Workers of all lands, unite!

For a Lasting Peace,

For a People’s Democracy !

Bucharest. Organ of the Information

Bureau of the Communist and Workers’
Parties

NO. 23 (26), WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1948

 2

Scanned/Transcribed by
The Socialist Truth in Cyprus-London Bureaux
http://www.st-cyprus.co.uk

&
Direct Democracy (Communist Party)
www.directdemocracy4u.uk
http://www.directdemocracy4u.uk/cominform

September 2018
 3

CONTENTS

STRUGGLE AGAINST BOURGEOIS NATIONALISM—MOST

IMPORTANT TASK OF COMMUNIST AND WORKERS’ PARTIES........... 5
30TH ANNIVERSARY OF COMMUNIST PARTY HUNGARY ................. 10
PLENUM OF CENTRAL COMMITTEE COMMUNIST PARTY OF
CZECHOSLOVAKIA ............................................................................. 11
DECISIONS OF BOARD OF ITALIAN COMMUNIST PARTY .................. 13
FORTHCOMING UNITY CONGRESS OF POLISH WORKERS’ PARTY
AND POLISH SOCIALIST PARTY.......................................................... 14
DRAFT SOCIAL SECURITY LAW IN BULGARIA .................................... 17
FIRST CONGRESS OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF ALBANIA ............ 18
FEBRUARY EVENTS AND CZECHOSLOVAKIA’S DEVELOPMENT
ALONG PATH TO SOCIALISM ............................................................ 22
From the Report BY Chairman CC Communist Party
Czechoslovakia, Comrade Gottwald at CC Plenum ...................... 22
NEW TASKS ....................................................................................... 33
From Report of General Secretary, Central Committee,
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, Comrade Slansky, at CC
Plenum.......................................................................................... 33
MILAN WORKERS FIGHT FOR THEIR VITAL INTERESTS. G.
Brambilla, Member, central Committee, Communist Party of Italy 39
EXPERIENCE OF WORK WITH CADRES IN BULGARIA ........................ 44
OCCUPATION AUTHORITIES IN WESTERN GERMANY REVIVE
FASCISM ............................................................................................ 49
THE POLICY OF HUNGARIAN WORKERS’ PARTY IN THE
COUNTRYSIDE. E. Gerö, Member Political Bureau, Central
Committee, Workers Party of Hungary ............................................ 55
Mistakes and Shortcomings in our Work ..................................... 57
Offensive against Capitalist Element in the Countryside ............. 60
Vital Tasks in Sphere of Developing Co-operatives ...................... 64
Improve the Work Organ of Rural Party Organisations ............... 67
PLENUM OF CENTRAL COMMITTEE COMMUNIST PARTY OF
FRANCE ............................................................................................. 71
 4

MEETING OF EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE INTERNATIONAL

ORGANISATION OF JOURNALISTS .................................................... 73
VERIFICATION OF RUMANIAN WORKERS’ PARTY ACTIVE ................ 75
TREACHEROUS ROLE OF RIGHT SOCIAL-DEMOCRATS. Lotar
Radaceanu, Secretary, Central Committee, Workers’ Party of
Rumania ............................................................................................ 76
THE FRENCH ARMY IN THE SERVICE OF AMERICAN REACTION.
Charles Tillon, Member Political Bureau, Central Committee,
Communist Party of France .............................................................. 83
THE MARSHALL PLAN—INSTRUMENT OF ENSLAVING THE
PEOPLES. Harry Pollitt, General Secretary, Executive Committee,
Communist Party of Great Britain .................................................... 90
TITO CLIQUE’S ADVENTUROUS POLICY HAS LED YUGOSLAVIA
INTO A BLIND ALLEY. N. PUKHLOV ................................................... 98
 5

STRUGGLE AGAINST BOURGEOIS

NATIONALISM—MOST IMPORTANT
TASK OF COMMUNIST AND
WORKERS’ PARTIES
In its struggle against the steadily growing forces of
democracy and Socialism, imperialist reaction is resorting to its
well-tried poisonous weapon, bourgeois nationalism. It is
trying to undermine the unity of the ranks of the working
people, to weaken their class consciousness and solidarity in
order to facilitate the realisation of its class policy and its
predatory plans.
The revolutionary Marxist parties base themselves on the
Lenin-Stalin doctrine that bourgeois nationalism and
proletarian internationalism are two irreconcilable, hostile
slogans corresponding to the “two great class camps in the
entire capitalist world and expressing two policies” (Lenin);
that the “deviation toward nationalism reflects the attempts of
‘one’s own, ‘national’ bourgeoisie... to restore capitalism.”
(Stalin).
The Great October Socialist Revolution delivered a mortal
blow to the legend that bourgeois nationalism was the only
method of liberating the oppressed peoples.
By liberating the peoples of this great State from the
national oppression of centuries the October Revolution
showed the peoples of the world that the proletarian,
internationalist method of liberating oppressed peoples and of
creating a voluntary and fraternal alliance of workers and
peasants of different nationalities based on internationalism
was a practical possibility.
The Bolshevik Party has always considered that the
interests of building Socialism in the Soviet Union completely
 6

merge with the interests of the revolutionary movement of all

countries that the international ties of the Soviet working class
with the workers of the capitalist countries, the fraternal union
of the workers of the Soviet Union with the workers and the
working people of all countries form one of the corner-stones
of the strength and might of the Socialist State.
The valiant Soviet Army, educated by the Bolshevik Patty
in the spirit of proletarian internationalism, has brilliantly
fulfilled its international duty, liberating the peoples of Poland,
Bulgaria, Rumania, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Finland and
Yugoslavia from the German fascist yoke. The Soviet Army
has saved the peoples of the entire world from enslavement and
the threat of enslavement by Hitlerism.
Since its inception, the Bolshevik Party and Lenin and
Stalin waged relentless struggle against all manifestations of
bourgeois nationalism. The Communist Party of the Soviet
Union has considerable experience of the struggle against
great-power chauvinism and local nationalism, an experience
which is instructive for the fraternal parties; it exposed and
crushed the bourgeois nationalists, the agents of international
imperialism who sought to restore capitalism in the Soviet
Union.
Stalin’s wisdom and the clear-sightedness of the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
(Bolsheviks) exposed the nationalism of the Tito group in
Yugoslavia in good time. The letters from the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union to the
Central Committee of the Yugoslav Party, the Resolution of the
Information Bureau of the Communist and Workers’ Parties
concerning the situation in the Communist Party of Yugoslavia
were of vital, historical significance in strengthening the
people’s democracies, for their national freedom and
independence.
The nationalist policy of the Tito group aims at fostering
 7

nationalist hatred toward the peoples of the neighbouring

democratic countries. How deep is the decline and corruption
of the nationalist leaders of the Yugoslav Communist Party is
shown, among other indications, by the fact that the Tito group
is borrowing widely the traditional methods of chauvinist
provocation from the arsenal of the imperialists who waxed
rich on the blood of the peoples of the Balkan peninsula which
they had turned into the powder magazine of Europe.
Only traitors and enemies of the people could organise
centres of espionage, trotskyism and terrorism in the fraternal
people’s democratic Republic of Albania and other people’s
democracies as the Tito group are now doing.
It is necessary to understand without any reservations that in
the present international situation, the solidarity of the
Communist and Workers’ Parties, mutual cooperation and
friendship between the people’s democracies and friendship
with the Soviet Union are the main guarantees of further
development and prosperity for the people’s democracies, of
the further consolidation of their national freedom and
independence.
Bourgeois nationalism is manifested in the strivings to
weaken the bonds of friendship with the Soviet Union; it
reflects the influence of foreign imperialist reaction and the
class enemy inside the country. The attitude toward the Soviet
Union is now the test of the devotion to the cause of proletarian
internationalism, of willingness to put the Lenin-Stalin doctrine
on the national question into practice for this doctrine is an
integral part of the general question of socialist revolution.
The national peculiarities and varied political conditions in
each country naturally leave their imprint on the forms which
bourgeois nationalism takes in the given country. But the
reactionary class essence of bourgeois nationalism remains the
same in all its manifestations, expressing the ideology and
policy of the capitalist world. The methods of bourgeois-
 8

nationalist reaction are varied. They include nationalist anti-

Soviet propaganda, provocative rumours spread to sow mistrust
between the peoples, the use of catholic reaction and of the
kulaks in the countryside.
On the basis of self-criticism, the Polish Workers’ Party
has exposed the Right nationalist deviation existing in the Party
and the conciliatory attitude taken to this deviation. It has
mobilised the Party organisations for a resolute struggle against
these expressions of bourgeois nationalism. The result of this
struggle is that the Party’s ranks are being considerably
strengthened both ideologically and organisationally. The
forthcoming fusion of the Polish Workers’ Party and the Polish
Socialist Party is a decisive blow to nationalism in the Polish
working class movement and signifies the victory of the
principles of proletarian internationalism.
Studying the Information Bureau Resolution on the
situation in the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, the
Communist and Workers’ Parties of the people’s democracies
are strengthening their vigilance against the machinations of
nationalist reaction which is resorting to economic sabotage
and subversion and striving to undermine the basis of the new
order in these countries.
The recent trial of a group of spies and conspirators in
Rumania showed what abominable methods bourgeois-
nationalist reaction will use to carry out the will of the Anglo-
American imperialists.
Instances of a peculiar form of bourgeois nationalism in
Hungary find expression in the search for a “third path” and
“neutrality” in foreign policy.
It is therefore clear that Communist and Workers’ Parties
and the broad mass of the people must now strengthen
considerably their vigilance against the machinations of
international reaction.
In an unprecedentedly short historical period, the feeling of
 9

fraternal international solidarity among the working people of

various nations has grown and become firmly consolidated in
the people’s democracies. An end has been put to the criminal
discord between nations which had been deliberately cultivated
by the bourgeoisie for many years.
One of the most important political tasks of the Communist
and Workers’ Parties is to fight against any national prejudices
and relics of capitalism which cling particularly to the national
question, to raise the level of ideological work, to study the
history of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
(Bolsheviks) which has accumulated such valuable experience
in the struggle against all deviations. from Marxism-Leninism
on the national question.
The Communist and Workers’ Parties of Czechoslovakia,
Poland, Rumania and others, still have much work to do to
uproot the old nationalist prejudices and hostile relations
between the different peoples and nationalities in individual
countries. Revivals of these bourgeois, nationalist relations still
make themselves felt here end there. This is bound to occur
also in the future if the Communist Parties do not resolutely
and whole-heartedly adhere to the Marxist-Leninist policy of
solving the national question. That is why a scornful attitude to
the work of developing the ideas of proletarian internationalism
among the Party and the people is impermissible.
It is imperative that the Party organisations should
propagate the historical achievements of the Lenin-Stalin
friendship among the peoples on the basis of the historical
experience of the Soviet Union, that they should further
develop and strengthen the ideas of internationalism and
cooperation among the peoples in the new democracies. The
achievement of this task is one of the pre-conditions for further
successes in carrying out the national policy of the Communist
and Workers’ Parties.
 10

30TH ANNIVERSARY OF COMMUNIST

PARTY HUNGARY
The 30th anniversary of the Formation of the Communist
Party of Hungary was celebrated recently by the working
people of the country.
Several thousand people were present at a celebration
meeting held in Budapest on November 20 under the auspices
of the Party Active.
Members of the Central Committee of the Party and
delegates from fraternal Communist Parties were also present.
Arpad Szakasits who opened the meeting stressed that
without the stubborn and resolute struggle waged by the
Communists, the Hungarian working class movement could
never have reached the scale that it did and, in the final
analysis, would have been destroyed by treachery and
opportunism.
Addressing the meeting, Comrade Rakosi reviewed the
struggle waged by the Hungarian Communists and pointed out
that the formation of the Workers’ Party was the crowning
point in consolidating Hungarian democracy.
Comrade Rakosi also stressed the enormous significance of
the setting up of the Information Bureau of the Communist
Parties for the cause of peace and democracy, to which the
Hungarian Communists had readily affiliated.
 11

PLENUM OF CENTRAL COMMITTEE

COMMUNIST PARTY OF
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
A Plenum of the Central Committee of the Czechoslovak
Communist Patty was held over November 17-18.
This was the first Plenum since the fusion of the
Communist and Social Democratic Parties an likewise the first
since the Czechoslovak and Slovak Communist Parties were
merged into a single Communist Party for the Czechoslovak
Republic.
In addition to the members and candidate members of the
Central Committee, the Plenum was attended by regional
committee secretaries, Communist members of Parliament and
prominent Party figures.
Comrade Gottwald, Chairman of the Party, delivered the
main political report. Comrade Slansky, General Secretary of
the Party reported on the organisational measures to ensure the
carrying out of the Five-Year Plan and the new tasks of the
Party.
Comrade Siroky, Chairman of the Communist Party of
Slovakia reported on the significance of the amalgamation of
the Czechoslovak and Slovak Communist Parties.
Among those who took part in the discussion which
followed the reports were Comrades Kopecky, Dolansky,
Nosek, Nejedly and Firlinger.
The Plenum decided to hold the next congress of the
Party—the ninth—over May 25-29, 1949. It ratified the agenda
for the Congress and the procedure for electing Congress
delegates, adopted the suggestion for the creation of a Party
Control Commission, the decision of the Presidium of the Party
concerning probationary membership and a statement on
 12

membership dues.
In this issue we publish excerpts from the reports delivered
by Comrades Gottwald and Slansky.
 13

DECISIONS OF BOARD OF ITALIAN

COMMUNIST PARTY
The November 14 issue of the newspaper “Unita”
contained the decisions of the recent meeting of the Board of
the Italian Communist Party.
It is pointed out therein that instead of the improved
economic situation promised by de Gasperi in connection with
Marshall “aid” entire branches of industry are being
dismantled, more and more workers are being discharged, from
the enterprises, industrial bankruptcies are increasing and so
on.
The decisions state that the struggle of the working people
for work and bread and against the Government-supported
arbitrary actions of the capitalists, is a struggle on behalf of
national interests.
The Board of the Communist Party has requested the
Communist deputies and senators to insist on special
Government measures to secure the position of the workers
during the winter months to stop the dismissals and evictions;
double unemployment benefit for the winter period and the
organisation of public works under Parliamentary control; to
freeze rents and consumer goods prices.
 14

FORTHCOMING UNITY CONGRESS OF

POLISH WORKERS’ PARTY AND
POLISH SOCIALIST PARTY
Final preparations are being made in Warsaw for the Unity
Congress of the Polish Workers’ Party and the Polish Socialist
Party, scheduled to open on December 15.
The final joint local meetings of the two parties for the
election of delegates to the Congress were held on November
28.
About 1,500 delegates will travel to Warsaw for the
Congress.
The pre-Congress campaign has revealed a striking
ideological and organisational strengthening of the Polish
Workers’ Party brought about by the struggle against the
Right-nationalist deviation. The quality of the delegates present
at the city and regional conferences testified to the growth of
the Party and to the activities of its members. At the regional
conference of the P.W.P. in Anin, the delegates included 56
industrial workers, 42 poor and medium peasants and 16
representatives of the intelligentsia.
In the Polish Socialist Party the campaign was preceded by
a serious struggle against the Rights, most of whom had
already been expelled by the worker elements in the P.S.P.
This struggle which was continued in the course of the pre-
unity campaign helped to prepare the members of the P.S.P. for
unity with the P.W.P on the basis of Marxism-Leninism. About
90 per cent of the membership took part in the election of
delegates at the conferences held by both parties at district and
regional levels.
 15

Criticism and self-criticism were the keynote of all these

conferences which were distinguished by the large number of
delegates who took part in the discussion. The city and regional
conferences of the two parties displayed the same lively spirit.
Delegates entered wholeheartedly into the discussion of the
ideological and organisational tasks connected with the fusion
and in nominating candidates for the Congress.
They devoted special attention to the matter of carrying out
in the localities the decisions of the July and August plenums
of the Central Committee of the P.W.P. and the decisions of the
Central Council of the P.S.P. They discussed the projected
rules of the party, the international tasks of the Polish working
class movement, the further cleansing of the ranks of the two
parties of alien and corrupt elements and the need to
consolidate the successes achieved in this respect.
The fusion is being hailed with enthusiasm by the Polish
working class.
On the initiative of the miners at the Zabreze-Wschoid pit,
industrial workers throughout the country are taking part in
labour emulation in honour of the unity congress.
Every day, the press reports instances of successes on the
industrial front achieved by tens of thousands of miners, metal
workers and others.
On November 18, three hundred thousand textile workers
in a report to Comrade Bierut announced that they had reached
the target set for the year and promised in honour of the Unity
Congress to produce a million metres of fabric in excess of the
plan.
Peasants, too—members of the million and a half strong
Mutual Aid League—have entered into labour emulation in
honour of the congress.
The unification of the two workers parties on the basis of
Marxism-Leninism is a major event in the political life of the
People’s Poland. It has a significance spreading beyond the
 16

boundaries of the country and will contribute to a further

strengthening of the forces of the international front of struggle
for peace, democracy and Socialism.
 17

