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Marxism-Leninism in the German Democratic Republic Studies in Russian and East European History

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Marxism-Leninism in the German Democratic Republic Studies in Russian and East European History MARXISM-LENINISM IN THE GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC STUDIES IN RUSSIAN AND EAST EUROPEAN HISTORY Phyllis Auty and Richard Clogg (editors) British Policy Towards Wartime Resistance in Yugoslavia and Greece Elisabeth Barker British Policy in South-East Europe in the Second World War Richard Clogg (editor) The Movement for Greek Independence, 1770-1821: A Collection of Documents Olga Crisp Studies in the Russian Economy before 1914 D.G. Kirby (editor) Finland and Russia, 1808-1920: Documents Martin McCauley The Russian Revolution and the Soviet State, 1917-1921: Documents (editor) Khrushchev and the Development of Soviet Agriculture Communist Power in Europe 1944-1949 (editor) Marxism-Leninism in the German Democratic Republic: The Socialist Unity Party (SED) Evan Mawdsley The Russian Revolution and the Baltic Fleet Marxism-Leninism in The German Democratic Republic The Socialist Unity Party (SED) Martin McCauley in association with Palgrave Macmillan © Martin McCauley 1979 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1979 978-0-333-25828-6 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without permission First published 1979 by THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD London and Basingstoke Associated companies in Delhi Dublin Hong Kong Johannesburg Lagos Melbourne New York Singapore Tokyo British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data McCauley, Martin Marxism-Leninism in the German Democratic Republic -(Studies in Russian and East European history) 1. Germany, East-Politics and government I. Title II. Series 320.9'43'1087 DD261 ISBN 978-1-349-04375-0 ISBN 978-1-349-04373-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-04373-6 This book is sold subject to the standard conditions of the Net Book Agreement FOR VICTOR AND GWEN Contents Preface IX Introduction xi Glossary and List of Abbreviations XV Tables and Figures xviii Maps XXI The German Road to Socialism The International Context-The Domestic Scene- Party Mem­ bership in the SBZ-The SED Programme-The SED: Internal Developments-Cultivating the Electorate-The Oder-Neisse or Not?-The SED and the KPD One Germany or Two? 2 A Party of a New Type 47 The Allies Go Their Separate Ways-The Remodelling of the SED -The SED Becomes a Cadre Party Inside a Mass Party - The SED and the State-The Chistka- The Economic Base- the Uprising of 17 June 1953 3 The Factious Fifties 82 The Kremlin and Its German Policy-The New Course-The Party and the Plan- The XXth Congress of the CPSU and Its Impact on the SED-The Economic Debate-Ulbricht the Master-'A Scar Across the Face of Berlin' 4 Socialism with a German Face 118 The New Economic System of Planning and Management of the Economy-The Political Thaw- The ESS-The Scientific­ Technical Revolution- The GDR and the STR-The Evol­ ution of the Party- Relations with the Federal Republic- A New View of Socialism- Dropping the First Secretary Vll Vlll Contents 5 The Honecker Era 180 Changes in Personnel-Social and Economic Developments­ Youth- Foreign Policy-The IXth Congress- Changes in Personnel-The Social Structure of SED Membership-The New Programme-The New Statute-The SED and the Berlin Conference- Relations with the Yugoslavs and the Euro­ communists Appendix: Short Biographies 229 Select Bibliography 249 Index 259 Preface The German Democratic Republic (GDR) has the highest living standards in the socialist world. She is also ahead of many non-socialist countries, as she is one of the top ten industrial nations in the world. She has achieved her pre-eminent position in the socialist bloc by dint of her own unsparing efforts. Born of chaos, destruction and great suffering in 1945, she has demanded much of her population, many of whom have not been willing to pay the price. Defeat in war cost her dear­ occupation, reparations, sequestration and the knowledge that her political culture and institutions were to be influenced by Soviet practices. It was not the first time that Berlin had been occupied by Russian forces. Whereas in 1760 the local burghers had been able to buy out the occupiers, the prospect in 1945 was quite different. This time the foreign army had political ambitions as well. There was another key factor to be considered. Contrary to 1760 when there were practically no locals who wanted a Russian-style political system adopted, there were many in 1945 who wished for a socialist Germany. Although there may have been as few as 50,000 members of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) in the Soviet zone, support for fundamental reforms which would remove the power base of the Junkers and factory owners was very significant. The question in the Soviet zone was not whether socialism