What is Russian communism?

Media

Part of The Carolinian

Title: What is Russian communism?
Creator: Forrest, M. D.
Language: English
Year: 1952
Rights
Abstract: Fifth installment.
Fulltext: W hat Is Russian A Slavery Worse Than Death SEVERAL of the writers to whom I have referred in this work have given incon testable proofs that millions and mil lions of persons have been con demned to slavish labor in circum stances, in comparison with which the negro slaves in Uncle Tom's Cabin enjoyed an earthly paradise! Let me introduce to our readers one whose name some of them have already probably met, Vladimir Petrov. In This Week Magazine (July 10, 1948) appears an article from Petrov, who is the only known Dalstroy survivor in America, and who is now on the faculty of Yale University. An article, as an in troductory explanation of Petrov's story, is contributed by Corey Ford, under the title Stalin's Mountain of Gold, in which an account is given of “a grim gold rush" carried on "in the mystery land of Arctic Siberia" in the most tragic circum stances. This fabulous gold strike is in the Kolyma district of North east Siberia, taken ever in 1931 as a Soviet government project known as Dalstroy. "At a terrible cost in loves," writes Corey Ford, " a start was made on a harbor, a town, a 350mile all weather Kolyma Road from Magadan to the gold fields. Ex haustion, typhus and executions de cimated the ranks of the slave la borers — but on they came, by the shipload, year in and year out. "There is no telling how many persons have died in the grim 16year history of Dalstroy. Petrov es timates that at least 100,000 of his fellow prisoners died during his own six-year term. Their nameless bo dies, stripped of clothing, were dumped into the very ground from which the yellow metal had been taken." This last sentence is like an echo of Alexeev's statement of his exper iences as a boy in the U.S.S.R.: "I saw Red militia-men bring fifteen wagonloads of naked corpses into the streets of my home town as a notice that a peasant revolt had been crushed." "In some ways," says Vladimir Petrov, "it is better to be a slave than to be free in Russia today. The citizen is always afraid of Sta lin's police. But with a prisoner the worst has already happened. There is no fear — not even of death. A slave in Siberia does not care much if he dies." "Back in the prison in Lenin grad," writes Petrov, "I remember seeing in the room of the NKVD commandant a Soviet slogan: It is better to arrest ten innocent than to leave one criminal free.' " While a second year student at Leningrad Engineering Institute in 1935, the year of the great purge, Vladimir Petrov was arrested as the result of a raid on his rooms, in stigated by a jealous girl who was an agent of the NKVD and had planted in his apartment some books that no Soviet citizen is al lowed to read. Dragged to jail and given a mock trial, Petrov was sen tenced to six years' hard labor in Siberia. From his article I Escaped Alive I cull but a few of the many tragic facts he narrates: On the ice-bound steamer Dzhurma 2,500 slaves pe rished of cold in 1933 . . . When a prisoner froze his finger, a doctor merely hacked off the frozen finger with a knife . . . The rate of mor tality, due to cold, disease, hunger, and sheer exhaustion, was terrifi cally high. Men who dropped in their tracks were hauled to the exe cution camp and shot as "sabo teurs." In Kolyma, in 1938 alone, there were 70,000 deaths ... Only the hardiest peasants survived a full term of penal servitude in the gold mines... A special execution camp was established for each gold field Administration, nicknamed "The Meat Grinder," where those who had been sentenced by the NKVD, without trial, were brought, compelled to dig their own graves, stripped of their clothes (which were to be redistributed later to new pri soners), stood behind the holes they dug, and mowed down by machine guns. Terrorized "Confessions" One of the authors best qualified to write on Russian Communism is Freda Utley, an English lady who was educated in Switzerland and England, a university graduate of varied distinctions, correspondent of the Manchester Guardian (in Japan, 1928-29), married to a Russian, a resident with her husband in the U.S.S.R. from 1930 to 1936, and em ployed in Russia during those years first as a specialist in the Cotton Industry and then as a "Senior Scientific Worker" at the Institute of World Economy and Politics in the Academy of Sciences. When her (Continued on page 16) March, 1952 Page 15 OI AN WANTS THIS PEACE. It is not a peace for a single group wherein they could huddle with contentment the fruits of orderliness in a small society, but is a world peace. The peace must altogether be among all men re gardless of color, belief, and creed. It beacons into the darkness of the archaic dividedness amongst na tions, it is a new light purged into the mentality of man modeme for a synthesized dependency upon each other. It does not call for things material, but for