DRAFT SOCIAL SECURITY LAW IN

BULGARIA
The Bulgarian Council of Ministers has approved a Bill
providing Social Security for the working people of Bulgaria.
The new Bill contains provisions for People who have lost
the capacity to work either through illness, industrial accidents
or old age.
It also provides increased benefits for those already
enjoying the right to social security. Pensions, for example will
be increased by 60 per cent and will be doubled for some
categories.
The minimum old age pension is now 3,000 leva monthly.
The new Bill constitutes one of the most important
measures of the new democracy in Bulgaria for raising the
standard of life of the working people.
 FIRST CONGRESS OF THE
COMMUNIST PARTY OF ALBANIA
The first Congress of the Communist Party of Albania was
held recently in Tirana. The Congress discussed the following
questions:
Central Committee report made by Comrade Enver
Hoxha.
Report on the Two Year Economic Plan (1949-50),
made by Comrade Gogo Nushi.
Draft Statutes of the Communist Party of Albania—
report by Comrade Tuk Jakova.
Election to the Party’s Central organs.
In the report on the work of the Central Committee,
Comrade Enver Hoxha, General Secretary analysed the
development of the Albanian people’s national liberation
struggle against the feudal yoke and the Zog terror regime, and
against the country’s enslavement by British and Italian
imperialism.
The Soviet Union’s entry into the war against Hitler
Germany, said Hoxha, gave a new impulse to the resistance
movement of the Albanian people and created conditions on
which the Albanian Communist Party could be founded. From
the beginning of 1941, the Party headed the people’s heroic
struggle against the Italian and German invaders and since the
end of the war has played a decisive role in strengthening, the
people’s power.
Hoxha then turned to the agrarian reform which he
described as the most significant measure taken by the Party
and the people’s power. Through it 320,000 hectares of land
were distributed among 70,000 poor, and landless peasants.
Feudalism has been eliminated in the country and conditions
 19

are now such that the living standards of the people can be
improved.
Concerning the successes of nationalised industry, Hoxha
stressed that the help given by the Soviet Union was of great
significance in extending and strengthening Albania’s industry.
Having outlined the Party’s political tasks to develop the
national economy, education and culture, Hoxha then spoke of
the Party’s attitude on foreign policy. Our Party, he said, has
firmly pursued the policy of strengthening its bonds with the
Soviet Union and the people’s democracies.
He exposed the plans of the British imperialists who both
during and after the war had tried to undermine the forces of
democracy in Albania, to occupy the country, and by imposing
quislings on the Albanian people, turn the country into another
Greece. But all these attempts of Anglo-American imperialism
had failed utterly.
Comrade Hoxha emphasised the fraternal friendship
between the peoples of Albania and Yugoslavia which had
been cemented in joint battles against the Hitler invaders
fought by Albanian and Yugoslav troops on Yugoslav territory.
He exposed the intrigues of the nationalist Tito group and its
Albanian agency of Kochi Xoxe, Pandi Kristo and Seifulla
Maleshova.
Hoxha pointed out that the Tito clique had endeavoured to
undermine the basis of Albania’s national independence to turn
Albania into an economic appendage of Yugoslavia and isolate
the country from the Soviet Union and the people’s
democracies. The adventurous Five-Year Plan projected for
Albania by the Tito clique aimed at making Albania a market
for Yugoslav goods at prices unprofitable for Albania, and at
depriving her of the possibility of developing a national
industry.
The Tito group and its agents in the Albanian Communist
Party refused to learn from the world historical experience of
 20

the Soviet people. They condemned the help given by the

Soviet Union, circulated the slander that the Soviet Union
would sacrifice Albania to the imperialists and vilified the
Soviet Army.
By trying to subordinate the activities of the Communist
Party and the Democratic front of Albania to the anti-Marxist
policy of the Tito clique; said Hoxha the Yugoslav nationalist
agents did considerable damage to the Party and the country.
He stressed that the letters of the Central Committee of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Information
Bureau’s Resolution on the situation in the Communist Party of
Yugoslavia bad played a decisive role in the correct orientation
of the Albanian Communist Party. They had “saved it and the
Albanian people from catastrophe”.
On the basis of these vital Marxist-Leninist documents, the
Eleventh Plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist
Party of Albania was able to lay bare the mistakes committed
by the Party under the influence of the nationalist Tito group
and of the Trotskyite activities of the Kochi Xoxe and Pandi
Kristo group.
Hoxha pointed out that after the country’s liberation,
considerable Marxist-Leninist education had been carried out
in the Party, Marxist-Leninist courses have covered 2,571
students. At the same time, he declared that shortcomings still
existed in the Marxist-Leninist training of Party cadres.
The Party’s most important task, he said, was to extend the
network of schools and to improve the whole propaganda work
of the Party.
Hoxha put before the Party the task of strengthening
revolutionary vigilance and of purging hostile and unstable
elements. He also stressed the need for a correct approach to
cadres both of the Party and the state administration.
Many delegates took part in the debate on Comrade Enver
Hoxha’s report, after which the Congress heard and discussed
 21

the report on the Two Year Economic Plan (1949-50) made by

Comrade Gogo Nushi, member of the Political Bureau.
Comrade Gogo Nushi said that guided by the teachings of
Marx and Lenin and the great experience of the glorious
Bolshevik Party of the Soviet Union, the Albanian Communist
Party has resolutely placed before the people the task of
rebuilding the country and transforming Albania’s backward,
feudal economy into a planned economy, serving the interests
of the people.
Comrade Nushi pointed out that the Plan envisages a
considerable extension of industry and in particular, the
construction of a number of new enterprises. By the end of
1950 land sown to crops would be 203 per cent greater than
before the war. New machine-tractor depots and increased
herds of livestock are planned.
He described the Two Year Plan to develop the national
economy as a great political and economic victory for the
Albanian Communist Party. He also stressed the significance
of the considerable material aid given by the Soviet Union.
The report on the third point on the Congress agenda—the
draft Statutes of the Party—was made by the Secretary of the
Central Committee, Comrade Tuk Jakova. After discussion the
Congress unanimously adopted the draft. As pointed out in the
Statutes, from now on the Communist Party of Albania will be
called the Workers’ Party of Albania.
Amid great enthusiasm the Congress sent a message of
greetings to Comrade Stalin.
The newly elected Central Committee of’ 21 members
include Comrades Enver Hoxha, Tuk Jakova and Gogo Nushi.
Comrade Enver Hoxha was re-elected General Secretary.
 22

FEBRUARY EVENTS AND

CZECHOSLOVAKIA’S DEVELOPMENT
ALONG PATH TO SOCIALISM

From the Report BY Chairman CC

Communist Party Czechoslovakia,
Comrade Gottwald at CC Plenum
Almost nine months have passed since the well-known
February events—events which marked a turning point in the
history of our State and of our people. Much has fundamentally
changed during this period.
At this Plenum we are able to welcome comrades from the
former Social Democratic Party. They are with us as a result of
the merging of the Communist and the Social Democratic
Parties into a united Workers’ Party based on Marxism-
Leninism. At the same time we welcome here at our Plenum
our Slovak comrades as members of the united Communist
Party of Czechoslovakia.
The February events, Gottwald continued, fully confirmed
the correct general line of the Party and particularly the line
followed by the Party since May 1945.
You are aware that in May 1945, we set out on a new
path—that of building the Czechoslovak Republic as a republic
of a people’s democracy.
Since then, and until February of this year, this path proved
most complex. Side by side with positive results there were
shortcomings. It was not surprising therefore, that from time to
time in our ranks, especially before the February events when
reaction began more openly
 23

to rear its head, there appeared signs of lack of understanding

and even doubts as to whether or not we were on the right road.
To all these doubts and questionings, the February days of
1948 gave a clear .and unmistakable answer. February 1948
confirmed the soundness of the policy pursued by us since May
1945.
After February, the voices of some comrades were heard
saying that we had wasted time between May 1945 and
February 1948. It was said that what we accomplished in
February 1948 could have been done in May 1945. Such views
are absolutely wrong. In order to achieve the February success
it was necessary to secure the isolation of the reactionary
elements, it was necessary to unmask the reactionary parties in
the eyes of the people. At that time the people did not know all
the details of the policy pursued by Zenkj, Sramek, Lettrich
and Majer.
Gottwald then analysed the policy of the reactionary
parties who attempted to restore the old, capitalist regime, who
endeavoured to repeat 1920, when reaction succeeded in
defeating the democratic forces and secured the domination of
the bourgeoisie. He pointed out that the events of February
1948 took place in different circumstances and with a different
relationship of forces.
In 1920 reaction had its wishes gratified. It had sufficient
strength at the time to secure this gratification.
But in 1948, although its desires were just as strong, the
means and possibilities for securing their gratification no
longer corresponded to these desires. That is the essential
difference between February 1948 and December 1920. And
while, despite this, there were strivings to bring about a
repetition of 1920 they merely testify to the utter political
short-sightedness and incompetence of those who undertook
the job, since this time the relationship of forces was altogether
different.
 24

Wherein lies the fundamental difference between the

relationship of forces then and now? In 1918 it could have
seemed to some that national liberation from the Hapsburg
yoke emanated from the West. True, we know that the
beginning of the break-up of Austro-Hungary, and,
incidentally, the beginning of the possibility for the existence
of the Czechoslovak Republic, were conditioned by the Great
October Socialist Revolution, but in those days this truth was
not so obvious. The land of Soviets was engaged in a life and
death struggle against the interventionists, was fighting for its
very existence, and was not in a position to be, for us, that clear
and obvious bulwark. Now, the situation is different. The fact
that liberation from the Hitler occupation came from the East is
so obvious that discussion on the matter is superfluous.
All the speculations by the ideologues and politicians of
the capitalist states to the effect that the Soviet Union would
come out of the war weakened and that consequently its world,
significance would decrease, ended in fiasco. The Soviet
Union, although it bore the main burden of the war against
Hitler Germany, emerged from the struggle with the enemy
stronger than ever, whereas the capitalists, as foretold by
Comrade Stalin, were, at the end of World War Two missing a
number of their Governments. In 1920, notwithstanding the
existence of a big and influential social democracy, we lacked a
class conscious workers’ party, a party possessing Bolshevik
maturity, based on the theory and practice of Marxism-
Leninism.
It was precisely at this moment that the split took place in
the working class of our country. Part of the leadership went
over to the side of the bourgeoisie. The working class, thanks
to Social Democratic leadership, was not in a position to
utilise the fruits of its struggle against the Austro-Hungarian
monarchy, and because of this the leadership of the national
liberation struggle, remained in the hands of the bourgeoisie. In
 25

1920 the working class lacked its own Bolshevik Marxist-

Leninist Party which would not have subordinated its policy to
the interests of the bourgeoisie, a Party which would have
mastered the Leninist strategy and tactics of class struggle and
which would have led the working class despite the obstacles
to victory over the bourgeoisie.
In February 1948, in the van of the working class, in the
van of the people, stood the Communist Party which had
demonstrated during the first phase of our national democratic
revolution, beginning with May 1945, that it was able to defend
the cause of the working class, capable of seeing that the
working class did not trail in the wake of the bourgeoisie and
that it was the leading force of the people. This was a Party
which had mastered the art of Marxist-Leninist strategy and
tactics of class struggle, a Party which was able to take its
place in the van of the people, able together with the working
class to lead all elements of the working people into the
struggle against reaction and at the decisive hour of the
struggle was able to isolate, defeat and triumph over reaction.
The twenty-eight years of that grim school through which
we passed since 1920 bore fruit in the shape of that general
development which had its starting point at the time of the
defeat suffered in December 1920, and led to the creation in
our country of the Communist Party which has mastered Marx-
Leninism.
The persecution and humiliation that we experienced, the
struggle against Munich, against the German occupation right
up to the glorious May of 1945—all this has borne fruit.
We have seen for ourselves that beginning with the 1946
election, the reactionary elements in the Government began to
draw closer and closer to the reactionary elements outside the
Government and actually became the mouthpiece of the
reactionary forces.
Reaction calculated that it would be able to isolate the
 26

Communists both in the Government and outside, confront

them with a solid phalanx of all the other parties and in this
way compel the Communists to capitulate, to form a
government of officials and force them to make substantial
concessions. Then, having achieved their regrouping of forces
in the Government, the reactionaries would arrange a general
election on the “Italian model”, that is, should elections in
general become a fact. The enemies of the people intended to
abolish gradually all the gains of the people’s democratic
revolution.
The Communist Party of course, was not sleeping either.
Nor did it lose anytime. Our preparations consisted of a clean
fight for the carrying out of the Government’s programme.
From the beginning of 1947 we exposed before the people
those who bore responsibility for the non-fulfilment of the
Government’s programme. And the people of town and
countryside followed us.
Shortly before February 1948 we put forward new
demands relating to the nationalisation of industry and to
agriculture—demands which went beyond the programme of
the Government. We advanced these demands as the
programme of our Party for the general election.
On this basis the congress of factory committee and the
peasant congress were called. Reaction regarded our demands
as a signal indicating that the time for the final break was
drawing near. These demands made reaction nervy, accelerated
its action and, in doing so, contributed to its mistakes.
On the basis of the fight for an honest fulfilment of the
Government’s programme and putting forward the chief points
of the new pre-election programme, we advanced to the
election with the slogan: win the majority of the people.
The reactionaries ranted about what they alleged was an
unrealisable slogan. But in the end, terrified. at the growing
influence of the Communist Party among the masses, they
 27

began to plot and conspire. Reaction was confronted with the

prospect that in a country characterised by all the rules of
formal democracy, the majority of the people supported the
Communist Party on the basis of its programme and its
activity.
This forced reaction into premature activity.
The February days demonstrated, above all, the political
and organisational maturity of the Communist Party of
Czechoslovakia. We can say this quite definitely, without
closing our eyes to shortcomings that are still with us.
Second, the February events confirmed the leading role of
the Communist Party among the people. There were certain
bold “critics”, self-styled Marxists, who considered we were
mistaken in saying ever since May 1945 that the Communists
must be the leading force of the working people. These critics
asked what had Marxism-Leninism in common with our
affirmations when, as is known, the Communists are the
advanced detachment of the working class. According to these
“critics”, to affirm that the Communist Party must be the
leading force of the people was tantamount to lowering the
concept of the Communist Party.
Our Central Committee was sufficiently experienced to see
at once the senseless, Trotskyite spirit of the “critics”. The
whole purpose of the struggle of our Party was to stand at the
head of the masses in order that the people—and this means the
overwhelming majority, the toilers—would respect us and
recognise us as their Party. We achieved this purpose. Without
the leading role of the Party among the people, without the
majority of the people recognising us as their heart and brain
and as their leader, the bourgeoisie would not have been
isolated, there would not have been the February victory and
we would not be sitting in this Prague City Hall.
Third, the political maturity of the working class of
Czechoslovakia was demonstrated also during the February
 28

days.
Fourth, the lesson of the February events is: they were a
demonstration of the genuine unity of the National Front, and,
above all, the genuine alliance between the basic elements of
the working people, between the working class and the
peasantry. Gottwald observed that during the February events
the state apparatus demonstrated that it served the interests of
the people.
Gottwald continued by saying: whereas prior to February
there was still a possibility that the old, capitalist regime might
be restored in Czechoslovakia by the forces of native reaction,
after February this possibility was liquidated. The main line of
our policy after the February victory consisted in consolidating
this victory.
Touching on the important measures carried out in the
economic and political field since February, Gottwald
mentioned the ratification of the Constitution, a number of
decrees concerning supplementary nationalisation of big
industry, the law restricting private property in land and so on.
The February victory was reinforced by the elections to the
National Assembly, which enabled us to create a real
parliament of people’s democracy, a parliament that is not and
will not be ,in opposition to the Government and the people,
but which will realise its programme.
Another important result of the post February period is the
strengthening from top to bottom of the regenerated National
Front.
Of greatest importance is the fact that the reactionary
elements have been cleared out of the higher offices of state
and public administration, out of the economic organs and
organs of state security, the Army and cultural organisations.
Particularly important is the fact that during the post
February period we put an end to the split in the working class
movement by means of uniting the Communist and Social
 29

