Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1950-03-07


because Of firm conviction that his doom is
sealed the State Department has released the
grim and heartrending story of Michael T.
Shipkov. The story besides being a deeply
moving account of individual human tragedy
constitutes one of the most damning and en-
Tightening documents yet written on the Com
muniSt police state-the new barbarism now
tyrannizing hundreds of millions of people in the
dark and morally fetd world behind the Iron
Curtain.
Told is his own words, in the form OF an
affidavit left with the now-closed American
Legation at Sofia, Mr. Shipkov's story is the
story of decent and honorable young Bulgarian
Systematically forced-by means of non-vioent
but immensely cruel physical pressure and over
whelming psychological terrorism-to make
confession full of gigantic falsehoods about
himself his friends and the United States.
Though completely innocent and though by
nature man of courage and integrity, he was
driven into branding himself as a spy and
traitor working closely with our minister in
conspiracy that simply never existed.
Some months ago, while still employed as
a translator in our legation Mr. Shipkov began
to develop mixed feelings of depression, fear
and resignation as result of pressures exerted
by the Bulgarian Security Militia on his sisters
his brother and his colleagues, one of whom
not taken until last August TO- On that day,
while bicycling home from work, he was ar
rested. Thereafter, for thirty-two hours, with
out let-up, he was subjected to Interrogation"
by relays of secret police agents pitileSsly wear
ing him down with ceaseless talk, ceaseless
questioning, ceaseless verbal intimidation, occa-
sional slaps in the face, relatively light blows
on the back of the neck, and the requirement
to stand facing the wall in a leaning posture
obliging him to support his weight with one
finger of each hand.
Though deceptively painless at first, the wall
treatment during which he was forbidden to
shift from one finger to another) proved to be
horror that scared the soul. In Mr.. Shipkovs
words, the ordeal-"combined with the mental
strain, with the continuous pressure to talk,
with the utter hopelessness and the longing
to 60 through the thing and be sent down into
silence and peace"-was "a very effective man
ner of breaking down all resistance" in him
Here we have new light on the question of why
it is that at most Of the Red espionage and
treason "trals"-such as those Of Cardinal
Mindzenty and the American Robert Vogeler-
the accused show no marks of physical violence
as they abjectly confess" to the court" The
Communist tyranny obviously is too modern tt
resort to the old-fashioned torture chamber
and the Shipkov affidavit plainly indicates that
mysterious drugs are quite unnecessary, too.
In other words, the barbarism behind The
Iron Curtain has developed an up-to-date kind O
cruelty for Victims singled out for public displa,
? at propaganda. trials" aimed at building ny
hatred againsttt the United States and the Yves
in general. What we see now, instead of things
like the rack or the Iron Maiden, is fiendishl,
clever combination Of psychological terror ane
physical torment of sort that does not draw
blood or leave visible bruises. The flesh, il
short, is not broken, but the mind and the spiri
are-so broken, in fact, that the finest ant
bravest of men, If the dread finger is put OF
them, are likely to cave in and confess" an,
be party to the most colossal lies.
What is particularly terrible about all thi
is that it is premedtated evil systematic, DELHI
crate planned coldly calculating, completed
unemotional-a machine-like thing whose op
orators are fully aware of the innocence o
Michael Shipkov but who nevertheless reacl
out for him and destroy him as sacrificia
offering to the gods Of the party line. No
truth, but the opposite of truth; not justic,
but the opposite of JUSTICE not the Christia
ethic, but the ethic of the antichrist-that
what we are up against in Red totalitarianism.