things of the spirit. For peace exists in spirit; en masse the minds must conglo merate in meeting on a common ground. Thus we have in our generation a titanic attempt to have one. Twice have we organized as nations to have one but failed. And present ly, we seem to be organized into a single world citizenry with two sha dows falling from the single whole: Both are constantly moving in op posite directions. We pose as one yet the lights of our true inclina tions do not lie; for we are of two, and are not one. We have to shoot cold wars, very deadly cold wars causing the loss of many lives and resources. Hence, our generation has become over-diplomatic and artificial; we use Colgate smiles and wave our hands enthusiastically to our friends passing by while our backyard is on fire Or we calmly make a good handclasp in a toast while our WHAT husband was arrested and, with out trial, condemned to a concen tration camp, she left Russia and has since held high offices of trust and, as correspondent, has contri buted valuable articles to various newspapers of note. This talented lady is also the authoress of more than half-a-dozen excellent books. Freda Utley is gifted with a ta lent that is not common amongst writers: she has the knack of say ing multum in parvo — of being IS RUSSIAN COMMUNISM? friend's body is almost dead by the poison we. dropped into his cup! Is this the generation who wants peace? When we adhere to two irreconciliable ideologies, Commu nism and Democracy? First, we must look at the march of man, into the roots of his obsta cle for when unearthed the two sha dows fall into one; for it is as the same man who stands against the parabolic curves of fate, destiny in evitable, with the sharp refractions of his own aspirations. The fate is inevitable for it is the creation of his time — born with diverting ideo logies, while he craves for his own unity. He cannot be a hamlet; yet he is not content to say like a toad that mud and water are one. The UN assemblage is the mir ror where the pyramidical set-up, a paragon of peace, our world's civilization is reflected. There one can see on the summit of its sym metry the pennant of the united world in its middle half are en graved the names of the nations in this world; and at the bottom is the foundation composed of millions of mankind. What is stupendous above is only the abstraction of the magna nimity below. Without strong foundations the pyramid would col lapse. Unless the countries are in tegrated within themselves first, the pennant of the united world will fall, and without the fullness in the heart and spirit of its people the (Continued from page 15) able to state clearly and concisely what another writer might require more space to narrate in a less tell ing manner. Her pamphlet Why I Ceased To Be A Communist (Cath olic Information Society, N.Y.C.) is a model of verve, conciseness, and precision. The very opening para graph arrests the reader's attention: Paradoxical as it sounds, I ceased to be a Communist for the same reasons which originally led me to become one. The liberal as(Continued on page 21) nations will topple down, then, lo, great will be the fall! For while we congregate for peace, with other nations in the halls of the UN our brothers at home shoot against brothers and be smirch our soil on this earth with fratricidal blood. And as we meet in the UN for peace, we arm ourselves, then shout for peace! We hold to the face of the po pulace a live white pigeon of peace, but our sleeves stink with blood and gunpowder, then denounce war! We ceased to be our brothers' keepers, and are amused at our peace. What is bad above should be worst below. It is manifested in our hearts, the far cry from the humble Family two thousand years ago; for charity begins at home, so to quote. It was in the hearts of these Three where sprang the first true love for peace. The herald for the Newly-Born called for Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men, and He said, Love thy neighbors as thy self. That alone will suffice for our unpeace. The things inculcated in an in dividual's early life will remain; no amount of effort can efface it. The heart will remain morbid as it has been made to be so, or charitable if it were taught to be. It starts from home and ends at home; the black remains black and the pure remains pure. If man, who seeks for peace, would for a moment sink from his bold stand and ponder to search himself what heart he possesses, then, he should not be surprised to find his heart not entirely pure. This is the reason for the failure of his attempts to have the most coveted laurels of peace. For, only by heart alone can there be peace; a world peace: the spirit of peace in his mind emanates from his heart. Peace is heart! Page 16 THE CAROLINIAN ALUMNI HOMECOMING On the occasion of the alumni homecoming for this year, more than two hundred alumni from different places honored the occasion by attending the traditional Faculty - Alumni banquet. The new lawyers