Democratic Parties on the only correct platform—the platform

of Marxism-Leninism.
As a result of combining the Czech and Slovak Communist
Parties, we have created one Communist Patty with a single
leadership for the entire territory of the Republic.
Gottwald referred to matters connected with the struggle
against reaction which suffered a crushing blow in February,
but which now, after the fear and panic, is once again
becoming active.
We must not relinquish vigilance. Reaction will endeavour
to utilise every possibility in order to create difficulties.
We must get to know all the methods and means of the
subversive activity of internal reaction which maintains contact
with international reaction. Defeated in open battle and
burrowing underground, reaction has taken to terror, espionage
and sabotage, linking all its hopes with a new war, with a
aggressive German Army restored anew.
Our struggle against, reaction will be developed in the
direction of carrying through a correct political line in all
spheres—in the sphere of economy, prices and so on.
Gottwald pointed out that in the sphere of economy there
are three basic sectors in the country: socialist, capitalist and
petty trade. The first, socialist, sector was extended
considerably after February 1948. It comprises primarily the
nationalised industry which embraces about 95 per cent of the
industry of the country.
To this sector belong also the completely nationalised
banks and insurance societies and the completely nationalised
foreign trade, internal wholesale trade and the cooperatives.
To the capitalist sector which was considerably reduced
after February 1948 belong in the main the rural rich and
landlords, owners of small enterprises, the bulk of the big
handicraftsmen, traders and other elements engaged in
exploiting wage labour.
 30

The third sector—small enterprise—did not change greatly

after February.
The development of our economy since February,
Gottwald said, is characterised by a strengthening of the
socialist sector which is decisive for our further advance along
the road to Socialism.
Gottwald then made a detailed analysis of the policy of the
Communist Party in relation to the peasantry.
In the Resolution of the Information Bureau of Communist
and Workers’ Parties concerning the situation in the Yugoslav
Communist Party it is stated that, in Yugoslavia, it is necessary
to carry out a policy of restricting and squeezing out the
capitalist elements. This, the main task at present, is the
prerequisite for going over gradually to the abolition of the
capitalist elements in general and the capitalist elements in the
countryside in particular.
Does this relate to us, comrades? Yes, it relates to us, too.
Why cannot we bypass this inevitable stage? How is it that in
the countryside we cannot speak about the abolition of the
capitalist elements and are compelled to carry through a policy
of restricting them? We must not forget that our main aim now
and in the future is the alliance of the workers and peasants
within the framework of the National Front.
It follows therefore that our policy in the countryside must
be based on the small landholder, it must help to consolidate
·the alliance with the medium landholder and isolate the big
landholder, gradually restrict his capitalist development and
relegate him to the background. This goes also for the
handicraftsmen, traders and artisans.
Undue haste in our policy in the countryside can bring only
harm. The question on the order of the day is that of restricting
and squeezing out the capitalist elements in town and country.
Formulating the main tasks, the realisation of which will
create the pre-conditions for the further advance toward
 31

Socialism. Gottwald said:

1. It is essential to secure and improve supplies to the
population, to complete the Two Year Plan and begin work on
the Five Year Plan. Improving supplies to the population,
above all, provisions, completing the Two Year Plan,
beginning the Five Year Plan and improving the work of the
economic organs, means delivering the death blow to reaction.
2. In purchasing agricultural products in the countryside it
is essential to ensure that the big landholders deliver bigger
quantities in order that certain privileges accrue to the small
house-holds. It is necessary in practice to pursue the aim of
restricting and squeezing out the capitalist elements in the
course of carrying out the tax policy, the price policy and the
supplies policy.
3. In fixing the standards of food supplies, the workers
should be rated higher than the non-working elements.
4. The material-technical base must be strengthened in the
rural areas, a broad network of machine-tractor depots must be
created. It is necessary to extend social forms of animal
husbandry and poultry raising.
5. In rural areas we must support and encourage all forms
of cooperation, and in the first instance, cooperatives of a
producer nature. We shall take care that the cooperatives are
not dominated by the rural rich, that the decisive voice in them
belongs to the small and medium peasants.
6. We must take decisive measures to ensure that the
remnants of the capitalist elements in town and countryside
fulfil their state and public obligations. Any display on the part
of these elements of anti-state, unlawful activity must be
countered by economic sanctions against them.
7. We must reform and reorganise the administration on
the basis of the regional national committees. It is necessary in
all spheres to introduce new legislation based on the
Constitution and to ensure that the people’s democratic state
 32

apparatus becomes a powerful lever for the socialist

reconstruction of the countryside.
8. We must train our Party, trade union, economic,
administrative and military cadres and also the personnel of our
security organs so that they will not only excel in their
particular spheres, but will also master the science of
sciences—Marxism-Leninism.
9. We must strengthen from top to bottom the regenerated
National Front in order that the Front will not provide legal
cover for reactionary elements, as was the case prior to
February 1948, and to ensure that in the future it remains the
political form of our public life on the road to Socialism.
These, then are the tasks, Gottwald said in concluding this
report, that we must decide today in order that tomorrow we
shall be in a position to accomplish other, more complex and
far-reaching tasks.
The experience of the Soviet Union, the new democracies
and, not the least, our own experience, teaches us that we
should always put in the foreground those tasks which must be
solved for a further advance. We must concentrate on
completing the main tasks in order to provide favourable
conditions for our onward march.
Have we the forces and means with which to solve the
tasks facing us at this stage on our way to Socialism? Yes, we
have. We have the united, powerful Party which won a glorious
victory in February of this year. The verification now under
way in the Party will rally it still closer around the Central
Committee on the basis of Marxism-Leninism.
The Soviet Union is with us; with us is Comrade Stalin.
 33

NEW TASKS

From Report of General Secretary,

Central Committee, Communist Party of
Czechoslovakia, Comrade Slansky, at CC
Plenum
Addressing the Plenum, Comrade Slansky said that the
nine points formulated by Comrade Gottwald constituted the
general line of Party policy for the immediate future.
He went on to detail the tasks facing the Party for the
successful fulfilment of the Five Year Plan. On the solution of
these tasks depended the speed at which the transition to
Socialism could be made in Czechoslovakia.
Comrade Slansky declared: Now we are fully responsible
for all the state matters of the Republic. We must prove that we
are capable of increasing productivity of labour, of surpassing
the old production rates, of rapidly increasing the level of
production. The Party must master the art of directing its
organisational work to guarantee that production plans are
carried but.
He devoted considerable attention to the work of Party
organisation on the production front, to the reorganisation of
the Central Committee’s economic department, to the
mobilisation of the people to fulfil production targets, to the
strengthening of labour discipline, to the organisation of
socialist emulation and a Stakhanovite movement, to the work
of production committees, to the introduction of cost
accounting.
Speaking on the shortcomings in the work of the economic
organs, Comrade Slansky declared that industrial management
 34

had been over-centralised. This was also true of the State

bodies. He outlined a number of measures to improve the work
of the administrative and managerial apparatus.
On the problem of cadres, Comrade Slansky said: Before
the February events we had tried to see that no obvious
reactionaries held vital and decisive positions and that only
Communists and people devoted to the people’s democracy
held these positions. But this is no longer sufficient.
Even among Communists there are many people who are
conservative and politically illiterate, who have not become
organically bound up with the Party and the working class.
Today we must apply another, stricter criterion in selecting and
allocating cadres.
Now, when the class struggle is sharpening, we can see
much more clearly who are the people capable of carrying out
present-day tasks. The worthlessness of those functionaries
who have not a sufficiently developed political consciousness
is clearer, as is the harm they have done and the need to rid the
apparatus quickly of all those inclined toward reaction.
Our principal task in this sphere is to develop our own
cadres for leading posts in the state and administrative
apparatus, for Army and Security Corps commanders, cadres
who have come from the working class and are devoted to the
Party.
We will clear out all reactionary-minded students from the
secondary schools and high schools and will see that the
children of the working class and the working people form the
overwhelming, majority there, Marxism-Leninism must be
included as an essential in the curricula of all schools and
universities; all the sciences must be taught from the viewpoint
of our world outlook.
In the near future we shall set up one-year preparatory
courses where the factories can send their best young workers.
After a year’s training these comrades will be able to
 35

matriculate and enter university. We have already set up

schools in the Army where young workers will study for a year
and take the entrance examination for the Military Academy.
We should educate young workers to be future factory
managers, highs state officials and to hold other leading
positions.
Comrade Slansky stressed the urgency of measures making
it possible too send capable workers to leading industrial jobs.
The Communist Party is also taking the initial steps to
select new cadres for the state apparatus, he continued. To
illustrate this, he explained that the Ministry of Justice had
opened ten-month courses for able and conscious Party
members to become public prosecutors.
Similar training of leading cadres for industry and transport
will be organised. At the same time schools will be organised
at the factories to train young skilled workers.
Another important task in the training of cadres for the
state apparatus, said Comrade Slansky, is to give political
education to reliable specialists, employees and officials. This
is already being done.
Comrade Slansky further stressed the need to fight
continually against bureaucracy. The most important way of
doing this, he said, it to organise firm control from top to
bottom; to see that all Party members exercise criticism and
self-criticism.
Of great significance will be the setting up of a new organ,
the Party Control Commission which will be elected by the
Central Committee. Its tasks will be to control, investigate and
hold responsible all Party members holding position in the
state, economic or Party apparatus who do not behave as true
Communists. The main task of the Control Commission is to
prevent such as event arising or to nip it in the bud.
Comrade Slansky also instanced frequent cases where
inner Party democracy had been violated. We have responsible
 36

Party workers, he said, who talk glibly about criticism and self-
criticism but who do not want to listen to it when it concerns
them personally. We have also Party functionaries who
themselves admit that they do not work sufficiently well in one
or another sector of work, but heaven forbid that anyone should
dare to criticise them. They would call such a Communist a
factionist and might almost demand that he should be
immediately expelled from the Party.
The Party’s leading role is not ensured by orders and
decrees but by convincing the people, guiding them and
through this guidance, helping them.
Neither a Party organisation nor a Party functionary has
any right to issue orders. But they are obliged to control the
work of a state office, a factory or a trade union organisation;
to reveal shortcomings and to demand that they be eliminated.
Comrade Slansky referred to the great significance of the
verification of the membership which has already had
favourable results for the Party. The verification which is
accompanied by considerably increased activity on the part of
the membership has been distinguished from the outset by a
growth of mass criticism and self-criticism; by the increased
interest displayed in ideological questions, in Marxist-Leninist
science.
Shortcomings and mistakes have been manifested also in
the course of the verification. The most serious mistake is that
sometimes the verification of Party members is restricted to
their personal qualities and to their personal lives.
We must also devote attention to the matter of preventing
the verification of the political knowledge of the members from
being turned into a school-room examination.
It is necessary to rebuff decisively any attempt to punish
active and loyal members of the Party for their, as yet,
unsatisfactory theoretical knowledge.
Now, with the amalgamation of the Slovak Communist
 37

Party, the Party membership numbers more than two and a half
million. We shall transfer considerable part of the membership
recruited after February and particularly the non-worker strata,
to the status of probationers. By instituting probationary
membership, we shall make entry into the Party a much stricter
matter.
At present we must do our utmost to stem the flow into the
Party and only in exceptional cases to accept new people as
probationers; when at is a matter, say, of taking in members
who have distinguished themselves in production. Main
attention must now be focused on educational work.
The verification is not a wholesale purge. But we are aware
that with such an enormous influx into the Party, bad elements,
careerists and enemies of the Party must have penetrated.
Our path to Socialism is accompanied by increased activity
on the part of the class enemy and we shall be able to paralyse
this activity only by all members of the Party maintaining
revolutionary vigilance, only by ridding the Party of hostile
and alien elements.
Concluding his report, Comrade Slansky said: After
February many comrades thought that having won final
victory, everything would now go easily ad smoothly. But
immediately after February, Comrade Gottwald reminded us
that the class struggle in the broadest sense of the word was
only beginning, that we had but passed our journeyman’s
examination.
The Resolution of the Information Bureau of the
Communist and Workers’ Parties on the situation in the
Communist Party of Yugoslavia has proved the correctness of
the Marxist-Leninist teachings that the path to Socialism is
accompanied by sharpening struggle and is beset with
difficulties and obstacles.
We are confident that our Party, which numbers hundreds
of thousands of selfless and active workers, which is deeply
 38

embedded in the masses, will, under the leadership of Comrade

Gottwald, pass the examination for craftsmen and will
reconstruct our country along Socialist lines.
 39

MILAN WORKERS FIGHT FOR THEIR

VITAL INTERESTS. G. Brambilla,
Member, central Committee,
Communist Party of Italy
Milan, thee main industrial and commercial centre of Italy,
is particularly hard hit by the policy of the de Gasperi clerical
Government which is designed to shackle our country to the
American imperialists.
Unemployment in the province of Milan is in the vicinity
of 200,000 and a like number is on short-time working from 24
to 30 hours a week. Altogether, about half of the working
people of Milan together with their families are doomed to
starvation. Unemployment relief is a bare 200 lire a day, while
a kilo of rationed bread costs 105 lire. Matters have been made
worse still by the recent Government decision to reduce the
period of unemployment benefit from six to four months.
As a result of the resistance of the Milan workers under the
leadership of the works Councils and the General
Confederation of Labour, to the dismantling of factories by the
owners in conspiracy with the Americans, industrial output for
1947 reached 80 per cent of the pre-war level. Now it has
slumped again and is barely 50 per cent of prewar. Entire
branches of industry, as for example, the metal industry,
textiles, chemicals and building have been seriously affected
by the crisis caused by the anti-national economic policy of the
de Gasperi Government. Of the 1,500 metal enterprises in
Milan province, 300 closed their doors during the past twelve
months. Well-known firms such as Breda, Caproni, Alfa
Romeo. Safar. Isotta, Fraschini, Salmoirage, Borlette and
others have discharged considerable numbers of workers and
more are being paid off.
 40

Here is a typical example of the consequences of the

Marshall Plan: there are 300 finished tractors stowed away in
the stores of the Motomecanica tractor plant and yet the
Government is encouraging the import of tractors from
America.
Together with the factory and office workers, artisans and
small land owners are in difficult circumstances due to
increased taxes and the Government’s economic policy which
in all respects favours the big industrialists and landlords.
Economically, the conditions of the working people are
deteriorating steadily—the outcome of Government measures
aimed at completely abolishing the fixed prices on consumer
goods and at doing away with the economic and social gains
won by the people during recent years. These measures caused
prices to soar, especially bread prices, while charges for
electricity, gas fares and rent went up by 10 per cent.
The combined attacks of the Government and the
capitalists on the General Confederation of Labour are
designed to secure the abolition of the “sliding scale” for the
regulation of wages (one of the most important gains of the
working people of Italy). They also aimed at abolishing the
labour agreements which at present secure the workers from
certain taxes, guarantee an annual bonus the equivalent of
monthly earnings (the so-called thirteenth month), an annual
fifteen days paid holiday and which also provide for amenities
such as canteens, special food shops, hygiene, first aid, clubs
and rest rooms.
The Milan workers are waging a selfless struggle—a
struggle rich in experience and which is an example to the
Italian working class movement.
Trying to break this resistance, the capitalists, openly
encouraged by the Government and the Vatican, are resorting
to all means: police violence, besieging factories, clubbing and
arresting workers, encouraging criminal actions by neo-fascist
 41

elements and venomous anti-Communist, anti-working class

propaganda conducted by the clergy and the “Catholic Action”
organisation at the behest of Cardinal Schuster, Archbishop of
Milan.
The workers, however, are resisting strenuously. At those
factories where personnel is threatened with dismissal, the
workers and technical staff draw up plans to further production
and prepare resistance to the schemes of the owners. Quite
frequently the struggle assumes exceedingly sharp forms
including the occupation of the factories. The people of the
adjoining neighbourhoods, headed by district committees
composed of representatives of the progressive democratic
parties and mass organisations, organise solidarity actions with
the strikers and aid them. The weight of the mass movement
often compels the capitalists to refrain from discharging
workers and from reducing output. They are forced instead to
take measures which secure the normal working of the
enterprises.
The Government of course gives its support to the
capitalists and renders them all kinds of assistance. This was
strikingly demonstrated during the struggle at the Motta plant
against the attempt to discharge 800 workers. The factory was
literally besieged by the police who used armoured cars and
tear gas. They clubbed and arrested workers. Supported by the
people of the neighbourhood, the Motta workers waged a
vigorous 70 days’ struggle. The struggle revealed to those who
had voted for the Christian Democrats the reactionary nature of
the de Gasperi Government, which did not hesitate to use
violence in order to throw 800 workers onto the street.
In its struggle for work and bread, the working people
exposed the manoeuvres of the Christian Democratic trade
union traitors aimed at disrupting trade union unity. Ninety per
cent of the workers of Milan have remained loyal to the CGT,
thus demonstrating their profound attachment to the idea of
 42

unify of the working people in the struggle against reaction.

