ELECTIONS IN RUSSIA

New Zealand Listener, Volume 16, Issue 402, 7 March 1947, Page 5

ELECTIONS IN RUSSIA

Sir,-Your inaptly named correspondents "B. Sensible" and "Liberal" do not seem to have taken very great pains to inform themselves well on the reality or otherwise of democracy in the U.S.S.R. As that eminent Independent member of the House of Commons, D, N. Pritt, | K.C., has said, those who seek to rule , it (the U.S.S.R.) out briefly as undemocratic have no right to pass over in silence the formidable authority of Sidney and Beatrice Webb, in their great study Soviet Communism: A New Civilisation. It is to be presumed that both "Liberal" and "B. Sensible" nave access to this monumental work, which may be _ found in all public libraries. A direct study of this book should prove useful and enlightening to all interested enough in the question of Soviet democracy to write letters to The Listener about it. We would refer them further to Moscow Dialogues by Julius F. Hecker, Light on Moscow, by D. N. Pritt, The Socialist Sixth of the World, by Dr. Hewlett ‘Johnson, Soviet Democracy, by P. Sloan; and to the printed copies of the Stalin constitution which are available at small cost at most bookshops. By thus acquainting your correspondents with the existence of even a few of the many authoritative accounts of Soviet institutions we hope we have administered some antidote at least to the poison spread by the pens of M. Eastman, William L. White, Colonel McCormick, De Witt Wallace and their local sycophants. a

MAX AND CONRAD BOLLINGER

(Pohangina).

(For reasons of space we have deleted from this letter a long quotation from the abovementioned work by Sidney and Beatrice Webb. As our correspondent points out, it is available in all public libraries.-Ed, ) Sir,-"B. Sensible" thinks I have a curious idea of what constitutes a free election, yet there are noted writers and historians such as Beatrice and Sidney Webb who have travelled through the U.S.S.R. on three different occasions to study life there, Anna Louise Strong, American graduate who went to Russia more than 20 years ago and is still there on the staff of the Moscow News, D. N. Pritt, W. R. Batsell, G. H. D. Cole, Dr. B. N. Anderson, M, Arnold,

the Dean of Canterbury, E. J. Dillon, R. W. Dunn, and many others I could name, who say the elections in U.S.S.R. are as free as in other countries. "B. Sensible" tries to compare elections here with elections in U.S.S.R. He does not seem to know that elections in capitalist countries have an Opposition and by doing away with capitalism you do away with that Opposition; that is what they have done in Russia, and when they meet they discuss the affairs of the country instead of abusing each other across the House. "Liberal" says only a few lines are required to answer my letter. But the contents of my letter were from the above-mentioned writers, and it would be interesting to know where he gets his marvellous plethora of knowledge to be able with a few lines

to obliterate and cast into oblivion all the renowned writers I have mentioned, He also accuses me of ignoring to state who the women can vote for; he might as well ask me who the women in New Zealand can vote for. I would say for the candidate they think would represent them best.

B.

HONEST

(Richmond).

(ihis letter has been ret" od and this correspondence is now closed.-Ed. )