Congolese Revolutionary Socialist Party
From Roach Busters
| Congolese Revolutionary Socialist Party | |
|---|---|
| Parti Socialiste Révolutionnaire Congolaise | |
| |
| | |
| General-Secretary | to be added |
| | |
| Years active | 1963 – |
| Political Ideology | Marxism-Leninism Pan Africanism |
| Political Position | Far Left |
| International Affiliation | Comintern |
| Official Newspaper | Le Travailleur africaine |
| | |
| Colors | Red |
| | |
| Website | www.psrc.org.cg |
The Congolese Revolutionary Socialist Party (French: Parti Socialiste Révolutionnaire Congolaise) is a Marxist-Leninist political party in the Democratic People's Republic of the Congo, originally known as the Party of Social Progress (French: Parti de Progrès Social). Established by former Lumumbists from Congo-Léopoldville and radical military officers from Congo-Brazzaville in 1963, it quickly won popular support by exploiting near-universal disenchantment with the endemic corruption, tribalism, and bloodshed prevalent in both Congos. Promoting themselves as a moderate center-left party committed to liberal democracy and a non-aligned foreign policy, they easily attracted millions of enthusiastic but naïve followers.
In 1964, following the capitulation and resignation of the Kasavubu government in the face of massive protests, the party handily won the resulting parliamentary election in Congo-Léopoldville, and immediately afterwards a binational referendum on unification of the two Congos was held; both countries' electorates voted in favor, and in August 1964, the United Republic of the Congo was born. Shortly afterwards, the party showed its true colors, revealed that it had been a Marxist-Leninist party all along, eliminated all traces of opposition, and announced that henceforth the new country would be a one-party state aligned with the forces of "progress and anti-colonialism" (i.e., the Eastern bloc). Buttressed by huge amounts of economic, technical, and military aid from the Eastern bloc, the country, which was soon renamed the Democratic People's Republic of the Congo, quickly established itself as the most pro-Soviet country in Africa, and the party, now known as the Congolese Revolutionary Socialist Party, established itself as the most pro-CPSU party in the world. The country has been governed as a single-party socialist state ever since, and in spite of a few cosmetic changes at home and a slightly more pragmatic foreign policy, both the party and the state remain zealously committed to Marxism-Leninism.