During the past two months, the Milan Chamber of Labour
has done a big job in guiding and leading the struggle against
high prices. On the initiative of the Chamber a provincial
committee embracing all the mass organisations including
artisan’s societies has been formed. By means of daily
propaganda carried out by the district, suburb and street
committees, the provincial body is strengthening the resistance
of the working class and is cementing its bonds with other
sections of the working people.
As a result of their organised efforts, the working people of
Milan have already succeeded in winning lower prices for
bread and for better quality bread. At present they are in the
midst of a campaign against rent increases.
The recent decision of the monopoly companies controlling
electric power to raise the price of electricity has encountered a
broad protest movement.
Some 40,000 householders have refused to pay the
increase. When officials of the Edison Company escorted by
police detachments tried to cut off the current in the houses,
housewives forced the Company agents and police to a
shameful retreat.
The struggle now being waged by the working people in
the city of Milan and the province of Milan is acting as a
powerful stimulus in the nation-wide struggle to safeguard
democratic liberties and peace. To the manoeuvres of the
clerical Government and of the American imperialists whose
representative, Zellerbach, is coordinating and directing
reactionary activities against the democratic forces in Italy
(similar to Hitler’s emissary in Italy, S.S. General
Zimmermann who supervised the hounding of workers to
forced labour in Germany), the workers of Milan demonstrated
on November 7—on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of the
October Revolution—their earnest desire for peace and their
 43

determination to resist all imperialist machinations aimed at

involving Italy in a new war.
For over three hours 500,000 people marched through the
streets of the city. The demonstration ended with a monster
meeting addressed by Comrade Togliatti—the largest outdoor
meeting ever witnessed in Italy.
The scale of the working class movement in the Milan area
is a source of disquiet to the capitalists and their mercenaries
who are now resorting to intimidation and police terror. But the
workers of Milan with their glorious traditions and rich
revolutionary experience can be relied upon in the new and
heavier class battles. They understand more and more clearly
that they are defending the interest of that people as a whole
that they are fighting to strengthen the unity of the international
working class movement for peace and Socialism.
The selfless work of 155,000 members of the Communist
Party in Milan who have always headed the struggle of the
masses, is the sure guarantee that the struggle will be waged in
the spirit of unity of all the popular democratic forces. The
Milan Communists will also in the future play their role of
vanguard of the working people of Milan, of leading fighters
for work, peace and freedom.
 44

EXPERIENCE OF WORK WITH

CADRES IN BULGARIA
The establishment and development of the people’s
democratic Republic of Bulgaria confronted the Bulgarian
Workers’ Party (Communists), the leading force in the
Fatherland Front, with the need to overhaul and reorganise the
State apparatus and purge it of fascists, saboteurs and other
reactionary elements hostile to the people’s democracy,
replacing them by new cadres who have been developed in the
struggle against the fascist dictatorship.
To carry out successfully this and other tasks, the main
problem must first be solved—that is, we must bring forward
and train cadres for the Party apparatus, for the country’s
reconstruction, for industry, trade and agriculture.
To understand how serious is this task it is necessary to
remember that before September 9, 1944, our Party was illegal
and had scarcely 25,000 members. True, by 1947, membership
had reached the 500,000 mark but this number included some
who had entered the Party casually or who were politically
immature.
It was particularly necessary to strengthen the Party both
politically and organisationally, to select cadres to guide the
whole Party work. The reorganisation of the state apparatus
necessitated urgent measures to ensure that responsible posts
were held by people loyal to the Fatherland Front.
For example, the newly formed people’s councils in town
and country districts needed more than 3,500 chairmen and as
many secretaries. The nationalisation of industry, banks, mines
and the setting up of machine-tractor depots, new industrial and
trading amalgamations required a considerable effort from the
Party. The nationalised enterprises alone needed immediately
6,000 managers.
 45

Our Party was successful in finding the necessary cadres

both in the Party itself and in the Fatherland Front.
To do this, the Central Committee started to select and
allocate cadres immediately after September 9.
A special Cadres Department was set up in the Central
Committee. Similar departments were established in area Party
committees and also in all state offices and mass public
organisations.
A cadres department is an integral part and an auxiliary
body of each Party committee. It must thoroughly study every
Party worker; it must watch how he carries out his tasks; it
must also see whether he keeps contact with the masses,
convinces them of the correctness of the Party line and links up
organisational Party questions with daily political and
economic tasks.
The Cadres Department of the Central Committee selects
workers to be appointed to various positions. It has several sub
departments to deal with Party, economic, cultural,
administrative and military cadres is well as those in public and
political organisations. The central Cadres Department works
in close contact with the leaders of the other cadres
departments. The Cadres Department also cooperates closely
with the organisational- instruction department.
We did not select our cadres by a routine system. We
solved each question according to our concrete tasks. But we
always tried to select or leading positions sound tried and loyal
cadres who had organisational ability and the determination to
work and build a new socialist society.
The Party cadres who before September 9, 1944, had
mastered the art of how to struggle against the fascist state and
of smashing its basis, must now, when the fascist dictatorship
has been overthrown and power has passed into the hands of
the working class and the working people, study anew and
master the art of reconstruction and government.
 46

ln his speech to the Sofia regional conference of the

Workers’ Party held in February 1946, Comrade Dimitrov
particularly stressed this point.
“Our cadres, all of us, must learn to govern,” he said. “Our
Party was not a ruling party. All of us must now learn to
govern and to build; we most learn to build together with our
allies in the Fatherland Front, working harmoniously with
them; we must learn to organise competitions with our allies
that will bring forward the best specialists to ensure that our
cadres are in the vanguard and that they are always able to live
up to the trust we have placed in them. This requires labour,
knowledge, ability. We must not be lazy and conceited, must
not rest on our laurels but must study and study, and tirelessly
work to improve ourselves”.
Cadres training was not isolated from the general work of
the Party. The Party itself with its organisations and leadership
was a school for training cadres.
The successful good training given to cadres in the Party
organisations themselves made it possible to provide hundreds
of leaders for state, social and administrative work from the
area and regional Party committees when this was demanded
by the task of reorganisation.
Apart from large-scale training inside the Party
organisations, the Central Committee set up a network of Party
schools, courses and study circles. For example, since 1946, 51
students graduated from the one-year Party school, 81 students
from the seven-month Party school, 153 from the six-month
school, 652 from the three-month school, 3,683 from monthly
courses, 21,630 from weekly and fortnightly courses, 18,118
from evening courses. During this period, 27,727 people
attended classes on various subjects.
In 1947 there were 6,276 circles studying current policy,
the Statutes and history of the Workers’ Party, the history of
the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Bolsheviks),
 47

political economy and other subjects. Altogether, 83,168

people attended these courses.
Considerable attention is devoted to the political and
general education of young people particularly to training
leaders for the youth brigades. There are several central and
area youth courses. Apart from this, many young men and
women are attending evening courses after work to study the
curriculum of secondary and high schools. They are taking
courses for tutors, for leaders of study circles, of the
“Septemvryiche” (young pioneers) and local People’s Youth
organisations and to be physical culture instructors.
Since 1946, 72,095 Communists have graduated from the
courses organised by the Party. In 1947, 104,625 students
attended circles in 42 areas; 35,832 students graduated from
central, regional and area political courses for the young
people. The trade unions set up 3,820 courses with 110,367
students.
In all, the Party, youth and trade union courses have trained
over 300,000 people. This figure gives a picture of the
intensified work carried out to educate leading cadres along
Marxist-Leninist lines.
Many courses to improve the work of those employed in
various ministries and in cooperatives as well as to train leaders
for agricultural cooperatives and machine-tractor depots have
been set up throughout the country.
As a result we can quote many excellent examples
testifying to the growth of our cadres. Pyotr Kovachev, for
instance, formerly an engine driver, was promoted chief of the
propaganda department in one of the district committees of the
Party. After a three-month course at the Central Party School,
Kovachev was elected secretary of the district committee, and
of the regional and city Party committees. Later he was elected
deputy to the National Assembly.
At the moment Kovachev is Secretary of the Rushuk area
 48

Party committee.
Anka Mincheva, a peasant woman, as appointed instructor
of one of the regional Party committees. Upon graduating from
a Party school she was elected a member of the regional Party
committee. She, too, is a deputy to the National Assembly.
Georgi Chubrikov, member of the Communist Youth
League since 1923, was appointed manager of one of the
nationalised factories. In this capacity he quickly proved
himself an excellent organiser. Under his leadership the factory
is overfulfilling its production schedules.
The Bulgarian Workers’ Party has acquired experience in
training and bringing forward cadres for leading work in the
Party and the State.
However, we still have quite a number of shortcomings.
Our cadres departments are not always quick or sure enough in
helping the Party leadership and Government bodies to bring
forward, select and allot jobs to the cadres.
At the same time, not all responsible workers understand
the great importance which the correct solution of cadres has
for the successful development of a planned economy, for the
entire social and political life of the country, for laying the
foundations of Socialism in Bulgaria.
Cadres are not reassured as “the golden store of the Party”.
We do not practise sufficiently open criticism of weaknesses of
functionaries, neither do we speak about their successful work.
The Sixteenth Plenum of the Central Committee of the
Workers’ Party pointed out these shortcomings.
However we are confident that we shall quickly overcome
the difficulties and weaknesses in our work. We have every
possibility to do this. Of invaluable help in this work is the
great theoretical and practical experience of the glorious
Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Bolsheviks) which we
are thoroughly studying.
 49

OCCUPATION AUTHORITIES IN
WESTERN GERMANY REVIVE
FASCISM
The “Hamburger Freie Presse” of October 2 carried these
front-page headlines: “Western Europe Feverishly Prepares for
War”, “America Supplies the Material, Europe the Generals”.
Such sensational and provocative headlines appear, almost
every day in the press of the Western occupation zones. But the
examples given are particularly indicative. They speak openly
of the “division of labour” between the American imperialists
and German fascists. The appeal to German generals—aiming
at using them for an anti-Soviet crusade—shows the extent of
the fascisation of Western Germany.
The Hitler generals who in World War Two fought to
destroy the armed forces of the United States, Britain and
France, and when laid down their arms only when the
victorious Soviet armies smashed their last divisions at Berlin,
are now giving their services to these very same imperialist
powers, so that they can once again crusade against the Soviet
Union. And the Western occupation powers are doing
everything to help them. They encourage fascist elements in all
spheres of economic and national life and systematically
persecute genuine democrats.
The United States, Britain and France started the process of
intensified fascisation in Western Germany by building up
German monopoly capital end German militarism there.
Article 12 of the Potsdam Agreement which relates to
“Economic Principles” provides for the abolition of the
“excessive concentration of economic power represented in
particular in the form of cartels, syndicates, trusts and other
monopoly agreements” in Germany.
 50

Only the Soviet military administration in Germany has

observed the Potsdam agreement. It liquidated all concerns,
syndicates and trusts and prohibited manufacturers’
associations. It ratified the decision of the German laender
governments in the Soviet zone that coal mines, raw materials
and enterprises belonging to active fascists and war criminals
should be handed over to the people.
The big estates were confiscated under the Land Reform.
Thus the material basis of the Prussian Junkers, the bulwark of
German militarism was destroyed. The genuine democratic
policy of the Soviet administration has ended private enterprise
by the former monopolies, financial trusts and big landlords.
The administration of the Western zones is pursuing a
policy which is the exact opposite. At first, it is true, large-
scale enterprises were brought under the control of the
occupation authorities. This, however, by no means meant that
monopoly property had been abolished. On the contrary, it
meant that foreign capital, American especially, was taking a
hand in the profits of these enterprises. After the military defeat
of Hitler Germany the Western powers no longer regarded
German concerns as serious competitors. They intended to use
them as a basis for building the economic and military
positions in Germany they needed for their imperialist aims.
Under the pretext of destroying the cartels, special
legislation was introduced in the British zone in February 1917
whereby member firms of the former cartels became
independent stockholding companies. Dincklebach, who was
one of the central figures in Hitter Germany’s war industry,
was appointed chairman of the commission to abolish cartels.
He took advantage of this so-called “decartelisation” to form
the new Rhine-Westphalia steel-casting industry.
The real purpose of this manoeuvre which was designed to
deceive the people, and the extent of agreement between the
West German monopolists and their foreign partners, were
 51

shown particularly clearly to their opposition to the

socialisation of the mines in the Ruhr. The Landtag of the
North, Rhine-Westphalia laender by a majority vote decided on
socialisation measures for the Ruhr. But General Robertson,
British Commander-in-Chief in Germany, refused to confirm
this decision. Similarly, the American Commander-in-Chief,
General Clay, refused to ratify the progressive law of
production councils passed by the Hessen Landtag.
This is how the Anglo-American occupation authorities are
obstructing an democratic measures to restrict the power of
monopoly capital; hew they are, instead, doing everything to
strengthen the positions of the former owners.
A similar situation exists in relation to the “denazification”
of the representatives of monopoly capital, of those who were
chiefly responsible for Hitler’s war. The heads of Krupps and
Flicks and I. G. Farben got away with light terms of
imprisonment by the Nurenberg tribunal, while others were
actually acquitted. Fritz Thyssen, who openly admitted at the
trial that he had financed Hitler, received a similarly light
sentence. It was established in court that long before 1933, the
German monopolists had financed the fascist party to the tune
of millions of marks and had financed its criminal war
preparations.
Yet despite this these war criminals were either let off with
light sentences or were acquitted.
Such was the case with the fascist generals. And these men
have now been asked by the British and American
governments to write the history of World War Two. Their job
is not so much to write a general account of Germany’s
strategy and tactics as to describe the experience op the
German army in partisan warfare and the methods it used
against the Soviet Army.
The courts in the Western zones are functioning in
accordance with the policy of the Anglo-American occupation
 52

authorities. Thus, Schacht who financed German rearmament

and the Hitler war, was acquitted. High-ranking S. S. officers
and members of the Hitler Government, such as Onezorg,
Minister of Posts, and fascist authors like Dwinger were judged
to be “fellow travellers” and found Not Guilty. Upon paying
ridiculously small fines they were released and allowed to
renew their disruptive activities among the German people.
Ninety per cent. of the police and judicial apparatus in Western
Germany are former fascists. The police are again using the
methods of civil war. They are breaking up meetings and
demonstrations and are carrying out mass arrests.
Special S.S. units are being formed for use in the event of
civil war. The American occupation authorities have recruited a
force of “industrial police” from former Hitler soldiers, S.S.
men and officers. It is indicative that as in the past, this force
wears a black uniform bearing the Hitler S.S. insignia. That is
why the people justly call it the “black guard”. It is becoming
increasingly obvious that the Anglo-American occupation
authorities intend to use this “black guard” to smash the
working class which is battling for liberty and democracy and
for a higher standard of living.
This encouragement of fascist reaction by the Anglo-
American occupation authorities is wholeheartedly supported
by the leadership of the bourgeois patties in Western Germany
and Berlin. But Schumacher’s Social Democratic Party plays
the first violin in the anti-Soviet campaign. Schumacher and
company are screaming themselves hoarse slandering the
Socialist Unity Party, the Soviet occupation authorities and the
Soviet Union. They call themselves the “Bulwark against
Bolshevism”. Chiming in with Schumacher is Kaiser of the
Christian Democratic Union who describes himself as “break-
water against Marxism”.
The aim of these enemies of the working peoples is to
prevent the formation of a united front of workers against the
 53

growing danger of fascism. They are offering their services to

the Anglo-American monopolies as accomplices in their war
preparations by their splitting policy they are betraying the
national Interests of the German people.
The policy of the Western occupation powers is clearly
aimed at turning Germany into a colony, into a base for their
aggressive plans in Europe and for unleashing a new war.
The Anglo-American occupation authorities can give
nothing to the working people of Germany. Their sole interest
is to help the monopolies. The monetary reform introduced by
them actually increases the profits of monopoly capital and
lowers the living standard of the working people. The refusal to
socialise the Ruhr industry, the ban on production councils, the
appointment of fascist factory managers and the suppression of
the movement for a united Germany which developed among
Socialist workers—these and many other facts show the
working people what the representatives of foreign monopoly
capital are aiming at in Germany.
It also teaches them that they can only defend their
interests by waging a resolute, united struggle. The task of the
Socialist Unity Party is to fight vigorously together with the
trade unions and democratic mass organisations, with the
democratic and anti-fascist forces in the bourgeois parties and
in the Social Democratic Party, against the neo-fascist plans of
the Anglo-American occupation authorities and their German
lackeys, and to lead the masses into struggle.
Of great assistance to the working people are the measures
of the Soviet occupation authorities and the entire policy of the
Soviet Union which aims at safeguarding peace, rebuilding the
country’s economy creating a genuine people’s democracy and
preserving. Germany’s unity. The fascist elements have been
cleared out in the Soviet Union, the power of monopoly capital
has been destroyed, and the reactionary state apparatus
smashed.
 54

