The Constitution of 1971
The Constitution of 1971 was the result of the work of the Tenth Bulgarian Communist Party Congress, which was held April 20-25, 1971, in Sofia. This congress also produced a new program for the BKP,made changes in statutes, elected the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party, and adopted "Directives on the Socio-Economic Development of the People's Republic of Bulgaria during the Sixth Five-Year Plan (1971-75)."
The draft of the new constitution was presented for nationwide discussion on March 30, 1971, just three weeks before the opening of the tenth BKP congress. The congress approved the draft in its entirety on the opening day of session. The constitution was approved through a popular referendum on May 16 and was proclaimed law two days later by the National Assembly. General elections under the new law took place on June 27, 1971.
The structure and functioning of the different organs of state power as outlined in the Dimitrov Constitution remained essentially the same except that the State Council became a more powerful governmental body than the Presidium of the National Assembly that it replaced and, in effect, overshadowed the Council of Ministers in authority. The new document continues to define Bulgaria as a people's republic but also refers to its socialist character and to its membership in the international community of socialist states. Two new features are the declaration of principles in the preamble and the sanction given to the leadership of the BKP, aided by the Bulgarian Agrarian Union (also called the Agrarian Party) within a united Fatherland Front (see ch. 9).
The Constitution of 1971 reflects the new changes in the sociopolitical and socioeconomic development of the country as viewed by the communist leadership. The first chapter consists of twelve articles that briefly define the political philosophy upon which the constitution is based and the direction in which the party expects the country to move under the new charter. Simply stated, the philosophy avows that Bulgaria is "a socialist state of the working people of town and country, headed by the working class," and "the guiding force in society and the state is the Bulgarian Communist Party." The direction of movement expected by the country's leadership is evidenced by the assertion that "the socialist state shall promote the evolution of the socialist society into a communist society." This chapter also affirms the Marxist-Leninist principles that underlie the functioning of the state and the society.
The new document also addresses itself to significant changes in the interrelationships between the National Assembly, State Council (formerly the presidium), and the Council of Ministers. For instance, the constitution expanded the right of legislative initiative to include not only the National Assembly and the Council of Ministers but also the State Council, the permanent commissions of the National Assembly, the Supreme Court, the chief prosecutor, and the district people's councils. The rationale was that the National Assembly is not a continuously sitting body so that its functions must, of necessity, be assigned to state bodies of a permanent nature.
Twenty articles explain the economic system and development of the republic based on the socialist ownership of the means of production. The constitution recognizes four kinds of ownership: state, cooperative, public organizations, and individual or personal.
The Law on Citizen's Property passed during the session of the National Assembly in March 1973, however, nearly abolished the private ownership of the means of production which, according to communist theory, is the basis for the exploitation of man by man. The new measure gave legal expression to what had been planned since the constitution was promulgated in 1971 and reflects the complete predominance of collective ownership in furtherance of the spirit of the tenth BKP congress. Private ownership is confined to "items for personal use."
Basic rights and liberties of citizens get constitutional guarantees, but in almost every stipulation that hinges on personal, civil, and political rights, in practice, the interest and welfare of the state take precedence. Basic rights and obligations embrace a wide scope of personal, civil, and political freedoms. Among these guarantees are the right to Bulgarian citizenship; civil rights of spouses, parents, and children; rights to work, rest, and receive health care and free education; freedoms of speech, press, association, and demonstration; rights to secrecy of correspondence and communication except in cases of national emergency; and freedom of worship. All citizens are declared to be equal before the law regardless of national origin, creed, social status, education, or sex. Article 36 extends to women equal rights with men. Mothers are guaranteed all-expense-paid hospitalization and maternity care, paid maternity leave of absence, and provision for children's care in nurseries and other establishments provided by the government. The protective arm of the state also extends to its citizens overseas.
Rights have commensurate obligations defined by the constitution to ensure the survival and strengthening of the socialist foundation. Foremost among these are the obligation to work according to one's abilities, the defense of the state, compulsory military service, and tax obligations for state support. Treason and other high crimes against the state, such as inciting war and disseminating propaganda, are treated with severity.
STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF THE GOVERNMENT
The Central Government
The constitution exhibits an image of legislative supremacy asserting that power belongs to the people and is exercised through such elected representative bodies as the National Assembly and the people's councils. The practice, however, shows executive political hegemony exercised by the party leadership occupying positions of governmental responsibility, such as the head of the Council of Ministers and head ofthe State Council. The power exercised by a government organ is directly linked to the party positions held by its head and by its members. For example, Todor Zhivkov as president of the State Council (a position that automatically makes him president of the republic) is at the same time first secretary of the party and a member of its Politburo. Stanko Todorov, who is chairman of the Council of Ministers and thereby premier of the republic, is also a member of the Politburo. Several other members of the State Council and the Council of Ministers are concurrently members of the Politburo, the Secretariat, or the Central Committee. This interlocking of positions, which occurs not only at the national level but at all levels, ensures party control of the entire governmental system (see fig. 6).
State Council
The source of executive direction and control in the government is the State Council, a twenty-four-man executive committee within the National Assembly elected for an indefinite term until a new National Assembly elects a new council. It functions as a collegial executive and legislative body, and its president assumes the title of president of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.
The State Council of the National Assembly replaced the former presidium, to which the 1947 Constitution had given honorific titles but largely ceremonial functions. Conceived during a plenum of the party Central Committee in 1968 but not established until after the promulgation of the new constitution in 1971, the State Council was designed to be a powerful force, both executive and legislative, in the overall governmental structure. The best evidence to the power inherent in the structure of the new State Council was the fact that party leader Zhivkov chose to relinquish the premiership, which he had held for several years, in favor of the newly created position of president of the State Council. Zhivkov is one of a very few leaders of communist countries who continues to retain the top position in both the party and the government.
The State Council exercises a wide spectrum of authority that would theoretically be the responsibility of the National Assembly. In effect the State Council becomes the alter ego of, or a surrogate for, the National Assembly and arrogates to itself the constitutional prerogatives of the people and the elected legislature. Most members of the State Council are concurrently high-ranking members of the BKP.
Among the many duties and responsibilities of the council, the most important can be divided into two definite groups: those functions that are specifically defined and thereby permanent and those functions that the council assumes when the legislative body is not in session. During wartime, when it might not be possible for the assembly to meet, the constitution provides for the complete assumption of legislative and executive authority by the State Council.
The State Council's specific and permanent functions include, amongothers, calling the National Assembly into session, exercising the right of legislative initiative, determining bills that should be submitted to the people for nationwide discussion, interpreting the laws and decrees binding on everyone, creating and eliminating departments below ministerial level, appointing and recalling diplomatic representatives, granting Bulgarian citizenship, ratifying international treaties concluded by the government, and implementing the general direction of the defense of the country.
Figure 6. Bulgaria, Structure of Government, 1973Figure 6. Bulgaria, Structure of Government, 1973
Figure 6. Bulgaria, Structure of Government, 1973
When the National Assembly is not in session, the State Council is empowered to promulgate decrees and other acts of legal validity dealing with problems arising from laws and decrees of the legislative body. Furthermore, these acts and decrees have the force of law and need no legislative confirmation at the next assembly session.
Additionally, the council exercises executive control over the Council of Ministers, its members, the local people's councils, and the Office of the Chief Prosecutor; it can repeal decisions of the ministries and other central departments, which in effect reduces the Council of Ministers to a grade below the State Council. In the event of war the State Council, in the absence of the National Assembly, is empowered to sign peace treaties, to amend the constitution, to grant amnesty, and to change the territorial boundaries of the country. In sum, the functions of the State Council can be categorized into executive, legislative, judicial, and police. In carrying out these multifarious responsibilities, six councils and two committees assist the State Council, (see fig. 7).
Council of Ministers
The Council of Ministers is described in the constitution as "a supreme executive and administrative body of state power." In practice the council is more of an advisory body to the State Council than it is a supreme body even though it oversees the day-to-day functioning of the government. In 1973 the council consisted of a chairman (the premier), two first deputy chairmen, five deputy chairmen, twenty ministers, and several chairmen of committees subordinate to the council. Additionally, there are other members in the council; they are ministers without portfolio (two) and the deputy chairman of the State Control Committee. Within the council there is an inner executive committee known as the Bureau of the Council of Ministers; its membership includes the chairman, his seven deputies, the minister of finance, and the chairman of the State Planning Committee.
