considered unification even if the two Koreas are not one country” have reached 63.2%. In addition, the survey found there is a growing tendency to be indifferent to DPRK and to "give up expectations" rather than a negative view for the future of inter-Korean relations. The IMF generation and millennial generations clearly show a high level of indifference toward the DPRK compared to the older generations. (IMF generation 68.3%, Millennial generation 74.1%).

According to the survey, the gap between ‘Prefers unification’ and ‘Prefers peaceful coexistence’ is very huge in the millennial generation. In the 2021 survey, the percentage of ‘Prefers peaceful coexistence’ was 71.4% and the percentage of ‘Prefers unification’ was 12.4%, showing a difference of 59%P. The summary of the results suggests that "the trend that younger generations view North Korea as the subject of coexistence and not unification will become stronger in the future." The younger generation tends to loosely favor confederations. The Millennial generation most actively preferred confederations and has the lowest percentage of preference for unitary state system at only 6.5%. The preference for unification in the unitary state system, which is the traditional unification view, was relatively high among the war generation (17.8%). However, more` than half of the War generation (52.1%) preferred confederations.

67.7% of survey respondents agreed to the statement “The agreements between the two Koreas should be continued regardless of the government's change” and 90.3% of the respondents said ‘necessary’ to the question “Do you think that U.S. Armed Forces in Korea is needed now?” 69% of respondents showed a positive attitude toward the question “Do you think U.S. President [[Joe Biden|Biden]] should hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un?” The survey also found that people under 30 are apparently more vulnerable to fake news about DPRK than those over 40. Income level, residence area, political ideology, and party identification also seem to influence the reception of fake news on DPRK and unification issues.<ref name=":5" />

The US consistently interferes in inter-Korean affairs and polices Korean reunification efforts by citing sanctions. According to Nodutdol, only a few months after the Korean leaders signed the Panmunjeom Declaration, the US-led UN Command which oversees the DMZ, blocked development of the inter-Korean railway. In January 2020, South Korean President Moon Jae-In expressed interest in developing tourism to People's Korea, but the US ambassador Harry Harris blocked this effort. Harris claimed that "independent" tourism plans would have to undergo US consultation. He emphasized that the items inside South Korean tourists' luggage could violate sanctions, demonstrating the extent of US interference.<ref name=":3" />

During Moon Jae-in's presidency, a number of inter-Korean activities took place, such as the 2018 inter-Korean summit. In the 2018 Winter Olympics, the teams representing DPRK and south Korea entered the Opening Ceremony marching under the Korean Unification Flag, while in women's ice hockey there was a single united Korean team. A music concert titled "Spring is Coming" was also held in 2018, in which a number of south Korean artists performed alongside People's Korean artists in [[Pyongyang]], DPRK.

Pro-DPRK voices in South Korea are stifled by the existence of the National Security Law. The National Security Law is a south Korean law enforced since 1948 following events such as the [[Jeju Uprising]] where Koreans opposed the division of the country into north and south. The National Security Law has the avowed purpose "to secure the security of the State and the subsistence and freedom of nationals, by regulating any anticipated activities compromising the safety of the State." Behaviors or speeches in favor of the DPRK or communism can be punished by the National Security Law. In an article from The Diplomat, it was referred to as a "Cold War holdover" that "allows the government to selectively prosecute anyone who 'praises, incites or propagates the activities of an anti-government organization'" which the article describes as "a deliberately vague clause that broadly implies the North Korean state and its sympathizers." The article continues, explaining "Under Article 7, individuals have been prosecuted and imprisoned for merely possessing North Korean publications or satirically tweeting North Korean propaganda. In recent years this clause has been harshly criticized by [[Amnesty International]] and [[Human Rights Watch]], who claim the government abuses the law to repress dissenting voices."<ref>Meredith Shaw and Joseph Yi. (2022-03-15). [https://thediplomat.com/2022/03/will-yoon-suk-yeol-finally-reform-south-koreas-national-security-law/ "Will Yoon Suk-yeol Finally Reform South Korea’s National Security Law?"] ''The Diplomat''.</ref>

According to the [[People's Democracy Party]] (PDP), a revolutionary workers' party in south Korea, the continued U.S. military occupation of south Korea is the primary barrier to peaceful reunification of the Korean peninsula.<ref>People's Democracy Party and Liberation School. [https://www.liberationschool.org/korean-war-70-years/ “70 Years Too Long: The Struggle to End the Korean War – Liberation School.”] ''Liberation School – Revolutionary Marxism for a New Generation of Fighters'', 25 June 2020. [https://web.archive.org/web/2/https://www.liberationschool.org/korean-war-70-years/ Archived]. ‌</ref>

On August 13, 2022, thousands of south Korean unionists and their progressive supporters rallied in downtown Seoul to protest against joint US-south Korea war game exercises. In a video uploaded by [[Press TV]], Oh Eun-Jung of the National Teachers Union was quoted as saying: <blockquote>"The threat of nuclear war is growing on the Korean peninsula, conservative forces of Yoon Suk-yeol in south Korea and those in the U.S. are frantically conducting aggressive war drills in the sky, the land, and the sea, and are about to start large-scale military exercises, aimed at the invasion of North Korea. We must stamp out this behavior of anti-reunification forces." </blockquote>In the same video, construction worker Lee Seung-Woo stated: <blockquote>"We not only oppose the war exercises, but we want the U.S. Forces Korea, which is actually controlling and interfering with the Korean peninsula to leave this land. We believe that only then will the eighty million Koreans from both north and south be able to live peacefully."<ref>Frank Smith. [https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/08/13/687322/South-Korean-unionists-protest-US-South-Korea-war-games “‘South Korean Unionists Protest US-South Korea War Games.’”] PressTV News. August 13, 2022. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220826124551/https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/08/13/687322/South-Korean-unionists-protest-US-South-Korea-war-games Archived] 2022-08-28.</ref></blockquote>[[File:Unconverted long-term prisoners in south Korea.jpg|alt=People stand in a row at a demonstration calling for a second repatriation of unconverted long-term prisoners in south Korea. Their Korean-language sign reads "비전향장기수 송환 촉구". (Meaning "Call for repatriation of non-converted long-term prisoners")|thumb|A demonstration calling for a repatriation to DPRK for unconverted long-term prisoners in south Korea.]]

====Unconverted long-term prisoners====
{{Main article|Unconverted long-term prisoners}}

Unconverted long-term prisoners is a term which refers to political prisoners who have been imprisoned in south Korea, generally on charges of "anti-state" activities or views in support of communism or DPRK. The term commonly refers to people who were mostly arrested from the 1950s to 1980s and imprisoned and tortured for decades and who refused to sign a "conversion" statement renouncing communist or left-wing ideology, which had been a condition for their release. It can also refer to those who ultimately did sign the so-called "conversion" statement but do not consider it a true conversion as it was extracted under torture.<ref name=":4">[https://www.liberationschool.org/interview-with-ahn-hak-sop/ "Still fighting for Korea’s liberation: An interview with Ahn Hak-sop"] ''Liberation School'', June 27, 2023. [https://web.archive.org/web/20240227201454/https://www.liberationschool.org/interview-with-ahn-hak-sop/ Archived] 2024-02-27.</ref><ref name=":16">Kim Dong-won. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xu2mEvU29Q ''Repatriation'' (2003).] Documentary.</ref>

In the 1990s, some of the elderly prisoners began being released, and began living in the south under difficult economic, legal, and social conditions. Many sought to be repatriated to DPRK, and 63 of them were allowed to do so in the year 2000. Many who participated in the repatriation in 2000 and many of those who remained in south Korea made their decisions based on their impression at the time that there was going to be more freedom of movement between ROK and DPRK thereafter. However, further repatriations have not taken place, despite a continued movement calling for it. Meanwhile, those who remained in the south have had to live under strict surveillance by the south Korean state.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":16" />

==Further reading==

*[[Library:DPRK Study Guide|DPRK study guide]]
*[[:Category:Library works about the DPRK|All library works about the DPRK]]
*[[:Category:Library documents from the DPRK|All library works from the DPRK]]

==External links==

*http://www.korean-books.com.kp/en/
*https://fightbacknews.org/articles/korea-stands-strong-kim-jong-il-context
*Patriots, Traitors and Empires: The Story of Korea’s Struggle for Freedom | Stephen Gowans (2018)
*https://www.lalkar.org/article/2654/the-democratic-structure-of-the-dprk
==References==
<references />

[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Democratic People's Republic of Korea]]
[[Category:Targets of regime change operations]]
[[Category:Targets of bourgeois media]]
[[Category:Marxist-Leninist states]]
[[Category:Asian countries]]
[[Category:Countries invaded by the United States]]
[[Category:Countries sanctioned by the US]]
[[Category:Juche]]

Socialist Republic of Vietnam

2025-11-21T19:04:55Z

162.200.14.56: harmonize gov. form with other socialist states

{{Infobox country
| name = Socialist Republic of Vietnam
| native_name = Cộng hòa Xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam
| image_coat = Emblem of Vietnam.svg
| image_flag = Flag of Vietnam.svg
| image_map = Vietnam_Map.svg
| map_width = 220px
| capital = [[Hanoi]]
| area = 331.000km^2
| official language = Vietnamese
| largest_city = Ho Chi Minh City
|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]| government_type = Unitary [[Marxist–Leninist]] [[socialist state]]
| established_event1 = Declaration of independence
| established_date1 = 2 September 1945
|established_event2=Liberation of Saigon|established_date2=30 April 1975|established_event3=Reunification and end of US occupation|established_date3=2 July 1976| population_estimate = 100,300,000
| population_estimate_year = 2023
|currency=Vietnamese đồng (₫)|currency_code=VND|drives_on=right|calling_code=+84|iso3166code=VN|cctld=.vn| leader_title1 = General Secretary
| leader_name1 = [[Tô Lâm]]
| leader_title2 = President
| leader_name2 = [[Lương Cường]]
| leader_title3 = Vice President
| leader_name3 = [[Võ Thị Ánh Xuân]]
| leader_title4 = Prime Minister
| leader_name4 = [[Phạm Minh Chính]]
|leader_title5=Deputy Prime Minister|leader_name5=Lê Văn Thành}}
'''Vietnam''', officially the '''Socialist Republic of Vietnam''', is a country on the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia. The 2024 census counted a population of 100.3 million people.<ref>https://www.gso.gov.vn/en/category/population/</ref> The country borders [[China]] to the north and [[Cambodia]] and [[Laos]] to the west. The capital city is [[Hanoi]] while the most populous city is Ho Chi Minh City (also known by its previous name of Saigon). The Vietnamese constitution states that Vietnam "is a [[Socialist state|socialist rule of law state]] of the People, by the People, for the People".
<ref>http://www.fao.org/faolex/results/details/en/c/LEX-FAOC127527/</ref>

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is one of only five [[:Category:Marxist-Leninist states|Marxist–Leninist states]] in the world today (alongside [[China]], [[Laos]], [[People's Korea]] and [[Cuba]]). Since 1986, it has adopted the [[Doi Moi reforms|Đổi Mới economic reforms]], becoming a [[socialist-oriented market economy]].
==History==

=== Ancient history ===
Vietnam was ruled by China for 1000 years and often had [[Peasantry|peasant]] rebellions against the Chinese. During the [[Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE)|Han dynasty]], the Trung sisters led a rebellion but were defeated in 43 CE.<ref name=":0">{{News citation|newspaper=Alpha History|title=Vietnamese Resistance to French Colonialism|date=2018-01-09|url=https://alphahistory.com/vietnamwar/resistance-to-french-colonialism/|retrieved=2022-05-07}}</ref>

=== French colonization ===
[[Hàm Nghi]] became emperor of Vietnam in 1884 at 12 years of age. His officials condemned French colonization, leading to the royal palace being raided by the French in 1885. Hàm Nghi fled to the forest with his regent, [[Tôn Thất Thuyết]]. After Hàm Nghi's deposition, [[French Republic|France]] signed the [[Treaty of Tientsin]] with the [[Qing dynasty (1636–1912)|Qing dynasty]], relinquishing all Chinese claims on Vietnam, and the French installed his brother [[Đồng Khánh]] as emperor. Thuyết and his supporters formed the nationalist resistance movement [[Cần Vương movement|Cần Vương]], which fought against the French with [[guerrilla warfare]]. They also attacked Vietnamese [[Christianity|Christians]]. In 1888, Hàm Nghi was captured and exiled to [[North Africa]].

[[Phan Đình Phùng]], a former royal official under Hàm Nghi, introduced military discipline with uniforms and ranks to resistance. In an attempt to intimidate him, French soldiers raided his home village and kidnapped his brother. In 1895, Phùng was defeated and his supporters were executed by the French.

In 1903, Vietnamese nationalist [[Phan Bội Châu]] joined forces with former prince [[Cường Để]], who had been deposed by the French. They unsuccessfully sought financial assistance from [[Empire of Japan (1868–1947)|Japan]] and China. While in Japan, Châu attempted to smuggle weapons to Vietnamese rebels but was exiled to [[British Hong Kong (1841–1997)|Hong Kong]]. After the 1911 [[Xinhai Revolution]] in China, he decided that [[republicanism]] was better than a restoration of the imperial monarchy.<ref name=":0" />

In 1940, after [[German Reich (1933–1945)|Nazi Germany]] conquered France, the Vichy government continued to rule Vietnam. [[Ho Chi Minh]], [[Vo Nguyen Giap]], and others began a guerrilla struggle against the French and Japanese colonizers. In 1945, Japan took over direct control from the Vichy regime and continued to export rice during a famine that killed over 1.5 million Vietnamese people.<ref name=":2">{{Web citation|author=Richard Becker|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=Vietnam’s national liberation struggle in perspective|date=2005-05-01|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/05-05-01-vietnams-national-liberation-st-html/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190714154922/https://www.liberationnews.org/05-05-01-vietnams-national-liberation-st-html/|archive-date=2019-07-14|retrieved=2022-12-17}}</ref>

=== Anti-French Resistance War ===
Ho Chi Minh declared independence from France on 2 September 1945.<ref name=":2" /> [[Republic of China|Nationalist China]] occupied northern Vietnam and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|UK]] occupied the south, and they soon returned both regions to French control. In October 1946, France bombed the port of Haiphong, beginning an eight-year independence war. The U.S. provided 80% of French supplies, including 300,000 small arms and machine guns.<ref name=":02">{{Citation|author=[[Howard Zinn]]|year=1980|title=A People's History of the United States|title-url=https://www.howardzinn.org/collection/peoples-history/|chapter=The Impossible Victory: Vietnam|page=439|pdf=https://files.libcom.org/files/A%20People's%20History%20of%20the%20Unite%20-%20Howard%20Zinn.pdf|publisher=HarperCollins|isbn=0060194480}}</ref> In 1946, U.S. ships sent French troops back to Vietnam in an attempt to recolonize the region. In 1954, General Vo Nguyen Giap led Vietnamese forces at the [[Battle of Dien Bien Phu]], in which the Vietnamese carried 200 heavy artillery guns through 80 km of jungle and finally defeated the French colonizers.<ref name=":2" />

