AN ERA OF PURGES

Evening Star, Issue 23371, 14 September 1939, Page 18

AN ERA OF PURGES

LAST YEAR IN RUSSIA PROMINENT MEN VANISH THE ARMY'S LOSSES The year 1938 will go down in Russian history as the second year of the great Stalin purge, writes Donald Day from Riga to the Chicago ‘ Tribune. ’ Demotions, executions, and exiles have run into the tens of thousands. Despite efforts of the Soviet authorities to conceal'the new Bolshevik reign of terror from the outside world a careful survey of the official Soviet Press confirms that the number of victims of the 1938 slaughter was even greater than in 1937. The new year finds the population of. Russia completely demoralised. A short harvest an general with a crop failure in many provinces has caused a famine in both Ukrainia and White Russia. > Late_ fall sowing and chaotic cultivation indicate a poor summer harvest next year. Industry, also purged, Is' breaking down. Most industries report that production is falling. The Red army received the severest blow. Ninety per cent, of the higher officers of the geiieral staff were “liquidated." -Fifty per-cent, of the remaining commanding, officers have disappeared-into Ogpu gaols. The result was revealed by the ‘ Krasuaija Svesda,’ the Red army ’ newspaper, which , said that -most army corps and divisions now are commanded by men who -.only, last year were lieutenants. Regiments and battalions are commanded by fonner privates, hurriedly trained in a six months’ course to make j them “ fit for commissions.” After a careful survey of all avail-' able sources of official Soviet publications, the Baltic Bureau,of the ‘Tribune ’ can report that not a single commander of any of the military districts or separate Red fleets has held his post for 12 months. The following fact is the best proof of the extent of the purge in the army:— TWO THOUSAND VANISH. In connection with the twentieth anniversary of the lied army the Council of National Commissars decided to decorate with a special order 25,(XHJ officers. It took just one iimnih to pre pare and print Hie list of decorated

persons. It was-then discovered that dui-ing this’,month the’number of mento receive decorations had suddenly decreased by’’more than’ 2,000. In -otherwords, during a single month 2,000 older officers were “ liquidated.” Among those purged were:— Deputy-commissar of National' Defence. Marshal Ycgorov. Lieutenant-general Fedko. Commander of the Far Fasten! Red Army, Marshal Bluecher. _ Commander of the .Pacific fleet, Admiral Kireyev, and' of the Leningrad district, Rear-Admiral.Dybenko, one of the men who played an important role in the 1917 revolution. . Commander of the White Russian military district,-General Belov, and of the Ural military district, Brigadier- | general, .Safronov. Marshal Bluecher’s assistant, General Levandovski, commander of the Pacific coast defence. • • Commander of the Transcaucasian Military District Army Corps, General Kuibishev. Commander of the 1 North Caucasian Military District Army Corps, General Gribov. Substitute chief of the political administration of the Red Army, General Buliia. (An important post,wjhioh controls political commissars in the army.) All heads of all military academies and training schools. Chiefs of the political administration of the army m all districts. Also a complete clean-up in the quartermaster’ corps. PARTY MEMBERS SUFFER. Although during the last 12 months repeated purges were made in all branches of industry, transport, and rural economy, those who suffered most this year were officials who were members of the Communist Party. Stalin did not spare his - closest collaborators. Two members of the Polithnrean, Kossior and Tchubar, disappeared, and were accused of treason. Two substitutes for the Politbureau, Postichev and Eiche. were also purged, j The Politbureau is the highest go- . verning body in Russia, conti’ollng the Soviet Government, Communist International, and Communist Party policies. Twenty district secretaries of the party disappeared. These men, who possessed almost unlimited power over former provinces (now districts) .of Russia, were blamed for the breakdown of partv morale, acts of sabotage m the administration and industries, transport, and various branches of agriculture ' under their control. Another development revealing (he ovtent of the purge is that of the ’2l people's commissars who last Jo unary wore triumphantly confirmed in office by the first session of the yes-

man Parliament, 12 have disappeared ■ into the cells ; of the - G-P.U. They are:— National Commissars Kossior and Tchubar. National Commissar of Communications and Roads Bakulin National Commissar of Water Transport Pahomov. National Commissar of the Machine Building Industry _ Bruskin. National Commissar of the Food Industry Gilinski. National Cfimmissar of the Timber Industry Ryshkov, a former Ogpu leader. National Commissar of Naval Defence Smirnov. National Commissar of Agriculture Eiehe. _ / National Commissar of Harvest Preparations Popov. National Commissar of Foreign Trade Tchvialov. National Commissar Chief of the State Bank Gritchmanov. THE MARCH TRIALS. •Together -with these 12 Soviet “ Ministers ” the OGPU also arrested 15 deputy commissars. Dictator Stalin not only purged the central Government at Moscow but all of the various national republics which comprise the U.S.S.IR. Another intensely interesting development which puzzles Russian observers is that although the Ogpu was thoroughly purged, it centilitres to function as Stalin’s greatest weapon for terrorising Russia. •The most important victims of the 1938 terror were those involved an trials in Moscow last March, when the former Chief of the Council of People’s Commissars. Rykov; the leading theorist of Bolshevism, Bukharin: the former chief of the Ogpu, Kagoda; the National Commissar of Finance. Grinko; former Deputy Commissar of Foreign Affairs. Krestinski; former National Commissar, of Agriculture, Tchernov; the former National Commissar of the Timber Industry, Ivanov; the former National Commissar of Foreign Trade. Rbzenholz, and the former Ambassador to France, Rnkovski. and others were shot. There is much talk in Russia about the seeming immunity of the .all powerful Kaganovich family from the reign of terror of the last two years. The Kaganovich family are at present occupying the following positions in Russia ; T.-izar is the right-hand man of Stalin, he is a member of the Political Bureau. National Commissar of Column ideation” ml Ilmirls. National Commissar of Heavy Industry, demiuv io the Supreme Council of the U.S.S.R.

and R.S.F.S.R., and secretary of the Central Committee of the_ Communist Party. His sister, or according to other sources, his daughter, is .either the wife or mistress of Stalin. Two of his sisters occupy high posts in Moscow. Michail is National Commissar of the Defence Industry; he is a member of the Central Committee of the Party, and deputy of the Supremo Council. Julius is secretary of the party organisation in the Gorki district. (Formerly Nishni Novgorod). Andrie is director of the State Trade Organisation in the Kiev district. Baruch heads the industry supplying uniforms to the Red Army. Sergio is chief of the textile trust. Mario is president of the Trade Union of th® knitted goods industry. None of the Kaganovichs has been either named or involved in the last two years of terror and this fact has caused rumours to spread that Lazar Kaganovich may Stalin as Red Tsar in the Moscow Kremlin.