Election and organization of the Council of Ministers is done by the National Assembly, which determines the number, kind, and names of the ministries and of other departments with ministerial rank. For this reason the number of ministries and central agencies may vary from time to time. The Constitution of 1971 introduced two new features that did not exist in the 1947 Constitution. One obliges the Council of Ministers to give an accounting of its work to the State Council and another limits the rights of the Council of Ministers over the executive committees of the people's councils.
Some of the functions of the Council of Ministers overlap those of the State Council. Categorically, these functions may be grouped together as executive, legislative, economic (budget preparation), police, and military.
The Council of Ministers also has jurisdiction to form—for the purpose of administration—committees, councils, general boards, and offices. Also within their competence, ministers and heads of departments with ministerial rank have the right to issue orders and rescind unlawful or irregular acts and actions of the special bodies of the people's councils. They also have the right to suspend acts of the executive committee of the people's councils.
Figure 7. Bulgaria, Organization of the Council of Ministers, 1973Figure 7. Bulgaria, Organization of the Council of Ministers, 1973
Figure 7. Bulgaria, Organization of the Council of Ministers, 1973
The constitution empowers the Council of Ministers to draft and implement national economic plans for submission to the National Assembly. The council has police power in the maintenance of public order and security and has general command of the armed forces.Along with the State Council it implements the direction and control of the activities of the people's councils.
The National Assembly
The National Assembly, a unicameral legislature, is the only legislative body of the central government, but legislative initiative has been extended to several other governmental organs. In practice the State Council appears to be the most powerful organ of government as well as the principal initiator of legislative matters. The assembly, which meets only three times each year in short sessions, would appear to have more form than substance in the actual governmental affairs of the country. It would seem to be impossible for anyone to become a member of the assembly or of the State Council without prior approval of the BKP (see ch. 9).
The assembly's 400 members represent voting districts of equal numbers of inhabitants per delegate. The term of office is five years. This was another innovation in that the BKP hierarchy decided that party congresses would be held every five years instead of four and, therefore, elections to the National Assembly should be changed in the same manner. In the exercise of its functions, the National Assembly can dissolve itself, and in emergency situations it may extend its term.
The manner in which the National Assembly operates, that is, the infrequency and brevity of sessions, makes it imperative for permanent commissions, in addition to the State Council, to carry on the multifarious functions of the assembly. In 1971 there were twelve permanent commissions, half of which had overlapping functions with various ministries. The constitution does not specify how many permanent or interim commissions the assembly should appoint but leaves such matters of organization to the assembly itself.
Local Government
Territorially, Bulgaria is divided into twenty-eight districts (okruzi; sing.,okrug), about 200 municipalities, and about 5,500 villages. The municipalities, if size warrants, are divided into urban constituencies (rayoni; sing.,rayon), whereas villages are usually grouped together to form rural constituencies known asobshtini(sing.,obshtina). Since 1959 the number of districts has remained constant at twenty-eight, which includes one for the city of Sofia. The number of urban and rural constituencies, on the other hand, changes frequently as the population increases and as people move from the countryside to the cities or move from cities to suburban areas. Districts and urban and rural constituencies are governed on the local level by people's councils, and in the 1971 elections there were almost 1,200 such councils with a total of more than 53,000 elected officials.
Each people's council has an elected executive committee, which is constantly in session and which acts for the council during the longperiods when the full body is not meeting. On the local level the executive committee is to the people's council what the State Council is to the National Assembly on the national level. An executive committee usually consists of a chairman, a first deputy chairman, several deputy chairmen (depending on size), and a secretary. The interlocking of party and governmental positions that is the hallmark of the central government is repeated at the district and rural and urban constituency levels, and often the members of a people's council executive committee are also the most prominent members of the local party organization. An executive committee usually serves for the entire term of its people's council.
In the implementation of national policy, people's councils are under the supervision and control of higher councils all the way up to the central government. The hierarchical and pyramidal structure of the people's councils, wherein the lowest bodies are subject to the direction of the next higher and of the highest bodies, is an example of the application of Lenin's principle of democratic centralism. Coincident with this structure of government is the parallel structure of the BKP, whose members are in control or are influential at every level.
