The Washington times., 1922-04-04

chairman of the Petrograd Trades
! Unions, that they all belonged in
the Cheka. and several days later
raid took place at the shops. re-
sulting In the arrest Of numerous
workers.
In short, the trades unions in
Bolshevik Russia have been en-
tirely absorbed by the state and
have no other meaning or func'
ton than to do police duty for the
state.
Naturally, such conditions could
not last very long without arousing
the most bitter discomfort on the
part of the workers. In fact. In
| 1920 this discomfort became SO gen
eral and threatening that the gov
eminent saw itself compelled to
give serious consideration to the
situation. The issue of the func-
tons Of the trade unions was taken
up by the end OF 1920 and 1t soon
became apparent that even within
the Communist party itself there
ragged conflicting views on that i'm
portant question.
Debate Fate of Unions.
All the leading Communists par.
ticipated in the heated verbal con-
of the trades unions. The theses
presented disclosed four main ten
denotes:
First. the Lenin -Zinovieff fac.
ton. which held that 'ths trades
unions have only one function I'M
der the proletarian Dictatorship
that is, to serve as schools Of Com
munism.
The second tendency was repre-
scented by Riasanoff and his adher-
ents, who insisted that the trades
unions must continue to function as
the forum OF the workers and their
economic protector.
The third faction was that OF
Trotzky, the military genius who
can think only in terms of militar-
ism. He advanced the thesis that the
trades unions will in time become the
managers and controllers Of the in
dustries. but that for the present the
union management must be appoint
ed by military methods.
Last, and most important, was the
labor opposition led by Nine. Kol-
lantay and Schliapnikoff. who really
represented the actual sentiment Of
the workers and had their support.
Revolt Of Opposition,
This opposition insisted that the
militarization Of the trades unions
had destroyed the interest of the
workers in the economic reconstruc-
ton of the country and paralyzed
their productive capacity. They de-
manded the liberation OF the masses
from the yoke of the bureaucratic
state and Its corrupt officialdom and
giving the people opportunity for the
exercise Of their creative energies.
They pointed out that the October
revolution had been fought to enable
the masses to be in control of the
industrial life of the country. In
short. the labor opposition voiced
the accumulated protest and discon-
tent of the rank and file.
1t was battle royal. with Trotzky
and Zinovieff chasing each other
over the country. in separate special
trains, to disprove eao hother's con-
tentions. In Petrograd, for instance,
Zinovieffs influence was so power
full that 1t required big struggle
before Trotzky received permission
to address the Communist local on
his views about the controversy.
The latter engendered intense feel
ing and came near disrupting the
Lenin. Always when his structure
begins to totter the Lord sends him
some prop. The great labor unrest
and numerous strikes in Petrograd
in February, 1921, and the Cronstadt
insurrection proved that prop. Com
munist unity was to be maintaine ed
at all cost. And so the Little Father
took his unruly children, one by one,
and taught them their manners.
Denounced by Lenin.
Lenin denounced the labor oppo-
sition as archo-syndicalist, middle
class ideaology and ordered It's sup
preston. SchliapnoKoff, one Of the
opposition's most influential leaders.
was referred to by Lenin as a "peev-
ed commissary" and was subseq u emit
ly silenced by being made a member
of the central committee OF the Com
munist party.
/ Nine. Kollantay was told to hold
her tongue or get out Of the party,
and her pamphlet-setting forth the
views of the oppositionwas suppress
ed
Some OF the lesser lights of the
labor opposition were given q vaca-
ton in the Cheka, and even Riasa-
noff an old and tried Communist
was suspended for six months from
all union activities. AS to Trotzky,
whom Lenin held up to the party's
scorn as an "ignoramus in funda-
mental Marxism," he was hustled
off to Cronstadt to bring there the
peace of Warsaw" Lenin and his
saint, Juste Zinovieff, scored VIC
tory. The trades unions remained
the school for Communism"
Lenin Fixes Their Status.
The new economic policy is fast
reshaping the whole structure of
Russia. The trades unions are
among the first to feel its effects.
At session Of the central commit
tee of the Communist party, held
in Moscow In December, 1921. the
functions of the trades unions UNI
der the new economic policy was
discussed. A commission, consisting
Of Lenin, Rudzyutak and Andre
yeff, was chosen to prepare a the
sis on the subject. Later their the
sis was accepted. as usual. unani-
mousiy by the All-Russian Central
Soviet OF Trades Union.
The thesis speaks volumes for
Lenin's capacity to shed his skin.
Among other things 1t contains the
following:
1. Compulsory enrolment Of the