After the death of I. Stalin, a new period began in Soviet history, which was called “Khrushchev Thaw” with the light hand of the writer Ilya Erenburg . What changed at this time, and what were the consequences of the Khrushchev reforms?
Breaking stereotypes
The beginning of a new period was marked by the refusal of the Soviet leadership from the Stalinist policy of repression. Of course, this did not mean that in the struggle for power the new leaders would behave in a gentlemanly manner. Already in 1953, among the emerging collective leadership (Khrushchev, Beria, Malenkov), a struggle for power began. The result was the removal and arrest of Lawrence Beria, who was shot on charges of espionage and conspiracy.
In relation to ordinary citizens, the policy of Khrushchev and his associates was characterized by the curtailment of repression. First, the Doctors' Case was discontinued, and later the rehabilitation of the remaining political prisoners began. For Soviet leaders it became clear that silence about repressions was impossible. The consequence of this was the famous report “On the personality cult of Stalin and its consequences”, delivered from Khrushchev at the Twentieth Congress of the CPSU. Despite the fact that the report was secret, its contents quickly became known throughout the country. However, this is where de-Stalinization in the public sphere actually ended. Khrushchev and his associates perfectly understood that if we expand this topic further, society may think about changing the entire Soviet leadership: after all, both the speaker and his colleagues took an active part in the mass repressions, signing the execution lists and the sentences of the triples. But even such half-hearted criticism at that time had the effect of an exploding bomb.
The workers of literature and art Khrushchev thaw brought a certain freedom of action. State control over the creative process has weakened, which contributed to the emergence of works on topics that were previously considered forbidden: for example, about life in the Stalinist camps. However, by the beginning of the 60s, Khrushchev began to tighten the screws and actively impose his opinion during meetings with the intelligentsia. But it was too late: the thaw had already begun in the USSR, and protest moods that led to the emergence of dissidents began to grow in the ranks of the intelligentsia.
Management sphere
Reforms could not but affect the authorities and the party itself. Republican authorities and party organizations received wider powers, including in the field of economic planning. Attempts were made to renew the leading cadres of party organizations, which ended in failure due to the resistance of the nomenclature.
But the most important innovation was the liquidation of ministries and the organization of councils of the national economy (economic councils). These bodies were created in the territory of 1-2 regions to manage industry and construction. It was assumed that the economic councils would better manage local affairs, knowing the needs of their region. But in practice, this reform has created a bunch of problems. Firstly, the economic councils managed the facilities in the same team style as the ministries. Secondly, quite often they ignored the interests of the state or neighboring regions. Therefore, after the displacement of Khrushchev, everything returned to normal.
Social sphere, education, agriculture
Khrushchev's thaw affected the social sphere the most. Firstly, the legislation was improved, due to which old-age pensions appeared, which, however, did not affect collective farmers. The schedule of enterprises also changed: two days off were introduced.
Secondly, in the social sphere, one of the most painful issues began to be addressed - housing. It was decided on mass housing construction. It was carried out at a fast pace, not only because of budget injections, but also due to the cheapness of the material. Five-story concrete boxes were erected in a couple of weeks. Of course, such houses had a lot of shortcomings, but for people who lived in basements and work huts, they were just luxurious apartments. However, already at that time the state, not hoping for its own strength, began to stimulate the creation of housing construction cooperatives, when citizens invested their money in housing construction.
Reforms were carried out in the education system. According to the new law, compulsory 8-year education was introduced. After 8 years spent at a school desk, the student could choose, finish his studies for another three years, or go to vocational school, technical school or vocational school. In reality, the reform did not bring the school closer to production, because educational institutions simply did not have material opportunities to give students working professions. The adoption of laws in which the language of instruction at school was chosen by parents, and students could be exempted from studying the language of a union republic, was detrimental to the national republics. This strengthened Russification and reduced the number of national schools.
In addition to the social sphere, the Khrushchev thaw spread to agriculture. Collective farmers received passports and freedom of movement. The purchase prices for the crop were increased, which increased the profitability of collective farms. But here it was not without disastrous undertakings. These include the general craze for corn crops, and the consolidation of collective farms. Problems were created and the elimination of machine and tractor stations. The farms received the necessary equipment, but at the same time got into huge debt, since they did not have the funds to purchase it.
Khrushchev's reforms have changed a lot in Soviet society and many of them were progressive for that time. But their lack of thought and randomness on the one hand, and the resistance of the party bureaucracy on the other, led to their failure and the removal of Khrushchev from his leadership position.