People's councils are empowered to adapt decisions and orders of higher authorities to their own individual needs. Local councils prepare plans and budgets in consonance with the national plans and, after decisions have been made at the national level, the local councils conform to the national policy. People's councils are involved in the day-to-day affairs of their constituencies in government services and administration, the maintenance of public order, the protection of state and communal property, and the protection of the rights of its citizens. In these areas the local police, known as the People's Militia, are the instruments of the local council, but their responsibility is also to the next higher level and on up to the Ministry of Internal Affairs (see ch. 15).
JUDICIAL PROCEDURE
The highest judicial organ is the Supreme Court, the members of which are elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms. Below it are twelve regional and ninety-three district courts, and the military courts. The Supreme Court is a court of original jurisdiction as well as of appellate jurisdiction. It is organized into criminal, civil, and military divisions. In the administration of justice, courts and prosecution are referred to as "weapons of the dictatorship of the proletariat." Judges and assessors take part in the dispensation of justice. These positions are elective.
The Office of the Chief Prosecutor is established to see that the laws are obeyed by the ministries and other national departments, bodies of local state power, economic and public organizations, and officials as well as citizens. The chief prosecutor is elected to a five-year term.He is subject to recall, however, before the expiration of his term and is responsible only to the National Assembly. Again, as is true with the Supreme Court, between sessions the chief prosecutor reports to the State Council.
The chief prosecutor exercises wide powers in the performance of his functions. Because he is elected by the National Assembly, he is certain to be a loyal party member; he appoints prosecutors (district and communal) for lower levels and can recall them before the expiration of their terms. Together with the minister of justice, he controls the judicial system for the communist party.
In interpreting the communist theory of "unity of power," the constitution places the judiciary below the executive and legislative branches of state power. It also lumps together the judicial bodies and prosecutors in overlapping and parallel functions. The fact that judges and lay assessors are elected indicates that the party echelons can control the workings of the judicial machinery.
THE ELECTORAL PROCEDURE
The basic election law of Bulgaria is embodied in a document adopted on February 17, 1953, and published as the Law of Election for the National Assembly of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. It has been amended many times since then.
Article 6 of the 1971 Constitution extends the right to vote to every Bulgarian citizen who has reached the age of eighteen, regardless of "sex, nationality, race, creed, education, occupation, official or social status, and property status." The only exceptions are those persons under "complete tutelage." An earlier law had denied the right to vote only to those who had been sentenced by a court.
Members of both national and local representative bodies—the National Assembly and the people's councils—are elected by direct and secret ballot on the basis of universal, equal, and direct suffrage. Theoretically, they are responsible to their electorate and render an accounting of their activities. In this frame of reference they can be subject to recall even before the expiration of their term. In practice they are removed at the discretion of the BKP.
The State Council schedules dates for elections to the National Assembly and people's councils. In no case is the date fixed later than two months after the expiration of the current mandate. The council is also empowered to schedule dates for holding referenda on decisions of the National Assembly. All election dates are set on weekends or nonworking days to ensure continuous work production.
Under the election law and in accordance with the constitution, elections are called by the State Council and conducted by the Central Election Commission, a body created by the National Assembly and directed by the State Council. The Central Election Commission comprises representatives of various organizations, such as trade unions,cooperatives, youth organizations, special professional and interest groups, and other public organizations and societies, which must be duly registered according to acceptable procedures established by the National Assembly. The election commission is headed by an executive committee consisting of a chairman, a deputy chairman, a secretary, and twenty members, all of whom must be approved by the State Council.
Corollary to the right to elect is the right to be elected to public office. Candidates are nominated according to electoral areas. Theoretically, the right to nominate candidates is secured through meetings of public organizations and such societies as trade unions, youth organizations, cultural societies, and cooperatives. In practice, however, candidates are nominated by the BKP leadership of these public organizations, and their names are submitted for discussion during meetings. This procedure ensures the candidates' election and at the same time meets the obligation in the electoral law that nominations be discussed at public meetings.
Lists of candidates for public office are compiled in each village, town, and district and are submitted to the BKP-controlled National Council of the Fatherland Front where a final list of candidates is drawn. Only candidates nominated by the BKP, the Bulgarian Agrarian Union, and other mass social organizations approved by the Fatherland Front are allowed to go on the ballot. Quite expectedly, the single slate of candidates presented by the Fatherland Front usually gets elected unanimously.
