The
Soviet Union was governed by three versions of its
Constitution, modelled after the
1918 Constitution established by the
Russian Federation, the immediate predecessor of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Chronology of Soviet constitutions
These three constitutions were:
These constitutions had most provisions in common. These provisions declared the leadership of the
working class and, in the latter two, the leading role of the
CPSU in government and society. All the constitutions upheld the forms of social property. Each of the constitutions called for a system of
soviets, or councils, to exercise governmental authority.
The differences between Soviet and Western constitutions
On the surface, the constitutions resembled many constitutions adopted in the West. The differences between Soviet and Western constitutions, however, overshadow the similarities. Soviet constitutions declared certain political rights, such as
freedom of speech,
freedom of assembly, and
freedom of religion. They also identified a series of economic and social rights, as well as a set of duties of all citizens. Nevertheless, Soviet constitutions did not contain provisions guaranteeing the
inalienable rights of the citizenry, and they lacked laws to protect these rights. Thus, the population enjoyed political rights only to the extent that these rights did not conflict with the goal of building
communism. The
Communist Party of the Soviet Union alone reserved the authority to determine what lay in the interests of Communism. Finally, Soviet constitutions specified the form and content of state symbols, such as the arms, the
flag, and the
state anthem.
Criticism
According to
communist ideologists, the
Soviet political system was a true democracy, where
workers' councils called "soviets" represented the will of the
working class. In particular, the
Soviet Constitution of 1936 guaranteed direct
universal suffrage with the
secret ballot. However all candidates had been selected by Communist party, at least before the June 1987 elections. Historian
Robert Conquest described this system as
