Communist-Nationalist Relationships: 
A Theory of Communist Regime Strength in the Developing World

Author: Edison Zhou
Affiliation: Saint Kentigern College

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Abstract:

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1975 was a watershed in the history of communism. It was a year that witnessed the fall of Phnom Penh and Saigon to communist forces of Cambodia and Vietnam respectively, the overthrow of the King of Laos by the Pathet Lao, the end of liberation wars in Angola and Mozambique, and the adoption of revolutionary socialism in Madagascar – all these countries joining the pantheon of communist states. In all, 15 communist regimes formed between the late 1960s and early 1980s. Their emergence was one of the chief surprises accompanying a period of startling change in the developing world.

That such regimes existed at all represents a puzzle in and of itself. The postcolonial world was unlikely terrain for communism, being underdeveloped and largely inhabited by rural populations, rather than by an urban proletariat which was supposed to lead the revolution (Drew, 2017). Communists exploited however much class animosity was on offer. Still more inexplicable was their ability to rise in a country without significant class conflict.

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Keywords: communism, communist regimes, developing world, Third World nationalism, anti-colonial nationalism, Angola, Mozambique, Vietnam, Ethiopia, ethnic division, class struggle, independence war ​

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ISSN 3069-8200