In the parliamentary election held on June 27, 1971, voters elected assembly deputies, people's councillors, judges, and lay assessors. Out of 6,168,931 registered voters, 6,159,942 cast ballots, representing 99.85 percent of the electorate. A total of 6,154,082 voters, or 99.9 percent, voted for all Fatherland Front candidates as contrasted to 1,487 who voted against. About 4,373 election ballots were declared void because of irregularities.
The speed with which election results are tallied and announced was exemplified by the election of 1971. Two days after the election the Central Election Commission—headed by its chairman, Angel Velev—examined the protocols of the 400 urban constituency election commissions and announced the results. As expected, all 400 candidates nominated by the Fatherland Front were elected. Announcements of local election results in towns and villages are made by the respective executive committees of the people's councils.
The BKP's method of organizing the government after an election was illustrated by the plenum of the Bulgarian Communist Party's Central Committee held on July 6, 1971. It discussed and approved proposals for candidates for chairman and deputy chairman of the National Assembly, membership of the State Council, Council of Ministers, heads of the different commissions, chairman of the SupremeCourt, and chief prosecutor. Nominees were submitted for discussion and confirmation during the first session of the sixth National Assembly held on July 7, 1971.
An amendment to the 1971 Constitution on the nomination of candidates by the leadership of public organizations obtained official sanction not only for the purpose of expediency but more importantly to guarantee the election of the nominees, as there had been cases of nonelection during the previous elections for people's councils. The election law also provides that candidates must garner 50 percent plus one vote in the electoral districts before being declared elected. Statistics of election results for people's councils in 1949 and 1966 showed that the percentage of votes ranged from 96.48 percent of the voting population in 1949 to 99.56 percent in 1966. The new amendment required that two-thirds of the registered voters cast their ballots in favor of the candidates before declaring that an election had taken place.
In mid-1973 political affairs and the administration of the country remained completely in the hands of the ruling circle of the Bulgarian Communist Party (Bulgarska Komunisticheska Partiya—BKP, see Glossary), headed by First Secretary Todor Zhivkov. Political power was exercised by him and by the few select officials in the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party, particularly those who were members of the Politburo and the Secretariat. The extent of such power was best described by Vulko Chervenkov, onetime premier and Politburo member, who declared that "no institution, organization, or person can be above the Politburo and the Central Committee." This statement, made in the early 1950s, continues to be the cardinal rule of communist power in Bulgaria.
Retention of power by the party was ensured through its absolute control of governmental machinery and of all organized activities. Virtually every important government post was held by a high-ranking party member. First Secretary Zhivkov, for example, was also president of the State Council, the leading government body, which made him the top man in both party and government. In addition to the interlocking of government and party posts at all levels, it was also customary for the top officers of mass organizations to be members of the party hierarchy. The continued existence of a second political party, the Bulgarian Agrarian Union (Bulgarski Zemedelski Suyuz—BZS), did not encroach on the monopolization of political power by the BKP because the prerogatives of the union had been curtailed to the point where it had become an auxiliary of the BKP rather than a competitor. Any opposition to the ruling elite had come from within the party rather than from outside organizations. As recently as 1965 an abortive attempt to overthrow Zhivkov was made, but this was the result of intraparty factionalism rather than antiparty opposition. Zhivkov managed to avert the attempted coup d'etat and afterward strengthened his power base within the party.
At the helm of the party for nineteen years, Zhivkov, despite occasional intraparty struggle and friction, remained the undisputed leader and, as such, he maintained very close relations with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and with the Soviet government. On the one hand the close Bulgarian-Soviet relationship has been interpreted by Marxist theoreticians as the application of "proletarianinternationalism"—a theory that contends that proletarian unity is "historically the higher right than that of national self-determination." On the other hand, many observers of Bulgarian-Soviet relations maintain that the nature of the unequal alliance stems not only from historical and cultural affiliations as well as political and ideological identification but, more important, from Zhivkov's need for strong Soviet support.
