he Revolution continues

— After the October 1964 Plenary
but **€ting of the CPSU Central
our PMMittee, when there was a
SU *nge of Party and State leader-
jor "P, decisions were taken to
tcome the voluntaristic ten-

he “NCles and twists in domestic
in- @ foreign policy. New ap-
nd aches to economic manage-
"nt Were put forward, changing

r- | the better the situation in the
he *Untry at that time. But to utilize
As “S€ resources, said Gorbachev,
est {Cinal new changes were need-
illy in Society and the correspond-
s a © Political will. There was a
| : Ttage of both. The pace of de-
re- a considerably slowed

Try
The April 1985 Plenary Meeting
the Central Committee and the

exaggerating — for the future of
socialism as a whole.

‘We believe that socialism is a
society characterized by increas-
ing diversity in opinion and in
people’s relations and activities.
We must not be afraid of openly
discussing and tackling difficult
problems of social development
and of criticism and discussion.”’

Turning Point
Has Been Reached

Speaking about fundamental
changes in the economy, Gor-
bachev said that the aim of the
radical economic reform launch-
ed in the USSR was to ensure
transition, within the next two or _
three years, from an excessively
centralized and regulated system

structuring the system of adminis-
tering the state and society and in
ideology and culture.

““We are convinced that broad
popular support for perestroika
will continue to determine the
situation in the country,’’ he said.

Peace and
Survival

One of. the greatest
accomplishments by Lenin was
his theoretical substantiation of
the possibility of peaceful coexis-
tence of states with different so-
cial systems. In the nuclear age,
Gorbachev stressed, it has be-
come a primary condition for
human survival.

Reminding the audience of the
key peace initiatives of the

oss

the “th Congress of the Party frankly
di- "Med the causes of the situation
the?*t-had arisen, laid bare the
ey *C€leration mechanism and gave
+4 basic assessment.

the| “ne healthy forces in the Party
tic“ Society, the report says furth-
ous» Were becoming more and more
nalUtely aware of the pressing
theed to overcome negative
ty; “Nomena and: to reverse the
ev “Urse of events.

he
e Socialist
r Renovation
& € answer to this extremely
f., S0cial need was the decision
: April 1985 Plenary and its
: . 8© for socialist renovation,
ger ae were theoretically and poli-
uill “ally developed by the 27th
ine aes Congress and subsequent
a Ties Meetings of the Central
th Mittee, assuming final shape
om Sa 8eneral line of conducting a
| ,,~onary rearrangement of
W's € aspects of socialist socie-
4 €, Gorbachev stressed.
fe . “restroika aims not only at
. ae the stagnation and conser-
M of the preceding period
i, Sy arcting mistakes but also
d Tcoming historically limited
.. obsolete features of social
S Uzation and methods of
>» he continued. As a result of
ees socialism can and
e € able to utilize to the full
Its potential as a truly
© System which serves and
Odles humanity.

the fate of perestroika,”’
achey stressed. ‘‘They are
Scratization of all life in soci-
Tadical economic reform.
° Democratization of society is
thi ul of perestroika. Progress
f ,_Sfield is essential for success
Testroika and — I am not

‘Democratization is the soul of
perestroika. Progress in this
field is essential for its
success and for the future of
socialism as a whole...’

of management to a democratic
system based largely on eco-
nomically-sound methods and a
balanced combination of cen-
tralism and self-management.

Then the Soviet leader dealt
with the nationalities problem.

‘‘We justly say that we have sol-
ved the nationalities problem.
The Revolution paved the way to
both legal and social and eco-
nomic equality of different
nationalities and erased substan-
tial distinctions in the levels of
economic, social and cultural
development of all Republics and
regions and all nationalities.

‘‘We must be extremely con-
siderate and tactful in everything
that concerns the national in-
terests or national feelings of
people and ensure the most active
involvement of people of all
nationalities in tackling many dif-
ferent problems of our multi-
national society.”

