CONDITIONS IN RUSSIA

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Issue 8, 31 July 1945, Page 6

CONDITIONS IN RUSSIA

WHAKATANE OFFICER'S IMPRESSIONS REACTION OF THE PEOPIE SOME UNUSUAL EXPERIENCES The distinction of being the only N.Z.E.F. officer to visit Moscow during the war is held by Major G. V. Turn,bull of Whakatane. As New •9 Zealand military representative he Avent to Russia Avith representatives from Britain and the other Dominionsl to make contact Avith prisoners of Avar and to assist in their repatriation. After a fortnight in Moscoav he went to Lavow, where he spent nine Aveeks. No NeAV Zeal an ders came through Laaoav but 158 AA'ere repatriated through Odessa. With other members of the delegation all wearing a Union Jack as a flash on their uniform and carrying a small s'ilk Union Jack Avith an inscription in Russian that the holder should be giA r en every facility to find the British Military Mission. Major Turnbull fIeAV to Moscoav from England in nine days. Visit to TO'bruk The delegation left at the end of February f Avlien the AA T eather Avas indifferent. The route was via Tobruk, Teheran and Baku. Major Avho had been in Tobruk twice before AA'ith the 24th Battalion Avas sur,prised at the extent to Avhich the town had been cleaned up. Although sunken ships and Avrecked aircraft were still 'in the harbour Tobru'k itself looked, spruce and clean. Major Turnbull Avas also interested to see a large number of Russian officers in Teheran where there '9 Avas a big Red Army airfield. The delegation had flown as far as Teheran in an R.A.F. Dakota, but iioav they transferred to a Red Army Dakota. Their next stage Avas Baku 5 where they drove, through the oil fields on their way to the hotel. There was not a blade of grass to be seen ? but only bare earthy many large pools of oil and water and hundreds of pylons. Arrival in Moscow The next alter taking off from Baku, they flew practically the. length of the Caspian Sea ? AA'hich Avas littered Avith lumps of ice. One hour was spent at Astrakhan AA'hich is a small then the flight continued to Avhere they arrived hours after leaving Baku. It Avas noAA r early March and the entire countryside Avas covered with snow. From 6000 ft Russia appeared to be one big, flat heap of snow Avith not a hill 'in sight. When 300 miles from the capital the. aircraft came down to 200 ft in. order that the passengers might get a better A r iew.. They reached Moscoav at G p.m. j and stepped out of their aircraft into a temperature of 30 degrees beloAA r zero i? shivering in spite of their fur hats and fur-lined jackets and boots. They Avere greeted bj r . the British Militar3 r Mission and Avent to the mission's mess in Kommenterna which Avas in the home of a Tzarist cotton millionaire. There they lived for a fortnight in great comfort with excellent meals and no lack of caA T iar and smoked salmon. During that time Major Turnbull saAV much of the New Zealand Minister to Moscow / Mr Boswell. Five Social Classes Major Turnbull did not find it casA* to get into com-ersation AA r ith

the Russian people, the language being a great difficulty. He said he only .saw one person smile in the streets the Avhole time he "was there. Generally speaking they were dressed but anyone associated with the theatres might have come from , pre-war Paris, There were no such things as shops only State buying centres. The people were divided into live classes and lived and ate accordingly. The lowest class was tlie labouring community for whom life was prosaic. Next came the foreman type who were slightly better off. J;i the next class were the theatre people who lived well. After them were the Services and legal profession y for whom every provision wag made and finally the 9 ' 7

commissars and heads of departments, who apparentlj- lived as well as their class did in Tzarist days. Some Russian women were smartly turned out. There was a shortage of . lipstick and 'it was more or less rationed by hairdressers'. A woman having her hair set and a .manicure would also have her lips made up. After being in Moscow for a fortnight the delegation, split up and, while Major Turnbull and six others went to Lavow one party went, to Odessa and another to Volkwysk. I't was a four-day train journey to Lavow. The party travelled in compartments. They never experienced filthier sanitation and found, the sealed carriages unbelievably stuffy. They had a glimpse of Stalingrad as the train passed through and observed the extensive damage. An entire day was spent at Kiev, on the Dnieper which also was badly damaged. They saw 500 German prisoners working and they ppeared to be the most forlorn and hopeless people imaginable. 'Wherever the visitors went in Russia they found the. people stopped and stared at them. At almost every station., where boiled eggs and a form of white bread could be bought, they would almost immediately be surrounded by a group of people staring and talking excitedly. Attacks by Guerillas Lavow when thev arrived resem--9 " 9 bled a beleaguered town, for there were about 3000 bandits in the outlying country, mostly Ukrainians, whose "sport" was to enter .the city j at n'ight and shoot any members of j the Red Army they could find. As! a result there was a curfew at 11 p.m. and Russian, patrols roamed the streets shooting at any movement they could see and at the shadows. From his hotel window Major Turnbull saw r two men shot., After the delegation's arrival the Russians built a camp to hold 1000 officers and 3000 other ranks, all former prisoners. But during the nine weeks only 60 men arrived f of whom 45 were American airmen who had been shot down. It was a rather dreary and abortive period, and food in the hotel was so bad that the British Military Mission in Moscow was asked to send tinned supplies. Former Slave Workers One of the most pathetic sights was to see a train half a mile long arrive en route to Murmansk. It was filled with displaced; persons who had been German slave labourers men, women and children. There were French, DutTih Belgians, NorBulgarians, Hungarians, Rumanians and Cypriots. They were short of food and cold. Babies weve. born on the tram. Only a solitary Canadian got off the. train. There was much opportunity to talk to the Polish population and almost every Pole without exception did not attempt to hide the fact that he hated the Russians worse than the Germans, in spite of all the German atrocities. The visitors always noticed that the Poles were questioned by the Russians after they had talked with the. British visitors, and this was one of the reasons Avhy they refused the showers of invitations to the private houses of Poles., as they desired to avoid any unnecessary complications. Soldiers in Hospitals In. tlie streets Poles, would frequently remove their hats on seeing the Union Jack Hashes and remark

"God bless the British Empire." Man}' of them .spoke English and German. Major Turnbull noted that the Russians treated British soldiers in hospital as they would their own officers and did all they could but. lie thought these hospitals were wi'll below New Zealand standard. The visitors also remarked 011. the poverty of the Poles. alter being unsuccessful in locating any former prisoners in I;wo\v, the delegation returned to AVhere. they remained ten days before starting the return journey. Major Turnbull is now commanding officer of the Bamnvclough wing at the New Zealand repatriation centre at Margate. !

Happy Evening at Edgecurabe Organised by Cadet L. Rogers s a verj' happy function was held in the Edgecombe Hall last Friday night. Members of the Anglican Bible Class and their friends enjoyed to thef ull dancing community singing, items and "mystery'' parcels. Messrs Reg Thompson (piano) and T. Eagleson (drums) provided dance music and extras were played by Miss Margaret Robins. Warm praise is extended to Cadet Rogers for his wholehearted work and interest in the youth of th'is district and the many little parties and "treats" organised and promoted under his supervision have proved very popular. We extend our good wishes to Cadet. Rogers for the future success of this necessary work.