le between the ages of fifteen
and twenty-six; those who have reached the age of eighteen could also
become members of the PCR. The Tenth Party Congress, meeting in 1969,
introduced the requirement that young people up to the age of twenty-six
would be accepted into the party only if they were UTC members.
Decisions on persons to fill the most important leadership positions in
the UTC were made by the PCR Central Committee.

The structure of the UTC has undergone a number of changes since it was
originally established. In early 1972 the organization functioned on the
national level with an eight-member Secretariat, including the first
secretary who is also the UTC chairman, and a bureau of twenty-one full
and seven alternate members. In each of the thirty-nine countries and
the city of Bucharest there exist UTC committees that are similarly
organized with secretariats and bureaus. The UTC has its own publishing
facilities and publishes its own propaganda organ, _The Spark of Youth_
(Scinteia Tineretului).

Statistics on the composition of the youth organization, reported at the
Ninth UTC Congress held in February 1971, indicated that the membership
consisted of 30 percent workers, 39 percent students, and 17 percent
peasants. The remainder consisted of those who were classified as
intellectuals, clerks, and office workers.

Periodically throughout the 1960s PCR leaders demonstrated growing
concern for what they termed as shortcomings in the political education
of the nation's youth. In 1968 this concern led to the establishment of
the Research Center for Youth Problems and an increased effort to
instill in the young people a sense of "socialist patriotism." Ceausescu
asserted the need for all levels of education to be permeated with
Marxist-Leninist ideology and placed particular emphasis on ideological
training in the universities.

Political education of young people, both members and non-members, and
their mobilization in support of PCR policies is considered the primary
duty of the UTC. It is charged with the organization of political and
patriotic courses in schools, among peasant groups, and among workers
and members of the armed forces. The UTC also guides and supervises the
activities of the Union of Student Associations.

A second youth movement, the Pioneers Organization, was created for
young people between the ages of nine and fourteen. In late 1971 the
Pioneers Organization reported a total membership