=== Resistance War against the United States ===
{{Main article|Vietnam War}}
After the Anti-French Resistance War, Vietnam was divided across the 17th parallel and the United States replaced France as the colonial power. By the end of 1956, the country was supposed to hold a national election and reunify, but the United States did not allow this because they knew communist leader Hồ Chí Minh would win by at least 80%.<ref name=":1">{{News citation|author=Richard Becker|newspaper=Liberation School|title=How Vietnam defeated U.S. imperialism|date=2015-03-08|url=https://www.liberationschool.org/how-vietnam-defeated-u-s-imperialism/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220203233120/https://www.liberationschool.org/how-vietnam-defeated-u-s-imperialism/|archive-date=2022-02-03|retrieved=2022-05-07}}</ref> While the north was led by Hồ Chí Minh, the south was under a [[Republic of Vietnam|US puppet dictatorship]] led by pro-Japanese collaborators [[Ngô Đình Diệm]] and [[Bảo Đại]], the latter of which had lived in the USA for several years.<ref name=":2" /> The division of the country led to the Vietnam war, in which the north fought against the south and the US. From 1960, the north was also aided by communist guerrillas in the south, called the [[Viet Minh|National Liberation Front]], but often known by the pejorative nickname of "Viet Cong." The [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] targeted and killed tens of thousands of suspected guerrillas through the [[Phoenix Program]]. The southern military had high rates of desertion and frequently killed civilians, unlike the heroic communist forces.<ref name=":2" /> By 1963, the NLF had liberated most of the south,<ref name=":1" /> and U.S. president [[John F. Kennedy]] ordered Diệm to be assassinated for his incompetence.<ref name=":2" />

Kennedy himself was soon assassinated and succeeded by [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], who began bombing Vietnam and authorized a full-scale invasion.<ref name=":2" /> In 1965, the United States invaded Vietnam with over half a million soldiers. They were supported by 75,000 troops from [[Republic of Korea|South Korea]], and over 800,000 from South Vietnam serving the puppet government. Half of the US troops were tied down defending their military bases in the south from guerrillas.<ref name=":1" /> In March of 1968, American forces killed hundreds of civilians in the [[Mỹ Lai massacre|My Lai massacre]]. The soldiers that tried to prevent the massacre were considered traitors by other soldiers and US congressmen. The United States dropped more bombs on Vietnam than all of the bombs that were used in [[Second World War|World War II]] and sprayed 21 million gallons of [[Agent Orange]], a chemical weapon, on Vietnam.<ref name=":1" /> They also destroyed two-thirds of villages in the south. U.S. troops destroyed 9,000 of the 15,000 villages in the south and badly damaged all six of the northern industrialized cities.<ref name=":2" />

The US began withdrawing in 1973, and the south was liberated on 30 April 1975.

==Politics==
Vietnam is a [[Marxism-leninism|Marxist–Leninist]] one-party [[Socialist state|socialist republic]] following [[Ho Chi Minh Thought]]. The ruling party is the [[Communist Party of Vietnam]].

==Economy==
After reunification in 1975 Vietnam became a centrally planned economy. In the late 1980s the economy was suffering from a decline in [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] aid, the decomposition of the Eastern Bloc and the effects of the post-war embargo by the USA. In 1986, the CPV adopted a series of market reforms known as Đổi Mới which would transition the country to a [[socialist-oriented market economy]].

According to a forecast by PwC in February 2017, Vietnam may be the fastest-growing of the world's economies, with a potential annual GDP growth rate of about 5.1%, which would make its economy the 20th-largest in the world by 2050.<ref>{{News citation|date=2017-02|title=How will the global economic order change by 2050?|url=https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/world-2050/assets/pwc-the-world-in-2050-full-report-feb-2017.pdf}}</ref>

== External resources ==

=== Books ===

* [[:Category:Library works about Vietnam|All library works about Vietnam]]
* [[:Category:Library documents from Vietnam|All library works from Vietnam]]

=== Videos ===
* [https://youtu.be/bQX_F-fQS2k ''Vietnam's Path To Socialism''] by [[CPUSA]] International Department on [[YouTube]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Vietnam]]
[[Category:Asian countries]]
[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Marxist-Leninist states]]
[[Category:Member states of ASEAN]]

People's Republic of China

2025-11-21T19:04:02Z

162.200.14.56: Reworked government form. China is a socialist state, not a people's democratic state/people's republic. We should be using consistent language for all communist state formations.

{{Infobox country
| name = People's Republic of China
| native_name = 中华人民共和国 Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó
| image_coat = National Emblem of the People's Republic of China.svg
| image_flag = Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg
| symbol_type = National Emblem
|anthem=[[March of the Volunteers|义勇军进行曲]][[File:March of the Volunteers.wav]]| image_map = Orthographic map of China.svg
| map_width = 220px
|official_languages=[[Mandarin|Standard Chinese]]|recognized_regional_languages=Mongolian · Uyghur · Tibetan · Zhuang · others| capital = [[Beijing]]
| largest_city = [[Shanghai]]
| government_type = Unitary [[Marxist-Leninist]] [[socialist state]]
| established_event1 = Unification of China by Qin Shi Huang
| established_date1 = 221 BCE
| established_event2 = Founding of the Yuan dynasty
| established_date2 = 5 November 1271
| population_estimate = 1,463,140,000
| population_estimate_year = 2020
|labour_force=784 million<ref name="statista">Statista. ''[https://www.statista.com/statistics/251380/number-of-employed-persons-in-china/#:~:text=The%20labor%20force%20of%20China,were%20working%20in%20rural%20areas.]''</ref>|unemployment=5.5%|labour_force_participation=48.07%|labour_occupation=53.3% services 39.4% industry 7.3% agriculture<ref name="investopedia">Investopedia. ''[https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/103114/chinas-gdp-examined-servicesector-surge.asp#:~:text=The%20industry%20sector%2C%20which%20includes,reflecting%20the%20growth%20of%20services.]''</ref>|GDP_PPP=$24.861 trillion (2017 US Dollars)<ref name="CIA-factbook">CIA World Factbook (2023). ''[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/china/#economy China – World Factbook]''</ref>|GDP_PPP_per_capita=$17,600 (2017 US Dollars)<ref name="CIA-factbook">CIA World Factbook (2023). ''[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/china/#economy China – World Factbook]''</ref>|GDP_PPP_year=2021|GDP_PPP_rank=1st|GDP_nominal=$14.327 trillion<ref name="CIA-factbook">CIA World Factbook (2023). ''[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/china/#economy China – World Factbook]''</ref>|GDP_nominal_year=2019|drives_on=right left (Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR)|calling_code=+86 +852 (Hong Kong SAR) +853 (Macao SAR)|iso3166code=CN|cctld=.cn, .hk, .mo|organizations=[[WTO]], [[SCO]], [[BRI]]|ruling_party=[[Communist Party of China]]| leader_title1 = President and [[General Secretary of the People's Republic of China|General Secretary]]
| leader_name1 = [[Xi Jinping]]
| leader_title3 = [[Premier of the People's Republic of China|Premier]]
| leader_name3 = [[Li Qiang]]
| leader_title2 = Vice President
| leader_name2 = [[Han Zheng]]
|established_date3=1 October 1949|established_event3=Establishment of the People's Republic of China|mode_of_production=[[Socialism]]}}
'''China''', officially the '''People's Republic of China''' ('''PRC'''), is a [[Socialism|socialist]] country in [[East Asia]].<ref>{{Web citation|title=Western experts should understand China’s building of socialism from China’s perspective|url=https://socialistchina.org/2022/01/16/western-experts-should-understand-chinas-building-of-socialism-from-chinas-perspective/|newspaper=[[Friends of Socialist China]]|date=2022-01-16}}</ref> It is the world's most populous country with a population of around 1.46 billion in 2020. It is led by the [[Communist Party of China]] (CPC). As of June 2021, CPC membership is about 7% of the population or 95.15 million members.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Zhao Yusha, Wan Lin|newspaper=Global TImes|title=Number of CPC members totals 95.148m as of June|date=2021-06-31|url=https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202106/1227455.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709005014/https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202106/1227455.shtml|archive-date=2023-07-09|retrieved=2023-07-18}}</ref>

The [[Constitution of the People's Republic of China|Chinese constitution]] states that the PRC "is a [[socialist state]] under the [[people's democratic dictatorship]] led by the [[Proletariat|working class]] and based on the alliance of workers and [[Peasantry|peasants]]" and that the state organs "apply the principle of [[democratic centralism]]."<ref name=":0">Constitution of the People's Republic of China ([https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/China_2018.pdf?lang=en PDF in English])</ref> Over 95% of the Chinese population supports the government.<ref name=":8">{{Web citation|author=Nia Frome|newspaper=[[Red Sails]]|title=China Has Billionaires|date=2021-04-05|url=https://redsails.org/china-has-billionaires/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129030202/https://redsails.org/china-has-billionaires/|archive-date=2022-11-29|retrieved=2022-12-06}}</ref>

The People's Republic of China is one of only five [[Socialism|socialist]] states in the world today (alongside [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]], [[Lao People's Democratic Republic|Laos]], [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea|People's Korea]] and [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Vietnam]]). Over the last few years it has emerged as the world's leading economic power, and as a result has been subjected to near-constant demonization from [[Bourgeois media|Western media]] and propaganda outlets.<ref>{{Citation|title-url=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2020/10/06/unfavorable-views-of-china-reach-historic-highs-in-many-countries/|title=Unfavorable views of China reach historic highs in many countries|year=2020|author=Laura Silver, Kat Devlin and Christine Huang|publisher=Pew Research Center|pdf=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/10/PG_2020.10.06_Global-Views-China_FINAL.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Web citation|title=Categorically Debunking the Claim that China is Imperialist|author=Rainer Shea|newspaper=[[Orinoco Tribune]]|url=https://orinocotribune.com/catagorically-debunking-the-claim-that-china-is-imperialist/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128110445/https://orinocotribune.com/catagorically-debunking-the-claim-that-china-is-imperialist/|archive-date=2021-11-28}}</ref> The PRC's guiding ideology is [[Marxism-Leninism|Marxism–Leninism]] and [[Mao Zedong Thought]].<ref>'''[http://www.npc.gov.cn/zgrdw/englishnpc/Constitution/node_2827.htm Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China]'''

(Adopted at the Second Session of the Ninth National People's Congress and promulgated for implementation by the Announcement of the National People's Congress on March 15, 1999)</ref>

== History ==
<blockquote>''For detailed history of China before 1949, see [[History of China]].''</blockquote>In accordance with [[historical materialism]], Chinese history can be divided into [[Primitive communism|primitive]], [[Slavery|slave]], and [[Feudalism|feudal]] eras. Modern Chinese historians do not, however, use the terms "capitalist era" or "socialist era." This is because the capitalist period of Chinese history fits into the broader [[New Democratic Revolution period|New-Democratic Revolution period]] (1919–1949). The socialist era, which began in 1956, is likewise not considered an era of Chinese history but instead is considered part of the People's Republic period (starting in 1949).<ref name=":1">Bai Shouyi (2008). ''An outline history of China.'' Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. ISBN 9787119052960</ref>

=== Pre-colonial period ===

==== Antiquity ====
{{Main article|Xia dynasty|Shang dynasty|Zhou dynasty}}
China's recorded history goes back more than 3,200 years. Before the unification of China under the [[Qin dynasty (221 BCE–206 BCE)|Qin]] and [[Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE)|Han]] dynasties, a class of warriors controlled the land and collected tribute. Most economic activity was self-sufficient but there was some high-value trade organized by royal courts. Literate administrative officials were awarded with land grants that became hereditary property. The monarch retained ultimate ownership of all land.<ref name=":7">{{News citation|author=Ken Hammond|newspaper=[[Liberation School]]|title=Beyond the sprouts of capitalism: China’s early capitalist development and contemporary socialist project|date=2021-09-13|url=https://www.liberationschool.org/beyond-the-sprouts-of-capitalism-understanding-chinas-contemporary-socialist-project/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428004222/https://www.liberationschool.org/beyond-the-sprouts-of-capitalism-understanding-chinas-contemporary-socialist-project/|archive-date=2022-04-28|retrieved=2022-07-25}}</ref>

==== Imperial China ====
China transitioned from slavery to feudalism under the [[Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BCE)|Zhou]] and Qin dynasties, when government officials built up large land holdings. Under feudalism, almost all land was owned by the emperor, nobility, and landlords. Peasants had to give half or more of their crop to the landowners and landlords could abuse or kill peasants at will. Small landholders who farmed land distributed to them by the emperor also existed in this period. Exchange did not have an important role in the economy during this period.<ref>{{Citation|author=Mao Zedong|year=1939|title=The Chinese Revolution and the Chinese Communist Party|chapter=Chinese Society|section=The Old Feudal Society|mia=https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/selected-works/volume-2/mswv2_23.htm}}</ref> The number and location of markets were restricted and they were strictly controlled by the emperor.

In imperial China, government officials were recruited based on recommendations from serving officials, allowing aristocratic families to stay in power for generations. The Han dynasty collapsed in 220 CE and China was reunified under the [[Sui dynasty (581–618)|Sui]] and [[Tang dynasty (618–907)|Tang]] dynasties. The An Lushan rebellion from 755 to 763 weakened the Tang dynasty and reduced restrictions on markets. Peasants attacked estates and burned papers documenting the status of aristocrats. In 907, the Tang dynasty collapsed and several small states fought for power until the Zhao brothers established the [[Song dynasty (960–1279)|Song dynasty]] in 960.

Under the Song dynasty, a landed gentry emerged that outnumbered the nobility working for the emperor. Markets expanded and connected China to global trade networks. In the 12th century, the Jurchen invaded northern China and established their own dynasty, while the Song continued to rule in the south. The [[Great Mongol Nation (1206–1368)|Mongol Empire]] invaded China in the 13th century and established the Mongol-led [[Yuan dynasty (1271–1368)|Yuan dynasty]]. The Mongols engaged in international trade, but their anti-commercial policies reduced domestic commerce.