At the Tenth Party Congress in 1971 Zhivkov reiterated the necessity for close ties with the Soviet Union and introduced a five-year economic plan that continued the long emphasis on heavy industry. The congress reelected the Politburo, despite the advanced ages of some of the members and their demonstrated concern for maintaining the status quo at a time when the changes necessary to transform Bulgaria into a modern industrial country have placed new demands on old methods and institutions. Success or failure of the Communists' ongoing efforts to industrialize, modernize, and communize the country depends on the adaptability of the leadership and the political institutions to meet the challenges of the 1970s.
MAJOR POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS, 1965-71
After discovery of the plot to overthrow him in April 1965, Zhivkov took steps to secure his position and to prevent future conspiracies. Because the threat to his regime had come mainly from the army, Zhivkov and his minister of defense often spoke to assemblies of military officers to explain party policies and to assuage dissident feelings within military ranks. In addition, state security functions were realigned in an attempt to tighten the system in order that such conspiracies would not be able to germinate in the future. The Ministry of the Interior lost its responsibility for security to the newly created Committee of State Security, which was under the direct supervision of Zhivkov in his position as premier. Later, in 1968, the Committee of State Security and the Ministry of the Interior were again merged under the latter's title.
After the abortive plot against him, Zhivkov offered some reforms to placate disgruntled elements and to avoid a repetition of the incident. Although the principal plotters were imprisoned, Zhivkov's reaction to the conspiracy was one of general appeasement. This policy of appeasement was shown by the fact that no general purges took place and that people who could have been suspected of dissident activity were allowed to remain in positions of authority in the party and in the government rather than being summarily swept aside. The programs of liberal reform that had been implemented before, but interrupted by, the 1965 plot were resumed, and Bulgaria seemed to be reaching fora national destiny rather than accepting the role of a Soviet puppet. The reforms affected all fields—political, economic, and cultural—and for a time it seemed that the abortive coup d'etat had given new impetus to Bulgarian national interests.
The promise of reform appeared to be the focal point around which the Ninth Party Congress was convened in 1966, and at the congress party leaders underscored the need for the widest participation in the democratic process. Reforms, however, fell victim to the conservatism of older party leaders, and Zhivkov did not have the personal strength or magnetism to push forward his program. The ninth congress ended with the reelection of the essentially reactionary Politburo and a reaffirmation of the status quo. The bright hopes for economic, political, and social progress that had been evident in late 1965 and early 1966 collapsed in a return of rigid ideological dogma and a firm reliance on Soviet rather than Bulgarian initiatives.
The failure of the ninth congress to rejuvenate the party hierarchy and to chart a reform course for the future had repercussions throughout Bulgarian society. Initiatives in foreign affairs that had been taken in 1965 and 1966 foundered in the retrenchment into party orthodoxy. Negotiations that had begun with Western European countries as well as with Balkan neighbors bore no fruit as the Zhivkov government failed to follow up earlier moves toward better relations. Even more detrimental to Balkan relations was Bulgarian participation in the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, which Yugoslavia and Romania strongly opposed. In the cultural area the party tightened its controls over creative artists and reorganized the Committee on Art and Culture to better serve the needs of the government. The First Congress of Culture, held in 1967, emphasized the constructive role of culture in society and called for an intensification of anti-Western propaganda in order to counter the dangerous influence of so-called bourgeois culture.
There was also great concern among party leaders about the so-called nihilistic attitude of the country's young people. In December 1967 Zhivkov published his "Youth Theses" in an attempt to counter what the party considered to be dangerous apathy on the part of Bulgarian youth. Zhivkov's theses initiated some institutional reforms that dealt heavily with patriotic education in an attempt to instill some national pride in the young people, but about a year later patriotic education was deemphasized. Evidently the program had aroused strong feelings of nationalism that interfered with the pro-Soviet attitudes that have been characteristic of Zhivkov's government. After publication of the "Youth Theses," all youth activities came under the aegis of the Dimitrov Communist Youth Union (Dimitrovski Komunisticheski Mladezhki Suyuz), referred to as Komsomol, which is the junior auxiliary of the BKP. The moves to politicize young people failed to arouse any widespread interest, and in the early 1970s Bulgarianyouth remained essentially apolitical and apathetic.
