The red star of the People's Red Army, bearing the scythe-and-cog emblem of Neo-Maoism
Neo-Maoism
Neo-Maoism (Azerbaijani: Yeni-Maoizm) or Eusocialism (Azerbaijani: Eusosializm) is the political ideology of the Revolutionary League of Workers and Peasants, largely derived from the theories of Mao Zedong. Neo-Maoist ideology lies at the heart of the ASR’s doctrine, dictating all aspects of society and governance. While in many ways similar to other agrarian socialist movements, it exhibits certain unique characteristics that differentiate it from its fellows, producing its own distinctive doctrine that desires to bring about the total transformation of the people-masses into a new and superior form.
Concepts
The New People and the New Society
While espousing traditional Maoist concepts of the Mass Line, People’s War and Cultural Revolution, Neo-Maoism places extra emphasis on the ideal New People that are to be the product of the socialist system, drawing inspiration from the soviet concept of the New Soviet Man. These New People are to be utterly selfless, exhibiting no material desires and being willing to sacrifice themselves for the Revolution without hesitation. They are to be utterly removed from capitalist materialism, wishing for no luxuries and using resources with utmost efficiency, leaving no waste. Everything is for the greater good of the collective whole, with mere individuals being worthless. The New People are to adhere to a set of moral rules and principles, the Code of the Socialist People-Masses:
- Loyalty to socialism, and love of the socialist homeland and other socialist countries.
- Conscious work for the good of the society: they who don’t work, don't eat.
- Care for the collective property, and total dedication to the growth of this property.
- Collectivism and comradery: All for one and one for all.
- Obedience to the will of the collective people-masses, rejection of personal desire.
- Embracement of the collective will and revolutionary spirit of the people.
- Honesty, ethical cleanliness, as well as simplicity and modesty in life.
- Intolerance to injustice, social parasitism, unfairness, careerism, and acquisitiveness.
- Intolerance to the enemies of socialism, peace and freedom of peoples of the world.
- Brotherly solidarity to all workers of all countries and nations.
It is this total dedication to selfless collectivism and cooperation that has earned the ASR’s Neo-Maoism the nickname of ‘Eusocialism’, a portmanteau of socialism and eusociality, the form of societal organisation used by social insects such as ants, bees and termites, with this organisation being considered similar to the goals of Neo-Maoist ideology, the construction of a society that exists as a single organism, with individuals being mere components of the greater whole. The term eusocial comes from the the Greek prefix ‘eu’, meaning good, with the same root as utopia, and social, so the phrase Eusocialism can be interpreted as ‘good socialism’. This interpretation has earned the phrase unofficial usage within the ASR to refer to its ideology.
Cultural Revolution, Thought Reform, De-Urbanisation and Self-Obliteration
To achieve a eusocial society wherein the individual ceases to exist, a massive program of thought reform and cultural revolution is required. Old ideas must be wiped out, along with old ways of thinking, to ensure that creation of New People and the New Society. Pre-revolutionary literature and film is to be utterly destroyed, eradicating the concepts valued by the pre-revolutionary society. All new works must be dedicated to Neo-Maoist philosophy, espouse the principles of the New Society and uphold the morals of the New People. To provide detachment from materialism, all luxuries are to be banned, people being supplied with food, water, shelter and clothing by the state. Cities themselves should be abandoned and demolished for raw materials, being the breeding grounds of individualist capitalism. Once the cities have been destroyed and their inhabitants moved to the countryside, agrarian and industrial communes are established, immersing the people-masses in labour, with the goal of this de-urbanisation being the abolishment of the distinction between town and countryside. By dedicating themselves to the state through this labour, individualism is slowly eroded and the people-masses become obedient, hardworking, disciplined, and most importantly, conformist.
Communal live is strictly scheduled, with most of the day being spent labouring in the fields or factories, followed by ideological readings, discussions, meditations and self-criticising struggle sessions, designed to instil ideological understanding and correct ways of thinking. Inhabitants live in communal barracks, eating sleeping and working together, without personal spaces or privacy. The individual is to be wholly subsumed into the collective, becoming a component in its greater organism. These ideological practices are designed to bring about the self-obliteration of the individual, drawing on the Sufi concept of Fanaa and the Zen Buddhist idea of Ego Death. To undergo self-obliteration is to destroy the individual ego and recognise the fundamental unity of the people-masses as a single popular organism. Self-obliteration is the means through which the Old People ascend to become the New, as once the self is obliterated, only selflessness can remain.
The Mass Line and Rejection of the Cult of Personality
Neo-Maoism is completely dedicated to the maoist concept of the mass line, rejecting the vanguard party theories of the bolsheviks. The party must be one with the people-masses, not above them. Once the New Society is achieved, there will be absolutely no distinction between the people and the party. By fusing the two, the actions of the party will fully represent the collective will and revolutionary spirit of the people, ensuring the unity of the popular organism. As the party must be one with people, there cannot be any individual leaders who are idolised above the collective, as this would in itself be an expression of individualism in defiance of the collective spirit. Therefore Neo-Maoism utterly rejects the cult of personality, and tying of the revolution to a single individual. According to Neo-Maoist theory, it was the cults of personality around leaders such as Mao and Stalin that allowed capitalist-roaders and social-imperialists to seize control over their socialist societies following their deaths, as they hijacked their images and connection to the very idea of the revolution to lead the people astray. Criticism of the personality cult forms the core of Neo-Maoist criticism of Stalin and Mao.
People's War and Military First
Neo-Maoism is strongly supportive of the People's War concept, wherein the revolutionary people-masses are mobilised throughout the countryside against urbanite capitalists. A People's War is seen by Neo-Maoists as the correct way for a revolution to be executed, guerrilla warfare tactics bleeding the capitalists dry until the people are victorious. Once revolutionary victory is achieved, it is the duty of the people-masses to serve as the immune system of the popular organism, defending it from imperialist incursions. This is the Military First concept, adopted from the Korean idea of Songun. All of the people-masses must be equipped with weapons and knowledge of how to use them effectively, allowing the entirety of the masses to serve as defenders of the revolution. Furthermore, industry must focus on military production, growing the strength of the proletarian military-industrial complex. Arms manufacturing must be the primary function of industry until such a time as the capitalist imperialists are rendered unable to invade and destroy revolutionary society. This means the pursuit of weapons of mass destruction is a key goal of the Military First policy, as the principles of mutually assured destruction are considered the best means of securing the New Society from foreign aggression.
Internationalism and Autarky
Neo-Maoism is an internationalist ideology, pursuing the ideal of the international revolution in third world countries exploited by capitalist and imperialist powers. While extreme nationalism, irredentism and revanchism are a core part of Azerbaijan's own ideological basis, they are not considered to be important aspects of Neo-Maoism, and are instead largely due to the ASR's history and geopolitical situation. Neo-Maoists seek to bring the New Society to all the people-masses of the world, ensuring the final defeat of the forces of reaction and the beginning of a new era in human history as global communism is achieved. To achieve this goal, Neo-Maoists support the idea of a popular front composed of all proletarian revolutionary entities, even those deemed to be revisionist and deviationist, for while they may be going down the wrong path, they are still better than the reactionary imperialists. That said, it s the duty of Neo-Maoists to engage in the ideological correction of their wayward comrades, and to put them on the correct path towards the creation of the New Society. While the establishment of an internationalist popular front is to be pursued, the New Society must also strive to become self-reliant, as achieving Autarky is a core goal of the socialist revolution, ensuring that its enemies cannot destroy it by cutting off outside resources. Industrial and agricultural self-sufficiency are the central goals of Autarkic policy.
Status of Neo-Maoism within your nation
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