| abstract | - The ideology of the GKP is hardline Stalinist Marxism-Leninism. The party organization was built up following democratic centralist principles, with Melik Zebestyen as its General Secretary. Article 3 of Gusztavia's Constitution identified the Party as the "leading political force of the state and of the society.", and Article 10 further identifies it as the "avant garde of the ruling working class". The highest organ of the Party, according to the Party statutes, are the Party Congress, which meeets for a few days every five years. Delegates to the Congress are elected at conferences held at the regional, district, and city levels. The Congress examined and approved reports submitted by the Central Committee, discussed general Party policies, and elected the Central Committee. The latter is the next-highest level in the Party hierarchy and generally included all key officials in the government, as well as prominent members of the intelligentsia. The Central Committee directed Party activities between Party Congresses and met approximately three times a year. As in other communist states, the Central Committee elected a Politburo and a Secretariat. The Politburo, which usually included key government ministers and Central Committee secretaries, is the main administrative and policy-making body and convened on a weekly basis. Generally, the Central Committee approved Politburo reports and policy decisions. The Secretariat is responsible for guiding the day-to-day affairs of the Party, in particular for organizing the execution of Politburo decisions and for selecting Party and government cadres. However, people from the working-class and peasantry have a negligible presence in the GKP élite. They are mostly well-educated intellectuals, many have studied abroad.
|