In the economic sector the BKP blueprint for reform commonly referred to as the New Economic Model offered innovations in decentralized decisionmaking that delegated more responsibilities to public and state organizations on the lower level as well as to individual enterprises. The attention given to economic reform at the time—late 1965—was motivated not only by Zhivkov's need to shore up his own political position after the attempted coup but probably more so by the examples of new economic programs that were sweeping the Eastern European communist countries and the Soviet Union. More important than the liberal reforms for decentralized management of the economy was the decision to allow planning from the bottom to the top. From the time of the enactment in 1965 up to about 1968 there were definite signs of change. The July plenum of the BKP Central Committee in 1968, however, formalized a number of changes that called for considerable reduction in the autonomy of the existing public and state organizations, thus setting aside the entire economic reform program. After the July plenum and another in November 1968, a reorganization of state enterprises took place in line with the new centralization policy.
During the remainder of the 1960s and into the early 1970s, Zhivkov's position remained stable, and there were no overt threats to his regime such as the 1965 plot to overthrow him. In 1969 and again in 1970 agreements were signed in Moscow that tied the Bulgarian economy even closer to that of the Soviet Union. Bulgaria's position, or more precisely the BKP's position, on relations with the Soviet Union was summed up in a statement made by Zhivkov just before the Tenth Party Congress in 1971: "The fraternal friendship and cooperation of the Bulgarian Communist Party with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the ever broader and deeper alignment of Bulgaria with the Soviet Union will remain the immovable cornerstone of the entire work and the domestic and foreign policy of our party."
At the Tenth Party Congress, which was attended by General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev of the Soviet Union, there were no startling changes either in party policy or in high-ranking personnel assignments. The same Politburo, with an average age of sixty-three, was returned to office, and the party program promised no alteration in the heavily centralized, pro-Soviet policies that had marked most of Zhivkov's tenure. A new constitution was proposed by the party and later adopted by the government and, although some institutional changes were made—for example, creation of the State Council as a collective executive branch of government—the absolute supremacy of the BKP over every aspect of Bulgarian life was in no way diminished. On the contrary, the power of the top leadership was probably enhanced along with its ability to perpetuate itself in office.
THE BULGARIAN COMMUNIST PARTY
Organization
Party statutes define the organization, membership, and program of the BKP. A statute promulgated during the Sixth Party Congress in 1954 proclaimed the party to be an "inseparable part of the world communist front" and acknowledged the Communist Party of the Soviet Union as the leading political force within the communist bloc countries. Later party statutes refined the basic document but did not change the premise that the BKP looks to the Soviet party for leadership.
Central to the observance of basic communist policy is adherence to the principles of democratic centralism. Patterned after the Soviet model, these principles call for a pyramidal form of command responsibility in which lower party organs are subordinated to the next higher body. This also means that decisions of higher bodies bind those below, individually and collectively. Party policy and practice encourage open discussion of issues during meetings of local party units as well as during conferences and congresses at higher levels; however, party discipline requires unitary action after a decision has been reached by the hierarchy.
The party hierarchy is composed of the Politburo, the Secretariat and, to some extent, the Central Committee, the membership of which interlock as one man may occupy two or more positions at any given time. Theoretically occupying the apex of power is the congress of the party that is held every five years, following the example of Soviet party congresses. The congress is made up of delegates from various party units on the basis of proportional representation of party members. The main statutory functions of the congress include revising or amending party statutes, deciding party policy, electing the Central Committee, and receiving reports concerning past progress and future plans. It is customary for major governmental programs or reforms to be presented to a party congress before promulgation. The Tenth Party Congress, for example, listened to readings of the draft of a new constitution and the Sixth Five-Year Plan (1971-75) and approved both unanimously. Actually, the purpose of a congress is to demonstrate unanimity and accord. The size of the congress (1,553 delegates in 1971) and the fact that it meets only at five-year intervals preclude carrying out its statutory role as a deliberative and policymaking body. Public politicking or wrangling by delegates to a party congress would be unprecedented.
Because the party congress meets so infrequently, it delegates its functions to the Central Committee that it elects. Election of Central Committee members is also a pro forma action wherein the congress unanimously approves the list of names provided by the party leadership. The Central Committee is a large working party organ, which in1973 included 147 members and 110 candidate (nonvoting) members. The committee is charged with the administration of party work between sessions of the congress and the implementation of party policies presented by the leadership. For the performance of its duties, the Central Committee has fourteen permanently operating departments and six schools and institutes, the latter ostensibly to promote political educational goals. As set forth in party statutes, plenary sessions of the committee are to be held at least twice a year, and special sessions may be called from time to time.
