Communist indoctrination methods

Media

Part of Philippine Armed Forces Journal

Title
Communist indoctrination methods
Language
English
Source
Philippine Armed Forces Journal Volume IX (No. 3) January 1956
Year
1956
Rights
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Fulltext
r-"':""'lr""::Z~::::-1 A more effective fight PIII'"O::<i;~\1 against Red subversion ne· cessitates knowledge of - Communist Indoctrination Methods by Chaplain Itt. CoU Benedict Henderson Terror and Police So that the program of mass indoctrination maintains the maximum degree of intensity, and thus attains political solidarity quick· I~·, all human drives and emotions are exploited. Fear, since it is one of the most powerful of human f<.rces for motivation, provides the nataral complement to enforced indoctrination. Every artifice at the Government's disposal is brought into play--from brute torture methods to refined psychological tdckery. Overwhelming coercion is used to induce compliance; fear of falling victim to one or all three of the terror systems-the purge, execution, or slave labor. The political police system of the JI.!VD is divided into multiple categories of secret activity. In carrying out the complicated task of control, instilling fear, and searching out flaws or behavior and character, the system becomes \he eyes, ears, and strong arm of the Government. It becomes an abstract but effective training aid II•I·IIIHfd h"m <h• ,,.,.ml>fr lti5 »<u• .. r 1h• MIUT~In II~;V(~;W ABOUT THE AUTHOR Chaplain (Lieutenant Colonel! Benedict A. Henderson entered the Army in 1942 and served in Panama before going to Eu.rope where he was with the 80th In/an· try Division. He attended the Command and General Staff College in 1949, and the following year became A1sistant Arm11 Cl•uplui11, Fourth 1\rmy. He i' u .IJrwlmlle u/ lh<· Army lf'nr Col/e_(Jt uml is ellrrrntly Chief, Per.wnmel /)j!'i,i<m 0/fiq of t/" ('J,if'{ ••I (."l.l!f!luins. I'HII.II'IN~;S AHMJ;D ~'OHCJ;S JOUHNAL It' Wh•n "btoin woJiting" ond ind<>eldnolion foil, th• hd• lind on• olt•rnotin ltond1· • -"•cution of tit• •ubt•d p•rson for Soviet education, and contains within its scope all thought con· to·ol of the nation. Thought Control Abroad In applying Soviet methods of thought molding to other nations, the Communist authorities apparently profited by their mistakes during and after the Russian Revolution. Upon the subjugation of any country, early and continued attention is given to education and the organizing of the school systems along Soviet lines--employing the same framework and central control. Positive and thorough sovietization has been obse1·ved after the assimilation of each satellite nation, in the gradual takeover of China and North Korea, and within those o\'errun se.ctions of South Korea. In each case, to be sure, the temp{'rament of the people, their customs, soda! structure, economic J•attern, and religion were given careful attention. The attack upon each of these traits was different varied. Howeve1·, appalling as it is, it can be asserted that the youth of each subjugated country is educationally and ideologically ab1·east of Soviet youth. One area of exception could be that of national patriotism. Patriotism in the Soviet Union is fanatic----drilled into every student. Within the subjugated nations, patriotism is gradually dislodged from the home country and psychologically bent toward the Soviet Union. An examination of available data from each country reveals that thought control methods applied to them, refined and speeded up though they are, ne\'ertheless, are essentially the s,ame as applied to the citizens of the Soviet Union. Total horizontal schooling, Party training, youth OrK:anization, mass indoctrination, attacks on morality and religion, terror and police, slave labor - all are steps in the master plan for thought seduction and control.' It is a matter of record that in in each case. Methods necessarily every subjugated country, all pro~ : minent political 1·eealcitrants hav• ing been dealt with, speeial inte .rest was given all other citizens of influence in any field. These were subjected to a private type of indoctrination known as "brainwashing," or "brain-cleansing," during which the victim w,,u]d be required to pqbliely acknowledge his "bourgeois sins," proclaim the truth of Marxist teachings, and to ~orne generally a depersonalized automaton. The more important the person, the more ii'ttense would be the "cleansing" process. The Chinese Communists first used the. tenn "brain-washing" to instill a kind of occult or eeoteric te1·ror. After the outbreak of the Korean conflict, they claimed this process as a "secret and ten·ible 1\'eBpon." They had tried the same method upon their own people and students with some success. Actually it amounts to a highly stepped-up process of the educational methods already described concerning Soviet schooling. The system appears to be an extension of the teehnique evolved by the famous Soviet biologist Pavov who experimented on dogs and rats in his studies on the "conditioned reflex." When a rat goes through the wrong door, he gets an electric shock; but when • he goes through the right door, he gets a bit of cheese. Before long one can dispense with the shock and the cheese. His behavior has been "corrected." The aims of