The Yuan dynasty was overthrown in 1368 after being weakened by disease and rebellions and the [[Ming dynasty (1368–1644)|Ming dynasty]] was founded. The first Ming emperor opposed the merchants and promoted a society based on agriculture and self-sufficiency. In 1644, the Manchus overthrew the Ming dynasty and established the [[Qing dynasty (1636–1912)|Qing dynasty]]. In 1793, the [[Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1801)|British]] sent a diplomatic mission to China to establish trade relations. The Qianlong emperor agreed to open a port for the British at Guangzhou but refused to give them access to all of China's ports.<ref name=":7" />

===Semi-colonial and semi-feudal society (1840–1949)===
The era of semi-colonial and semi-feudal society was divided into two parts: The Old Democratic Revolution, which began with the [[First Opium War]] in 1840 and ended with the May 4th Movement in 1919, and the New Democratic Revolution, which lasted until the founding of the People's Republic in 1949. This 109-year period is also know as the "century of humiliation".<ref name=":1" />

==== Old Democratic Revolution period (1840–1919) ====
[[File:Battle of Sanyuanli.png|thumb|Depiction of Chinese and [[British]] forces fighting in the First Opium War]]
The Old Democratic Revolution was a period of establishing western "democracy" and dismantling feudalism, which is where it gets its name from. Rather than being a revolutionary movement by the people of China, it was a revolutionary change caused by the invasion and occupation of China by western powers. It began with the First Opium War when the feudal [[Qing dynasty]] tried to restrict the drug trade of opium in China. The United Kingdom, and later the United States of America, responded by declaring war on China.<ref name=":1" />

The conditions during this occupation were terrible. Notably in the British settlement of Shanghai, signboards were hung up outside parks prohibiting Chinese and dogs inside. The occupying powers forced local Chinese to carry them from place to place, and they also engaged in [[foot binding]].<ref name=":1" />

==== New Democratic Revolution period (1919–1949) ====
The New Democratic Revolution was a revolution by the people of China against the weak Qing dynasty and the occupying Western powers. It is known as a democratic revolution because it still accepted the basic ideology of Western [[capitalism]], but it was different in that it rejected [[colonialism]] and was fought by the people themselves. This revolution successfully brought down the Qing dynasty and established the [[Republic of China]], but this state was even weaker than the Qing dynasty and most of the country was now ruled by warlords.<ref name=":1" />

At that time, China was one of the poorest societies in the world, plagued by starvation and feudal oppression. The vast majority of the population was engaged in subsistence agriculture, and a survey on the causes of death conducted in 1929-31 revealed that more than half of all deaths were caused by infectious diseases.<ref name=":2">David Hipgrave (2011). [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3484775/ ''Communicable disease control in China: From Mao to now'']. Journal of Global Health.</ref> Famines were widespread and severe periods of hunger were lived by many Chinese peasants. During this period, China also suffered from illiteracy and high inequality. Estimates from this period suggest that, landlords and rich peasants taken together typically owned upward of half the land even though their share in the population typically did not exceed 10 percent. Poor peasants and agricultural labourers who owned little to no land formed the majority of the population.<ref name=":3">Robin Burgess (2005). ''Mao's legacy: Access to land and hunger in Modern China''. The London School of Economics and Political Science. ([http://econ.lse.ac.uk/staff/rburgess/wp/land3.pdf PDF link])</ref>

Educational standards during this period were terrible, if not inexistent. In 1949, more than 80 per cent of China's population was illiterate. Enrollment rates in primary and middle schools were abysmal: 20 and 6 per cent, respectively.<ref name=":4">Kimberly Singer Babiarz, Karen Eggleston, Grant Miller & Qiong Zhang (2015). [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4331212/ An exploration of China's mortality decline under Mao: A provincial analysis, 1950–80]. </ref> In addition, women's rights were highly curtailed and patriarchal norms were widespread, and this culture kept growing as [[Kuomintang]] rule took root in the Taiwan province.<ref>{{Citation|title=Women under Kuomintang rule: Variations on the feminine mystique|author=Norma Diamond|year=1975|doi=10.1177/009770047500100101|publisher=University of Michigan}}</ref>

In 1925, the [[Empire of Japan]] and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|U.K.]] sent troops to assist warlords in northern China. In 1926, the Northern Expeditionary Army of the CPC and Kuomintang defeated the warlords in Hebei province. On 1927 March 27, workers established a commune in [[Shanghai]], which was crushed by [[Chiang Kai-shek]] when the Kuomintang turned against the CPC. At this point, the CPC organized an uprising of 30,000 led by [[Zhou Enlai]] and [[Zhu De]] against the nationalist forces. In October 1927, Mao was sent to [[Hunan]] and organized the first revolutionary base in the Jinggang Mountains. Zhu De joined Mao's forces and they repelled three attacks from the Kuomintang between 1928 and 1931. The [[Chinese Red Army]] soon grew to 100,000 people.<ref name=":6">{{Web citation|newspaper=Banned Thought|title=Remembering the Chinese Revolution|url=https://www.bannedthought.net/India/PeoplesMarch/PM1999-2006/publications/50%20years/part1.htm|retrieved=2022-05-14}}</ref>

On 1931 September 18, Japanese forces attacked the northeastern city of [[Shenyang]]. The Kuomintang's army withdrew from the area and did not resist the Japanese. In 1932, a nationalist army of 500,000 was defeated by the Red Army. In October 1933, Chiang Kai-shek mustered a force of a million troops, forcing the CPC and Red Army to flee west to [[Zunyi]] in the [[Long March]]. At the party conference in Zunyi in 1935, Mao's military line was established and [[Opportunism|opportunists]] were removed from power. By the end of the Long March, the Red Army's forces had dropped from 300,000 to 30,000.<ref name=":6" />

===First Generation (1949–1976)===
[[File:Build a new China poster.png|thumb|250x250px|"Build a new China and make a great effort to forge ahead'''.'''"]]
[[File:Sino-SovietFriendshipPoster1951.jpg|thumb|229x229px|A Sino-Soviet Friendship poster from 1951]]
The first generation of leadership covers the extent of time that [[Zhou Enlai]] was the premier of the PRC. Mao Zedong was extremely influential in Chinese politics at this time, but he held the office Chairman of the PRC for only 9 years. For the rest of this 27 year long period, Mao Zedong was the General Secretary of the CPC. This generation was mainly characterized by Mao Zedong's political theory now known as [[Mao Zedong Thought]].<ref>''The historic contribution made by the first generation of the party's central collective leadership to the creation of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era'' (Chinese: [http://dangshi.people.com.cn/n/2013/1128/c85037-23683646.html 党的第一代中央领导集体为新时期开创中国特色社会主义所作的历史性贡献])</ref>

The first generation marks the founding of the People's Republic of China, an event captured on film.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvgLUGRhuwU Mao Zedong 毛泽东 declares the Peoples' Republic of China 1949]. YouTube. Retrieved 27 May 2021.</ref> The newly victorious socialist government promoted remarkable changes in Chinese society: establishing land reform, providing equal rights for women, seeing through campaigns for disease prevention and decreasing infant mortality.<ref name=":2" />

In 1958, China tried to end the U.S. occupation of [[Taiwan Province]] but had to retreat when the USA sent its nuclear-armed Seventh Fleet.<ref name=":1222">{{Citation|author=[[Vijay Prashad]]|year=2008|title=The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World|chapter=Havana|page=109|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzaceascnzh26r5d6uitjjs2z7rflhaxlt7rboz5whzdf76qg6xxvecqq?filename=%28A%20New%20Press%20People%27s%20history%29%20Vijay%20Prashad%20-%20The%20darker%20nations_%20a%20people%27s%20history%20of%20the%20third%20world-The%20New%20Press%20%282008%29.pdf|publisher=The New Press|isbn=9781595583420|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=9B40B96E830128A7FE0E0E887C06829F}}</ref>

==== Industrialization and collectivization ====
The land reforms led to the destruction of feudal [[relations of production]] in agriculture, leading to virtually universal access to land and a dramatic reduction in poverty and hunger.<ref name=":3" /> Education also improved dramatically in this period. During the 1950s, investments in primary and secondary school infrastructure increased considerably, and dramatic increases in attendance followed. Primary school enrollment rates rose to 80% by 1958 and to 97% by 1975, and secondary school rates increased to 46% by 1977.<ref name=":4" />

During this period, China's growth in life expectancy ranks as among the most rapid sustained increases in documented global history,<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Citation|title=Health system in China|author=David Hipgrave, Yan Mu|year=2018|doi=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-8715-3_42}}</ref> mainly because of the socialist government's radical commitment to the elimination of poverty and to improving living conditions of the people; an effort which has brought the elimination of widespread hunger, illiteracy, and ill health, remarkable reduction in chronic undernourishment and child mortality, and a dramatic expansion of longevity.<ref name=":5">Amartya Kumar Sen (2006). ''Perspectives on the Economic and Human Development of India and China''. Universitätsverlag Göttingen. ISBN: 978-3-938616-63-5</ref> Systematic efforts to vaccinate the population against polio, measles, diphtheria, whooping cough, scarlet fever, cholera and other diseases were rapid and reputedly successful, virtually eradicating smallpox within the span of only three years.<ref name=":4" />

==== Great Leap Forward ====
Even though China achieved many positive changes in society during this period, the first generation experienced problems in its governance, most notably during the [[Great Leap Forward]], which was a colossal failure, contributing to the Great Chinese Famine, which had major long-term effects on health and economic development in China, leading to reduced population height, and having a negative impact on labor supply and earnings of famine survivors.<ref>{{Citation|title=The long-term health and economic consequences of the 1959-1961 famine in China|year=2007|author=Yuyu Chen, Li-An Zhou|publisher=Journal of Health Economics|doi=10.1016/j.jhealeco.2006.12.006}}</ref>

==== Sino-Soviet split ====
In the 1970s, China had an opportunistic foreign policy and frequently sided with the United States against the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Soviet Union]]. It supported the [[Hellenic Republic|Greek]] [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]<ref>{{Citation|author=William Blum|year=1995|title=Killing Hope|chapter=|section=|page=219|quote=|pdf=|city=Monroe|publisher=|isbn=1567510523|doi=|lg=|mia=|title-url=https://archive.org/details/killinghopeusmil00blum_0/page/219/mode/2up|chapter-url=|trans-title=|trans-lang=}}</ref> junta and [[Islamic Republic of Pakistan|Pakistan]]'s war against [[People's Republic of Bangladesh|Bangladesh]] and quickly recognized [[Augusto Pinochet|Pinochet]]'s dictatorship in [[Republic of Chile|Chile]].<ref name=":12222">{{Citation|author=[[Vijay Prashad]]|year=2008|title=The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World|chapter=Tawang|page=174|pdf=https://cloudflare-ipfs.com/ipfs/bafykbzaceascnzh26r5d6uitjjs2z7rflhaxlt7rboz5whzdf76qg6xxvecqq?filename=%28A%20New%20Press%20People%27s%20history%29%20Vijay%20Prashad%20-%20The%20darker%20nations_%20a%20people%27s%20history%20of%20the%20third%20world-The%20New%20Press%20%282008%29.pdf|publisher=The New Press|isbn=9781595583420|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=9B40B96E830128A7FE0E0E887C06829F}}</ref>

==== Cultural Revolution ====
Another campaign, the [[Cultural Revolution|Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution]] resulted in overzealous local cadres taking the situation out of control, destroying sites of heritage and recklessly denouncing people in their community.{{Helper}}

===Second Generation (1976–1992)===
The second generation of leadership covers the extent of time that [[Deng Xiaoping]] was influential in Chinese politics. Deng Xiaoping only held two positions of power during this time: Chair of the Central Military Commission of the PRC for four years, and Chair of the Central Military Commission of the CPC for 8 years. For the rest of this 16 year long period, Deng Xiaoping held no positions of power but was still considered the most influential figure in Chinese politics. This generation was mainly characterized by the development of [[Socialism with Chinese Characteristics|socialism with Chinese characteristics]].<ref>''The whole process of the formation of the central collective leadership with Deng Xiaoping as the core''. (Chinese: [http://dangshi.people.com.cn/n/2013/0608/c85037-21793779.html 邓小平为核心的中央领导集体形成始末])</ref>

The [[Reform and Opening Up]] programs introduced in this period produced impressive results. The Chinese economy saw a rapid expansion in both investment and consumption, rapid rises in both productivity and the wage rate, and rapid increases in job creation, which provided the necessary material conditions for broader social development, including the reconstruction of a publicly-funded healthcare system and acceleration of the process of urbanization.<ref>{{Citation|title=State-owned enterprises in Chinese economic transformation: Institutional functionality and credibility in alternative perspectives|year=2020|author=Dic Lo|publisher=Journal of Economic Issues|doi=10.1080/00213624.2020.1791579}}</ref>

Inspired by [[Mikhail Gorbachev|Gorbachev]] in the Soviet Union, [[Zhao Ziyang]] and his [[Opportunism|right-opportunist]] clique attempted to restore capitalism in the late 1980s.<ref>{{Web citation|date=2022-12-24|title=Red Theory: The achievements of socialism in China|url=https://www.fightbacknews.org/2022/12/24/red-theory-achievements-socialism-china|newspaper=[[Fight Back! News]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123044644/https://www.fightbacknews.org/2022/12/24/red-theory-achievements-socialism-china|archive-date=2023-01-23|retrieved=2023-02-05|author=J. Sykes}}</ref> The CIA and its cut-out, the [[National Endowment for Democracy|NED]], attempted a [[1989 Tian'anmen Square riots|color revolution in 1989]] and lynched unarmed [[People's Liberation Army|PLA]] soldiers before being defeated.<ref name=":02">{{News citation|author=Tom|newspaper=Mango Press|title=The Tian'anmen Square 'Massacre': The West's Most Persuasive, Most Pervasive Lie|date=2021-06-04|url=https://www.mango-press.com/the-tiananmen-square-massacre-the-wests-most-persuasive-most-pervasive-lie/|retrieved=2022-04-21}}</ref><ref name=":52">{{News citation|author=[[Brian Becker]]|newspaper=[[Liberation School]]|title=Tiananmen: The Massacre that Wasn’t|date=2014-06-13|url=https://www.liberationschool.org/tiananmen-the-massacre-that-wasnt/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220102183128/https://www.liberationschool.org/tiananmen-the-massacre-that-wasnt/|archive-date=2022-01-02|retrieved=2022-06-20}}</ref><ref name=":42">{{News citation|author=Milton James|newspaper=Critical Social Work Publishing House|title=1989 Tiananmen Square "Student Massacre" was a hoax|date=2020-07-08|url=https://www.criticalsocialworkpublishinghouse.com/post/1989-tiananmen-square-student-massacre-was-a-hoax|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321183536/https://www.criticalsocialworkpublishinghouse.com/post/1989-tiananmen-square-student-massacre-was-a-hoax|archive-date=2022-03-21|retrieved=2022-06-05}}</ref>

===Third Generation (1992–2002) ===
The third generation of leadership covers the extent of time that [[Jiang Zemin]] was general secretary of the CPC and president of the PRC.<ref>''The top priority of the third generation of collective leadership''.(Chinese: [http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/33839/34943/34944/34947/2617549.html 第三代领导集体的当务之急])</ref> It was mainly characterized by Jiang Zemin's political theory known as the [[Three Represents]].<ref>''What is the scientific meaning of "Three Represents"?'' (Chinese:[http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64156/64157/4418474.html “三个代表”的科学含义是什么？])</ref>

The Three Represents theory refers to the following:

#Representing the development trend of China’s advanced productive forces.
#Representing the orientation of China's advanced culture.
#Representing the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of the Chinese people.
[[Hong Kong Special Administrative Region|Hong Kong]] and [[Macao Special Administrative Region|Macao]] were peacefully returned to China, China joined the [[World Trade Organization]], the CPC cracked down on the [[Fascism|fascist]] cult [[Falun Gong]], and China successfully weathered the late-1990s Asian financial crisis during this period.

=== Fourth Generation (2002–2012)===
The fourth generation of leadership covers the extent of time when [[Hu Jintao]] was the general secretary of the CPC and president of the PRC and [[Wen Jiabo]] was premier. It was mainly characterized by Hu Jintao's political theory known as the [[Scientific Outlook on Development|scientific outlook on development]].

China weathered the [[SARS epidemic]] and the [[Great Recession]] during this period, saw the re-introduction of universal healthcare and social welfare, and China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics.