Summing up progress made
during two and one-half years that
have passed since the April 1985
Plenum of the CPSU Central
Committee, Gorbachev said that
a turning point has been reached.
The first stage of perestroika has
almost been completed. A con-
cept of perestroika has been for-
mulated on the basis of in-depth.
analysis of the present situation
and prospects for the country’s
development in the future. A new
political, moral and psychological
climate has been created in the
country.

‘‘The next two or three years
will be the most difficult, decisive
and, in a sense, critical period,”
Gorbachev said. ““The main
reason for this is that we simul-
taneously shall have to tackle
large-scale problems in the econ-
omy and the social spheres, in re-

USSR, notably of the project to
build a comprehensive system of
international peace and security,
Gorbachev pointed out that new
political thinking with its common
human criteria and orientation to
reason and openness is not a
declaration or an appeal, but a
philosophy of action and life —a
philosophy that is developing and
already working. The 1986 meet-
ing in Reykjavik imparted practi-
cal energy to that thinking, helped

forced due to the scientific, tech-
nological and production poten-
tial of the USSR becoming a mar-
kedly more important element of
world economic links.

Confidence
In the Future

‘Objective political processes
and the course of the struggle for
peace will also be influenced by
class struggle and _ other
‘manifestations of -social an-
tagonisms, by factors which make
up anew impulse of activity of the
developing nations, by the many
million-strong movements against
the nuclear threat, for the protec-
tion of the environment, against
racial discimination and policies
that split societies into the lucky
and the doomed. The greatness

defence capability at a level
precluding military superiority of
imperialism over socialism.
Reminding the audience that
the contemporary international
communist movement consisting
of fully and irreversibly indepen-
dent parties is open for dialogue,
cooperation, mutual understand-
ing and alliance with any other
revolutionary, democratic and
progressive forces, Gorbachev
noted: ““The CPSU has no doubt
about the future of the communist
movement — the bearer of the
alternative to capitalism and a
movement of the most courageous
and consistent fighters for peace,
independence and progress of
their own countries and for
friendship with all nations of the
world. We are far from believing
that all progressive changes

~

‘In the nuclear age, Lenin’s
substantiation of the
possibility of peaceful
coexistence has become a
primary condition for human

survival...’

it get settled in various social and

political circles and made inter-

national contacts more mean-—

ingful and productive.

Speaking of the prospects of .

further advance towards stable
peace, Gorbachev pointed to
such a crucial circumstance as the
ascent by socialism to a new level
in its development. ‘‘There is a
sizable reserve for peaceful
coexistence,” he said, “‘in the on-
going restructuring in the Soviet
Union. It will enable the USSR to
join in the division of labour and
resources on a scale never known
before. The material base of the
comprehensive system of peace
and international security will be
decisively expanded and rein-

and novelty of our time is in the
people’s more obvious and open
participation in the making of his-
tory.

“‘The human factor is intruding
in world affairs headlong. With-
out new attitudes to fit modern
realities and the will of nations,
politics would be unpredictable
improvisation, risky both for
one’s own country and for
others,’’ Gorbachev continued.

Emphasizing the optimism of
the Soviet leadership’s view of
the prospects of the establishment
of a comprehensive system of
international security, Gorbachev
also noted, however, that the
danger of war still remains, and
that the USSR will keep doing
everything needed to maintain its

happening in the world must be
accredited to socialism alone.
Even so, the way the most crucial
human problems stand and the
progress in the search for their
solution confirms the unbreak-
able linkage between world prog-
ress and socialism as an inter-
national force,’’ said Gorbachev.

Underlining the historical re-
sponsibility of today’s gen-
erations for the future of civiliza-
tion and life itself on our planet,
and for the choice whether the
begining of the new millennium of
world history will be a tragic epi-
logue or an inspiring prologue to
the future, the Soviet leader said:
that fully depends on them. ‘‘We
see opportunities for endless
progress.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE, NOVEMBER 11, 1987 e 7