this method 11ow applied to the minds of men is to so conditio11 the mind that it no longer reacts SoYitiWOfiOI•dril/tdbylhtledJrnlo t>'trrdudtnl ofthtJubi"go•td notion on a free will or rational basis, but responds to impulses implanted from outside. Process and Techniques Prolonged deprivation of slee)J and contined interruption of 1·est when sufficiently protracted can have the same result as drugs. It paralyzes will power, produces hallucinations, and eventually permits the tormentor to impose his will upon his victim. The need for sleep graduallr displaces every other sensation, even hunger and thirst. It overcomes all resistance and all power of mental concentration. We know of the early use of this device in each of the celebrated cases involving Cardinal Mindszenty, William Oatis, Robert T. Bryan, Jr., and a host of missionaries in China, including Dr. John D. Hayes, Francis Olin Stockwell, Fat~er Joseph Schijns, Father Richard Cocquyt, Father Charles deRyck, Father Uldar Lebrun, Father Albtrt Van Lierde, Father Maurice K:.vanaugh, Fa ther Eugene Fahy, Father Mark In e-ery ovbjvgoted countr1. the lemperoment ol the people. their cwtomo. u>ciol otrvcture, e~onom•c pollern, ond ••ltgton ore regtmented b1 the Communi<lf tnlo SoY,.! lme<. Th• ollochvpon eoch ol the>• ''"'"ore dtller•nl '" •<><h cooe Tcnnien, and Father Robert W. Greene. To the prolonged deprivation of sleep was added frequent and constant interruptions by interrogation teams. Many witnesses cite long intense sessions of unbroken questioning, unbroken instructions, repeating over and over the same thoughts. If the victim is under arrest and a crime is being sought, the nature of the session bc,comes a sadistic series of questions, accompanied with various physical tortures as the a<:easion demands. In this case the objective is a confession. In others it may be merely conversion .• ~n any case the production of fatigue is important. Exhaustion having been induced, as the level of consciousness descends, the only thought the victim is aware of is the stream of words repeated over and over by the interrogator or instructor. Thus, a form of hyp. nosis seems to be produced where thoughts arc no longer self-ji!'enc '' • I l ' rated but infixed by the manipulator. The use of such dt·ugs as Mescaline and Scalpa\omine has been reported in the more celebrated cases, particularly in the case of Cardinal Mindszenty and other Europeans; and a drug the Chinese called simply Cheng Yen Yao -true words ruedicine--in the case of Robert T. Bryan, Jr. In addition to requiring erect posture for many hours, the Chinese displayed originality by tying their prison victims in grotesque position:;;, involving great pain, for long periods of time--in the case of Father Kav)naugh, his arms were handcuffed tightly behind his back, and he was forced to remain standing for 4 days without movement. Father Schijns recounts hanging by the wrists as "the worst torture." Colonel John K. Arnold, United States Air Force, relates similar and additional forms of torture. These tortures, augmented by beatings, clubbings, Political recoltilronlo ore deolr ... iii! by rl>e CommunioiJ. Th• mor• importonl Ill• P•"on, ll>e mor• inlen.• rl>e mell>;)d uJed. lnlerrogolion• ore ougmenled by lorr..,ulih clubbing<"' •ho"'n in photo obo•• Allotd wotl> poloct ond terror mtll>od• tmploytd by ll>t Reds ,. fo>rll><>r condoloon•ng pr<KtU whertby occu1oloonJ ore Jcreometl ogoon.r o ~""m tlurong mou occu•o,on mnlongs ond mob dtmon•lroloont woth ,..J,cl> to lomly on •ndo~oduol flailings, and kickings are all calculated to draw out the "truth" as understood by the Communists. Psychological Methods Allied with police and terror methods is a further conditioning p1 ocess in the form of maas acc"Nation meetings and mob demonstrations where accusations are Ecreamed against a victim. All "students" undergoing indoctrination, as well as the bulk of the local population, are forced to attend these spectacles. The use of mob demonstration is a powerful instrument with which to terrify an individual and convince him of the uselessness of resis~nce. The creation of a sense of isolation and the futility of resistance together with a feeling of utter dependence upon the interrogator or instructor is gradually attained. He is denied counsel, and all hope of rescue is denied him. There are no avenues of redress. The final results are desires to capitulate. The treatment is often varied; the pace is changed; and there is alternation between leniency and severity. This is often successful. A further devic.f which is always employed is the enforced writing of a self-disclosure, compriSing a detailed account of hir; entire life, disclosure of his family background, education, friends, relatives, and hobbies. These also must include present interrogation summaries, doctrines taught, and hi~<~ appreciation of them. Often he must rewrite the entire account without retaining a copy. Thus the Communists, beyond the pressures already described, employ every describable trick to confuse and entrap this individual. There is adequate testimony in our own hands which reveals that the Communists employed psychological pressure methods upon our American prisoners of war. The entire pictwe presented was one of supreme degradation where Americans saw themselves