===Fifth Generation (2012–present)===
The fifth generation of leadership covers the extent of time that [[Xi Jinping]] has been the general secretary of the CPC and president of the PRC, and that [[Li Keqiang]] and [[Li Qiang]] have been the premier.<ref>''The fifth generation of collective leadership in China'' (Chinese: [https://www.cqwcsy.com/news/55559/ 中国第五代领导集体])</ref> A key component of Xi's leadership is his administration's ongoing crackdown and cleaning out of CIA and other [[Capital|capitalist]] orgs' penetration of the CPC and wider Chinese society.<ref>''China Used Stolen Data To Expose CIA Operatives In Africa And Europe'' [https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/21/china-stolen-us-data-exposed-cia-operatives-spy-networks/]</ref>

The biggest project of the fifth generation of leadership has been the [[Belt and Road Initiative]]. Other endeavors made during this generation include the Chinese Space Station, the Two Centennial Goals, and Green Development.

The main political contribution made during the fifth generation has been [[Xi Jinping Thought]] but other contributions have been made such as the [[Core Socialist Values]] and the [[Chinese Dream]].

China saved millions of lives in a two-year shutdown following the [[COVID-19 pandemic|COVID-19]] pandemic, from early 2020 to late 2022.<ref>https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-12-11/China-eases-dynamic-zero-COVID-policy-and-what-s-next--1fGkZEacoh2/index.html</ref> The fifth generation of governance has also seen the re-collectivization of agriculture in the countryside,<ref>https://mronline.org/2022/06/03/how-china-strengthened-food-security-and-fought-poverty-with-state-funded-cooperatives/</ref> and the alleviation of extreme poverty.<ref>http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2021-04/06/c_139860414.htm</ref>

== Administrative divisions==
[[File:China_administrative_regions.svg|thumb|alt=|Map of China with its administrative divisions at a province-level.]]
[[File:China autonomous divisions.png|thumb|Map of administrative divisions of China for non-Han nations]]
China has 34 province-level divisions: 23 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, 4 municipalities directly under the Central Government, and 2 special administrative region.<ref>Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China [https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/ljzg_665465/zgjk_665467/3572_665469/t1140993.shtml Administrative Division System]</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
!Name
!Seat of Government
!Area (100,000 km2)
!Population (100,000)
|-
|[[Beijing|Beijing Municipality]]
|[[Beijing]]
|0.168
|125.7
|-
|[[Tianjin|Tianjin Municipality]]
|[[Tianjin]]
|0.113
|95.9
|-
|[[Hebei|Hebei Province]]
|[[Shijiazhuang]]
|1.900
| 661.4
|-
|[[Shanxi|Shanxi Province]]
|[[Taiyuan]]
|1.560
|320.4
|-
|[[Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region]]
|[[Hohhot]]
|11.830
|236.2
|-
|[[Liaoning|Liaoning Province]]
|[[Shenyang]]
|1.457
|417.1
|-
|[[Jilin|Jilin Province]]
|[[Changchun]]
|1.870
| 265.8
|-
|[[Heilongjiang|Heilongjiang Province]]
|[[Harbin]]
|4.690
|379.2
|-
|[[Shanghai|Shanghai Municipality]]
|[[Shanghai]]
|0.062
|147.4
|-
|[[Jiangsu|Jiangsu Province]]
|[[Nanjing]]
|1.026
|721.3
|-
|[[Zhejiang|Zhejiang Province]]
|[[Hangzhou]]
|1.018
|447.5
|-
|[[Anhui|Anhui Province]]
|[[Hefei]]
|1.390
|623.7
|-
|[[Fujian|Fujian Province]]
|[[Fuzhou]]
|1.200
|331.6
|-
|[[Jiangxi|Jiangxi Province]]
|[[Nanchang]]
|1.666
|423.1
|-
|[[Shandong|Shandong Province]]
|[[Jinan]]
|1.530
|888.3
|-
|[[Henan|Henan Province]]
|[[Zhengzhou]]
|1.670
|938.7
|-
|[[Hubei|Hubei Province]]
|[[Wuhan]]
|1.874
|593.8
|-
|[[Hunan|Hunan Province]]
|[[Changsha]]
|2.100
|653.2
|-
|[[Guangdong|Guangdong Province]]
|[[Guangzhou]]
|1.860
|727.0
|-
|[[Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region|Guangxi Autonomous Region]]
|[[Nanning]]
|2.363
|471.3
|-
|[[Hainan|Hainan Province]]
|[[Haikou]]
|0.340
|76.2
|-
|[[Chongqing|Chongqing Municipality]]
|[[Chongqing]]
|0.820
|307.5
|-
|[[Sichuan|Sichuan Province]]
|[[Chengdu]]
|4.880
|855.0
|-
|[[Guizhou|Guizhou Province]]
|[[Guiyang]]
|1.700
|371.0
|-
|[[Yunnan|Yunnan Province]]
|[[Kunming]]
|3.940
|419.2
|-
|[[Tibet Autonomous Region]]
|[[Lhasa]]
|12.200
|25.6
|-
|[[Shaanxi|Shaanxi Province]]
|[[Xi'an]]
|2.050
|361.8
|-
|[[Gansu|Gansu Province]]
|[[Lanzhou]]
|4.500
|254.3
|-
|[[Qinghai|Qinghai Province]]
|[[Xining]]
|7.200
|51.0
|-
|[[Ningxia Autonomous Region]]
|[[Yinchuan]]
|0.664
|54.3
|-
|[[Xinjiang Autonomous Region]]
|[[Ürümqi]]
|16.000
|177.4
|-
|[[Hong Kong Special Administrative Region]]
|[[Hong Kong]]
|0.01092
|68.4
|-
|[[Macao Special Administrative Region]]
|[[Macao]]
|0.00024
|4.3
|-
|[[Taiwan Province]]
|[[Taipei]] (occupied by [[United States imperialism|US imperialists]])
|0.360
|217.4
|}

==Pro-worker economy==
China operates what it calls [[socialism with Chinese Characteristics|socialism with Chinese characteristics]], often referred to as the [[socialist market economy]] by Chinese leaders.<ref>Sam-Kee Cheng (2020). ''Primitive socialist accumulation in China: An alternative view on the anomalies of Chinese “capitalism”.'' {{Doi|10.1177/0486613419888298}}</ref> In this system, China maintains state ownership of large industries and those that they deem vital to China's security while facilitating a market driven development of medium and small enterprises. Firms that would otherwise be monopolies in China are ran as what is called a State Owned Enterprise (SOE). SOEs often participate in markets and sometimes function much like a private firm, with the key difference being that they are owned and operated by the government. China controls strategic resources such as rare earth minerals as well as silicon chips, which are both valuable to high-technology industries.<ref>https://youtu.be/jlShNCKx8rw</ref>[[File:WorkersCongressChina.jpg|thumb|A workers' congress meeting]]
Factory workers in China (in both the public and private sector) have the ability to join workers' congresses, which grant them control over wage adjustments, supervision of leadership and election of the factory director.<ref>https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/china-and-russia-have-workers-councils-but-not-chattanooga/</ref><ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/communism/comments/d1u77y/workers_councils_in_china/</ref><ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20220610093819/https://twitter.com/isgoodrum/status/1043159032935006208</ref> SOE congresses have decidedly more power than private enterprises. In 2005, a study released regarding the influence of workers' congresses and Chinese unions analyzed the effects of companies that had unions or no unions. When surveyed, the worker satisfaction along the metrics of greater worker rights, greater wages and greater abilities to settle conflicts in favour of workers. It was found that generally speaking, worker satisfaction was higher than in companies without them. And the same study claims around 80% of all companies have some form of workers union on board. Workers' participation however, is not mandatory in these unions and those who do not wish to unionize are not required to have a union.<ref>[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265966556_Zhu_Xiaoyang_and_Anita_Chan_Staff_and_Workers'_Representative_Congress_An_Institutionalized_Channel_for_Expression_of_Employees'_Interests_Chinese_Sociology_and_Anthropology_Vol_37_No_4_Summer_2005_pp ZHU XIAOYANG AND ANITA CHAN - Staff and Workers’ Representative Congress An Institutionalized Channel for Expression of Employees’ Interests?]</ref> A similar 2004 study found that these workers' congresses were able to dismiss managers when they failed to get more than 60% votes of confidence, and that it was possible for these unions to significantly improve health and safety conditions, or to fairly distribute new housing benefits.<ref>[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269496596_The_Internal_Politics_of_an_Urban_Chinese_Work_Community_A_Case_Study_of_Employee_Influence_on_Decision-Making_at_a_State-Owned_Factory The Internal Politics of an Urban Chinese Work Community: A Case Study of Employee Influence on Decision-Making at a State-Owned Factory]</ref>

In 2012, the number of unions in SOEs were 88.1% and in non-SOEs to be around 85.5%. It also states that within Chinese companies 32.7% of employee representatives at the company and plant level are nominated and elected directly from employees, while 61% of them are nominated by the Party committees and elected by employees. The same study finds that workers' congresses are positively associated with better health and safety, and more likely to report issues or flaws within company structure, as well as a useful consultation method that better leveraged worker voices towards the higher ups.<ref>[https://fbr.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s11782-018-0033-y#Sec8 The perceived effectiveness of democratic management, job performance, and citizenship behavior: evidence from a large Chinese state-owned petrochemical company]- Fuxi Wang</ref> A similar 2013 survey found that out of 43 nations surveyed in the OECD, China had the most protective legislation for employed permanent workers.<ref>[https://www.oecd.org/els/emp/Employment-Outlook-2013-chap2.pdf Protecting jobs, enhancing flexibility: A new look at employment protection legislation] - OECD Employment outlook, page 89</ref>

When it comes to wage arrears suffered by rural migrant workers, among migrant construction workers in 2013 was 1.8 per cent compared to 0.9 per cent in the manufacturing sector; and in 2014, it was 1.4 per cent in construction compared to 0.6 per cent in manufacturing. While wage arrears remains an issue, it is a gradually declining and miniscule issue that affects less than 2% of the total rural migrant working population in those industries, therefore the issue of underpaying or refusing to pay migrant workers at all is an overexaggerated issue that is blown out of proportion.<ref>'''[https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/6279F3FC81641FBBB45AFD9A415B8591/S0305741022000807a.pdf/div-class-title-working-without-wages-network-structure-and-migrant-construction-workers-protests-in-china-div.pdf Working without Wages: Network Structure and Migrant Construction Workers’ Protests in China]''' - By Haitao Wei and Cheris Shun-Ching Chan</ref>

The CPC has therefore made tremendous efforts to meet the demands of local protests and strikes as well as hold local governments accountable for causing or mishandling protests that spin out of control. Chinese workers have successfully organized collective action to get local governments, and the courts as mentioned above, to help accommodate their claims, most notably getting payment for wage arrears.<ref>Su and He, “Street as Courtroom: State Accommodation of Labor Protests in South China.”</ref> Similarly, a study in 2009 found that more often than not, the arbitration tribunals in mainland China are biased in favor of employees suing their employers. Because arbitration tribunals are sympathetic towards employees-who are traditionally seen as the weaker party-they will sometimes overlook acontract violation by the employee. In addition, sometimes tribunals assume that companies can bear the financial losses more readily than employees. Therefore, more often than not, employees win in arbitration or in court based on prejudice in their favor.<ref>Joanna Law, Employers, Prepare for Tribunal Trouble, CHINA LAW & PRACTICE, Feb. 2009</ref>

The book ''A New Deal for China's Workers'' (released in 2016) states that,<ref>[https://dokumen.pub/qdownload/a-new-deal-for-chinas-workers-2016017881-9780674971394.html Conclusion, Page 220 - A New Deal for China’s Workers? 2016017881, 9780674971394]</ref><blockquote>"In enacting the LCL, and in doubling down on its employment protections by restricting the use of labor dispatch, China is swimming against both a modest liberalizing current in parts of the developed world and deeper trends toward declining job tenure, splintering of work organizations, outsourcing of production, and contingent work arrangements. The continuing slide from long-term employment within integrated firms toward a “gig” economy, though celebrated by some, has potentially dire consequences for workers who risk losing the entire panoply of rights, protections, and benefits that twentieth-century reforms had attached to the employment relationship. But China is seeking to defy that trend, and to shore up job security and stability."</blockquote>Though trying to portray the CPC in a negative light here, it still admits that the CPC opposes and seeks to ensure better job security and stability compared to the Capitalist nations of the West. Defying a gig economy and seeking to double down on employment protection has done far more than the rest of the "developed world" in securing and defending the rights of the working class.

China also has a vibrant worker co-operative model of ownership. Worker co-operatives are trading enterprises, owned and run by the people who work in them, who have an equal say in what the business does, and an equitable share in the wealth created from the products and services they provide, with 48% of all rural households in China being apart of a co-operative.<ref>[https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1004505/how-village-co-ops-are-remapping-chinas-rural-communities How Village Co-Ops are remapping China's rural community]</ref> In 2017, there were 30,281 primary (village-level) supply and marketing cooperatives (SMCs), 2,402 country-level federations of SMCs, 342 city-level federations of SMCs, 32 provincial-level federations of SMCs, 21,852 cooperative enterprises and 280 cooperative institutes represented by ACFSMC (All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives). There were 3.4 million employees in all SMCs represented by ACFSMC.<ref>[https://coops4dev.coop/en/4devasia/china China, #CoopsForDev]</ref> About 95% of towns and villages have a SMC as of 2019, compared to 50% a mere 6 years ago.<ref>[https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/2184810/can-china-get-its-farmers-back-track-us400-million-fund-state Xi Jinping turns to Mao Zedong era system to get rid of poverty] </ref> The cooperative sector continues to grow, China's supply and marketing system will realize sales of agricultural products of 2.7591 trillion yuan and daily necessities of 1.4925 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 24.3% and 17.1% respectively. A recruitment notice stated that in 2023, the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives plans to take the examination and recruit staff from the agency. Outstanding young people who are interested in joining the supply and marketing cooperatives are welcome to apply for the examination.<ref>[https://www.zaobao.com.sg/realtime/china/story20221102-1329090 Afternoon inspection: Supply and marketing cooperatives come back?] - Zaobao.sg</ref>

China also has great democratic management in the workplace, with positive associations with workers' hourly wages, fringe benefits, and firms' labor productivity on average, suggesting that it is not merely ‘window-dressing’ as perceived by conventional wisdom.<ref>[https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1748-8583.12471 What does democratic management do in Chinese workplaces? Evidence from matched employer–employee data] </ref> Chinese workers have also had higher wage increases, doubling between 2008 and 2019, compared to emerging G20 countries with a 3.5-4.5% annual growth. And in advanced G20 countries with 0.4-0.9% annual growth.<ref>[https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/documents/publication/wcms_762302.pdf ILO- International Wage Report]</ref> Chinese workers having greater rights even extend to the ability to imprison their own boss in their office, with the police intervening on behalf of the workers.<ref>[https://www.forbes.com/sites/mitchfree/2013/07/11/held-hostage-entrepreneurs-uneasy-over-chinese-govt-inaction/?sh=2e05c17863de Held Hostage: Entrepreneurs' uneasy over Chinese government inaction - Forbes]</ref>

In 2018, there were a total of 1,110,175 people involved in labor disputes. The number 1 cause being labor renumeration/wage arrears. Number 1 reason for case settlement was agreed upon increase in wage, and the number 1 way this was administered was legal order to make required adjustment. Out of 894,053 cases of labor issues, 93,823 were won by employers.<ref>Zhongguo Laodong Tongji Nianjian 2019 [China Labor Statistical Yearbook 2019] p 343 - 344</ref>