Within the Central Committee sits the nine-man permanent Secretariat headed by the first secretary who, by party structure, is the most powerful man in the country. The Secretariat is elected by the Central Committee during the party congress, but the election, once again, is merely formal approval of the members already selected by the top party leadership. Since 1954 the position of first secretary has been continuously held by Zhivkov, who also heads the State Council and is therefore the head-of-state. In addition to the first secretary, six other secretaries and two members complete the composition of the Secretariat. The main function of the Secretariat is to supervise the implementation of party policy.
Sharing the center stage of political power with the Secretariat is the Politburo, elected by the Central Committee in the same manner as the Secretariat. In effect the Politburo is a self-perpetuating body, and any change in membership is dictated by the members themselves. Composed of eleven members and six candidate members, all Politburo members belong to the Central Committee. They provide collective political leadership in both party and government.
The Politburo is the policymaking and decisionmaking branch of the party. In theory the eleven members of the Politburo are equal, but in practice the party first secretary occupies the topmost position of power in the party and is therefore first among equals in the Politburo. Such is the concentration of political authority in the top bodies that multiplicity of membership by party officials in any or all of the central party organs is more the rule than the exception.
Membership
After the successful coup d'etat in September 1944, communist party membership grew with unprecedented speed. From prisons and internment camps and from self-exile abroad, party leaders began to converge in Sofia to restructure the party and to form a new government. Party members assisted by sympathizers helped fill the necessary manpower requirements as functionaries and working groups in the new coalition government. A period of intensive recruitment and propaganda followed that swelled the number of members from 15,000 to 250,000 in just four months. By the time the Fifth Party Congressconvened in December 1948, party membership reached 500,000. This was in part due to the merger of the Social Democrats with the BKP in August 1948. In large part, however, Bulgaria's egalitarian peasant society—coupled with indiscriminate recruitment using hardly any criteria for qualification—produced a predominantly peasant membership. Workers accounted for slightly over one-fourth of the total membership as compared to one-half made up of peasants.
Ironically, the intense campaign for new members was accompanied by wide-scale purges within the party during a power struggle between the Stalin faction and the home faction of the BKP. Led by Chervenkov, the Moscow-oriented leaders succeeded in getting rid of their political opponents and soon after established a Stalinist kind of government in the country. Observers noted that this was aimed not only at weeding out undesirable party elements but, more important, at increasing the number of workers and consequently achieving a numerical balance with the peasant members.
Once in full control of the party and government, the BKP hierarchy turned its attention to more systematic methods of recruitment. By the time the Eighth Party Congress convened in November 1962, the BKP had 528,674 members plus 22,413 candidates. It was also at about this time that the Zhivkov government relaxed the open police terror and pardoned 6,000 political prisoners, most of them Communists.
The Ninth Party Congress, held in November 1966, provided new regulations concerning party composition and acceptance of new members. Qualifications of candidates had to be checked thoroughly, and only those qualified could be accepted. Education as the main criterion of selection was emphasized among target groups of workers, peasants, specialists, women, and young people. As a result of this improved recruitment procedure, the new members after the congress were 44.3 percent blue-collar workers and 32 percent women. Of this group, it was estimated that 60.4 percent had at least a secondary education.
It was reported by the Secretariat that district (okrug) party committees after the Ninth Party Congress showed improvement in "content, style and methods of their work," and that they understood better the political approach in guiding local economic tasks as well as leading primary party organs in the political and organization work of their constituencies. Furthermore, over 77 percent of full-time secretaries of local party committees and about 90 percent of chairmen of cooperative farms had higher or secondary education. Formal training as well as in-service education was given serious attention. Educational training for party members includes two-year university courses, short courses, seminars, informal meetings, and conferences of local party committees.
Statistics reported in 1971 showed that 25.2 percent of about 700,000members of the BKP were women. Increasingly more important positions were assigned to women in the party hierarchy. In the same period (1971) there was a woman member of the Politburo, several women members of the Central Committee, and two women ministers. Not only were women active in party activities, but they could also be found in boards of management of government enterprises.