“Perestroika” is an expression of Russian origin that can be interpreted as “restructuring” and contains a set of events that have left important traces in history to this day. Next we will show you with total clarity how it was The evolution of perestroika and glasnost. From the events that occurred, such as its meaning, origin, the controversial opinion of the people and the consequences it had.
Glasnov evolution
let’s meet how was the evolution of Glasnov and Perestroika from beginning to end so that you fully understand what their objectives were.
Perestroika and its beginning
By the time that Mikhail Gorbachev rose to be main Soviet leader in 1985, Perestroika had already been designed for some time. But it was in April of that same year when the committee of the CPSU (Communist Party of the Soviet Union) with the Soviet leader decided that it should be carried out immediately.
The Perestroika or reform went far beyond a simple changeSince its inception in the Soviet Union, it involved a profound restructuring of the economic system. It is understood that despite reform being its main objective, Perestroika as a movement, sought to preserve the socialist system while taking the country out of misery.
Main goal of Perestroika
The goal of Perestroika was to carry out a kind of reform, a deep change focused mainly on the economic system of the USSR, but what did that really mean? Gorbachev sought to adapt the system to a more modern one, on par with the world level, thus allowing to a certain degree the development of local autonomy.
It was also aimed at modernizing the neglected production systems and changing the economic model for a better, more modern one, beneficial for the USSR; all this while trying to fight against other evils that harmed society, as I explain below.
Other goals of Perestroika
As we have seen, the main objective of the reform was to produce a real change in the economic structure of the USSR, but that would actually imply many other things. Among the objectives of this reform were: to end labor absenteeism and alcoholism, increase production and thus counteract the declining economy.
Gorbachev wanted reform but also preserve the socialist system so that Soviet society had a new spirit, with a spirit of entrepreneurship, innovation and greater production; that is to say that it sought to give a boost to production and development to get out of the corruption, the crisis and the poor development in which it had been mired for so long.
Glasnost and its relationship with Perestroika
Glasnost was a policy developed by Mikhail Gorbachev along with Perestroika and consisted of ease strong Soviet censorship. It was established in 1986. It literally translates as: transparency or openness and was part of the positive reform ideals that Gorbachev believed in.
Mikhail Gorbachev and Perestroika
In 1985 this reformist became, in fact, the highest Soviet leader. That year, in April, Perestroika began to be put into practice quickly to counteract the serious crisis in the country. For the year 1986, alcohol consumption was reduced by 36% thanks to the moral character measures that had already begun to establish themselves.
In June 1987, during a session of the CPSU, he officially presented the clear and political bases of that interesting reform of an economic nature and that would come to be known by the name of “Perestroika”. In 1988 they were rrecognized human rights, leaving behind old ideas of the communist party. He was elected as “Head of State” in 1989.
In 1990, the USSR reached the same level of world economic development, the year in which he was also elected the first president of the Soviet Union. In August 1991, an attempted coup d’état was orchestrated by the main leaders of the CPSU, who wanted to ruin Gorbachev and a treaty that they considered threatening to them. Later, in December 1991, Gorbachev resigned from office.
Changes caused by Perestroika
In the short time that Mikhail Gorbachev’s command lasted, the changes and improvements were noted. In just under a year, alcohol consumption was reduced by 36%. Companies were given a certain autonomy that allowed them to make decisions without first consulting the authorities; this had a positive influence on production and therefore on the economy.
Following the same order of ideas, greater importance was given to agriculture, something that had been undervalued and degraded for many years. A reform of the currency and banking system was also implemented.
Thanks to the reform, the economy improved significantly. Aganbegyan, Gorbachev’s first adviser, proposed reforms that would improve both the general performance of the worker and the quality of products, and we know that these ideas were taken seriously because the cheaper alternatives presented by other socialist countries were ignored.
Dissent and coup
Although the intended objectives were considered good, many thought that the actions were not being carried out quickly enough and this made people impatient. The disagreement of a people should not be taken lightly, especially in the midst of a reform and this discontent caused that on the 18th of the month of August 1991 the attempted coup that sought to overthrow Mikhail Gorbachev began. to leave behind your ideas of reform and improvements. Nevertheless, the coup failed.
Why the coup failed
The lack of success of this operation is attributed mainly to the lack of action on the part of those senior leaders, that is, they simply did not act diligently, but it also had something to do with the attitude shown by Boris Yeltsin, president of the Federation Russian. As a result of all these events, many Eastern European Republics officially declared their independence.
This resulted in the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and by 1991 when Gorbachev resigned from office, Yeltsinthe man who with his attitude prevented the coup against Gorbachev, became his successor, thus being the first president of the newly founded Russian Republic. It was after the coup d’état and subsequent events that End Perestroika and Glasnost.
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