filthy, full of lice, wounds untended and full of magots; sickness regulated izing situation where fellow pri- to a point just short of death; unsoners or students are used as shaven and without a bath for as "stool pigeons and spies." After long as a year; men in rags, exa long term of isolation he is posed to the e.Jements; fed with placed among other "progressives" carefully measured quantities and who have seen the light, and carry qualities, often served in rusty on the thought-cleansing process cans; men isolated, and exposed by suggesting self-criticism and to a battery of interrogators, hulCI)nfesaion. They report on the ac- lied, deprived of sleep, and ruthcused or unenlightened, and report lessly browbeaten into a state of 'to him rumors and threats which mental ana-uish. The tightened further the process of breaking grip would be relaxed only when a his spirit. man was in a dying condition, or I'IIILfl'l'fNJ;S ARMED FORCJ;S JOURtiAL So••'el'< conlfol of Yolu lliur po.,.er doms enobled them to di~rupl economy of Republic of l(oreo, even be for • lhe l(oreon Wor Sub>'euion, in•o•ion ond on docltonolion follow, m•lhod< of which neceuotify •otr when he showed signs of cooperation. Into this controlled environment was introduced psychological trickery, under extreme conditions of fatigue. The constar.t repetition of the Communist line, over and over again; a prisoner's repetition of it. his own criticism and understanding of it-all accumulated to cause a fatigue hypnosis coupled with fear, hunger, and abandonment. The result was discouraged, broken men, many of whom wrote confessions, and some became "progressives" to varying degrees. Many were induced to write or sign atrocity stories. A careful scrutiny of the background of the Little Switch repatriated prisoners of war reveals the fact that there evidently existed a common denominator in the character and background of each pl'isoner who succumbed in any degree to Communist indoctrination. Repeated biographies demanded of them revealed these factors to their captors. They are: 1. A product of a broken home resulting in a lack of stro~g family ties. 2. A lack of strong religious convictions; lack of active faith, moral principles, and consequent discipline. 3. A lack of strong units or organizational ties. ldeologi~al Mobilization The sum total of the ideological marshalling of forces in America today, in brief, comprises the following activities: the cold war waged by experts who have access to the facts; new books treating of communism and its objectives together with a few counterpro-. posals; articles which describe sensational aspects of the cold war; and radio and television panels, movies, and lectures. However, there is little coordination and cooperation between church groups, and less understanding, mutual sympathy, and "work-togetherness." Unfortunately the cOmmunists have capitalized on these barriers of misunderstanding, seeking in every possible way to widen the breaeh between them, and with some euecess. The Party Line working through popular Sronts, youth groups, the uninitiated, and dupes has made much of religious differ· ences. Violent anti-Protestant and anti-Catholic tracts have ap· peared, written by the same Communist cells and placed in public places such as libraries, reading rooms, railway stations, terminals, and even in churches. Education In spite of all the mass media of communication, of intensity of effort by party, pressure groups and civic organizations, and churches, one fact remains unchanged: l!elu&n• to U.S. from communi•J.dominot•r-f•,op•on co<'"triu leove plan• •~ortly oller orrivol at Idlewild Jnt•rn<rt1onol airoort in New York Communi<! pr• uur• ogaintl voter< moket it dangf rou• or impouibl• to oppo•• Communi<f cando"dole• in R• d-controll• d el• dions The American people are not actively concerned with national issues--much less with ideological battles. Does the public complacency stem from the school system? It cannot be denied that from one point of view, America is an unschooled nation. The 1950 census according to Harold D. Lasswell shows that the majority of the population has not gone much beyond the eighth grade; that among the 25-year bracket 1 in 70 had finished high school, and 1 in 7 had finished college. Now, it is an established fact that there is a positive relationship between informed interest in public affairs and the length of exposure •to educational institutions. Upon analysis it appears that the modern trend in public schools is more and more to avoid teaching principles-either disciplinary, moral, patriotic, philosophic, or theological-and to stress teachil)>g of mere material facts. Teachers have access to our population at least for 8 formative Volen in R.t d counltiu, lih r~ ... o 'n H<'"gory, ~ove only one •• I of condidol• •· .. leered by I~• R.e dJ There ;, no populor will of r~. vol• "· years, and still they have not succeeded in enlarging the scope of curiosity and knowledge of national or international problems which will outlive the classroom. It is idle to assume that public indiff('rence to these things depends on the struggle for livelihood or upon income. History disproves that. lienee, it must be concluded that school effectiveness depends very largely upon encouragement given at home toward classroom