Rostamism



Rostamism, sometimes referred to as Duvalism-Rostamism is a political ideology developed from the late 19th century and throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, founded by the Rostami sisters, Afsun Rostami}Afsun and Soudeh Rostami, with major early contributions by figures such as Navid Karimi, a prominent early Duvalist theoretician in Aftarestan. It is a Communist political ideology, philosophy, and praxis centered around Vanguardism, Democratic Centralism within the Vanguard, Communal and Workers' Councils and self-management, anti-factionalism, and the establishment of a as a transitionary state between capitalism and communism, believing that communism cannot be achieved while capitalism is the dominant global mode of production. After the Revolution of Aftarestan 1959-1966, Rostamism was officially codified by the Revolutionary Party of Aftarestan as the official ideology of both the Party and State in Aftarestan in the Party Manifesto and Constitution of the Revolutionary Republic of Aftarestan.

It is a development of Classical made to fit into the specific circumstances of Aftarestan throughout the 20th century, initially during the first revolutionary efforts in the 1910s and 20s, and further developed throughout the First Republican era, culminating in the Revolution of 1959 and subsequent first founding of the Revolutionary Republic of Aftarestan. Rostamism has changed throughout its history, but several key elements remain largely the same or similar to their initial incarnation from the earliest sources of Rostamist theory and praxis, maintaining that the Revolution is an ever-changing process that cannot be stalled or halted, and that good revolutionary praxis must always evolve and adapt to whatever situation or circumstance is present, with similar emphasis placed on cultural revolution as a necessary step in undoing centuries of social, cultural, and political harm done to society, with education efforts emphasized to educate the population on social, political, and philosophic literacy. In most Rostamist theory, a largely decentralized society based on Communal and Workers' Councils, a partially decentrally planned economy at the nation level, and the centralization of state politics within the Vanguard Party, meant to act as the channel through which society engages with state level politics.

According to Soudeh Rostami's work "Revolution, Liberation, and Warfare, a thesis on Duvalism in the Developing World" c.1911, revolution cannot meaningfully take place in the most highly developed countries, referred to as "the heartland empires", believing that conditions in these 'heartland empires' are unfit for revolutionary activity to begin, as the standards of living and work are adequate enough for enough people in these nations that widespread liberatory thinking, nor can it begin in underdeveloped, agrarian societies that have not yet begun widespread industrialization, believing that without the influence of widespread industrialization, urbanization, and modernization, revolutionary thinking and activity cannot possibly be well organized enough to bring about widespread change or liberation to the masses, and that only in the developing world within the industrialization influence of the heartland empires can revolution be accomplished successfully. Later on in the same work, Soudeh explained her belief that Aftarestan met these conditions almost exactly, with widespread rapid industrialization, large-scale urbanization of major population centers, rapidly growing wealth inequality at the hands of Heartland Artemian capitalists in the country, with growing dissent and social angst amongst the population at large, all culminating into what she believed would become the staging ground for a successful revolution. Ultimately Rostamism only took root in Aftarestan several decades later, ultimately proving Soudeh to be at least partially correct, but not fully, causing Rostamist leaders to adapt to the changing circumstances of the time, and to amend official Rostamist thinking within Aftarestan.

Rostamism has often been described as a ideology when compared to Volkovism, with many differences between them being the application of social & cultural revolution, how the vanguard party should lead the revolution, and the role the general population should play in society. Many early critics of Rostamism believed that it was a failed development of Duvalism with only a failed revolution to show for it, which resulted in many anti-Rostamist movements in many existing Socialist movements and states of the early to mid 20th century, with its first major success of the Revolution of Aftarestan 1959-1966 resulting in a cautious renewed interest from the international socialist community, though most major existing socialist and communist states reaffirming anti-Rostamist positions internally, but often recognizing the success and validity of Rostamism as a genuine and effective development of Duvalism.

Components
Rostamism is notable for being a more fluid ideology than some other Duvalist ideologies, believing that conservatism and stagnation in society and in thought are equally reprehensible, however still believing that adherence to at least the core philosophical and ideological principals of Duvalism is required to guide the revolution in society towards an end of liberation and freedom, with many early Rostamist leaders warning that straying too far from Duvalism in favor of more Populist ideas and rhetoric common among Social Democrats and Bourgeois Socialists would result in a fractured and confused revolutionary effort. It was with this justification that Soudeh Rostami and Navid Karimi argued in their public letter to the International League of Socialists for two of the major components of Rostamist praxis, the first being leadership by a Vanguard, meant to guide the revolutionary effort in society along Duvalist principals, and the second being for a centralization of state democracy within the vanguard, while still recognizing the importance of workers' and community councils in society.

Vanguardism
In Rostamist praxis, the purpose of the Vanguard in the revolution is to work to establish and guide the Revolutionary State in its path to communism, believing that revolution without structured leadership is doomed to sectarianism, opportunism, and stagnation. The Vanguard proposed by early Rostamist thinkers is often described as being the leadership of the revolutionary effort within its parent society, however the Rostamist praxis of vanguardism is to the effect that in the transitory period where the vanguard is necessary, it should be structured to avoid power politics and bureaucratism, instead that the Vanguard should act as the body which connects society to state level politics, with Soudeh Rostami stating in her essay "Revolution within Society and State" c. 1916: "Ultimately the revolution requires a strong and capable leadership to progress as it must, a leadership of able, willing, and dedicated Duvalists who are capable of steering society in the path it must go, but this leadership must also be flexible and pliable, avoiding all of the petty political squabbles, sectarianism, backstabbing, and bloat of the old regimes of before, and doing away with unnecessary habits and rituals wherever possible, acting as the primary body through which society at large engages with the revolutionary state." It's commonly held that the modern Revolutionary Party of Aftarestan meets this definition to a certain degree, though not perfectly, and not without its own bureaucratic shortcomings, it has largely avoided centralization of political power into the hands of a few or a single individual, with a great amount of effort and work with local councils and unions in Aftarestan to maintain a partially decentralized base of social, economic, and political power within the country.

Democratic Centralism
After the Second Congress of the International League of Socialists in 1902, many Rostamist leaders began to argue that a centralized democratic system within the vanguard was necessary, implementing a system within the party, believing that having disagreement and debate is necessary for the continued revolution of both the politic body, and of society as a whole, however that division in the leadership of the revolutionary effort in society would lead to factionalism, sectarianism, and political opportunism in the vanguard, and as such once the party determines to commit to an action or effort, all members must agree to commit to it, regardless of previous disagreements.