In 2020, there were a total of 1,283,491 people involved in labor disputes. The number 1 cause being labor renumeration/wage arrears. Out of 1,100,681 cases, 112,053 were won by employers. The number 1 way this was enforced was legal order to make required adjustment.<ref>Zhongguo Laodong Tongji Nianjian 2021 [China Labor Statistical Yearbook 2021] p 362 - 364</ref>

As of January 2023, The People's Republic of China has an overall historic unemployment rate of around 4-5%,<ref>[https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CHN/china/unemployment-rate China unemployment rate 1991 - 2023], macrotrends</ref> compared to the [[Statesian]] historic unemployment rate of around 5-6%.<ref>[https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/USA/united-states/unemployment-rate US Unemployment Rates 1991 - 2023], macrotrends</ref> This is high in comparison to the economy of, for example, the USSR, which generally had stable employment opportunities for young workers, and also had an unemployment rate of about 1%.<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=1991 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK|title=Soviet Union Economy - 1991|date=1991|url=https://www.theodora.com/wfb1991/soviet_union/soviet_union_economy.html|retrieved=2022-7-9}}</ref>

Although GDP growth was at its peak in the 1960s, China experiences consistent GDP growth, and China outpaces the US in terms of GDP growth. Historically, this has been year-over-year 2-3x the US growth percentage<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=macrotrends|title=China GDP Growth Rate 1961-2022|date=2022|url=https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CHN/china/gdp-growth-rate|retrieved=2022-12-06}}</ref>

=== Mode of production ===
Currently, China is in the primary stage of [[socialism]]. This is a stage which is expected to last until the 100th anniversary of the People's Republic of China, in 2049, and this stage is intended to unleash the [[productive forces]] of China to the point where socialism is superior in terms of productivity in contrast to the capitalist mode of production.<ref>{{Citation|author=Deng Xiaoping|year=1987|title=To Uphold Socialism We Must Eliminate Poverty|title-url=https://dengxiaopingworks.wordpress.com/2013/03/18/to-uphold-socialism-we-must-eliminate-poverty/|mia=https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/deng-xiaoping/1987/133.htm}}</ref>
==Governance==

=== Healthcare===
In the Mao period, China built one of the developing world's most robust public healthcare systems, based on rural primary care, [[barefoot doctors]], and regular mass campaigns, known as "patriotic health campaigns." Since the beginning of the reform period, China's healthcare system has gone through a number of phases. After an unfortunate period of regression and privatization, China has spent the last decade making rapid progress towards a new universal healthcare system. A 2020 study in the ''British Medical Journal (BMJ)'' summarizes many of the goals and programs of China's recent health reforms:<blockquote>Priority was given to expanding the scope and health service package of the basic insurance coverage, improving provider payment mechanisms, as well as increasing the financing level, fiscal subsidies and reimbursement rates. [...] The government has increased investment in primary care, with initiatives that include strengthening the infrastructure of primary healthcare (PHC) facilities, expanding human resources for primary care through incentives and supporting projects, establishing a general practitioner system and improving the capacity of PHC personnel through training and education, such as general practice training and continuous medical education programmes. [...] The ‘equalization of basic public health services’ policy implemented the national BPHS programme and the crucial public health service (CPHS) programme. [...] This policy seeks to achieve universal availability and promote a more equitable provision of basic health services to all urban and rural citizens.<ref>Wenjuan Tao, Zhi Zeng, et al. ''Towards universal health coverage: lessons from 10 years of healthcare reform in China.'' BMJ Global Health. {{Doi|10.1136/bmjgh-2019-002086}}</ref></blockquote>The New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) was rolled out in China from 2003-2008 which provided insurance to 800 million rural Chinese. A study found that there was a significant decline in aggregate mortality, with the program saving more than one million lives per year at its peak, and explaining 78% of the entire increase in life expectancy in China over this period.<ref>[https://www.nber.org/papers/w31423 The Largest Insurance Expansion in History: Saving One Million Lives Per Year in China - Jonathan Gruber, Mengyun Lin & Junjian Yi]</ref>The 2020 study goes on to note that China has made significant progress towards meeting its reform goals, and building a developed and equitable universal healthcare system:<blockquote>During the past 10 years since the latest round of healthcare reform, China made steady progress in achieving the reform goals and UHC [i.e. universal health coverage].</blockquote>Another paper, also from the ''BMJ,'' summarizes the recent improvements in China's health outcomes, as well as access to, and cost of, healthcare:<blockquote>The results include the following: out-of-pocket expenditures as a percentage of current health expenditures in China have dropped dramatically from 60.13% in 2000 to 35.91% in 2016; the health insurance coverage of the total population jumped from 22.1% in 2003 to 95.1% in 2013; the average life expectancy increased from 72.0 to 76.4, maternal mortality dropped from 59 to 29 per 100 000 live births, the under-5 mortality rate dropped from 36.8 to 9.3 per 1000 live births, and neonatal mortality dropped from 21.4 to 4.7 per 1000 live births between 2000 and 2017; and so on.<ref>Wenjuan Tao, Zhi Zeng, et al. ''Towards universal health coverage: achievements and challenges of 10 years of healthcare reform in China.'' BMJ Global Health. {{Doi|10.1136/bmjgh-2019-002087}}</ref></blockquote>China’s round of health system reform in 2009 has made good progress. Almost everyone is covered by the social health insurance system and basic public health service package, and unmet health needs and inequities have decreased. In 2003, 29.6% was the proportion of patients who were advised by doctors that they needed treatment in hospital but did not use inpatient care. By 2013, that number dropped to 7.4%. In 2000, 50% of health expenditures were out of pocket, this has decreased to 28% in 2017. In 2000, infant mortality was 25.2%, this decreased to 3.8% by 2017.<ref>[https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/365/bmj.l2349.full.pdf '''What can we learn from China’s health system reform?''' - 2019 By Qingyue Meng]</ref>

In short, while China's healthcare system is not perfect, it is certainly moving in the right direction. As with many other aspects of China's socialist construction, this provides a model for other developing nations; according to the aforementioned ''BMJ'' study:<blockquote>The lessons learnt from China could help other nations improve UHC in sustainable and adaptive ways, including continued political support, increased health financing and a strong PHC system as basis. The experience of the rapid development of UHC in China can provide a valuable mode for countries (mainly LMICs) planning their own path further on in the UHC journey.</blockquote>This is another benefit of China's rise to prominence on the world stage. China demonstrates to the world that it is possible for a desperately poor country to rise from poverty, develop its economy, and meet the needs of its people.

===Democracy and popular opinion===
Polls conducted by Western researchers have consistently found that the Chinese people have a high level of support for their government, and for the Communist Party. A 2020 analysis by the China Data Lab (based at UC San Diego) found that support for the government has been increasing as of late.<ref>Lei Guang, Margaret Roberts, Yiqing Xu and Jiannan Zhao (2020). ''[http://chinadatalab.ucsd.edu/viz-blog/pandemic-sees-increase-in-chinese-support-for-regime-decrease-in-views-towards-us/ Pandemic sees Increase in Chinese support for regime, decrease in views towards the U.S.]'' China Data Lab.</ref> Similar results were found in a 2016 survey done by Harvard University's Ash Center:<blockquote>The survey team found that compared to public opinion patterns in the U.S., in China there was very high satisfaction with the central government. In 2016, the last year the survey was conducted, 95.5 percent of respondents were either “relatively satisfied” or “highly satisfied” with Beijing. In contrast to these findings, Gallup reported in January of this year that their latest polling on U.S. citizen satisfaction with the American federal government revealed only 38 percent of respondents were satisfied with the federal government.<ref>Dan Harsha (2020). ''[https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/07/long-term-survey-reveals-chinese-government-satisfaction/ Taking China’s pulse].'' The Harvard Gazette.</ref></blockquote>It is worth noting that the Chinese people are significantly less satisfied with local government than they are with the central government. Still, these results disprove the common notion that the Chinese people are ruled by an iron fisted regime that they do not want. Indeed, one official from the Ash Center noted that their findings "run counter to the general idea that these people are marginalized and disfavored by policies." As he states:<blockquote>We tend to forget that for many in China, and in their lived experience of the past four decades, each day was better than the next.</blockquote>In addition, most Chinese people are satisfied with the level of democracy in the PRC. A 2018 study in the ''International Political Science Review'' notes that "surveys suggest that the majority of Chinese people feel satisfied with the level of democracy in China." However, the study notes that "people who hold liberal democratic values" are more likely to be dissatisfied with the state of democracy in China. By contrast, those who hold a "substantive" view of democracy (i.e. one based on the idea that the state should focus on providing for the material needs of the people) are more satisfied.<ref>Yida Zhai (2018). ''Popular conceptions of democracy and democratic satisfaction in China''. International Political Science Review. {{Doi|10.1177/0192512118757128}}</ref>

While the Chinese government contains authoritarian elements, it also has elements of genuine democracy. An example of this may be found in the National People's Congress, China's primary legislative body. While Western media has typically labeled the NPC as a simple rubberstamping body for the Central Committee, the facts indicate that this is not entirely true. A 2016 study in the ''Journal of Legislative Studies'' found that the NPC "is no longer a minimal or ‘rubber-stamp’ legislature," noting that "the NPC does play an important role in the whole political system, especially in legislation, though the NPC has typically been under the control of China's Communist Party."<ref>{{Citation|title=Is the label ‘minimal legislature’ still appropriate? The role of the National People's Congress in China's political system|year=2016|author=Wenbo Chen|publisher=The Journal of Legislative Studies|doi=10.1080/13572334.2015.1134909}}</ref>

Many of the other claims surrounding authoritarianism in China are highly overblown, to say the least. For instance, an [https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/11/16/chinas-orwellian-social-credit-score-isnt-real/ article] in ''Foreign Policy'' (the most orthodox of liberal policy journals) notes that the Chinese [[Social Credit System|social credit system]] was massively exaggerated and distorted in Western media. An [https://www.wired.com/story/china-social-credit-score-system/ article] in the publication ''Wired'' discusses how many of these overblown perceptions came to be. None of this is to suggest that China is a perfect democracy, with zero flaws; it certainly has issues relating to transparency, treatment of prisoners, etc. That being said, it is far from the [[Totalitarianism|totalitarian]] nightmare that [[Imperialism|imperialist]] media generally depicts it as being.

===Public ownership===
{{Main article|Socialist market economy}}
Contrary to the popular perception that China's growth has been the result of a transition to capitalism, the evidence shows that public ownership continues to play a key growth-driving role in the PRC's economy. According to the aforementioned 2020 study in the ''Review of Radical Political Economics'', "strategic industries, which [[Vladimir Lenin|Lenin]] called 'the commanding heights of economy,' are still state-owned and have played a very important role in China’s economic development."<ref>{{Citation|title=Primitive Socialist Accumulation in China: An Alternative View on the Anomalies of Chinese “Capitalism”|volume=52|year=2020|page=693–715|series=Review of Radical Political Economics|author=Sam-Kee Cheng|publisher=SAGE Publishing|doi=10.1177/0486613419888298}}</ref> The author notes that "after decades of market reform, China’s state sector, rather than disappearing or being marginalized, has become a leader in strategic sectors and the driver of its investment-led growth." To learn more, we would recommend the book ''The Basic Economic System of China'', which goes into this issue in much more depth.<ref>{{Citation|isbn=978-981-13-6895-0|lg=https://libgen.rs/book/index.php?md5=07DE5CA4B3F3C14139975D1A9D668FC8|author=Changhong Pei, Chunxue Yang, Xinming Yang|year=2019|title=The Basic Economic System of China.|publisher=Springer Singapore|series=China Governance System Research Series|doi=10.1007/978-981-13-6895-0}}</ref>

In the University Paper, ''Is China still Socialist'' by Khoo Heikoo, their research goes into detail of the market share of the economy. In 2010, at least 94% of all financial capital and revenue is owned by SOE's out of 150 largest companies in China.<ref>[https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/files/136790902/2018_Khoo_Heiko_1068757_ethesis.pdf Page 86, Is China still socialist? A Marxist critique of János Kornai’s analysis of China] - Khoo, Heikoo.</ref> In the University paper, ''The Rise of the Investor State: State Capital in the Chinese Economy'' by Hao Chen and Meg Rithmere discusses how state shareholders can influence the private sector. With the overall ownership of investment firms in 2017 being 80.9% central state owned, 13.7% local state owned and only 4.67% being truly private. The paper also goes on to state:<ref>[https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12116-020-09308-3 The Rise of the Investor State: State Capital in the Chinese Economy] - Hao Chen and Meg Rithmire</ref><blockquote>

"The state’s role as owner of firms has narrowed to include a set of large, national champion firms at the central level, but the deployment of state capital has morphed form rather than abated. As we have shown, the state invests broadly in the private sector in a number of forms, a fact that complicates the “state versus private” dichotomy that has dominated the study of China’s political economy during the reform era. Further, the deployment of state capital into the wider economy has accompanied a change in the structure of the state; hundreds of shareholding firms, large and small and owned by local and central levels of the state, now interface extensively with private firms, can intervene with ease in stock markets, and appear to constitute new agents in the execution of the CCP’s overall economic policy."</blockquote>''The Ascendency of State-owned Enterprises in China: development, controversy and problems'' by Hong Yu also states:<ref>[http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2013.809990 Hong Yu (2014) The Ascendency of State-owned Enterprises in China: development, controversy and problems, Journal of Contemporary China], 23:85, 161-182, DOI: 10.1080/10670564.2013.809990</ref><blockquote>"In terms of total sales revenue of China’s top 100 enterprises in 2011, the SOEs accounted for around 90%. The state sector remains the driving force behind economic development in China. All the big commercial banks in China are SOEs. More importantly, given the fact that township and village enterprises (TVEs) owned by local governments belong to the state sector but are not regarded as SOEs, and a large number of entities operating inside and outside of China are actually owned or controlled indirectly via SOEs’ subsidiaries, the true size of the SOEs is unknown. Their influence is far greater than official statistics suggest. Woetzel’s study also demonstrates that many firms, which were partially privatized but with the state remaining as a majority shareholder, have not been counted in the SOE category in official statistics."</blockquote>In terms of State Owned Enterprises, according to the book, ''The Logic of Economic Reform in China'' the following states that (units in Yuan/RMB):<blockquote>For the perspective of overall development of the state-owned enterprises, operating income of state-owned and state-held enterprises (excluding financial enterprises) increased from 10.73 trillion to 39.25 trillion with the annual increase of 17.6% from 2003 to 2011; total assets and owner’s equity were 85.37 trillion and 29.17 trillion, respectively 4.3 times and 3.5 times compared with those in 2003.<ref name=":21">[https://books.google.com.hk/books?id=rnT_CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA196&lpg=PA196&dq=Huang+Qunhui+(2013)+How+to+actively+develop+mixed-ownership+economy+in+New+Era.+Administration+Reform,+Dec+2013&source=bl&ots=WbA8hJmYTr&sig=ACfU3U34LWt5hyrz8GqLl5U5tcvwdrodpA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj35dS5q6CAAxWIAt4KHRhHBTIQ6AF6BAgcEAM#v=onepage&q=Huang%20Qunhui%20(2013)%20How%20to%20actively%20develop%20mixed-ownership%20economy%20in%20New%20Era.%20Administration%20Reform%2C%20Dec%202013&f=false The Logic of Economic reform in China - Xiaojing Zhang, Xin Chang] - Page 177</ref></blockquote>In 2012, the total assets held by the State sector in China amounted to 55.78% or 53% depending on the estimate used.<ref>The Basic Economic System of China by Changhong Pei, Chunxu Yang and Xinming Yang, page 24-25</ref> However, in comparison with European nations during the same time period, the total assets of eastern European nations held by the state sector were around 13%. For the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium and Portugal, it was around 4.60%. For Ireland and the UK, even less than that number. For Austria and Germany, around 10.79%. For Scandinavia, it was 6.02%<ref>[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344833099_State-Owned_Enterprises_Across_Europe_Stylized_Facts_from_a_Large_Firm-Level_Dataset State-Owned Enterprises Across Europe: Stylized Facts from a Large Firm-Level Dataset], by Bram De Lange and Bruno Merlevede, p 17</ref>

