PURGE HALTED

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 44, 20 January 1938, Page 9

PURGE HALTED

SOVIET DECREE ISSUED. EXPULSIONS TO CEASE. PUNISHMENT OF INFORMERS. (United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.) Received January 20, 8.5 a.m. LONDON, Jan. 19.

The Daily Telegraph’s Moscow correspondent reports that M. Stalin has halted the party purge. A decree issued to-dpy orders the cessation of expulsions from the party without an investigation and the re-examination and reinstatement of tens of thousands thus expelled within 15 days, also the punishment of malicious informers. The decree states that there have been a vast number of these expulsions in recent months and it cites cases of whole families being removed without an investigation by ambitious time-serving party chiefs. “We are now going to witness a hunt for informers instead of a hunt for the victims of informers,” says tho correspondent. “There has been evidence in the Press during the past few weeks of this change of policy, notably an article by’the celebrated Bolshevik journalist, M. Kolof, denouncing the Ogpu’s method of accepting informers’ unconfirmed reports. M. Kolof never dared to attack the Ogpu unless ordered to do so from a high quarter.” TO MEET DEATH.

FORMER SOVfET MINISTER. LONDON, Jan. 19. According to the Stockholm correspondent of the Daily Telegraph, a former Minister, M. Jakubovitch, has arrived, en route to Moscow, where it is believed he will be sentenced to death. He decided to go to Moscowafter news that his two sons’were arrested and threatened with death unless lie returned.