would prove victorious but what face socialism would show to the world-German or Soviet? This study argues that if the working class in the Soviet zone had carried the day, German socialism would have been born. What are the distinguishing marks of this version of socialism? Traditional social-democratic views but more radical than in pre-1933 days and incorporating some KPD policies as well. Precisely since the Soviet authorities, aided by a majority of the KPD leadership, wished to prevent this, the Socialist Unity Party (SED) was brought into existence in April 1946 by fusing the KPD and the SPD, to guide the Soviet zone in the direction of Soviet socialism. Hence the SED has also had within its ranks those who would have preferred a different interpretation of socialism. The SED has often borne this in mind; for instance, untill948 the German road to socialism was official policy and ix X Preface in the late 1960s Walter Ulbricht launched socialism with a German face. This study concentrates on the evolution of the SED but is always mindful of the international context. Without the Soviet connection the SED would not have become the Staatspartei-the state party-in the GDR, and the GDR would not have received international recognition and entry to the UN. This has made the SED, of necessity, mindful of Soviet wishes and developments. Since the GDR has evolved her own economic system and recorded many successes, considerable attention has been paid to the economic policy of the party. Nowadays the party fails or succeeds according to the fate of its economic policy. Culture, education and religious affairs, unfortunately, have not been accorded the space they merit. They are mentioned in passing but the dictates of space have not permitted party thinking to be examined in depth. The aims of this book are modest. It does not claim to be definitive or all-embracing. Since the author has never been permitted to sit under the table at Politburo meetings, many of the judgements must remain speculative. Regrettably Geschichte der Sozialistischen Einheitspartei Deutschlands (Frankfurt-am-Main, 1978) was published too late to be considered in detail. However it does not appear to contain anything which would lead the writer to change radically any of his opinions. I am indebted to Hartmut Zimmermann for all his help and counsel during the writing of this study. Of course, he is in no way responsible for its shortcomings. I also want to thank Francis Carsten for his helpful comments on a previous draft of the Introduction. MARTIN McCAULEY June 1978 Introduction The Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) was the leading Marxist party in the world before 1914. At the onset of war the vast majority of SPD members heeded the Kaiser's call to battle but the few who vehemently opposed the war formed the Gruppe Internationale (later called the Spartacus League) in 1914. These radicals joined the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (USPD) in 1917. After the end of hostilities the Spartacus League dissociated itself from the USPD and together with some radicals in Bremen formed the core of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), which came into being on 30 December 1918. Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg were the acknowledged leaders of the KPD during the early days. The November revolution placed power in the hands of the SPD. However it was almost totally unprepared to govern. It feared the KPD and waged a protracted struggle with the radical left. At its first congress the KPD adopted a programme which called for contacts with fraternal parties so as to put the socialist revolution on an international basis and to secure a lasting peace. First and foremost was the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) (RKP), but the tactics and habits of the Bolsheviks did not please everyone, especially Rosa Luxemburg. Fate took a hand and removed her, Leo Jogiches and Karl Liebknecht from the scene. The KPD was the first party to join the Communist International, the Comintern. Revolutionary hopes were high in Germany, and had not Lenin said that the natural home for the Comintern executive was Berlin? Dissent was endemic in the KPD and it had little success. However the fusion of the KPD and the left wing of the USPD in December 1920 transformed the KPD into a mass party. The leadership consequently dropped its cautious approach in March 1921 after police were sent to disarm workers in central Germany. Communists were called upon to resist with all the force at their disposal. Nevertheless the contest was one-sided and much blood was spilt. French and Belgian troops marched into the Ruhr in January 1923 and set in motion a train of events which, arguably, produced the most XI xii Introduction propitious circumstances for revolution in Germany since 1918. In August 1923 the Politburo of the RKP decided that the moment for revolution in Germany had arrived.
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