Another 2013 study found that, in the largest developing economies, total assets held by the state sector as a% of GDP, China had by far the largest. With Non financial State assets being 176% of GDP, for Brazil it was 51%, India it was 75%, Indonesia it was 19%, Russia it was 64% and South Africa it was 3%. <ref>[https://www.elibrary.imf.org/display/book/9781513539942/ch11.xml Modernizing China, Investing in Soft Infrastructure. Chapter 11 - IMF]</ref> In comparison, in 2015, Italian, Korean, Saudi Arabian and Norway's state owned assets did not reach more than 25% of GDP.<ref>[https://www.elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/002/2021/012/article-A002-en.xml People’s Republic of China: Selected Issues, Volume 2021, issue 12] - IMF</ref> In 2016, for SOEs in developing European economies, the number did not exceed 100% of GDP, the median being around roughly 45%.<ref>[https://www.ebrd.com/what-we-do/economic-research-and-data/cse-economists/economic-performance-soes-in-emerging-economies.html Economic performance of state-owned enterprises in emerging economies, A cross country study] - European Bank for Reconstruction and Development</ref>

In 2014, China's top 500, 300 are SOEs, accounting for 60 percent. The operating revenues of these SOEs account for 79.9 percent of the total 56.68 trillion yuan, while total assets account for 91.2 percent, out of the total 176.4 trillion yuan. The total profit of these SOEs account for 83.9 percent out of the total 2.4 trillion yuan<ref>[http://www.china.org.cn/business/2014-09/03/content_33419397.htm China reveals new top 500 enterprises list] - Wang Zhiyong, China.org.cn</ref> In 2006, The report revealed that 349 enterprises in the list were state owned, accounting for nearly 70 percent of the total. Their combined assets reached 39 trillion yuan (4.87 trillion US dollars) at the end of 2005, accounting for 95 percent of the total. It showed that state-owned economy remained dominant and controls the leading industries in the national economy.<ref>[https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2006-09/03/content_680098_2.htm Top 500 account for 78% of China's GDP] - Biz.China, Xinhua.net</ref>Even in the 1990s after Reform and Opening Up, the ''OECD Agricultural Outlook/June - July 1999'' discuss how the state maintains control of the agricultural sector<blockquote>“Before 1980, government central planning dominated domestic grain marketing. The government’s Grain Bureau purchased, transported, stored, milled, and retailed all grain leaving the farm. Then in the 1980’s and early 1990’s, open markets became increasingly important as the government was no longer the sole purchaser and many provinces began phasing out a ration system that allowed urban consumers to purchase grain at low fixed prices (AO March 1997). But current grain policy, initiated in 1998, '''led to a reversal of the use of open markets for domestic distribution and an increase in government intervention in grain production and marketing'''''.'' This relatively recent return to intervention in the domestic market has led to higher grain output and reduced demand for imports.”</blockquote>And then proceeds to state in ''OECD Agricultural Policy Reform in China 2005'' <ref>[https://www.oecd.org/china/oecdreviewofagriculturalpolicies-china.htm OECD Review of Agricultural Policies - China] ISBN: 9789264012608 </ref>p6 states <blockquote>“Total support to China’s agricultural sector reached USD 41 billion per year in 2000-2003 which is equivalent to 3.3% of China’s GDP in this period. This percentage is much higher than the OECD average and suggests a relatively high burden of agricultural support on the Chinese economy.”</blockquote>Agriculture in China whilst dominated by private family production units at the micro level is dominated by state purchase and distribution at the macro level. This ensures that China is able to feed itself and that supplies of essential grains reach the entire national consumer market. Imports and exports of grain are determined by the state and implemented by its organizations, thus contrary to appearances, Chinese agriculture is dominated by the state.

And in 2009, Derrick Scissors of the Heritage Foundation lays the issue to rest in an article called “Liberalization in Reverse.” He writes:<blockquote>"Examining what companies are truly private is important because privatization is often confused with the spreading out of shareholding and the sale of minority stakes. In China, 100 percent state ownership is often diluted by the division of ownership into shares, some of which are made available to nonstate actors, such as foreign companies or other private investors. Nearly two-thirds of the state-owned enterprises and subsidiaries in China have undertaken such changes, leading some foreign observers to relabel these firms as “nonstate” or even “private.” But this reclassification is incorrect. The sale of stock does nothing by itself to alter state control: dozens of enterprises are no less state controlled simply because they are listed on foreign stock exchanges. As a practical matter, three-quarters of the roughly 1,500 companies listed as domestic stocks are still state owned. "<ref name=":10">[https://www.heritage.org/global-politics/commentary/liberalization-reverse Derek Scissors, Ph.D. “Liberalization in Reverse,” May 4, 2009, Published by The Heritage Foundation]</ref> </blockquote>He also goes onto further elaborate sectors of the economy that the CPC have not once relinquished public ownership of key sectors of industry. <blockquote>"No matter their shareholding structure, all national corporations in the sectors that make up the core of the Chinese economy are required by law to be owned or controlled by the state. These sectors include power generation and distribution; oil, coal, petrochemicals, and natural gas; telecommunications; armaments; Aviation and shipping; machinery and automobile production; information technologies; construction; and the production of iron, steel, and nonferrous metals. The railroads, grain distribution, and insurance are also dominated by the state, even if no official edict says so."<ref name=":10" /></blockquote>The way the shareholding model is enforced is through the usage of what is known as the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council or the SASAC which oversees China's state owned enterprises and state investment companies.

Another way the CPC retains public ownership is through the banking system. The People’s Bank of China (PBC) highlights one of the most important ways in which the CPC uses the market system to control private capital and subordinate it to socialism. Far from functioning as a capitalist national bank, which prioritizes facilitating the accumulation of capital by the bourgeoisie, “this system frustrates private borrowers.”<ref name=":10" /> <blockquote>"the state exercises control over most of the rest of the economy through the financial system, especially the banks. By the end of 2008, outstanding loans amounted to almost $5 trillion, and annual loan growth was almost 19 percent and accelerating; lending, in other words, is probably China’s principal economic force. The Chinese state owns all the large financial institutions, the People’s Bank of China assigns them loan quotas every year, and lending is directed according to the state’s priorities."</blockquote>The CPC floods the market with public bonds, which has a crowding-out effect on private corporate bonds that firms use to raise independent capital. This also renders state bonds far more valuable than private bonds and the credit deterioration of non-state bonds is worse than state bonds. State Owned Enterprises receive much more preferential treatment from the government due to this model of flooding state bonds and far more valuable bonds into the market, with comparable private bonds declining in terms of value and being unable to compete. In 2018, this is clearly demonstrated after the implementation of more regulations on the shadow banking market, leading to investors flocking towards much more valuable State bonds over private ones. This inevitably creates a feed back look where state bonds have a "premium" and are objectively more valuable than private ones.<ref>[https://en.saif.sjtu.edu.cn/junpan/Credit.pdf The SOE Premium and Government Support in China’s Credit Marke]t - Zhe Geng and Jun Pan - November 29, 2022</ref> By harnessing supply and demand in the bond market, the PBC prevents private firms, domestic or foreign, from accumulating capital independently of socialist management.

Although modern China has an expansive market system, the CPC uses the market to both secure and advance socialism. Rather than privatizing major industries, as is often alleged by detractors, the state maintains a vibrant system of socialist public ownership that prevents the rise of an independent bourgeoisie.

The capitalist Australia-based Center for Independent Studies (CIS) has also published a July 2008 article that says that those who think that China is becoming a capitalist country “misunderstand the structure of the Chinese economy, which largely remains a state-dominated system rather than a free-market one.” The article elaborates:<blockquote><blockquote>"By strategically controlling economic resources and remaining the primary dispenser of economic opportunity and success in Chinese society, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is building institutions and supporters that seem to be entrenching the Party’s monopoly on power. Indeed, in many ways, reforms and the country’s economic growth have actually ''enhanced'' the CCP’s ability to remain in power. Rather than being swept away by change, the CCP is in many ways its agent and beneficiary."<ref>[https://www.cis.org.au/commentary/media/putting-democracy-in-china-on-hold/ John Lee, “Putting Democracy in China on Hold,” May 28, 2008], Published by The Center for Independent Studies</ref></blockquote></blockquote>The true nature of the private sector is actually quite small once you take into account it's breaking down. In 2005, the private sector is dominated by small sized enterprises, only 5% of private enterprises employ more than 500 and only 2% more than 1000 workers. Contrast this with the state sector where 80% of workers work in companies employing over 500 workers. The number of private companies rose from 90,000 in 1989 employing 1.4 million workers, to 3.6 million companies in 2004 employing 40 million workers. 74% of private companies originated as new start ups, 7% are privatized state owned companies, 8% are privatized rural collectives and 11% are privatized urban collectives. The average income of an entrepreneur is $6600 US per year (2002 figures) this gives an idea of the small scale of the overwhelming majority of private sector enterprises in China.<ref>OECD Economic Survey China Sept. 2005 p83-95</ref>

Though some may worry about the existence of foreign enterprise in China, once we look deeper into how these manifest, these worries are quickly alleviated.

''"Foreign investment was regulated to make it compatible with state development planning. Technology transfer and other performance requirements ― conditions attached to foreign investment to make sure that the host country gets some benefit from foreign investment, such as the use of locally produced inputs, or the hiring of local managers ― were common and are still an issue of contention with the United States today.”''<ref>[https://cepr.net/images/stories/reports/scorecard-2017-10.pdf David Rosnick, Mark Weisbrot, and Jacob Wilson, The Scorecard on Development, 1960–2016: China and the Global Economic Rebound, 2017]</ref>

"''in order to gain access to the vast and rapidly growing China market, Boeing was required to assist the main Chinese aircraft manufacturer in Xian to successively establish a capacity to produce spare parts and then manufacture whole sections of aircraft, and finally to assist in the development of a capacity to produce complete aircraft within China. In order to gain the right to invest in car production in China, Ford Motor Company was required to first invest for several years in upgrading the technical capacity of the Chinese automobile spare parts industry through a sequence of joint ventures.”''<ref>Peter Nolan, China’s Rise, Russia’s Fall, Palgrave Macmillan, 1995</ref>

And of course, for a good example would be McDonalds, where it remains a Joint-Venture with majority CPC ownership. 52% owned by CPC, 20% by McDonalds and 28% by Carlyle.<ref>[https://mashable.com/article/mcdonalds-china-franchise-citic Chinese government now controls the main stake in McDonald's China business]</ref> China also bars many foreign companies from participating in the Chinese market. As a result, companies need to enter the market through other means, such as setting up a wholly foreign-owned enterprise (WFOE) or forming a joint venture with a Chinese business partner. It is also alleged that Chinese Joint-Ventures and Chinese companies tend to steal IP and technologies from these foreign companies, as demonstrated in the above quotes. And many foreign investors have also stated that there are no legal protections for these foreign companies and Chinese attorneys will lobby in favour of the state, this indicates that foreign companies clearly do not run amuck in China. Many foreign investors have complained about the lack of freedom of voice in the Chinese market, with the state being the ultimate deciding factor in many cases.<ref>[https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=f5481934-6949-4666-bfb9-08976db73831#:~:text=China%20bars%20many%20foreign%20companies,with%20a%20Chinese%20business%20partner. China Joint Ventures: Everything You Should Know] - China Law Blog, Harris Bricken</ref>

The TVEs (Township and Village Enterprises) have been described as "private". This collectively owned sector grew rapidly - in 1978 there were 1.5 million such enterprises, by 1995 there were 22 million. In 1978 they employed 28 million people, by 1995 128 million.<ref>[https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315211305/institutional-transition-china-township-village-enterprises-hongyi-chen Hongyi Chen The Institutional Transition of China’s Township Village Enterprises]. p5 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315211305</ref> While they have been claimed to be private, in reality, the CPC legally defines TVEs as <blockquote>"The term "township enterprises" as mentioned in this Law refers to all kinds of enterprises established in townships (including villages under their jurisdiction) that are mainly invested by rural collective economic organizations or farmers and undertake the obligation to support agriculture.

The term "investment-based" mentioned in the preceding paragraph '''refers to rural collective economic organizations or farmers investing more than 50 percent, or less than 50 percent, but can play a controlling or actual dominating role.'''

A township enterprise that meets the conditions for an enterprise legal person shall obtain the qualification of an enterprise legal person according to law."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200717181302/http://www.gov.cn/banshi/2005-06/01/content_3432.htm "Township Enterprise Law of the People's Republic of China"]</ref></blockquote>This tells us that despite being claimed to be private, the village are still the collective owners of the TVEs. Thus making it a cooperative sector of the economy.