Hence the fury of the monopolists and fascists, irrespective

of their nationality. This is the reason for their malignant smear
campaign against the Soviet Union and against the progressive
development of the Soviet occupation zone. But this is also the
reason for the great mobilising power of genuine democracy
which is showing the working people of Germany the way to
Socialism.
 55

THE POLICY OF HUNGARIAN

WORKERS’ PARTY IN THE
COUNTRYSIDE. E. Gerö, Member
Political Bureau, Central Committee,
Workers Party of Hungary
The past eighteen months have seen far-reaching changes
in the structure of Hungary’s national economy, as well as, in
the country’s political life and the character of its political
power.
The essence of these changes in the national economy is
that State-owned industry now predominates in the economy
(except for handicrafts) and covers 85 per cent of industrial
production. Practically the whole system of banking and credits
has been nationalised and nearly all foreign trade is now in the
hands of the State. The greater part of wholesale trade inside
the country is also a State monopoly now. But there have been
no fundamental structural changes in agriculture.
The whole of the national economy is planned. but this
applies in a far lesser degree to agriculture than to industry.
transport and wholesale trade. This situation is a direct
reflection of the present structure of Hungary’s national
economy.
On August I, 1947, our country embarked on its Three
Year Plan and so far we have achieved major results in the
Plan. In the first year of planned economy, industry produced
50.6 per cent more than in the previous year and we exceeded
our original target figures by 4.6 per cent. These encouraging
results of the first year of planning, together with the labour
emulation that swept the country, meant that the Workers’
Party was able to support the initiative of the workers in the big
 56

industrial plants who proposed to fulfil the Three Year Plan in

two years and five months.
These changes in the country’s economic life were the
result of a stubborn struggle pursued with a singleness of
purpose. The Hungarian working class waged this struggle
under the leadership of the Hungarian Communist Party, later
the Hungarian Workers’ Party in alliance with the millions of
working peasantry against the exploiting classes, and against
the forces of reaction which were supported by the imperialists.
In the course of this struggle the so-called Pfeiffer Party was
exposed and defeated. This was a bourgeois party in the pay of
the American imperialists and represented the remnants of the
big capitalist and landlords, that is, all the forces of reaction.
After this the Hungarian Communist Party, co-operating
with the left Social Democrats, denounced, isolated and routed
both ideologically and organisationally, the Right Social
Democrats—the imperialist agents in the Hungarian working-
class movement. In this way the path was cleared for the
fusion of the two worker’s parties—the Communist Party and
the Social Democratic Party, purged of its Right elements, and
for the creation of the Workers’ Party of Hungary on the
principles of Marxism-Leninism. Next, steps were taken to
purge the organisations affiliated to the Workers’ Party—the
independent Party of Smallholders and the National Peasant
Party—from which the Right elements were gradually
dislodged. All this prepared the ground for the struggle against
clerical reaction and for a firmer policy against the exploiting
classes in the countryside; against the kulaks.
As a result of this struggle, the exploiting classes were
removed from power, the alliance of the working class with
the working peasantry was strengthened and the leading
role of the working class in State power and inside the
workers’ and peasants’ alliance was developed.
The political and economic changes in the country show
 57

that a big step forward had been made in the towns: the pre-
requisites for building Socialism has been created and we are
now tackling the job. However, there can be no question of
resting all the results we have achieved. Socialism cannot be
built in the towns if we are indifferent to the fact that the
countryside is drifting alone the capitalist path. This
consideration guided the Political Bureau of the Hungarian
Workers’ Party after the proper conclusions had been drawn
from an analysis of the country’s internal situation and from
the justified condemnation of the treacherous policy of the
Yugoslav Party leaders by the Information Bureau of the
Communist and Workers’ Parties. The Political Bureau then
decided to concretise its policy in relation to the peasantry and
to bring about a turning point in the peasant question.

Mistakes and Shortcomings in our Work

After analysing the development of the Hungarian
countryside since the country had been liberated by the
glorious Soviet Army, the leadership of our Party came to the
conclusion that the land reform which had been applied on a
wide scale, was not holding up capitalist development in the
countryside. It had, in fact, the opposite effect. An
investigation carried out in hundreds of villages showed that
during the past few years the exploiting class in the
countryside— the kulaks—had actually gained in number and
had grown considerably richer. The kulaks took advantage of
the situation arising from the fact that though Hungarian
democracy had given land to the greater part of the landless
agricultural labourers and small peasants, it could not always
supply them with the necessary implements, draught cattle and
seed. Thus, a section of the working peasantry became victims
of kulak exploitation.
 58

Similarly, the kulaks were quick to take advantage of the

privations caused by inflation in the first years after the war.
They either sold their products at exorbitant prices or
speculated. They could do this because they were the only
people who had marketable grain and because the exploiting
classes in general, including the kulaks had a considerable
influence on State power. At this time the Government was
headed by the kulak Nagy, the ringleader of the anti-
democratic plot.
But it was not only the objective situation and the actual
relation of forces in the country that enabled the kulaks to grow
richer and to strengthen their positions in the countryside.
Another factor was that we had not at the time clarified the
principal points of our policy toward the peasantry and had
failed to draw the practical conclusions, though this had
become essential. Yet the Hungarian Communist Party was the
only Party that could do this.
Our principal mistake was that we did not give a
theoretical definition and a correct estimation of the place and
role of the cooperatives in the new conditions in Hungary, in
the conditions of the people’s democracy. We made this
mistake even though it was absolutely clear to us from the very
outset that the only way to restrict capitalist development in the
countryside and to transfer agriculture onto a socialist basis
was to follow the path mapped out by Lenin and Stalin, a path
which had been tested in the Soviet Union where it paved the
way for large-scale collective agriculture. It was only after
some delay that we began to tackle the difficult and complex
problem of the transition period which will take a long time.
We also consider we made a serious mistake when we
were actually on the defensive against the slanderous attacks
made on collective farming by the kulaks and reaction in
general. The kulaks and reaction worked on the basis that for
some fifteen years the counter-revolutionaries had with
 59

impunity fed the peasantry in a campaign of lies against the

collective farms of the Soviet Union and that this unstemmed
flood of slander had left its traces.
The kulaks and reaction clearly realised and, indeed, still
realise, that sooner or later Hungarian agriculture would
undergo fundamental structural changes. But for their own
benefit they were determined to stick to the capitalist path of
development, to preserve and intensify exploitation; they
therefore, hoped that by belittling the collective farm system
they would be able to compromise the only possible and
correct paths which would lead to the reorganisation of
agriculture and to the culmination of its capitalist development.
At the same time the kulaks and reaction wanted to discredit
the Communist Party and to isolate it from the millions of
working peasants. Our defensive position in face of this slander
against the collective farms meant that we had to a certain
extent, given way under the pressure of the class enemy instead
of launching a counter-offensive.
Although it was clear to our Party leadership that we were
heading toward a sharpening of the class struggle in the
countryside, that the transition of agriculture and of the
countryside to the socialist basis would be accompanied by a
sharpening of the class struggle and not its dying down, one
member, of the Political Bureau of our Party was of the opinion
that it was no longer possible for capitalism to develop in the
Hungarian countryside. There naturally followed from this
mistaken idea the view that there was no longer any class
struggle in the countryside and that, therefore, there was no
need to intensify the struggle against the kulaks. The Political
Bureau rejected this Right opportunist viewpoint. But it was
only much later that we drew the necessary lessons from the
fact that Right opportunism existed in the very leadership of
the Party.
 60

Offensive against Capitalist Element in

the Countryside
Having drawn the lessons from our own mistakes and from
the situation in Yugoslavia, the Political Bureau of the
Hungarian Workers’ Party worked out measures to protect the
working peasantry from kulak exploitation, to restrict this
exploitation and to prepare for the complete abolition of
exploitation in agriculture.
We have already put some of these measures into practice
but others still have to be realised.
Thus, on the initiative of the Workers’ Party, the
Government introduced a sliding-scale for this year’s grain
deliveries whereby, for example, a kulak with 40 holds of land
mad to deliver three and a half times more wheat per hold than
the small peasant with five holds. Deliveries from farms over
40 holds were raised accordingly.
Under another Government decree similarly adopted on the
initiative of the Workers’ Party, a kulak must, apart from his
basic deliveries, contribute also in kind that is in grain, to the
“special fund for the development of agriculture.”
Of course the kulaks did not sit back and accept these
measures taken against them. In alliance with clerical reaction
they tried to sabotage grain supplies and to force the poor and
middle peasants to refuse to make their deliveries. At first
kulak sabotage met with some success, since our Party
organisations did not fully realise that this year’s grain
deliveries would be made in conditions of sharpening class
struggle. Another reason for the initial successes of the kulaks
was the fact that because of the great influx of new members
into the Party, kulaks and their supporters had managed in
many places to infiltrate into our Party organisations and to
block the measures directed against kulak sabotage. However,
 61

when the Party mobilised its forces to fight these sabotage

attempts and to make sure that deliveries were fulfilled, which
they did by using the democratic state power whenever
necessary, the saboteurs were beaten and the kulaks defeated.
This was shown, primarily by the fact that an emulation
movement sprang up among the poor and middle peasants to
fulfil their target figures for grain deliveries. The Workers’
Party at once encouraged and guided this movement with the
result that we have now smashed this year’s targets. By the
middle of October, 50 per cent more wheat had been delivered
to the State than during the whole of last year. This shows that
the resistance of the kulaks can be crushed and millions of
working peasants firmly won over to the side of the working
class not by making concessions to the kulaks but by pursuing
a firm and more consistent policy against the kulaks.
Another important measure introduced by the people’s
democracy on the initiative of our Party which also aimed at
restricting the kulak was the new land-leasing decree.
According to this a great portion of the land leased out to the
kulak will now be transferred to agricultural labourers or poor
peasants at low rents. They will cultivate it individually or
through co-operatives. In keeping with this decree 800,000
holds of land, formerly held by kulaks are now being farmed
by working peasants.
The new system of contracts has also been a heavy blow to
the kulaks. Until this autumn the procedure was that the State
chiefly concluded contracts for seed and other supplies with the
kulaks, that is, with those who dealt with them under the old
reactionary regime. These contracts give considerable
advantages to the producer since the customer—the State—
supplies the producer with credits, artificial fertilizers and so
on. Such was the old system of contracts. The reactionary
specialists who have now been removed from the Ministry of
Agriculture, had insisted on retaining this system under the
 62

pretext that it corresponded to “the interests of the national

economy” and “the viewpoint of specialists”. Actually, they
were helping the kulaks to get richer. On the initiative of the
Workers’ Party, the contract system has now been revised in
such a way that agreements are concluded with agricultural
cooperatives, to the exclusion of the kulaks. Thus, contracts
now help to strengthen the working peasantry and the
agricultural co-operatives.
As they grew richer from exploitation, the kulaks in many
districts began to buy up land from the poor peasants. This
state of affairs did not escape the attention of our Party. On our
proposal the Government prohibited the sale and purchase of
land until such time as it could be settled through legislative
channels. The sale of land distributed under the land reform
had been prohibited earlier. The new decision goes further,
prohibiting the sale and purchase of all land.
The increase of agricultural products now being supplied
by the co-operative, instead of by the private capitalist sector is
weakening the economic strength of the capitalist elements in
the countryside. This year the State purchased grain stocks
from nearly 2,000 co-operatives as against only 700 last year.
Thus the co-operative and not the capitalist sector, supplied
the bulk of the State’s grain stocks this year. True, the co-
operatives often still have to make use of the merchants which
explains why in many instances the co-operatives serve as a
cover for the capitalist activity of private merchants.
All these measures are by no means sufficient in
themselves to restrict and dislodge the kulaks as the rural
exploiting class and to prepare Hungarian agriculture for the
switch over to a socialist basis. The same is true for the tax and
credit measures adopted by the Government on the proposal of
the Workers’ Party, measures which are also directed against
the kulaks. Even the most correct government decisions,
cannot, in themselves, achieve the desired results. They must
 63

be backed by the working class and the working peasantry. It is

necessary for the Party to mobilise this force to fight the
exploiters who, as experience has shown, resort to the most
subtle methods of struggle and sabotage against the decisions
and laws of the State power of the people’s democracy.
Realising that an open offensive against the co-operatives
cannot bring them any great success, the kulaks are now
pursuing the policy of penetrating into the co-operative
organisations in order to undermine them from within or to
gain control of them. Our Party investigated the work of a
number of agricultural co-operative associations and disclosed
that a large number of them had fallen under capitalist kulak
influence. There were several cases where the kulaks
dominated the leadership of the co-operatives under the very
eyes of our Party organisations. This shows that our Party
organisations lack class vigilance. There was one case of a co-
operative association which had been given a Government
award as an odd co-operative. But on closer examination it
turned out to be a pseudo co-operative directed by kulaks.
True, this co-operative association had not always been
controlled by kulak elements.
Taking all this into account, the Government on the
proposal of our Party, issued a decree barring rural exploiting
elements from the membership of agricultural co-operative
boards. Under another decree which will be issued soon, these
elements will not be accepted as members of the
agricultural co-operatives. This Government decision has still
to be made law. Hence, the policy of the Hungarian Workers’
Party is now to investigate all rural co-operatives and purge
them of exploiting elements. For the Party and the people’s
democratic State power can look for support only in real co-
operatives and not in kulak households operating behind a
screen of co-operation.
 64

Vital Tasks in Sphere of Developing Co-

operatives
By themselves the co-operatives cannot automatically
become organisations capable of restricting and dislodging the
rural exploiting class and raising the small and middle
peasantry to a higher level. A correct policy, appropriate
economic measures, stubborn struggle against the kulaks,
proper selection, of leading personnel and good organisation of
party work in the co-operatives are needed to turn them into
real economic organs serving the interests of socialist
development. From this it follows that it is necessary to ensure
that real co-operatives are able to develop constantly along
proper lines, that they are safeguarded against kulak
penetrating and kulak influence for the capitalist danger will
be the main danger in the co-operative movement for a long
time to come.
We must not lose sight of yet another danger frequently
encountered here: the danger of sectarianism. This is mainly
apparent where the co-operatives are working fairly
successfully economically and where their members have
received tangible material benefit. If often happens that the old
members object to accepting new ones. There were were cases
where middle peasants were barred from co-operatives and
attempts were made to determine who could join the co-
operative on the basis of party membership. The Workers’
Party is waging a fight against the sectarian danger, for
sectarianism adds grist to the kulak, mill by pushing the middle
peasant—who is beginning to draw closer to us and to realise
the correctness of our Party’s co-operative policy—into the
arms of the kulak.
In its co-operative policy the Workers’ Party is
concentrating on the agricultural co-operative and pursuing the
 65

line of creating a unified general cooperative which will cover

production, stocks, and supplies at the same time. Unified
general co-operatives are being formed in many places on the
basis of the existing agricultural co-operatives. After being
purged of exploiting elements the other co-operatives
(consumer, supply, dairy, and so on) are joining up. In the
unified agricultural co-operatives the Party is following the
policy of promoting, above all, the organisation and
development of agricultural production on cooperative
principles while, at the same time, giving all-round support to
the supply, stock and consumer sections.
So far there have been a very small number of co-
operatives or productive groups. There are only 200 such co-
operatives or productive groups. The party has worked out two
sets of rules to improve the work of the co-operatives which
are operating on the collective principle: one for the co-
operatives of the higher type where all the work is performed
collectively and the other for the co-operatives of the
elementary type where only certain vital farm processes are
done collectively, other production processes being carried out
individually.
The Party considers it extremely important that co-
operatives engaged in collective production and co-operative
accumulation should receive extensive support from the State.
In its policy our Party is guided by Lenin’s words in his famous
programmatic article “On Co-operation” in which he wrote:
“Every social system arises with the financial
assistance of a definite class... We, must now realise, and
apply in our practical work, the fact that the social system
which we must now assist more than usual is the co-
operative system. But it must be assisted in the real sense
of the word, i.e. it will not be enough to interpret assistance
to mean assistance for any sort of co-operative trade; by
assistance we must mean assistance for co-operative trade
 66

in which real masses of the population take part”.

