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Communist Party of
Byelorussia
Камуністычная партыя Беларусі
Founded 30–31 December 1917
Banned 25 August 1991
Succeeded by Party of Belarusian Communists
Ideology Communism
Marxism–Leninism
Political position Far-left
National affiliation Communist Party of the Soviet Union
International affiliation Comintern (until 1943) Cominform (until 1956)
Colours      Red
Slogan Workers of the world, unite!
Anthem The Internationale
Anthem of Byelorussian SSR
Party flag
Flag of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (1951–1991).svg


The Communist Party of Byelorussia (CPB; Russian: Коммунистическая партия Белоруссии, romanized: Kommunisticheskaya partiya Byelorussii; Belarusian: Камуністычная партыя Беларусі, romanized: Kamunistyčnaja partyja Bielarusi) was the ruling communist party of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, a constituent republic of the Soviet Union from 1922, that existed from 1917 to 1991.

History

The party was founded in 1917 as the Communist Party (Bolsheviks) of Byelorussia (Russian: Коммунистическая партия (большевиков) Белоруссии) following the Russian Revolution of 1917 as part of the Russian Communist Party (bolsheviks) led by Vladimir Lenin on December 30–31, 1918 with 17,800 members. It was important in creating the Byelorussian Soviet Republic in January 1919. From February 1919 until 1920 it functioned as a single organisation together with the Communist Party of Lithuania, known as the Communist Party (bolsheviks) of Lithuania and Belorussia. It was renamed to the Communist Party of Byelorussia in 1952.

The CPB was a communist party, organized on democratic centralism. This principle, introduced by Lenin, entails democratic and open discussion of policy issues within the party, followed by the requirement of total unity in upholding the agreed policies. The highest body within the CPB was the Party Congress, which convened every five years. When Congress was not in session, the Central Committee was the highest body. Because the Central Committee met twice a year, most day-to-day duties and responsibilities were vested in the Politburo, (previously the Presidium), the Secretariat. The party leader was the head of government and held the office of either General Secretary, Premier or head of state, or two of the three offices concurrently, but never all three at the same time. The party leader was the de facto chairman of the CPB Politburo and chief executive of the Republic. Ideologically, the CPB embraced Marxism–Leninism, a fusion of the original ideas of German philosopher and economic theorist Karl Marx, and Lenin, became formalized by Joseph Stalin as the party's guiding ideology and would remain so throughout the rest of its existence.

With debate raging regarding Belarusian independence, Byelorussian representatives in Petrograd were far more willing to accept Joseph Stalin's plans for establishing an autonomous Byelorussian Authority. Byelorussian Communist Party First Secretary Alexander Miasnikian, however, initially having held control of Minsk, was seemingly unwilling to share collective influence regarding the future affairs of Byelorussia. This internal conflict resulted in Byelorussian nationalist leadership attempting to establish power by calling the All-Byelorussian National Congress, in which 1872 delegates were gathered to discuss the future of the nation. While contingents of the organization voted in the Rada, a council of representatives for Byelorussia, the Communist Party played an active role in suppressing the Rada, causing them to go underground.

The 1930s saw the Communist Party of Byelorussia targeted most heavily by Stalin's purges. The vast majority of high-profile figures were arrested and removed, while an additional 40% of all members were also removed (Marples 1999, 8-9) Having taken place during Stalin's infamous purges, much of the socially and culturally significant gains that the occurred—such as the return of exiled individuals, a resurrection of language, among other cultural developments that had begun in the 1920s—had become halted, affecting Byelorussian culture and society for some significant time. 1937 especially saw the highest rate of purges throughout the Party, but arrests and removals of key figures continued well into the 1940s. These formative years tended to halt specific social developments pushed by the Communist Party, hindering much for the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.

July 28, 1990, from Art. 6 of the Constitution of the Byelorussian SSR, the provision on the monopoly of the Communist Party of Byelorussia on power was excluded.

From August 25, 1991, to February 3, 1993, the activities of the Communist Party of Belarus were suspended.

On April 25, 1993, at the XXXII (extraordinary) congress of the Communist Party of Belarus, it was decided to join the party in the Party of Communists of Belarus (PCB).

First Secretaries of the Communist Party of Byelorussia

No. Picture Name
(Birth–Death)
Took office Left office Political party
First Secretary
1 Myasnikyan.jpg Alexander Miasnikian
(1886–1925)
1918 1919 CPB
2 Vincas Mickevicius-Kapsukas around 1918-1919.jpg Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas
(1880–1935)
1919 1919 CPB
3 Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1919-1927).svg Yefim Genkin
(1880–1935)
11 November 1920 1920 CPB
4 Vilhelms Vilis Knoriņš.jpg Vilhelm Knorin
(1890–1939)
25 November 1920 May 1922 CPB/CPSU
5 Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1919-1927).svg Waclaw Bogucki
(1890–1939)
May 1922 4 February 1924 CPB/CPSU
7 Asatkin an.jpg Aleksandr Osatkin-Vladimirsky
(1885–1937)
4 February 1924 14 May 1924 CPB/CPSU
8 Krinicki.jpg Alexander Krinitsky
(1894–1937)
September 1924 7 May 1927 CPB/CPSU
9 Vilhelms Vilis Knoriņš.jpg Vilhelm Knorin
(1890–1939)
7 May 1927 4 December 1928 CPB/CPSU
10 Ян Барысавіч Гамарнік, 1928 год.jpg Yan Gamarnik
(1894–1937)
4 December 1928 3 January 1930 CPB/CPSU
11 К. В. Гей.jpg Konstantin Gey
(1896–1939)
3 January 1930 18 January 1932 CPB/CPSU
12 Гикало, Николай Фёдорович.jpg Nikolay Gikalo
(1897–1938)
18 January 1932 18 March 1937 CPB/CPSU
13 Sharangovich.jpg Vasily Sharangovich
(1897–1938)
18 March 1937 17 July 1937 CPB/CPSU
14 Yakov Yakovlev. People's Commissar for Agriculture. USSR 1929.jpg Yakov Yakovlev
(1896–1938)
27 July 1937 8 August 1937 CPB/CPSU
15 Volkov AA.jpg Aleksei Volkov
(1890–1942)
11 August 1937 18 June 1938 CPB/CPSU
16 Anefo 910-7476 Ponomanrenko,.jpg Panteleimon Ponomarenko
(1902–1984)
18 June 1938 7 March 1947 CPB/CPSU
17 Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1938-1949).svg Nikolai Gusarov
(1905–1985)
7 March 1947 31 May 1950 CPB/CPSU
18 Nikolai Patolichev.jpg Nikolai Patolichev
(1908–1989)
31 May 1950 28 July 1956 CPB/CPSU
19 Kirill Mazurov.jpg Kirill Mazurov
(1914–1989)
28 July 1956 30 March 1965 CPB/CPSU
20 Masherov.jpg Pyotr Masherov
(1918–1980)
30 March 1965 4 September 1980 CPB/CPSU
21 Tikhon Kiselyov
(1917–1983)
15 October 1980 11 January 1983 CPB/CPSU
22 Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1981-1991).svg Nikolay Slyunkov
(1929–2022)
13 January 1983 6 February 1987 CPB/CPSU
23 Yefrem Sokolov
(1926–2022)
6 February 1987 30 November 1990 CPB/CPSU
24 Anatoly Malofeyev
(1933–2022)
30 November 1990 25 April 1993 CPB/CPSU

See also

  • Belarusian United Left Party "A Just World"
  • Communist Party of Belarus
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