=== Growth and poverty reduction ===

According to a 2019 report from Philip Alston (UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights):<blockquote>China’s achievements in alleviating extreme poverty in recent years, and in meeting highly ambitious targets for improving social well-being, have been extraordinary. [...] Over the past three decades, and with particular speed in recent years, China has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. This is a staggering achievement and is a credit to those responsible.<ref>{{Web citation|title=End-of-mission statement on China, by Professor Philip Alston, United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights|date=2016-9-23|author=Professor Philip Alston|newspaper=UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)|title-url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20402}}</ref></blockquote>Similarly, a 2020 study in the ''China Economic Review'' notes that income growth has been "widely shared nationwide," resulting in "substantial, ongoing rural poverty reduction" throughout the country. A major milestone was reached with the recent announcement (acknowledged in Western media outlets, such as CNN) that the last poverty-stricken counties in China have been delisted, "leaving no county in a state of absolute poverty countrywide."<ref>{{Citation|title=The long-term evolution of national income inequality and rural poverty in China|year=2020|author=Chuliang Luo, Shi Li, Terry Sicular|publisher=China Economic Review|doi=10.1016/j.chieco.2020.101465|lg=https://libgen.rs/scimag/10.1016%2Fj.chieco.2020.101465}}</ref>

Malnutrition has continued to decline massively in China over the last several decades. According to the University of Oxford's Our World in Data project, China now has a lower rate of death from malnutrition than the United States,<ref>Our World in Data. ''[https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/malnutrition-death-rates?tab=chart&country=CHN~USA Death rate from malnutrition, 1990 to 2017].''</ref> as well as a lower rate of extreme poverty, despite having a significantly lower GDP-per-capita.<ref>Our World in Data. ''[https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-of-the-population-living-in-extreme-poverty?tab=chart&time=1990..latest&country=CHN~USA&region=World Share of the population living in extreme poverty, 1990 to 2016]''</ref>

China's domestic population share suffering under Global Multidimensional poverty fell from 9.47% in 2010 to 4.21% in 2014 and fell to 3.9% in 2023. Lack of clean drinking water, malnutrition and use of solid cooking fuel are the largest contributors.<ref>'''[https://ophi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/CB_CHN_2023.pdf Global MPI Country Briefing 2023: China (East Asia and the Pacific)]''' By Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative</ref>

Economic growth has also increased dramatically. According to a study from the National Bureau of Economic Research, "reforms yielded a significant growth and structural transformation differential. GDP growth is 4.2 percentage points higher and the share of the labor force in agriculture is 23.9 percentage points lower compared with the continuation of the pre-1978 policies."<ref>{{Citation|title=The Economy of People’s Republic of China from 1953|year=2015|author=Anton Cheremukhin, Mikhail Golosov, Sergei Guriev, Aleh Tsyvinski|publisher=National Bureau of Economic Research|doi=10.3386/w21397}}</ref>

=== Foreign relations ===
In 2021, China signed a 25-year cooperation agreement with the [[Islamic Republic of Iran]].<ref name=":8" />

== Demographics ==

=== Religion ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Religions by population<ref name=":03">{{Citation|author=Central Committee of the Communist Party of China|year=1982|title=The Basic Viewpoint and Policy on the Religious Question during Our Country's Socialist Period|title-url=https://redsails.org/on-the-question-of-religion/|pdf=https://www.globaleast.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Document_no._19_1982.pdf}}</ref>
!Religion
!Introduction to China
!Followers (1949)
!Followers (1982)
!Religious professionals (1982)
|-
|[[Buddhism]]
|c. 1 CE
|
|
|27,000
|-
|[[Daoism]]
|c. 300 CE
|
|
|2,600
|-
|[[Islam]]
|c. 700 CE
|8,000,000
|10,000,000
|20,000
|-
|[[Protestantism]]
|c. 1840
|700,000
|3,000,000
|5,900
|-
|[[Catholicism]]
|c. 1840
|2,700,000
|3,000,000
|3,400
|}
After the revolution, China separated its domestic [[Christianity|Christian]] churches from Europe to stop them from being tools of imperialism.<ref name=":03" />

==Debunking myths==

=== "Imperialism" and the Belt and Road Initiative===
China is often accused of being an "imperialist" state, due primarily to its investments in [[Africa]], as part of the Belt and Road Initiative. These critics ignore the actual views of the African people themselves, who overwhelmingly approve of China's role in their economic development.<ref>{{Web citation|title=Africans approve of China, says Afrobarometer|publisher=Deutsche Welle|date=2016|url=https://www.dw.com/en/africans-approve-of-china-says-afrobarometer/a-36214106}}</ref> In addition, the extent of Chinese involvement in Africa is smaller than often believed; according to a 2019 paper from the Center for Economic Policy Research, "China’s influence in Africa is much smaller than is generally believed, though its engagement on the continent is increasing. Chinese investment in Africa, while less extensive than often assumed, has the potential to generate jobs and development on the continent."<ref>{{Citation|title=Chinese investment in Africa: How much do we know?|author=Deborah Brautigam, Xinshen Diao, Margaret McMillan, Jed Silver|publisher=Private Enterprise Development in Low Income Countries|title-url=https://pedl.cepr.org/publications/chinese-investment-africa-how-much-do-we-know-0|series=Policy Insight Series|pdf=https://pedl.cepr.org/sites/default/files/PEDL%20Policy%20Insights%20Series%20-%20No.3_0.pdf}}</ref>

It is also noted that in a 2005 presentation to the Congressional U.S.-China Commission, U.S. State Department official Princeton Lyman assessed how China’s model of socialist state loans don’t serve the function of profit, stating that:<blockquote>China utilizes a variety of instruments to advance its interest in ways that western nations can only envy. Most of China’s investments are through state-owned companies, whose individual investments do not have to be profitable if they serve overall Chinese objectives. Thus the representative of China’s state-owned construction company in Ethiopia could reveal that he was instructed by Beijing to bid low on various tenders, without regard for profit. China’s long term objective in Ethiopia is in access to future natural resource investments, not in construction business profits.</blockquote>A 2018 study in the ''Review of Development Finance'' also found that Chinese investment in Africa raises incomes in the African nations that receive the investment, in a similar way to foreign investments by other nations. The author state that these results "suggest that the win-win deal China claims when investing in Africa may hold, and Chinese investment contributes to growth in Africa. Put differently, Chinese investment is mutually beneficial for both China and Africa."<ref>{{Citation|title=On the importance of Chinese investment in Africa.|year=2018|author=Ficawoyi Donou-Adonsou, Sokchea Lim|publisher=Review of Development Finance|doi=10.1016/j.rdf.2018.05.003}}</ref>

Another 2018 study found that in general, that Chinese development projects in general, and Chinese transportation projects in particular, reduce economic inequality within and between regions. These results suggest that Chinese investments in “connective infrastructure” produce positive economic spillovers that flatten the spatial distribution of economic activity. To the extent that China is helping developing countries escape inefficient spatial equilibria in which most economic activity concentrates in a small number of urban centers and gravitates away from rural towns and village. However, that China’s “aid on demand” approach is vulnerable to domestic political manipulation in that government leaders in recipient countries steer Chinese aid to their home and ethnic regions.<ref>[https://docs.aiddata.org/ad4/pdfs/WPS64_Connective_Financing_Chinese_Infrastructure_Projects_and_the_Diffusion_of_Economic_Activity_in_Developing_Countries.pdf '''Connective Financing: Chinese Infrastructure Projects and the Diffusion of Economic Activity in Developing Countries''' By Richard Blum et Al, page 30-31]</ref>

And in a 2022 study studying 2009 Chinese trade relations, it found that the exports from Sub-Saharan Africa to the advanced economies exhibit the same pattern, namely, embodying a significant amount of transfer value to the advanced countries. On the other hand, exports from Sub-Saharan Africa to China do not embody significant amounts of transfer value. In other words, Sub-Saharan Africa’s trade with China (in 2009) is fairly equitable.<ref>[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/359145830_Estimating_Unequal_Exchange_Sub-Saharan_Africa_to_China_and_the_World '''Estimating Unequal Exchange: Sub-Saharan Africa to China and the World''' By Gernot Kohler]</ref>

Despite the Western media accusing China of "debt trap diplomacy," China gives loans at low interest rates and often allows countries to restructure or even never repay loans, unlike the [[Neocolonialism|neocolonial]] [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]].<ref name=":9">{{Web citation|author=Amanda Yee|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=Why Chinese ‘debt trap diplomacy’ is a lie|date=2022-12-19|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/why-chinese-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-a-lie/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221220062314/https://www.liberationnews.org/why-chinese-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-a-lie/|archive-date=2022-12-20|retrieved=2022-12-23}}</ref> China has forgiven tens of billions of dollars of debt held by African countries.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Shang Guan Jie Wen|newspaper=China and the New World|title=China Forgives Tens of Billions of Dollars in Debt for Africa|date=2022-02-23|url=https://chinaandthenewworld.wordpress.com/2022/02/23/china-forgives-debt-in-africa-in-massive-amounts/|archive-url=https://web.archiRemove.org/web/20220223061528/https://chinaandthenewworld.wordpress.com/2022/02/23/china-forgives-debt-in-africa-in-massive-amounts/|archive-date=2022-02-23|retrieved=2022-05-10}}</ref> It has also forgiven 23 interest-free loans to 17 different countries.<ref name=":9" />

The economist [[Yanis Varoufakis]] discussed the topic in a recent lecture given at the Cambridge forum. He helpfully debunks a number of myths on the matter.

===Censorship and the Great Firewall===
[[Meta Platforms, Inc.|Facebook]] was allowed in China up until the deadly 2009 riots in Xinjiang.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Uncredited|newspaper=Tech Crunch|title=China Blocks Access To Twitter, Facebook After Riots|date=2009-07-07|url=https://techcrunch.com/2009/07/07/china-blocks-access-to-twitter-facebook-after-riots/|retrieved=2023-03-27}}</ref> In the bigger picture, this is a response to the terroristic behavior of the [[National Endowment for Democracy|NED]].<ref>{{Web citation|author=christineb|newspaper=National Endowment for Democracy|title=UYGHUR HUMAN RIGHTS POLICY ACT BUILDS ON WORK OF NED GRANTEES|date=2020-05-29|url=https://www.ned.org/uyghur-human-rights-policy-act-builds-on-work-of-ned-grantees/|retrieved=2023-27-03}}</ref> Much like how [[Western censorship|communists are censored]] in the west, China is defending itself against the common [[imperialism|imperialist]] tactic of [[color revolution]]. In the same vein, [[Vladimir Lenin]] stated: <blockquote>All over the world, wherever there are capitalists, freedom of the press means freedom to buy up newspapers, to buy writers, to bribe, buy and fake ‘public opinion’ for the benefit of the bourgeoisie. This is a fact. No one will ever be able to refute it… The bourgeoisie (all over the world) is still very much stronger than we are. To place in its hands yet another weapon like freedom of political organization (= freedom of the press, for the press is the core and foundation of political organization) means facilitating the enemy’s task, means helping the class enemy. We have no wish to commit suicide, and therefore, we will not do this. We clearly see this fact: ‘freedom of the press’ means in practice that the international bourgeoisie will immediately buy up hundreds and thousands of Cadet, SocialistRevolutionary and Menshevik writers, and will organize their propaganda and fight against us. That is a fact. ‘They’ are richer than we are and will buy a ‘force’ ten times larger than we have, to fight us. No, we will not do it; we will not help the international bourgeoisie. How could you descend from a class appraisal-from the appraisal of the relations between all classes-to the sentimental, philistine appraisal? This is a mystery to me… Freedom of the press will help the force of the world bourgeoisie. That is a fact, ‘Freedom of the press’ will not help to purge the Communist Party in Russia of a number of its weaknesses… because this is not what the world bourgeoisie wants. But freedom of the press will be a weapon in the hands of this world bourgeoisie.<ref>{{Citation|author=Vladimir Lenin|year=1965|title=V. I. Lenin: Collected Works|page=505-506|pdf=http://www.marx2mao.com/PDFs/Lenin%20CW-Vol.%2032-TC.pdf|city=Moscow|publisher=Progress Publishers|volume=32}}</ref> </blockquote>

===Abandoning of Marxism/Capitalist restoration===
[[File:Marx_poster_in_Beijing.jpg|thumb|A poster in Beijing that reads "Never forget our roots. Marxism was here in China's early days"|alt=]]
In 2020, Xi Jinping gave a speech to the Politburo of the Communist Party of China, in which he made clear the continued importance that the CPC places on Marxist political economy. To quote:<blockquote>Marxist political economy is an important component of Marxism, and required learning for our efforts to uphold and develop Marxism. [...] There are people who believe Marxist political economy and ''Das Kapital'' are obsolete, but this is an arbitrary and erroneous judgment. Setting aside more distant events and looking at just the period since the global financial crisis, we can see that many capitalist countries have remained in an economic slump, with serious unemployment problems, intensifying polarization, and deepening social divides. The facts tell us that the contradictions between the socialization of production and the private possession of the means of production still exist, but they are manifested in ways and show characteristics that are somewhat different.<ref>{{Citation|title=Opening up new frontiers for Marxist political economy in contemporary China|year=2015|author=Xi Jinping|publisher=Qiushi Journal|title-url=https://en.qstheory.cn/2020-11/08/c_560906.htm|trans-lang=Chinese}}</ref></blockquote>He goes on to list a number of principles guiding the implementation of Marxist political economy in the PRC:<blockquote>First, we must uphold a people-centered approach to development. Development is for the people; this is the fundamental position of Marxist political economy. [...] Second, we must uphold the new development philosophy. Third, we must uphold and improve our basic socialist economic system. According to Marxist political economy, ownership of the means of production is the core of the relations of production, and this determines a society's fundamental nature and the orientation of its development. Since reform and opening up... we have stressed the importance of continuing to make public ownership the mainstay while allowing ownership of other forms to develop side by side, and made it clear that both the public and non-public sectors are important components of the socialist market economy as well as crucial foundations for our nation's economic and social development. [...] Fourth, we must uphold and improve our basic socialist distribution system. [...] Fifth, we must uphold reforms to develop the socialist market economy. [...] Sixth, we must uphold the fundamental national policy of opening up.</blockquote>From this, it should be quite clear that Marxism (specifically Marxism–Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought) retains a dominant role in the People's Republic of China, serving as the guiding ideology of the Communist Party.

Despite common misconceptions, [[class struggle]] (an important component of Marxism) has not been abandoned in China; despite common belief, the statement on class struggle can be found in the Communique of the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in 1978, which states:<ref>[https://www.bjreview.com/Special_Reports/2018/40th_Anniversary_of_Reform_and_Opening_up/Timeline/201806/t20180626_800133641.html Communique of the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China] - Beijing Review, December 29, 1978</ref><blockquote>There is still in our country today a small handful of counter-revolutionary elements and criminals who hate our socialist modernization and try to undermine it. We must not relax our class struggle against them, nor can we weaken the dictatorship of the proletariat. But as Comrade Mao Tsetung pointed out, the large-scale turbulent class struggles of a mass character have in the main come to an end. Class struggle in socialist society should be carried out on the principle of strictly differentiating the two different types of contradictions and correctly handling them in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the Constitution and the law. It is impermissible to confuse the two different types of contradictions and damage the political stability and unity required for socialist modernization. </blockquote>This can be exemplified by billionaires who go missing, are jailed or even executed for corruption, bribery and speaking out against the government.<ref>https://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-billionaire-spoke-against-government-sentenced-18-years-prison-2021-7</ref><ref>https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/disappearing-billionaires-1195107.html</ref> In 2013, a private company started building luxury villas on protected land in the Qinling Mountains; Xi Jinping ordered the buildings destroyed to make room for parks and giant panda habitats.<ref>https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/lavish-chinese-villas-tumble-to-make-room-for-parks-pandas</ref> These are a few examples of the legal means and procedures that the CPC states they will use in the 1978 communique in the 21st century.