As we know, the mechanisation of agriculture through
machine-tractor depots is decisive in restricting the kulaks
and laying the foundation for socialist agriculture. Or the
initiative of our Party measures were taken to organise such
depots in Hungary and now 80 of them are functioning in the
country. This number is increasing steadily. Hungary’s
agricultural machine-building industry is sufficiently
developed to completely re-equip the country’s agriculture in
the course of a few years. At present a large number of big
agricultural machines are still in the hands of kulaks and other
such hostile class elements. But the rapid development of the
machine-tractor depots will soon end this state of affairs. For
more than a year now the sale of tractors, threshing-machines
and other large agricultural equipment has been forbidden to
private persons. This guarantees that the kulaks cannot increase
the number of machines they own.
With the help of the machine-tractor depots, the influence
of which is growing, and with the help of 2,500 tractors and
other machines owned by the co-operatives we shall be able to
break the kulak monopoly of draught power.
Machines from the depots are hired to the co-operatives
engaged in collective economy at 30 per cent less than to
individual peasants. The depots also give priority to the co-
operatives in their work schedule. Peasants who have formed
co-operatives but are not engaged in collective production, get
a 10 per cent discount.
The kulaks, of course, are bitterly hostile to these machine-
tractor depots. They are trying to incite the working peasants
against the depots by scaring them with the tale that the
machines and tractors are “only the beginning”, that with their
help the Communists “will take away the land”.
At first this subversive work met with some success
because our Party, when organising the machine-tractor depots,
 67

had not paid sufficient attention to the political preparation of

the peasants. Another mistake was that in the beginning no care
was taken to select suitable personnel for these depots.
However, we were able to correct these early mistakes. Now,
before opening a new machine-tractor depot we explain to the
working peasants what it stands for and what benefits they will
gain from it. And now the opening of each new machine-
tractor depot is an occasion for great festivities in the village.
The executive posts in these depots are now staffed primarily
with factory workers, for the most part metal workers, who
have been tested in battle. Experience has shown that they can
quickly master the necessary knowledge of agricultural
technique and are able at the same time to give the peasants the
necessary political support in their struggle against the kulaks.
Thus, the machine-tractor depots, each with its Party
branch organisation, are designed to play not merely an
economic role in the countryside but also an ever greater
political role. They will be able to carry out increasingly
important tasks in putting into practice our policy on the
peasant question. It can be said that the working peasants have
thrown off their prejudices against the machine-tractor depots,
which kulak agitation, had caused. The middle and poor
peasants readily make use of the depots.

Improve the Work Organ of Rural Party

Organisations
The coming fusion of the two big organisations made up
mostly of agricultural workers and working peasants and the
formation of a new organisation on a wider basis, will play a
big role in our Party’s policy. One of these organisations is the
Hungarian Union of Agricultural Workers and Small
 68

Landholders with a membership of 450,000. This Union unites

primarily agricultural labourers and also poor peasants with
small holdings who are forced to hire out their labour. The
other organisation is the Hungarian Union of New Farmers
with a membership of 400,000. They are small and middle (but
mostly small) peasants who received land under the land
reform. Through the fusion of these two organisations we hope
to give the new organisation a sounder basis, drawing into it
the broad masses of the middle peasantry. At the same time we
want to preserve a special section for agricultural labourers and
poor peasants inside the organisation and also want to include
in it as an autonomous body the union of machine and tractor
workers. Representatives on the local executive organs will be
drawn equally from working peasants, agricultural labourers
and machine-tractor depot workers. In this way it will be
possible to help the depot workers, agricultural labourers and
working peasants to defend their interests against the kulaks
and other exploiting elements in the countryside.
Last, but by no means least, mention should be made of the
great role which the verification of the Party membership and
organisations has played in realising the agrarian policy of the
Hungarian Workers’ Party. This verification is being carried
out in all Party bodies and is not confined to the rural Party
organisations atone. Undoubtedly, however, it will affect the
rural Party organisations more than the factory or urban
organisations. It stands to reason that the Patty cadres in the
countryside are, on the whole, less developed and experienced
than the cadres in the factories and towns. From the class
viewpoint the situation in tee countryside, is altogether
different from that in the town, and especially in the factories.
That is why the decision of our Party’s political Bureau of last
September to suspend acceptance into the Party for a time and
to verify the Party membership is of such great significance,
especially for the rural Party organisations, where a
 69

comparatively little number of hostile class element; have

penetrated into the Party and where the rural Party
organisations are now facing particularly difficult and complex
tasks.
It is obvious that the success of our policy for the peasantry
depends on the long run on the work of our rural Party
organisations, on the extent to which they understand the line
of our Party leadership and the extent to which they are capable
of putting this policy into practice without committing mistakes
and distortions. To accomplish this it is necessary to purge the
rural Party organisations of hostile elements which have
penetrated there, to equip them ideologically and
organisationally.
The policy of the Hungarian Workers’ Party is framed on
the consideration that the main task at the moment, taking into
account the present situation, is to restrict the kulaks, not to
eliminate them as a class, The essence of the policy of the
Workers’ Party on the peasant question lies in the fulfilment of
the threefold task of Party work in the countryside, classically
defined by Comrade Stalin in his article “Lenin and the
Question of Alliance with the Middle Peasant”.
Comrade Stalin writes “the triple task of Party work in the
rural districts represents a single and indivisible task, that “the
task of fighting the kulak cannot be separated from the task of
reaching agreement with the middle peasant, and that these two
tasks cannot be separated from the task of converting the poor
peasant into a bulwark of the Party in the rural districts.”
Comrade Stalin’s words that this three-fold but single tasks
cannot be broken up into parts, cannot be severed one from the
other, is a direct warning to our Party in the present situation.
“Some think,” Comrade Stalin wrote in the same article,
“that agreement with the middle peasant can be brought about
by abandoning the fight against the kulak, or by slackening this
fight because, they say, the fight against the kulak may scare a
 70

section of the middle peasantry, its well-to-do section. Others

think that agreement with the middle peasant can be brought
about by abandoning the work of organising the poor peasants,
or by slackening this work; because, they say, the organisation
of the poor peasants means singling out the floor peasants, and
this may frighten the middle peasants away from us. The result
of these deviations from the correct line is that such people
forget the Marxian thesis that the middle peasantry is a
vacillating class, that agreement with the middle peasant can be
durable only if a determined fight is carried against the kulak
and if the work among the poor peasants is intensified; that
unless these conditions are adhered to, the middle peasantry
may swing to the side of the kulak as a force...
“But there are other deviations from the correct line, no
less dangerous than those already mentioned. In some cases the
fight against the kulak is indeed carried on; but it is carried on
in such a clumsy and senseless manner that the blows fall on
the middle and poor peasants. As a result, the kulak escapes
unscathed, a rift is made in the alliance with the middle
peasant, and a section of the poor peasants temporarily falls
into the clutches of the kulak who is fighting to undermine
Soviet policy. In other cases attempts are made to transform the
fight against the kulaks into expropriation of the kulaks, and
grain purchasing into appropriation of surpluses, forgetting that
under present conditions expropriation of the kulaks is folly
and the surplus-appropriation system means, not an alliance
with, but a fight against the middle peasant.”
The Hungarian Workers’ Party will do everything to see
that these important directives by Comrade Stalin are fully
realised in our policy toward the peasantry.
 71

PLENUM OF CENTRAL COMMITTEE

COMMUNIST PARTY OF FRANCE
The plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist
Party of France held in Ivry On November 15 and 16 was
addressed by Comrade Thorez, General Secretary of the Party.
Characterising the political situation in the country Thorez
said: “The main reason for the growing mass movement of the
people must be sought in the worsening conditions of life,
which is admitted and confirmed by members of the
Government.
The workers and ordinary middle class people are
beginning to understand more and more that this deterioration
is the outcome of the policy of subordinating France to
American imperialism,
Thorez denounced the terror employed by the Government
against the middle miners’ strike.
He said:
Within the framework of the Marshall Plan, a plan for
preparing imperialist war, the Government want to strengthen
its rear. It is trying to provoke a pogrom atmosphere against the
miners, against the General Confederation of Labour and the
Communist Party.
Concluding his speech, Comrade Thorez suggested that a
national conference of the French Communist Party be held in
February and gave a perspective of future heavy battles for
peace and national independence. “All the possibilities for the
victory of the working class and the Republic exist,” said
Thorez.
The resolution passed by the Central Committee declares
that the living conditions of the people are steadily
deteriorating despite the increased production and a good
harvest. It states: “This is because the rulers of France intend to
 72

make the people bear not only the burden of the last war but
that of preparations for a new war…”
The resolution paid tribute to the “remarkable growth of
consciousness and ability to fight displayed by the working
class of France.” It said: “The unprecedented solidarity of
broad sections of the population with the strikers, the activity
displayed by the women, peasants and middle classes in
defence of their interests testifies to the growing unity by the
people in the struggle for bread, in defence of the Republic, for
national independence and peace.”
The resolution calls upon the Party to be at the head of the
mass movement of the people in all circumstances, tirelessly to
struggle for united action by the working class and for the
rallying of all Frenchmen standing for liberty and progress, for
independence and peace; it calls on the Party to frustrate all
attempts by reaction to sow doubts in the ranks of the working
class and underestimation of its strength.
 73

MEETING OF EXECUTIVE
COMMITTEE INTERNATIONAL
ORGANISATION OF JOURNALISTS
A meeting of the Executive Committee of the International
Organisation Journalists took place in Budapest over
November 16-18. There were three items oh the agenda:
1. Report by the General Secretary, M. Hronek.
2. Motion By the Polish Journalists’ Association about
combating the instigators of war.
3. Motian by Hungarian Journalists about protection for
progressive journalists.
A lively discussion took place on each of the three points
and especially on the second item, On the one hand there was
the point of view of the delegates of journalists defending the
interests of democracy and fighting against the instigators of
war and for peace and genuine freedom of the press, and on the
other the viewpoint of the leaders of the Anglo-American
journalists who sought to prevent any discussion of these
questions on the grounds that in their countries there were no
journalists, so they alleged, who were serving the interests of
the instigators of war and conducting war propaganda in the
press.
The Executive Committee carried by an overwhelming
majority a resolution which condemned those press organs and
journalists who are spreading war propaganda and who are
abetting the instigators of war in their criminal work.
The delegations from France, Republican Spain, Hungary,
Rumania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Yugoslavia, the
Soviet Union and Israel voted for the resolution condemning
the instigators of war and also for the resolution calling for
safeguards for progressive journalists and against their
 74

persecution by imperialist Governments in the United States,

Greece and elsewhere.
None voted against the resolutions. The British, Belgian,
Dutch, Swedish and Danish delegations abstained from voting.
The Chairman of the American Newspaper Guild, Martin,
who is also a Marshall Plan adviser on credits for European
countries demonstratively left the hall prior to the vote being
taken.
None however followed his example. Thus Martin’s
manoeuvre which was calculated to disrupt the meeting of the
Executive Committee ended in fiasco.
 75

VERIFICATION OF RUMANIAN
WORKERS’ PARTY ACTIVE
Carrying out the decision of the June Plenum of the Central
Committee, and the decision of the Political Bureau, the
Rumanian Workers’ Party began the verification of the Party
Active during the month of November.
According to the communique of the Central Committee of
the Party, the verification should contribute to the ideological,
political and organisational strengthening of the Party.
Taking place in an atmosphere of the Party to expose and
eliminate the shortcomings and mistakes in the work of the
leading Party and state organs. The verification should lead to
an all round improvement in the personnel of the leading Party
organs by removing those elements, alien to the working class,
to the Party and the people.
It will help to deepen the consciousness and raise the
political level of the members, will strengthen their
revolutionary spirit and class vigilance and will root out alien
influences from the Party.
 76

TREACHEROUS ROLE OF RIGHT

SOCIAL-DEMOCRATS. Lotar
Radaceanu, Secretary, Central
Committee, Workers’ Party of
Rumania
Describing the working-class parties of the old type—the
parties of the Second International formed in the years before
the First World War—Comrade Stalin writes in “Problems of
Leninism” that:
“... the parties of the Second International are unfit for the
revolutionary struggle of the proletariat, they are not militant
parties of the proletariat, leading the workers to power, but
election machines adapted for parliamentary elections and
parliamentary struggle.”
The new period, writes Comrade Stalin, is the period of
open class collisions of revolutionary action by the proletariat,
of proletarian revolution, a period when forces are being
directly mustered for the overthrow of imperialism and when
the seizure of power by the proletariat confronts the proletariat
with new tasks and, above all, with the task of building a party
of the new type, capable of leading the revolutionary struggle
of the working class.
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Bolsheviks),
created under the leadership of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, is such a
party of the new type.
Was it accidental that, when they were faced with the
question of forming a new type of organisation and passing
over to new forms of struggle, the parties of the Second
International did not realise the historical necessity of doing
away with parliamentary cretinism and reorganising
 77

themselves, ideologically and organisationally, in conformity

with the new tasks advanced by the march of history?
No, this was not accidental. The parties of the Second
International were not revolutionary parties. The Right
opportunist, anti-revolutionary elements gained the upper hand
in these parties.
“What will the electorate say?”—this was the thought that
worried the opportunist leaders of the Second International.
They were more concerned with the numerical strength of the
parties than with their ideological and organisational level.
Typical petty-bourgeois: liberalism which had nothing in
common with working-class democracy, was characteristic of
the ideology of the Second International. An application form
was all that was needed to enter the party. The requirements of
the party as the vanguard detachment of the working class, as
the highest form of the class organisation of the proletariat, as
the single will incompatible with the existence of factions—
these were all completely alien to the parties of the Second
International.
Calling themselves Marxist and proletarian parties, they
were, in fact, bourgeois labour parties, both in ideology and in
social take-up, and were dominated by bourgeois elements.
Hence the bitter arguments that centred around the new
ideological, political and organisational principles formulated
by Lenin on the basis of the revolutionary experience gained by
the Russian proletariat in the course of years.
Thus during the second decade of the present century the
international proletariat was split in two. The point was not that
of a correct or incorrect understanding of the Marxist doctrine.
It was a question of the conflict between proletarian and
bourgeois ideology.
Certain proletarian groups which had not clearly grasped
their class positions remained within the Second International.
Differences prevailed and the conflict between the Left and the
 78

Right, between the revolutionary elements and the Right Social

Democrats, continued even after the split. There was a growing
process of differentiation and of sharpening conflicts. While
the Left elements continued to move toward revolutionary
ideology, consciously mastering Marxism-Leninism, the Rights
drew closer to the bourgeoisie until they completely merged
with imperialism.
The revolutionary elements of the Socialist Parties—the
proletarian and other Left elements—began to realise that they
were not on the correct path. Thus, they began to look for the
correct path and are finding it now throughout the fraternal
help of the Communist Parties, first in Unity of action with the
working class and later in political, ideological and
organisational fusion with the Communists.
This is what happened in Rumania and in the other new
democracies.
The process is much slower in the capitalist countries. But
the Italian Socialist Party (with Nenni and Basso), the Socialist
Party for Unity in France, and Left elements in the British
Labour Party are despite vacillations and mistakes, passing in
essentials, through the same process and are gradually taking
the only correct path for Socialist workers.
We must acknowledge from our own experience that there
were also vacillations and unclarity in the camp of the Left
Social-Democrats in Rumania. But the Left Social Democrats
were able to overcome their mistaken conceptions with the
help of the class instinct and revolutionary consciousness of the
masses and with the help of the Rumanian Communist Party.
After World War Two the struggle between the Left and
Right Social Democrats sharpened. And this was not fortuitous.
Contrary to the strivings of the imperialists, the war did not end
the way international reaction had hoped it would. The
capitalist system grew weaker not stronger. The general crisis
of capitalism, vividly illustrated by the situation in Italy,
 79

Britain, France and the United States, intensified.