and pharma cists who made brilliant records in the bar and board examinations were invited as honored guests. In an impromptu program, with the genial Vice-President of the U.S.C. Alumni Association, Dr. Osmundo Rama, as emcee, after din ner speeches were delivered. Con gressman Miguel Cuenco, one of the distinguished alumni, made a stirring speech about San Carlos and her role in the education of the youth. Mons. Esteban Montecillo, also an alumnus, gave an instruc tive and entertaining short talk. Pres. Jesus P. Garcia of the Alumni Association thanked the adminis tration and the alumni for their cooperation and reviewed the ac tivities of the organization as well as the future plans. Very Reverend Albert V. Gansewinkel, as Rector of the University and Spiritual Mo derator of the Association, closed the program with an inspiring ad dress, thanking the Association mem bers and the faculty for their co operation and assuring them that San Carlos is always ready to ex tend her help to them. BOHOL ALUMNI REPORT Miss Purificacion L. Chagas, B.S.E '51, reports that she is now teaching Spanish, National Lan guage and English in the St. An thony's Academy at Carmen, Bohol, and gave us the following data about other alumnae: Miss GUADALUPE F. PARAGUYA is teaching Biology at the Tubigon Catholic High School, Tubigon, Bohol; Miss ANDRESA G. PASCO handles Algebra at the Philippine College, Calape, Bohol; Miss DIONISIA L. CANO is at the Holy Child High School, Quinoguitan, Misamis Oriental, handling Biology and English; Miss PAZ CASTRO and Miss ELEUTERIA DOLERA are both teachers in the St. Mary's College, Guindulmon, Bohol; Miss AGUSTINA RELAMPAGOS is the Home Economist in the SierraBullones High School; Miss TRINIDAD OPELINA and Miss NICOLASITA PATINDOL recently joined the Clarin High School FaMiss LIBRADA BILIRAN is at the Bohol Trade School and, at lost, a gentleman, Mr. PACIFICO ESTILLORE is the his torian at the St. Paul's Academy, Inabanga, Bohol. Good news! Everybody is em ployed. How about those not em ployed? May we know where they are? WHAT IS RUSSIAN COMMUNISM? pirations which turned my youthful hopes toward the Soviet Union made me recoil from Communism in hor ror once I came to know its real nature." ] As a child, Freda Utley read ex tensively, especially Greek history, i French revolutionary, literature, and the English nineteenth century poets of freedom. Believing that the Com munist ideal stood for the brother hood of man, irrespective of race, creed, color, or nationality, and re garding it as the fulfilment of the age-long struggle of mankind for li berty and justice, this young lady joined the Communist Party in Eng land. She was a type of a certain > kind of Communist with whom we can sincerely sympathize — one who visualized the Communist sys tem as an ideal while knowing noth ing of the frightful operation of the system in the U.S.S.R. ] Tn a word," declares this au thoress, "I was led to Communism by a passion for the emancipation of mankind." But the ardent young Commu nist's roseate dreams melted away < and her cherished idol was shat- 1 tered when she came face to face I with the operation of Ruscomism. < Writing of her sojourn in the U.S.S.R. i she says: "During six disillusioning CARCAR ALUMNA IS A NOVITIATE Miss Elena Urgello, daughter of Don Francisco Urgello of Carcar, Cebu, is now at the Pines City, particularly at Pacdal, Baguio. She's now a nun. No more letters from her. ORCHIDS FROM LANAO Mr. Peping Fajardo, USC alum nus and an employee of the Phil ippine National Bank, Iligan, Lanao, conveys his warmest congratula tions to the new lawyers and phar macists who made record-breaking achievements in the Bar and Board examinations. ’ (Continued from page 16) years 1 learned the truth about Rus sia and the hollowness of Commu nist pretensions to be concerned with the welfare of the Common Man." "I found," she coritinues, "that Communist society has nothing in common with the free and equal which socialists believed would fol low the breakdown of the capital ist system. Month by month and year by year it was borne in upon me with increasing force that no where in the world is there greater injustice, inequality and cruel op pression than in Stalin's Russia, more hopeless poverty and ruthless exploitation of the working class, a more privileged ruling class; less regard for the dignity of man and less will or desire or possibility of raising the standard of life of the mass of the people. The reality of life in Communist Russia is as re mote from the picture painted by the friends of the Soviet Union in the west as the earth from Mars : . . All that I had expected to find in Russia was reviled and abused. The democratic capitalist world which I had rejected began to appear in finitely desirable in comparison with the slavery and poverty and terror in Communist Russia" (pp. 2 <S 3). (Continued on page S3) March, 1952 Page 21 heard a guy remarking, "I envy that darned tractor!" Such vehemence! I reckon, there wouldn’t be