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Czechoslovakia Lower-Level Organization
At the republic level the party structure deviates from the
government organization in that a separate communist party unit
exists in the Slovak Socialist Republic but not in the Czech
Socialist Republic. The KSS emerged from World War II as a party
distinct from the KSC, but the two were united after the
communist takeover in 1948. The reform movement of the 1960s
advocated a return to a system of autonomous parties for the two
republics. The Bureau for the Conduct of Party Work in the Czech
Lands was created as a counterpart to the KSS, but it was
suppressed after the 1968 invasion and by 1971 had been stricken
from party records. The KSS remained, however, undoubtedly as a
concession to Slovak nationalism. Nevertheless, the KSS functions
solely as a regional affiliate of the KSC. The KSS does not
operate as an independent political institution but rather as
directed by the Prague party leadership.
The organizational structure and modus operandi of the KSS
parallel those of the KSC. The KSS party congress meets for
several days every five years (just before the KSC party
congress). The KSS party congress selects its central committee
members and candidate members, who in turn select a presidium, a
secretariat, and a first secretary. Jozef Lenart, selected as KSS
first secretary in 1970, still held that position seventeen years
later. Following the March 1986 party congress, the KSS Presidium
consisted of eleven members; the Secretariat included, in
addition to Lenart, three secretaries and two members; and the
Central Committee comprised ninety-five full members and thirtysix candidate members. The KSS in 1986 also had its own Central
Control and Auditing Commission, four other commissions, twelve
party departments, and one training facility.
The next step down the party hierarchy is the regional level.
The KSC has ten regional subdivisions (seven in the Czech lands,
three in Slovakia) identical to the kraje, the ten major
governmental administrative divisions. In addition, however, the
Prague and Bratislava municipal party organs, because of their
size, are given regional status within the KSC. Regional
conferences select regional committees, which in turn select a
leading secretary, a number of secretaries, and a regional
control and auditing commission.
Regional units are broken down into a total of 114
district-level organizations. District conferences are held
simultaneously every two to three years, at which time each
conference selects a district committee that subsequently selects
a secretariat to be headed by a district secretary. In the spirit
of democratic centralism, authority and responibility are
delegated from the higher KSC bodies through these successive
tiers of the party structure. The regional committees develop the
basic programs for the regions and guide the district committees,
while the district organizations oversee and direct the local
party units.
At the local level the KSC is structured according to what it
calls the "territorial and production principle"; the basic party
units are organized in work sites and residences where there are
at least five KSC members. In enterprises or communities where
party membership is more numerous, the smaller units function
under larger city, village, or factorywide committees. The
highest authority of the local organization is, theoretically,
the monthly membership meeting, attendance at which is a basic
duty of every member. Each group selects its own leadership,
consisting of a chairman and one or more secretaries. It also
names delegates to the conference of the next higher unit, be it
at the municipal (in the case of larger cities) or district
level. Local units are described in party statutes as the basis
of all party organization and are given specific responsibilities
that include participating in the management of economic
enterprises; training and indoctrinating members; developing and
disseminating propaganda aimed at nonmembers; participating
actively in social, economic, and cultural activities; and
employing constructive criticism to improve socialist development
and community life.
Data as of August 1987
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