The land of Socialism, the Soviet Union, far from being
weakened by the struggle against Hitler Germany and her
satellites, grew stronger and has become the most powerful
force in the world. As a result of World War Two, a number of
countries dropped out of the imperialist camp. These countries,
where peoples democracy has developed, are now building
Socialism. This means that the forces of international
Socialism have increased.
In those countries where the working class has not yet
united as forces, those Social Democrats who have not gone
over completely to the bourgeois camp are confronted with the
question, a question clearly and precisely formulated by the
historical situation itself: whether to join the revolutionary
struggle of the international working class against capitalism
arid imperialism, or whether to become the tool of international
capitalism and imperialism?
This explains why the struggle between the Left and Right
Social Democrats has become so acute.
This is why the Left Social Democrats must realise that the
struggle cannot be of an individual sectarian nature, that it must
be waged on a basis of principle, that it must be a struggle to
bring about working-class unity, to understand correctly the
leading role of the Communist Parties, which have applied the
doctrine of Marxism-Leninism organisationally, politically and
ideologically.
Special stress should be laid on Lenin’s brilliant words that
“there can be no revolutionary movement without
revolutionary theory.”
The Left Social Democrats should guide themselves by this
theory for it is the only correct one, through mastering
Marxism-Leninism. They should not be satisfied with a time-
worn collection of Left phrases devoid of any true ideological
content.
 80

Unquestionably, this truth is now being realised. it is

difficult to foresee how much longer this process will continue,
for the objective situation changes much quicker, than the
subjective situation. But it is already obvious that the influence
of the Right Social Democrats over the masses, and particularly
over the working class, is waning to an ever increasing extent.
The rate of this process differs according to the political
situation in each country.
Although they call themselves Socialist parties, and
although some of them even claim that they are following the
teachings of Marx and Engels, those Social Democratic parties
which are headed by Rights, are increasingly becoming
bourgeois, counter-revolutionary parties. They no longer merit
the name even of Social Democrats.
To this day the Social Democratic parties are not
homogeneous from the ideological and social viewpoint. Many
Social Democrats stand at the crossroads in the irreconcilable
struggle between the camp of peace and democracy headed by
the Soviet Union, and the camp of imperialism Those who
support peace and democracy cooperate, and later help to
realise unity of the working class. The Social Democratic
parties which did not take this path were transformed into
bourgeois parties and became agents of imperialism.
An analysis of the struggle waged in the working class
movement during the early period of the split shows that the
policy of the Social democratic parties has served the interests
of the bourgeoisie and counter-revolution and not the interests
of the working class and the revolution.
Many honest Social Democrats, and especially the rank
and file workers, did not consciously follow this line. It was
rather the outcome of an incorrect understanding of the
concrete tasks of the working class. This incorrect conception
was due to bourgeois influence of the ideology of certain
parties, such the case today with the Right Social Democrats?
 81

Of course not.
The Right Social Democrats are enemies of the working
class, enemies of the revolution, enemies of Socialism.
What thesis of Socialist theory Calf Bevin cite in defence
of his policy in Greece? Bevin, the spokesman of the Labour
Party, is supporting and defending monarcho-Fascist reaction
against the Greek people, against the Greek proletariat, against
the Greek Socialist Party itself, with which the labour, Party
comes in contact at international Socialist conferences.
What thesis of Socialist theory can Bevin cite in defence of
the Labour Party’s policy toward Rumania where Britain gave
all-round support to reaction and the followers of Maniu and
Bratianu against the new people’s forces, against the working
class and even against the Rumanian Social Democratic Party?
What thesis of Socialist theory can, Bevin cite in defence
of the Labour Government’s policy aimed at placing the
countries of Europe in bondage to American imperialism, ab.
subordinating these countries to the Marshall Plan, at
destroying their economic and political independence?
Under cover of hypocritical talk about nationalisation, the
Labour Party is also subordinating its own country to American
imperialism.
A united front with capitalism against Socialism—such is
the deliberate policy of the leadership of the British Labour
Party.
And along what channels is Blum guiding the policy of the
French Socialist Party? What thesis of Socialist theory can he
use to explain the fact that the Socialist Party is putting itself
more and more into the service of the French bourgeoisie?
What thesis of Socialist theory call Schumacher cite in
defence of his policy which aims to harness the German
proletariat to the chariot of Anglo-American capitalism? For
Schumacher is viciously resisting any orientation on the land of
Socialism, on a united front of democracy and Socialism—the
 82

only correct Marxist and proletariat orientation.

In the face of such facts the attitude to be adopted toward
the Right Social Democrats is clear. It is the duty of every
worker, every revolutionary, every, honest Social Democrat to
struggle ruthlessly against the Right leaders, to expel them
from the ranks of the working class, and politically to
annihilate their “theories”.
The task of the Marxist parties is to win over the honest
elements in the Social Democratic parties where these parties
still have a basis among the working masses for joint action
with the Communist Parties and all conscious democratic
forces, for working-class unity of the basis of Marxist-Leninist
principles.
 83

THE FRENCH ARMY IN THE SERVICE

OF AMERICAN REACTION. Charles
Tillon, Member Political Bureau,
Central Committee, Communist
Party of France
The liquidation of France’s national defence military
consequence of the Marshall plan which demands that the
French Army should be placed at the service of American
imperialism.
Such was the decision taken at the Brussels Five Power
conference (Britain, France, Belgium, Holland and
Luxemburg) where a military bloc of these countries was
formed. The conference of War Ministers held in Paris in
September this year was another stage on the way to France’s
enslavement.
The conference adopted the following decisions:
1. To place the armed forces of the five countries under the
command of a permanent military committee under Field-
Marshal Montgomery who is himself a subordinate of the
Anglo-American General Staff which has its headquarters in
the United States.
2. This committee is to draw up the strategic and tactical
plans of the “Western military bloc”.
3. The committee is also to decide the composition and
coordination of the command at various levels, the production
and standardisation of arms in each of the five countries and
also to set up a joint office for war materials covering the
whole of the Western Onion.
4. Finally, the committee will decide how to use war bases
in the West European countries and their colonies, and also the
 84

troops these countries.

After taking these decisions, the five partners turned to
thee United States with an appeal for war supplies and credits
and also for a new lend-lease which, as stated in the U.S. will
be given on condition that Marshall Aid is reduced.
The French Army as such no longer exists. It has been
officially placed under foreign command. It has two missions
first to supply the “Western military bloc” with manpower and
bases; secondly to “maintain order” inside the country.
For the first, ‘the French command must supply
considerable military units—infantry, transport and
communications. These will compliment the foreign units
which for their part must supply heavy artillery and
mechanised troops.
Another aspect of this role of the French Army is evident
from the growing disproportion between the combat units in
the true meaning of the term and the tremendously swollen
sapper and supply services.
This disproportion is explained by the desire of the
organisers of the Western military bloc to make French
territory a base for maintenance and repair shops to serve the
military units of the other countries in the bloc.
As for “maintaining order”—the aim is to mobilise
sufficient troops to suppress any mass movement in the
country. Special units, such as air-borne troops which are
mostly formed from criminal elements often recruited at prison
gates, are to be used for the dirty war of anti-democratic
repression.
The disposition of military units corresponds to these two
tasks.
For example, military camps are to be found round the
outskirts of Paris; military units destined for special duties are
scattered all over the country; the number of arms states in
each military zone is increasing.
 85

There are two types of units in the army: mobile and

territorial. The mobile units include paratroops, mechanised,
armoured and infantry units. These have a small complement
of men but are extremely mobile, working directly under
government orders to be thrown into any region considered to
be “in danger”.
The territorial units, composed of battalions and small
detachments or infantry are under the orders of regional
commanders and district prefects. Their job is to defend
“strategic objectives” (mines, power stations, factories, railway
stations and so on) and to “maintain order”. If necessary, these
small units can be reinforced with reserves.
Such a disposition of military units represents in fact a kind
of military occupation of France by her own army, now under
command of the imperialist General Staff.
As to the size of the French Army—the fact is that when
the Communists were still in the Government, it was decided
that by December 31, 1946, the number of men in the army
would be brought up to 495,000. But by 1947 it was at least
580,000. In 1948 this figure went up to 757,300. Together with
the irregular units recruited particularly from the occupation
zones of Germany and Austria, the French Army now actually
exceeds the 800,000 mark, including no less than 490,000
professional soldiers.
The land forces constitute 77 per cent of the entire armed
forces. Apart from those now serving in the army, the
Government can mobilise three age groups: the second
contingent of the 1943 call-up, the first and second contingents
of the 1946 call-up and the first contingent of the 1947 call-up
about 600,000 men in all.
However, even the regular units have neither sufficient nor
standardised arms. New contingents called up would have to be
armed with light German, French and American weapons of
varying types.
 86

Such is the situation in the French Army, an infantry army

where the tanks, aircraft and fleet will be provided by the U.S.
and Britain.
In these circumstances, the appointment of a French
general to the post of Chief of General Staff of the Western
military bloc land forces merely proves the subordination of
France to the imperialists’ military plans.
The “New York Times” called this appointment “a
concession to French prestige”. It is known that General Iuin,
who is now engaged in turning Morocco and North Africa into
an American base, refused this post, declaring he did not want
to be Montgomery’s “adjutant”.
The French Army which has been drawn into the Western
military bloc, is, in the eyes of its new masters, a purely
mercenary army. It is to be cannon fodder in the aggressive war
on the continent which the imperialist forces are preparing.
Without considering here all the contradictions at work in
the Western military bloc from Trizonia to Gibraltar and from
London to Washington, it is necessary to stress that although
France has a considerable army, the first measure taken in
connection with the Marshall Plan was to eliminate these
industries in our country which could produce materials
necessary for national defence.
This is most clearly seen in the aviation industry. In 1946,
60,000 people were engaged on the production of parts for
civilian and military planes, In 1948, this figure slumped to
30,000 and recently the Government decided to reduce it to
23,000. Even greater cuts have taken place in the production of
airscrews; all designing has either been stopped or is being
carried out on orders for the Americans and the British.
France is covered with a network of British Radar
installations. The French air force has become part of the
British air force. Britain will supply France with jet fighters
while the U.S. will supply her with strategic aviation. France’s
 87

national air-construction scientific bureau, an extremely

valuable institution, is controlled by American secret agents.
The ports of Toulon and Cherbourg are in danger of shutting
down.
The standardisation of arms agreed upon by the Five States
is being carried out under American control. It covers the
production of all war materials in Western Europe. At the same
time another question is being raised—that of increasing output
of certain products for which transportation to Europe would
be too expensive and would need large military escorts in case
of war. In view of this, the change in the Franco American
grain policy is interesting. The Washington agreement fixed
the obligatory imports of American wheat to France at 975,000
metric tons a year. This decision meant a considerable cut in
France’s wheat production. Now, however, the U.S. has
ordered the French Government to intensify corn cultivation
during the next few years in consideration of transport
difficulties which might arise in case of war.
While the French people demand that Vyshinsky’s
proposal to cut armaments by one-third made on behalf the
Soviet Union to the United Nations General Assembly should
be accepted, the Right Socialist Ramadier Minister of National
Defence, is insisting on modern American armaments. Even
supposing that he may some time get these arms, they will have
to be paid for. However, the French military budget of 450,000
million francs (including war expenditure in Indo-China) will
prove to be insufficient in view of the recent devaluation of the
franc. This gives a good idea of the financial whirlpool into
which France is being driven by the maintenance of a “Western
Infantry army” in which the officer and men suffer the
humiliation of no longer being able to bear the name of a
French Army.
Thus, the French Army has been reduced to the state of a
new anti-Bolshevik League whose task is not to fight in
 88

defence of French territory which can only be attacked from

the East by a re-armed German army which has not been
denazified, but to fight in defence of the interests of the
imperialists who are now utilising all the fascist forces they
managed to save from the last war.
The “Daily Mail” wrote that Spain and the West were
solidly together, while Truman and Marshall were sending
more and more emissaries to Madrid. Experience has shown
that those who are friendly with France are always preparing a
stroke against France.
Governor Clay recently stated that in addition to the 414
million dollars accorded to Western Germany under the
Marshall Plan, 700 million dollars have been supplied by the
American Army. He added that it was the first time in history
that such efforts had been made from without to put a defeated
country on its feet again. Experience has shown that a
Germany rebuilt with the help of British or American
imperialism will always serve as the preparation for a new
war—and France knows well what a terrible burden this is.
Experience has also shown that France, from which the
Soviet Union neither makes demands nor threatens, can
guarantee her security, prevent war and preserve peace and
independence only through an alliance with the Soviet Union.
By trying to turn the French Army into a mercenary army
of the imperialist warmongers, into an aggressive army against
the Soviet Union and the new democracies, the American party
of Blum and de Gaulle are betraying all the interests of the
French people.
This is why the slogan of the French Communist Party—
the people of France will never fight against the Soviet
Union—warmly taken up by broad sections of our people, is
also gaining ground in he French Army.
This is why the struggle to free France from foreign
trusteeship is gaining momentum—the struggle to win back the
 89

political, economic and military independence, to set up a

democratic government which, with the participation of the
Communists, could end the catastrophic policy of the
American Party in France and give the country a national army
corresponding to our needs built on the basis of our
independence and on the loyalty of our friendship and our
alliance with the Soviet Union, without which France’s
security, is nothing but an illusion.
 90

THE MARSHALL PLAN—

INSTRUMENT OF ENSLAVING THE
PEOPLES. Harry Pollitt, General
Secretary, Executive Committee,
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Harvard speech of June 5, 1947 in which Mr. Marshall
enunciated, his “Plan”, was taken up by Mr. Bevin, foreign
Secretary of the British Government who, with fulsome praise,
described it as “one of the greatest speeches in the world’s
history”.
Not to be outdone in the making of such deceptive
propaganda, Leon Blum promptly joined in the chorus by his
declaration:
“For my part I believe in the true disinterestedness of the
United States… American aid to Europe shows an almost
religious conception of the duties of solidarity.”
The world is now beginning to see what are the real aims
of the Marshall Plan and the significance of the American
leaders chosen to administrate the Plan. Every American
connected with it in any outstanding administrative capacity is
in fact one of the most aggressive representatives of American
big business on the one hand, and an avowed enemy of
everything the working class movement stands for on the other.
While the leaders of Social Democracy have tumbled over
themselves to praise “America’s generosity’’, the American
millionaires and trust magnates have left no thinking person
under any illusions about their intentions.
Long before the Marshall Plan appeared, the United States
had been staking its claims in many parts of the world. It was
particularly active in the Middle East, Greece, Turkey, India, in
 91

Malaya and Burma and in increasing its capital penetration into

Canada and Australia. All these steps were indicative of the
intention of the U.S. to take the position that British
imperialism had previously occupied. But American expansion
was naturally hidden under the deceitful propaganda of the
Governments forming the Western Union to the effect that
“there was no alternative to accepting American assistance.”
Leaders of Social Democracy, in particular, created the
atmosphere that helped to deceive people into believing that
with American assistance all was lost and there would have to
be an enormous reduction in existing working-class standards
of living:
In fact there was a real alternative. This is shown by the
example of the countries which have rejected onerous U.S. aid.
By changing their structure and planning their economies,
these countries are eliminating capitalist crises and raising the
living standards of their people. These facts have been hidden
or distorted by the barrage of lies of the right wing Social
Democrats. The Bevins and Blums concentrated their attacks
on the Socialist Soviet Union and the new democracies.
The right-wing Social-Democrats hid the fact that the
colonial countries, if they really won their freedom, could
become potent sources of world economic recovery, and that it
was the duty and in the interests of the people of Western
Europe to aid and support the colonial people in their fight
against imperialism. Instead they are engaged in colonial war
and repression in Malaya, Viet Nam, Burma and other colonial
countries.
However hypocritical the supporters of the Marshall Plan
may be about its altruistic aims, the United States spokesmen
make no pretence about what lies behind it. It was to help
postpone the inevitable economic crisis in the U.S.; to make
Europe and Asia economically dependent on the products of
American industry whilst weakening the basic economies of all
 92

countries accepting Marshall Aid. It is also part of the war aims

of the U.S. against the Soviet Union and the new democracies.
But even among those who in the first stages were among
the ardent advocates of the Plan, a serious heartburning has set
in. This disquiet developed more sharply as the question of the
conditions attached to the Plan became more clearly
understood and because of the Fuehrer-like language used by
Mr. Hoffman, the principal administrator of the Plan.
For example, on May 14, Hoffman was asked whether the
process of nationalisation in Britain would be halted as a result
of adopting Marshall Aid. He said that they “planned to set up
a very strong mission in Britain” and added, “we think we can
ensure money is not wasted by channelling it in the proper
direction”.
Hoffman later insisted that America still had the last word
in all Marshall Aid countries’ recovery plans and warned that
“dollars can be cut off from any nation that sends war goods—
whether American or home-produced—across the iron
curtain”.
Month by month the shall now witness increasing
interference in the domestic affairs of nations receiving
Marshall assistance, There is a growing understanding that for
countries like Britain, American pressure will more and more
increase.
Never in Britain’s history has such an agreement with such
far-reaching economic and political powers by one country
over another nominally independent country been imposed.
Article II subjects Britain to achieving production targets
decided by the American dominated Organisation for
European Economic Recovery. It revokes the final control by
the British Government over its monetary and trade policy.
Article IV creates a special sterling account to the dollar
value of the grants. Such funds are specifically stated to be
under the control of the U.S. and can be spent only with its
 93