===LGBT rights===
<blockquote>''See also: [[LGBT rights and issues in AES countries#People's Republic of China]]''</blockquote>[[LGBT+|Same-sex relationships]] are legal in China, although same-sex marriage and adoption are not currently legal. Same-sex couple married overseas can be named as each other’s “legal guardians”, a status considered fairly similar to a civil union.<ref>Phoebe Zhang (2021-12-21). [https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3114633/lgbtq-people-china-picture-mixed-global-report-finds "For LGBTQ people in China the picture is mixed, global report finds, with some legal protections but barriers to freedom of expression"] ''South China Morning Post''.</ref> Transgender individuals are legally allowed to receive healthcare and may legally change their gender marker after receiving sexual reassignment surgery. In recent years, transgender treatment facilities have become more available in China, including the opening of a clinic for the treatment of transgender minors in 2021, with both psychological help and hormone treatment available.<ref>Zhang Wanqing and Li Jiaru. (2021-11-08) [https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1008904/chinas-first-clinic-for-trans-youth-a-good-step%2C-advocates-say- "China’s First Clinic for Trans Youth a ‘Good Step,’ Advocates Say."] Sixth Tone.</ref>

Professor Li Yinhe of the Institute of Sociology under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences was quoted in a [[China Global Television Network|CGTN]] article as saying that the biggest challenge for the LGBT community in China is not anything imposed by law, but rather family pressure stemming from the "deep-rooted culture" that places high priority on family values and especially an emphasis on carrying on the family line.<ref>[https://news.cgtn.com/news/3163444d7a677a6333566d54/index.html "LGBT in China: Changes and Challenges"] (22-Jan-2018). ''CGTN''.</ref>

According to a 2020 report published in BMC Public Health, "For member of the Chinese LGBT community, the greatest source of pressure to conform to societal norms of sexuality and identity comes from family members—particularly parents." The report also found that "a higher level of economic development in provinces was associated with a decrease in discrimination, and we identified that every 100 thousand RMB increase in per capita GDP lead to a 6.4% decrease in discriminatory events perpetrated by heterosexuals" and that "The prevalence of this discrimination is associated with the economic development of the province in which it occurs."<ref>Wang, Yuanyuan, Zhishan Hu, Ke Peng, Joanne Rechdan, Yuan Yang, Lijuan Wu, Ying Xin, et al. [https://d-nb.info/1214031323/34 “Mapping out a Spectrum of the Chinese Public’s Discrimination toward the LGBT Community: Results from a National Survey.”] ''BMC Public Health'' 20, no. 1 (May 12, 2020). <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-08834-y</nowiki>. [https://web.archive.org/web/20221010062927/https://d-nb.info/1214031323/34 Archived] 2022-10-10.</ref>

In 2019, [[China Global Television Network|CGTN]] produced a short documentary entitled "LGBT in China: Coming Out with Chinese Characteristics", which explored the widespread prejudices against LGBT people in Chinese society, noting that lack of education and understanding are the main factor in this. Documenting the experiences of LGBT people and partnerships and the advances in acceptance, the film noted that unlike in many nations, the remaining anti-LGBT attitudes are mainly a result of culture rather than religious ideals.<ref>https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d67544e3230575a306c5562684a335a764a4855/share_p.html</ref>

The 2021 short documentary film "A Day of Trans" (Chinese: 跨越性别的一天) explores the lived experiences of four Chinese transgender individuals across three generations, exploring their professional career paths, community involvement, social barriers, and their unique approaches to life as transgender individuals across the generations. It is directed by Yennefer Fang, a Chinese transgender independent filmmaker. It follows Liu Peilin, who was born in 1956, and started identify as a woman in her 40s. It also follows Mr. C, a 35-year-old transgender man, who became the public face in the fight for job equality in China in 2016 and who won a court case against his employer for discrimination for his gender identity. Finally, it follows two transgender artists who grew up during China's rapid economic growth. Fang said that she tries to observe the status of transgender people from an internal perspective and tries to dispel misconceptions through the documentary, including the perception that "transgenderism" is a contemporary, white, or bourgeois term.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY1L1p29vuc "A Day of Trans 跨越性别的一天".] Yennefer Fang, Yennefer Fang Studios. YouTube. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211128114433/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY1L1p29vuc Archived] 2021-11-28.</ref><ref>Ji Yuqiao. [https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202111/1239389.shtml “New Documentary ‘a Day of Trans’ Explores Experiences of Three Generations of Chinese Transgender Persons."] Global Times. November 19, 2021. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220927204956/https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202111/1239389.shtml Archived] 2022-09-17.</ref>

Other LGBT documentaries:

* [https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d67544e3230575a306c5562684a335a764a4855/share_p.html LGBT in China: Coming Out with Chinese Characteristics] by [[China Global Television Network|CGTN]]
* [https://youtu.be/doAh4ZhGhsY Gay Leap Forward: LGBT in China] by [[China Global Television Network|CGTN]]
* [https://youtu.be/NFarMuDa6GQ Being True to Yourself: LGBT in China] by [[China Global Television Network|CGTN]]

In May 2023, the Beijing LGBT Center announced that it was shutting down, citing "forces beyond our control". Western bourgeois media portrayed this as an attack on LGBT rights by Xi Jinping's regime.<ref>[[Huizhong Wu]] (2023-05-23).: [https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-lgbt-center-shutdown-a5643c680e1faf5c8a7a7d9bdd627d6f "Beijing LGBT Center shuttered as crackdown grows in China"]. [[Associated Press|''Associated Press'']]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230601074330/https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-lgbt-center-shutdown-a5643c680e1faf5c8a7a7d9bdd627d6f Archived] from the original on 2023-06-01. Retrieved 2024-04-03.</ref> It is unclear why exactly the Center shut down, though it is worth noting that one of its cofounders, [[Wan Yanhai]], was a fellow of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED),<ref>[https://www.ned.org/fellows/mr-yanhai-wan/ "Mr. Yanhai Wan"] (dead link). [[National Endowment for Democracy]]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20190818163717/https://www.ned.org/fellows/mr-yanhai-wan/ Archived] from the original on 2019-08-18. Retrieved 2024-04-03.</ref> a CIA front group which has made itself an enemy of the Chinese government.<ref>[https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202205/t20220507_10683090.html "Fact Sheet on the National Endowment for Democracy"] (2022-05-07). Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China. Retrieved 2024-04-03.</ref><ref>[[Gerry Shih|Shih, Gerry]] (2019-12-02).: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/china-announces-sanctions-against-us-based-nonprofits-in-response-to-congresss-hong-kong-legislation/2019/12/02/9f414616-14e0-11ea-80d6-d0ca7007273f_story.html "China announces sanctions against U.S.-based nonprofit groups in response to Congress's Hong Kong legislation"]. [[The Washington Times|''The Washington Times'']]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20191202134131/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/china-announces-sanctions-against-us-based-nonprofits-in-response-to-congresss-hong-kong-legislation/2019/12/02/9f414616-14e0-11ea-80d6-d0ca7007273f_story.html Archived] from the original on 2019-12-02. Retrieved 2024-04-03.</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Socialism with Chinese Characteristics]]
* [[Reform and Opening Up]]
* [[Socialist market economy]]

== Further reading ==

* [[:Category:Library works about China|All library works about China]]
* [[:Category:Library documents from China|All library works from China]]

=== Economy ===

* ''[[Library:The Basic Economic System of China|The Basic Economic System of China]]''

=== Government ===

* ''[[Library:The governance of China|The Governance of China]]'' ([[Xi Jinping]])
* ''[[Library:Marxism and Socialism with Chinese Characteristics|Marxism and Socialism with Chinese Characteristics]]''

=== History ===

* ''[[Library:A Concise History of the Communist Party of China|A Concise History of the Communist Party of China]]'' (1900–present)
* ''[[Library:An Outline History of China|An Outline History of China]]'' (pre-1949)

==References==

<references />
[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Marxist-Leninist states]]
[[Category:People's Republic of China]]
[[Category:Targets of bourgeois media]]
[[Category:Countries targeted by imperialist aggression]]
[[Category:Asian countries]]
{{AprilFools}}

Socialist state

2025-11-21T19:02:23Z

162.200.14.56: I reworked the article to be about the Marxist-Leninist concept of the socialist state, rather than as a synonym for 'communist state'.

{{Marxism–Leninism sidebar}}A '''socialist state''', also known as a '''socialist republic''' or '''socialist country''', in [[Marxism-Leninism]], is a state formation of the [[dictatorship of the proletariat]]. The characteristics of a socialist state includes the following:

1. The dictatorship of the proletariat (or variants such as [[New Democracy (Mao's theory)|New Democracy]]), in which the most advanced elements of the working class form a vanguard party to guide the state.

2. A [[Socialism|socialist mode of production]]

3. Organization based on Marxist-Leninist principles: that is [[unified power]], a [[supreme organ of state power]], and the role of the Marxist-Leninist vanguard party.

A socialist state is often compared with the term ''communist state'' which is used by [[West|western]] scholars, but this is partially incorrect: a communist state can be a [[People's democracy|people's democratic state]] or a [[Socialist state|socialist state.]]

== Current socialist states ==

=== Socialist states ===

* [[File:Flag_of_the_People's_Republic_of_China.svg|20px]] [[People's Republic of China]] (declared 17 November 1975)
* [[File:Flag_of_Vietnam.svg|20px]] [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam]] (declared 2 July 1976)
* [[File:Flag_of_the_DPRK.svg|20px]] [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (declared 27 December 1972)
* [[File:Flag_of_Cuba.svg|20px]] [[Republic of Cuba]] (declared 24 February 1976)

== Former socialist states ==
The first date refers to the establishment of the state itself; the second date, if applicable, refers to when the country declared itself a socialist state. Some states, like the Soviet Union, were retroactively declared socialist states.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Name !! Began !! Ended
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union_(1955-1991).svg|20px]] [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics]] || 1922<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=History.com|title=USSR established|url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/december-30/ussr-established|archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250328095751/https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/december-30/ussr-established|archive-date=2025-03-28|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=On December 30, 1922, in post-revolutionary Russia, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is established, comprising a confederation of Russia, Belorussia, Ukraine and the Transcaucasian Federation (divided in 1936 into the Georgian, Azerbaijan and Armenian republics). Also known as the Soviet Union, the new communist state was the successor to the Russian Empire and the first country in the world to be based on Marxist socialism.}}</ref>|| 1991<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Britannica|title=collapse of the Soviet Union|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/the-collapse-of-the-Soviet-Union|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0120-40/https://www.britannica.com:443/event/the-collapse-of-the-Soviet-Union|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=collapse of the Soviet Union, sequence of events that led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union on December 31, 1991. The former superpower was replaced by 15 independent countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:Mongolian_People's_Republic_Flag.png|20px]] [[Mongolian People's Republic (1924–1992)|Mongolian People's Republic]] || 1924/1960<ref>{{Library citation|link=https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:History_of_the_Mongolian_People%27s_Republic}}</ref>|| 1990<ref>{{Citation|author=Alan J.K. Sanders|year=1996|title=Historical Dictionary of Mongolia|title-url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Historical_Dictionary_of_Mongolia/2ZyZmAEACAAJ|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=9780810861916}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:Yugoslav_flag.png|20px]] [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] || 1945/1963<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=University of Central Arkansas|title=64. Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945-1992)|url=https://uca.edu/politicalscience/home/research-projects/dadm-project/europerussiacentral-asia-region/64-socialist-federal-republic-of-yugoslavia-1945-1992/|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0137-13/https://uca.edu:443/politicalscience/home/research-projects/dadm-project/europerussiacentral-asia-region/64-socialist-federal-republic-of-yugoslavia-1945-1992/|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=The Constituent Assembly proclaimed the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia on November 29, 1945.}}</ref>|| 1992<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Office of the Historian|title=The Breakup of Yugoslavia, 1990–1992|url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1989-1992/breakup-yugoslavia|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0139-10/https://history.state.gov:443/milestones/1989-1992/breakup-yugoslavia|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:People's_Republic_of_Bulgaria_flag.png|20px]] [[People's Republic of Bulgaria]] || 1946/1971<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=University of Central Arkansas|title=10. Bulgaria (1908-present)|url=https://uca.edu/politicalscience/home/research-projects/dadm-project/europerussiacentral-asia-region/bulgaria-1908-present/|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0143-56/https://uca.edu:443/politicalscience/home/research-projects/dadm-project/europerussiacentral-asia-region/bulgaria-1908-present/|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=Post-Crisis Phase (November 10, 1945-June 4, 1947): Parliamentary elections were held on November 18, 1945, and the FF won some 86 percent of the vote. Opposition political parties had boycotted the parliamentary elections. The British government provided diplomatic assistance (diplomatic recognition) to the government on December 27, 1945. Prime Minister Georgiev formed a communist-dominated government on March 31, 1946. The British government imposed diplomatic sanctions (diplomatic non-recognition) against the government of Prime Minister Georgiev on April 2, 1946. A majority of Bulgarians voted to abolish the monarchy in a referendum on September 8, 1946, and King Symeon II went into exile in Egypt on September 9, 1946. The Bulgarian Republic was proclaimed on September 15, 1946. Elections for the National Assembly (Sobranje) were held on October 27, 1946, and the FF won 366 out of 465 seats. Georgi Dimitrov formed a government on November 22, 1946. The British government provided diplomatic assistance (diplomatic recognition) to the government of Prime Minister Dimitrov on February 12, 1947.}}</ref>|| 1990<ref>{{Web citation|author=Mariya Cheresheva|newspaper=Balkan Insight|title=Bulgaria Marks 28 Years Since Fall of Communism|date=2017-11-10|url=https://balkaninsight.com/2017/11/10/bulgaria-marks-28-years-since-the-collapse-of-the-communist-regime-11-08-2017/|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0146-21/https://balkaninsight.com:443/2017/11/10/bulgaria-marks-28-years-since-the-collapse-of-the-communist-regime-11-08-2017/|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_Albania_(1946–1992).svg|20px]] [[People's Socialist Republic of Albania]] || 1946/1976<ref>{{Web citation|author=Enver Hoxha|title=Program of the First Government of the People's Republic of Albania Presented to the People's Assembly of the PRA|date=1946-03-24|url=https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hoxha/works/1946/03/24.htm|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0152-23/https://www.marxists.org:443/reference/archive/hoxha/works/1946/03/24.htm|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=On January 11, 1946 the Constituent Assembly proclaimed Albania a People's Republic}}</ref>|| 1992<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Britannica|title=Collapse of communism|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Albania/Collapse-of-communism|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0154-50/https://www.britannica.com:443/place/Albania/Collapse-of-communism|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_Poland_(1927–1980).svg|20px]] [[Polish People's Republic]] || 1952/1976<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Institute of National Remembrance|title=Brief History of Poland|url=https://eng.ipn.gov.pl/en/brief-history-of-poland|archive-url=https://megalodon.jp/2025-0921-0157-27/https://eng.ipn.gov.pl:443/en/brief-history-of-poland|archive-date=2025-09-20|retrieved=2025-09-20|quote=The constitution adopted by the communists introduces a new name for the Polish state, the Polish People's Republic (Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL), which replaces the previously used Republic of Poland (Rzeczpospolita Polska).}}</ref>|| 1989
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_Romania_(1965–1989).png|20px]] [[Socialist Republic of Romania]] || 1947/1965 || 1989
|-
| [[File:GDR_flag.png|20px]] [[German Democratic Republic]] || 1949/1968 || 1990
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_Hungary_(1949–1956).svg|20px]] [[Hungarian People's Republic]] || 1949/1972 || 1989
|-
| [[File:Czech_flag.png|20px]] [[Czechoslovak Socialist Republic]] || 1948/1960 || 1990
|-
| [[File:Flag_of_Somalia.svg|20px]] [[Somali Democratic Republic]] || 1969 || 1991
|-
|}

*

== See also ==

* [[Marxism–Leninism]]
* [[Socialism]]
* [[Dictatorship of the proletariat]]

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Marxist terminology]]