The word “Perestroika” can lead us to imagine a rock group or a historical era. And the truth is that it is part of history, but it does not mean one or the other. What does it mean? Where are you from? Well, in this article we will explain clearly and precisely everything you need to know about What is perestroika and characteristicsso that in the end you judge the events for yourself.
What is perestroika
Perestroika is a word of Russian origin that is nothing more than “restructuring”. However, beyond a simple literal translation, it has a much greater and historical meaning.
As for what Perestroika is and why it was given that name, it goes back to some controversial events related to the Soviet Union and, in particular, to a reformer named Mikhail Gorbachevwho decided to launch a series of reforms.
In short, Perestroika was a complex total restructuring movement which was put into practice as of April 1985, when the reformist Mikhail Gorbachev he became the highest Soviet leader. This movement pursued as its main objective the restructuring of an entire economic and social system.
Brief History of Perestroika
It all started when Gorbachev took power. The new leader proposed to the congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) in 1985 the immediate establishment of radical measures to counteract the damage almost irreparable of the economy and society. This reform was demonstrating its functionality almost immediately, when the improvements were not long in coming. Despite this, the disagreement led to the attempt of a “boycott”.
The high Soviet leaders saw the possibility that the dependent republics of the USSR would be able to govern themselves due to one of the goals that Gorbachev had and because of that they decided to orchestrate a plan and carry out a coup that in the end did not work. The ruling is attributed both to the lack of action of those senior leaders and to the attitude shown by Boris Yeltsin, who was the president of the Russian Federation.
Characteristics of Perestroika
This reform was characterized by making many changes, both moral and production in general, but all had the objective of improving and restructuring that harmful and obsolete system that, according to Gorbachev’s perspective, would no longer benefit the country but quite the opposite. Here are some of those features:
Perestroika had a main characteristic and that is that it was accompanied by a ppolitical party led by Gorbachev himself when he rose to power and was Known as “Glasnost”an expression of Russian origin with an equally profound meaning that would make clear the course that was planned to be followed from that moment on, since the “Glasnost” policy could be translated into Spanish as “transparency” or “frankness” expression.
The next characteristic of Perestroika that draws attention is the number of proposals that were handled to provide it with some freedom for small and medium-sized businesses of production that had been so battered and tyrannically controlled for many years by the extreme ideals of the communists. That’s right, Perestroika allowed companies to make decisions without the need to necessarily consult with the authorities.
Besides that, Perestroika basically lasted 6 yearsfrom the moment in which its main defender, Gorbachev, ascended to power until the year 1991 in December, when as a result of a Coup attempt to curb their ideals and actions, resigned from power to be replaced then by Boris Yeltsin.
The total reform of the economy was achieved to the point that the banking structure was totally changed and the currency too. In addition, negotiation and production characteristics typical of the West were adopted, as they were more effective and modern.
Changes brought about by Perestroika
Perestroika got changes very notable, such as:
- In 1998 they were accepted human rightsafter many years of ugly ideals that basically let the Soviet leadership treat the people tyrannically, at their convenience.
- The next commendable and noteworthy thing was that, as soon as Perestroika began to be established, the country’s economy improved to the point of reaching the level of other countries globally.
- One of the approaches that were carried out consisted of improving both the productivity of the workers and the final quality of the products, instead of adopting more economical measures.
- Gorbachev put moral type measures that they sought to improve the general quality of life and the economy of the country; he considered that alcoholism was an evil and in just one year he reduced it by 36%.
- Likewise, agriculture that was undervalued was affected, thanks to this reform that changed and, in fact, it was beneficial, since it contributed to promoting the economic improvement of the country.
- As the last big change, Gorbachev wanted to apply a proposal that would allow the dependent republics of the USSR to govern themselves. That alerted Soviet leaders who tried to stage a coup to prevent it and even so, the republics began to become independent.
Historical importance of Perestroika
The importance of both this reform movement and the politics that accompanied and complemented it is undeniable. They provided the push that was needed for the country to come out of oppression and modernize itself out of the hole in which it was mired, all with a series of improvements in many other aspects and even in the long term.
Thanks to Perestroika, the shadows of old policies that bound companies and prevented them from developing and producing, remained in the past, at least during those interesting years from 1985 to 1991. Directly or indirectly, the truth is that Gorbachev and the movement Perestroika managed to give those republics the impetus they needed to become independent and thus dissolve the USSR.
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