approval—affording unlimited opportunities for pressure and

interference.
Article V mainly designed to further American economic
penetration of British Colonial possessions. It establishes that
Britain must supply the raw materials for American
stockpiling. It makes “arrangements providing suitable
protection for the right of access of any citizen of the United
States of America or any corporation… in the development of
such materials.”
This agreement is without parallel in history and represents
surrender of Britain’s economic sovereignty to the U.S. It
brands with shame the falsehood of Bevin when in a debate on
foreign policy in the British Parliament on January 22, 1948, he
stated:
“There is no political motive behind the Marshall offer
other than the overriding motive to help Europe to help
herself”.
But the truth cannot be hidden. Other Cabinet Ministers,
quite unwittingly of course, have exposed the Bevin falsehood.
On May 6, 1948, Sir Stafford Cripps stated that Britain
would have to agree under the Marshall plan not to
manufacture certain types of goods that might compete with
other E.R.P. countries.
The American interference with the direction and methods
of British export trade may prove to be the most important of
the “Marshall” interferences with British industry.
The American trusts have all along been concerned that
Britain should not have the chance to extricate herself from the
dollar grip by establishing trade agreements with countries that
can send her dollar free raw materials in exchange.
The Congress sub-Committee on Marshall Aid for Britain
(the Kunkel Committee) last March stressed:
“The desirability of studying the export programmes of the
U.K. which appears to involve the allocation of the bulk of the
 94

critical items urgently needed by other Western European

nations to areas outside the O.E.E.C. countries… A similar
problem is raised by British exports of machinery and
equipment to the U.S.S.R. It might appear that the U.K. is thus
able to select the most advantageous future markets while the
bulk of American exports of similar critical items is channelled
into areas of little future value for our export trade.”
The development of trade with Eastern Europe (one of the
important sources of food and raw materials) is limited under
the Mundt amendment, which give the U.S. right to “screen”
every single trade transaction of Britain with non-Marshall
Europe, and to veto the export of any item for which the U.S.
would not issue an export license.
According to press reports, this included machine-tools,
machinery, transport and mining equipment, and it could, of
course, extend to anything the Americans chose.
But, further than this, measures are being taken to channel
Britain’s trade especially toward Europe. The direct pressure to
remove Imperial Preferences (so far mainly resisted) is only
one way and not the most important, for America to get a
chance to expand in Dominion markets. Even more effective is
to direct Britain’s exports of scarce goods largely to Western
Europe, where she cannot be paid in kind, but only in borrowed
dollars, and where the markets are in any case abnormal and
temporary.
The Americans and the British have, throughout, disagreed
on the amount of steel Britain could expect to consume.
Repeatedly the State Department has declared Britain’s targets
for steel production and for steel-using industries such as
shipbuilding, vehicles and agricultural machinery to be
excessive and has demanded that they be scaled down.
For other engineering products the position is similar. For
example, British production targets at Paris were:
 95

1948 1951
Lorries 142,000 155,000
Goods wagons 59,000 76,000

The Americans considered these should be reduced—

slightly for lorries and about 15% for goods wagons, and
agricultural machinery targets by 50-60%.
Before the war, Britain imported about one and a quarter
million tons of iron and steel a year. In 1948, imports were
under one-third of the pre-war level despite the greatly
increased steel production and requirements.
The considerable import of iron and steel scrap has now
entirely ceased. U.S. pre-war exports of steel-making materials
and pig-iron have almost entirely given way to exports of iron
and semi-finished products. No better evidence of Britain’s
growing colonial status can be given than the following table
published in the “British Iron and Steel Federation Bulletin”
(July, 1948):

U. S. exports in 1,000 tons monthly

1938 1947 1948

(based on
1st 3 mns.)
Iron & steel scrap 249.2 14.4 17.5
Pig Iron 36.1 3.0 1.9
Total iron & steel
products 180.2 513.2 441.6

It was estimated by a British official mission in 1948 that

there were 5-10 million tons of scrap surplus to German
requirements lying around in the Bizone of Germany.
However, because of U.S. resistance there have been great
difficulties in getting much of this to Britain.
 96

In view of the great importance to Britain of its shipping

earnings, the provision under E.C.A. that 50% of goods should
be carried in American ships, represents a blow at a basic
British industry.
In connection with shipbuilding, the State Department
wrote:
“Attention is called to the possibility of chartering
additional surplus dry cargo ships by this Government in the
participating countries, to permit immediate utilisation of
European steel production in industries which are more vital to
recovery than dry cargo ship-building”.
It was proposed in this report that chartering of U.S.
tonnage to European countries should be made conditional on a
reduction in their dry cargo shipbuilding programmes. This
means using the slow and dear U.S. tonnage instead of British
merchant ships.
This “desire” of the U.S. had an immediate effect. On
January 12, Sir Stafford Cripps announced the revised steel
allocations for 1948 and said that there would be a cut in the
allocation of steel to the shipbuilding industry of “nearly one-
fifth of the 1917 deliveries.” However, this was subsequently
increased (February 6), the final cut below 1947 deliveries
being estimated in March at about 15%.
When Comrade Zhdanov made his historical report to the
Conference of a number of Communist Parties in September
1947, he stated :
“A special task devolves on the fraternal Communist
Parties of France, Italy, Great Britain and other countries. They
must take up the standard in defence of the national
independence and sovereignty of their countries. If the
Communist Parties firmly stick to their position; if they do not
allow themselves to be intimidated and blackmailed, if they act
as courageous sentinels of lasting peace and people’s
democracy, of national sovereignty, liberty and independence
 97

of their countries, if, in their struggle against the attempts to

economically and politically enthral their countries, they are
able to take the lead of all the forces prepared to uphold the
national honour and independence, no plans for the
enthralment of Europe can possibly succeed.
It is essential that this statement should now be studied
with even greater care and attention. For the stronger the fight
that is waged in all countries now under American domination
for the development of new political and economic relations
with the Soviet Union and the new democracies, the less
dependent will such nations be upon the United States of
America and in that way their national sovereignty and
independence can be safeguarded, domination by Wall Street
millionaires and trust magnates avoided and a new and lasting
basis laid for world peace and possibilities for social progress
and advance.
 98

TITO CLIQUE’S ADVENTUROUS

POLICY HAS LED YUGOSLAVIA INTO
A BLIND ALLEY. N. PUKHLOV
The Tito clique’s policy of bourgeois nationalism and
political adventurism is disarming Yugoslavia in the face of her
internal enemies and endangering the gains of her working
people.
One of the immediate results of Tito’s criminal policy is a
serious economic deterioration in the country. This is
confirmed by everyone arriving from Yugoslavia, by letters
from Yugoslav Communists and even by official data.
The economic plans are not being fulfilled. For instance,
figures for the first half of the second year of the Five Year
Plan show that only 31 per cent of the target has been reached.
The plan is not going well even on the building of the New
Belgrade and on the Belgrade-Zagreb highway, jobs which are
directly under the “auspices” of Tito, Djilas, Kardelj and
Rankovic. Work on these projects is going slowly and without
enthusiasm. Criminal adventurism in planning has meant that
newly-built enterprises stand idle for months waiting for
equipment to be installed. Adventurism in planning is resulting
in reserves of materials being exhausted. The shortage of
materials and specialists and the bad organisation of food
supplies are resulting in labour being wasted and workers
exhausted.
Plans at enterprises and construction sites are only being
fulfilled by overstraining the capacity of the workers. The sick
rate among industrial workers, especially building workers, is
high and there is considerable fluctuation of labour.
Due to the shortage at housing and provisions in the
industrial centres, workers are leaving enterprises and
 99

construction sites and are returning to the countryside.

This state of affairs is forcing Rankovic to take special
measures to ensure “volunteers” for the construction sites.
Thus, in the early hours of August 29, house to house searches
were made in Belgrade and all young people without
documents proving they were employed were arrested and sent
under guard to work on the Belgrade-Zagreb road. The same
thing happened in other cities on other dates.
A similar state of affairs exists on the railways.
Industry’s inability to fulfil production programmes
together with the bad work of the railways is dislocating trade
turnover and is especially affecting agricultural supplies to the
towns. At the beginning of the year a decree was issued
allowing grain to be sold freely. But before long it became
clear that the plan would not be fulfilled even by half. So a new
order made grain deliveries obligatory. But this is not running
at all smoothly. The kulaks who control more than 40 per cent
of the country’s marketable grain are sabotaging deliveries and
the poor peasants have nothing to deliver.
Even according to the official—and considerably
exaggerated—data of the Tanug Agency, the plan for deliveries
has only been fulfilled by 70 per cent. The situation with regard
to meat supplies is no better.
Deliveries of meat are going badly. Everywhere the
peasants are unwilling to hand over their cattle. Rankovic is
sending his henchmen into the countryside to take cattle from
the peasants by force.
Another outcome of the treacherous policy of the Tito
clique is that living conditions are steadily deteriorating. The
workers’ standard of living dropped by 50 per cent between
1946 and 1948. The situation with regard to food and
manufactured goods is particularly bad. Even essential
commodities are difficult to procure. The newspaper “Glas”
which, obviously prefers not to write about the true state of
 100

affairs, commented on the markets at Valjevo, Zrjanjanin,

Treica, Kragujevac, Kraljevo, Krusevac, Subotica, Novi Sad,
Nish and other towns. The newspaper admitted that “although
there has been an improvement in supplies of vegetables and
fruit, the general food situation in all these towns is
unsatisfactory. The provisions supplied to the markets and the
state trading network are not sufficient to satisfy the needs of
the population”.
Such is the situation throughout the country. Consumer
goods and many other essentials have disappeared from the
market.
Only on the black market is it possible to buy footwear,
kerosene, sugar, meat and similar essentials.
This situation is the result of the adventurous policy of the
Tito clique. Supplies got considerably worse after the Leftist
laws nationalising small-scale industrial and trading
enterprises. ln its well-known Resolution on the situation in the
Communist Party of Yugoslavia, the Information Bureau of the
Communist and Workers’ Parties pointed out that: “The
Yugoslav leaders hastily decreed the nationalisation of medium
industry and trade, though the basis for this is completely
unprepared. In view of such haste the new decision only
hampers the supply of goods to the population”. This is exactly
what has happened. Most of the nationalised shops are closed.
There are very few goods in the shops that are still open and in
most cases people are still served by the old proprietors who
are now working for the state.
The grain tax legislation is another Leftist measure which
has held up supplies to the towns and has hit the living
standards of the poor peasants. In its Resolution the
Information Bureau also warned that a similar hasty
introduction of a grain tax for which the ground was not
prepared could only dislocate grain supplies to the urban
population. The new law established mutually binding prices.
 101

Deliveries are partly paid for in money and for the remainder
the peasant is given coupons which entitle him to manufactured
goods at special state prices.
This law is to the advantage of the kulaks since they have
the goods to deliver, while it hits the poor peasant who has
nothing to sell. And so the kulaks and well-to-do farmers have
the coupons which enable them to buy industrial goods.
In his report of October 2 on how the Five Year Plan was
being fulfilled, Kidric admitted that “the kulaks and the
speculators in the countryside have managed to get hold of
many more coupons for goods than were necessary”. The
kulaks are buying up goods.
In some places, coupons have already become a method of
payment and are functioning as money. In some villages kulaks
are paying their farm labourers in coupons. In this way the
Leftist laws are helping to enrich the kulaks and impoverish the
broad masses of the peasantry.
One of the latest Leftist measures concerns the “purchase”
of hogs from rich peasants. This is widely advertised in
Yugoslavia as “a significant measure to improve supplies”, and
a “new step toward restricting and liquidating the capitalist
elements”. This measure, like the nationalisation of the
medium industrial and trading enterprises and the grain tax was
introduced to a hasty, military fashion and without the
necessary preparations.
To enforce the decisions, Tito’s officials made wide use of
the militia and the army to suppress the occasional stubborn
resistance of the peasants. In some places matters went so far
that representatives of the local authorities were killed and
there were clashes with the militia.
By means of these Leftist measures the Tito clique hopes it
can prevent the people from seeing that the country is being led
into a blind alley.
Last June the Information Bureau described the measures
 102

of Tito and his henchmen as an “adventurous tactic” designed

to deceive the masses of Yugoslavia.‘
The Tito clique is deliberately heading towards the
enslavement of Yugoslavia by the Anglo-American
imperialists. It has already established close economic contact
with Britain and America.
As is known, the financial agreement signed between
America and Yugoslavia on July 19 settled among other
questions that of the nationalised property of Americans in
Yugoslavia. The State Department has announced that the
United States has already received 17 million dollars from
Yugoslavia on the basis of this agreement. In addition. the
Yugoslav Government has undertaken other obligations
including recognition of loans totalling 38,500,000 dollars
granted to former Yugoslav governments. Yugoslavia has also
negotiated a trade agreement with Britain and has agreed on
compensation for nationalised British property.
In this way the nationalist and reckless policy of the Tito
clique has resulted in the country’s economic deterioration and
a sharp drop in the standard of living while at the same time the
capitalist elements in town and countryside are growing and
consolidating and the subordination of the country’s economy
to Anglo-American capital has started.
Tito and his henchmen are concealing the truth from the
people. But in spite of this there are fewer and fewer people in
in the country who believe in the Tito “infallibility”.
“Rabotnichesko Delo” in its November 25 issue published a
letter from Belgrade reporting a meeting of 104 people—
Communists and non Communists—representing various
Yugoslav factories and offices which was held in Belgrade on
October 11.
Having discussed the situation in the Yugoslav Communist
Party and in the country, the members of the meeting addressed
a letter to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of
 103

Yugoslavia in which they declared that the incorrect and

harmful policy of the Central Committee was giving rise to
considerable concern among broad sections of the people.
“The line of the Central Committee of the Communist
Party of Yugoslavia during the past year,” says the letter, “not
only represents, a deviation from Marxism-Leninism, but is
also in contradiction to the interests of the country and the
working people. The numbers of arrests both of Party members
and non-Party people show that the Central Committee of the
Communist Party of Yugoslavia, particularly Rankovic, are
using the methods of Hitler even against those who are only
suspected of being in agreement with the Information Bureau
Resolution.
“The Yugoslav leaders,” the letter continues, “do not want
unity with the Communist Parties of the fraternal democratic
countries, nor with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
(Bolsheviks).”
The letter points out that the peoples, of Yugoslavia are not
in solidarity with this splitting activity of the Central
Committee of the Yugoslav Communist Party. The Yugoslav
Communists are rebelling against this policy, against those
who by terrorist methods, are deflecting the Party onto the path
of Trotskyism and revisionism.
“The prisons filled to overflowing, the naked threats and
the removal of those who question the correctness of the policy
of Tito and his group,” it goes on, “show that in Yugoslavia
instead of dictatorship of the proletariat there is a dictatorship
of a ruling clique consisting of a handful of traitors. But this
will not deflect the Communists of our country in their efforts
to overthrow this leadership and elect a new Central
Committee.”
The letter concludes by saying: “We Communists and non-
Party workers in the factories and offices of Belgrade
unanimously condemn the activity of the Central Committee of
 104

the Yugoslav Communist Party and demand that it be changed.

“We .welcome the Resolution of the Information Bureau
and call upon all toilers, upon all Communists and members of
the Communist Youth League, and all non-party people to
follow our example.” No longer sure of the ground under its
feet, the Tito clique is trying to strengthen its position in every
way. They are carrying out a wholesale purge of the state
apparatus. All “unreliable” persons are removed from official
posts, from offices and enterprises. A special commission is
carrying through an intensified purge of the Communist Party.
Together with Party members, the commission includes
members of the People’s Front.
Terror is growing in the countryside but it cannot
intimidate the Yugoslav peoples who passed through the grim
school of struggle in the war of liberation against the Hitler
invaders and whose heroic exploits are known to all. The
Communists of Yugoslavia know that they are not alone in the
struggle against the Tito clique. In their fight against Tito and
company they are relying on the moral support of the fraternal
Communist Parties. The speedier the struggle develops, the
speedier will the Communist Party and the working people of
Yugoslavia be able to rid themselves of the nationalist Tito
clique. In his speech of November 6, 1948 dedicated to the 31st
Anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution
Comrade Molotov said:
“The treachery of the leading nationalist group in
Yugoslavia has done great damage to her people but there can
be no doubt that the Communist Party of Yugoslavia on its
Internationalist traditions will find the way which will enable
Yugoslavia to rejoin the closely knit family which embraces
the U.S.S.R. and the new democracies”.

EDITORIAL BOARD
 105

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Printed and Published in Rumania, Journal “For a Lasting

Peace, for a People’s Democracy” appears on the 1st, and 15th
of every month. Address of Editorial Office and of Publishing
House: Bucharest, Valeriou Braniste, 56. Tel: 5.10.59.