the present repugnance to anything connected with mud and rice puddies if there were 'em damsels to maneuver those things. Why, farmhands would come a-flocking! ....NENA VIVERA, the lone of the Col lege of Engineering’s motored stairway. What! Is the College that short of shirts? Or are they just plain bashful (tsk! tsk!) ... .the amateur cowboys and their pardners, square-dancing their feet off to the bumpy strains of "Buttons and Bows" and, boy, did the stage quiver like Hibok-Hibok was just a meter away. And would it swat with our physically dyna mic gossoons up there in fancy western clothing — JAY VILLEGAS, MONCHING BLANCO, OSCAR VILLEGAS, RUDY SAYSON, JOE CERILLES, MAURICIO RIVERA, FRANCISCO JAPSON AND EDDIE PAS CUAL with their equally brimming-withlife gals — ALICIA TABOTABO, CORA ZON JIMENEZ, CELEDONIA JAVIER, FELICIDAD GILAY, and numbuhs and numbuhs of 'em. ....the gay dancing senoritas from gay Mexico — ANGELES TOMIMBANG, PAT, LILY, NENA, HELEN BOLT, ISOBEL, DALISA Y de VERA, etcetera... etc. I'm mighty curious about the source of the identical fancy braids (Pardon me for exposing the racket!) because I could use a pair myself. ....CLARITA ASPIRAS, FE SISON, and the rest of the chained slaves come straight from a stinking Persian dungeon. And there was the “Oh — too... hand some bundle of a slave driver" (sigh) — CESAR SERAPIO. When you take a good peer at him you’d think he’s incapable of even breaking such fragile thing as a glass but can he whip! Not that poor slaves minded tho the hair-pulling may surely have hurt more than just a little bit. ...MERCEDES ROSELLO, swinging it a la Carmen Miranda with the smooth Valentino-ish NESTOR MORELOS and such S.A.'s senoritos and senoritas as CELESTE RUBI, FRANK BORROMEO, LIN DA DALOPE, LIBUNFACIL, VICTORIA ABAD, CESAR JAMIRO, JOVITA TRINI DAD, and the other dear-secretaries. ....EDDIE PASCUAL. He not only is incapable of stepping on your favorite corn when he swings you on a dance floor, but also, sister, when he starts to chant he can make you believe the latest bobby-sox craze Tony Bennett him self is right before you. He sure made a "song-hit" the last nite of the USC festival — really wow-ed the quadrangle spectators and I suppose, garnered just as much applause and encores as Tony Bennett. Fact is BSC's Eddie sings like USA's Tony.. .er.. ,r... I mean, Tony sings like Eddie! WHAT IS RUSSIAN . . . (Continued, from, page 21) Additional Evidence of Terrorism This competent witness and writer portrays graphically on Ter ror that reigns in the U.S.S.R. She states that any moment the secret police may knock at the door and take you or your loved ones away without even letting you know what "crime" you or they are supposed to have committed; that the Soviet citizen can be arrested and shot or imprisoned without a trial; that he has no voice in the election of his government or of the local author ities who control his whole life; that he has no trade unions to protect him and he can be dismissed with out notice by the factory manager, losing at the same time his room and his ration book; that there is no unemployment pay and only one employer, the State; that the State is employer, judge, jury, policeman, and landlord; that the worker is a helpless slave forced to work whereever and at whatever wage the go vernment decrees; that he is forbid den to strike; that the so-called trade unions, far from protecting the work er, are but organs of the State used to compel him to work to the limit of his strength; that the penalty of striking is the living death in the concentration camp where the vic tims of the secret police do forced labor in conditions as horrible as Ottn. 6£&a (Pnadlo * Manila * February 25, 1934 * Commerce II * Poise & Glamour * Excellent Pianist * Record Playing (Modern & Classical) * Bowling THE MOVIE MANIAC . . . (Continued from, page 28) The most irritating of 'em all are the conversationalists who an ticipate the film's climax, and dis cuss the personal and professional life of the actor or actress (and, sometimes, of both, including some in the supporting cast), blotting out the dialogue on the screen with their unnecessary gabfest. These guys or dames exchange everything they know about Jeanne Crain's kids, Scott Brady's romances, all the movie stars' data, vital statistics, etc etc. . . . blah blah . . . bzzzzzzz . . . yakity yakity yak yak . . . And not only last but also the least — the Misplaced Persons! These characters prop their large feet on the back of the seat in front, settle down as comfortably as they could (that means slumping down deep into the chair and blocking traffic from the aisle) and go right off to sleep, snoring so norously. Well, there you are. If you know some other stunts — tell 'em to the theatre manager! those which existed at Dachau and Buchenwald; that to be late for work renders the "free" worker liable to dismissal; that the interior passport system and the work cer tificate rivet the laborer to his job like a serf. March, 1952 Page 33