achievement, upon interest in school discipline, and of the teachings concerning the great issues. At the academic and university level there is a divisive tendency caused by overspecialitation, The university is no longer a "universe," but a "multiverse" with variegated and new activities popping off in all directions. Hence there is no true frame of reference in relation to goal values of a free society, and in the sense of PHILIPPINES ARMF.I> FORCES JOURNAL timing introduced by continuing strategy, or how the armed forces crisis. can be articulated with the needs Intellectual Resources of a free society. Military history An audit o6 intellectual resour- is often lacking in departments ces will show wide gaps. In most of history. Departments of ceoacademic institutions the entire nomics do not generally <:oncenfield of military, naval, and air trate on problems of total or parstrategy is an unknown continent. tial mobilization of ec('lnomy with Ideologies and systems of morals, minimum loss of freedom, nor are political science, and philosophy positive countermeasures formulaare tightly compartmented and ted which will thwart the avowed highly elective; nor do these cour- destructive aims of the Soviet ses in political science, despite Union toward American economy long concern for the "state," typ- and American standards of !iving. • ically have seminars or courses on Departments of philosophy do not Soviet lroopt leou Iron""'"' Sovier •ub•er~i•e <>llemplo '" l<>ke c<>n11ol of Aurboijo" pro•inoe .,.,. rftwo•rtd by wodd opinion ond Wesrern help lo Iron GutrriUa worfort and tspionoge ort two tltmtnls of cold war used by Commu nists Photo above shows an ormed Huk caught in checkpoint on a highway in tht Philippintt in an attempt lo omdtrmint the oulhorilits normally have courses on the po· litical and social ethics of coer· cion related to modern social situations. Within the Service The service is in the position to witness and judge this spirit of complacency brought int.o its ranks from civilian life by newly created enlisted men and officers, but it can do little to correct this serious defect on the family and community level. As for Army personnel, at· tempts have been made to reach the troops, both In the Troop Information and Education (Tl&E) and Character Guidance programs, and to elevate the deficient educa· tiona! level as well as to instill positive fundamentals of citizenship and morality. Statistics show that, after intensive screening, 7 percent of inductees which the Army retains cannot read or write; and 12 percent have no religious moral training. However, due to the limited term of service, shortgage of trained instructor personnel in TI&.E fields, the full training schedule, and manner of presenting information and character guidanc~ programs, together with subject matter treated, reduce the efficacy and value of such programs. As to the individual soldier, he has carried with him into military life an accustomed reliance upon ease, luxury, and the pursuit of idle entertainment induced by current high standards of living. His talents for work, creativeness, self-reliance, and self-im· provement have often never been awakened. He is wanting not only in education, but often lacks such basic things as knowledge of selfpreservation under conditions of privation; lack of acceptable social habits; moral training; and solid religious principles. Commanders are frequently appalled at the lack of understanding on the part of young soldiers as to such basic questions as: What is America; the conditions which would force America to fight; the :reasons for risking his life on the field of battle-are they merely to protect property, national rights, or are they for the fundamental rights underlying life itself? These ap· palling deficiencies today are occupying the attention of a good many Army commanders, civic luders, Government officials, and clergymen. The President himself, referring to them, exclaimed with dismay: "It is not juvenile delinquency, it is parental delin· quency .. " Conclusions It is concluded that: 1. Thought control within the Soviet bloc nations is solidly entrenched through the agency both of formal education and mass indoctrination to the degree where the younger generation is completely distorted mentally as to objectivity concerning themselves and the outside world. 2. This generation is being employed as the implementing instrumentality to wage worldwide ideological struggle, and to foment a world revolutiOn by means of patiently planned infiltration, organization, subversion, and all manner of sabotage, both physical and psychological. 3. This organized group will operate through such forces as po.. pular "fronts," with special attention to the fields of politics, science, religion, and education. 4. Every effort will be made to convert captive Westerners by means of rigorous indoctrination; and where this fails, to impute to them political crimes through signed "confessions" induced by brain-warfare and torture mathods. 5. The ideological threat to American freedoms is not generally understood as to its scope or serivusness and is not countered energetically either in the field of education, in the schools, in the homes, in organized religious bddies, or generally within the body politic of the Nation.