San Marino Communist Party
San Marino Communist Party
(SCP, Partito Comunista Sanmarinese), a political party founded illegally on July 7, 1941 (according to new data) during the fascist regime that lasted from 1923 to 1944.
In February 1921 a section of the Italian Communist Party was founded in San Marino, but it soon disbanded because of police persecution. After World War II, during an upswing in the democratic movement, the Communist Party achieved considerable successes. Forming a coalition with the Socialist Party (founded in 1903) in the parliamentary elections of 1945, the Communist Party won 19 seats and, together with the Socialist Party, gained a majority in parliament (35 seats out of 60). From 1945 to 1957 executive power in the country was vested in two captains-regent—a Communist and a Socialist—who functioned as head of state and government. During these years the coalition government carried out a number of agricultural reforms, nationalized certain enterprises, and introduced several legislative reforms that facilitated the strengthening of the workers’ democratic rights.
In 1957, as a result of a coup d’etat carried out by a coalition of the Christian Democratic Party (founded in 1948), the Social Democratic Party (founded in 1955), and right-wing Socialists (who split the Socialist Party in 1957), the left-wing parties were removed from power. The Communist Party went into the opposition.
The Eighth Congress of the SCP, held in 1973, charted a course aimed at strengthening the unity of the workers and the middle class in order to create a government of democratic renewal and to move forward toward socialism. The Congress adopted well-developed programmatic theses. The SCP intensified its work among the masses and organized a number of workers’ demonstrations in defense of their vital interests.
The documents of the Seventh and Eighth Congresses declared that the party’s goal was to build a socialist society by creating a broad, antimonopoly front and by introducing democratic changes into the country’s economy and political system.
Delegations of the SCP took part in the international conferences of communist and workers’ parties, held in Moscow in 1957, 1960, and 1969. The SCP approved the work of these conferences.
| Table 1. Congresses of the Communist Party of San Marino | ||
|---|---|---|
| Congress | Place | Date |
| First ................ | San Marino | Oct. 28, .1945 |
| Second ............. | San Marino | Jan. 12, 1947 |
| Third ............... | San Marino | Feb. 15, 1948 |
| Fourth .............. | San Marino | Jan. 28, 1951 |
| Fifth................ | San Marino | Mar. 19–20, 1955 |
| Sixth ............... | San Marino | Mar. 25–26, 1961 |
| Seventh ............. | San Marino | Apr. 27–28, 1968 |
| Eighth .............. | San Marino | Feb. 24–25, 1973 |
| Ninth ............... | San Marino | Dec. 10–13, 1976 |
In accordance with its charter, adopted in 1961, the SCP is organized along the principles of democratic centralism. The highest body is the Congress, and between Congresses it is the Central Committee. Together with the Central Control Commission, the Central Committee elects the Directorate and Secretariat, which supervise the day-to-day work of the party. In 1976 the SCP had more than 900 members. The party chairman is E. Gasperoni, and the general secretary is U. Barulli. The central organ of the SCP is the newspaper La Scintilla.
A list of the congresses of the San Marino Communist Party is given in Table 1.
G. P. SMIRNOV