The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-02-13
Issues at the Congress of the Communist
Party Of Russia

Soviet life, a question even OF luOeT-
national significance, and the action
of the party congress in scotching any
deviations from the straight line OF
Leninism the moment they showed
themselves prove that the leadership
Of the Russian party-the opposition
included-considers it their highest
task to steer close to the line laid
down by Lenin and embodied in Len
inism.
The Question Of Party Composition.
TVHE next great question that occu-
pied the attention of the congress
upon which there was a controversy
was the question of the composition of
the party. The 18th Party Congress
(1924) had laid down the line that at
least fifty per cent Of the member
ship of the party must be composed OF
industrial workers actually at work in
the shop. The opposition charged
that this had not yet been accom-
plished. Upon the basis Of its charge
the opposition proposed that the con-
gress take measures for the greater
absorption of large masses of prole-
tarians by the party and the greater
accessibility of the party to the pro-
letariat. They pointed out that all
strata of Soviet society were under
going an elevation in their level of
political life and initiative, the indus
trial proletariat above all, and it was
the duty of the party to respond to
this fact. The party, they said, was
weak in it's industrial proletarian core
and there was danger of its losing its
strictly proletarian nature.
The majority of the congress was of
the opinion that these arguments were
not correct. Bukharin very correctly
pointed out the situation had chang
ed in Soviet society-the "declassing"
of the proletariat is at an end; in
fact the trend is now definitely the
other way; the tendency is for the
peasants to leave the village for the
town. This, of course, means thatd
a large section of the town prole-
tariat was really semi-prOletariat (and
semi-peasant) in composition, so that
opening the doors to them would di-
Lutte the party. AS for the increase in
political life and initiative of the pro-
letariat, this is a very true and well
come fact. But must this tendency
find its outlet in the party? Are not
the many non-partisan organizations
CIR ffioiont 70 ohcorh tb;c uoIifiool on
ergy-such organizations as the Sow
lets, the various Soviet organs, nom
partisan conferences, ETC.? In the de-
mands of the opposition the party con-
gress quite rightly saw a tendency to-
wards the underestimation of the van
guard role of the party.
1.-THE consolidation Of the party
and the strengthening Of its lead
ing role in all spheres of construc-
tive work is a prerequisite for a
correct regulation of the compost
ton of the party. The party con-
| gress considers it necessary to con-
duct policy of raising the qualita-
tive composition of the party or
CARNATIONS, of striving to attract
ever greater numbers of workers to
the party and constantly to raise
the preponderance of its proIetarian
core. The party congress at the
same time affirms the necessity of a
strict carrying out of the measures
to restrict the admittance into the
| party and to it's being swamped with
semi-proIetarian elements which
have never passed thru any school
of the trade unions or proIetarian
organizations. The party congress
condemns such attempts which have
nothing in common with Lenlnism,
which deny the correct relations be-
tween the party advance guard OF
the CLASSY and the class which rend-
er possible Communist leadership"
TT is impossible here to examine the
| Il infarn ati0naI qionifoanca opd i'm.