1935 Comintern 7th Congress Part 3 Georgi Dimitrov Response.pdf

SEVENTH WORLD CONGR ESS OF,[HE COMMUNIST INTERNATIONALG. DIMITROVThe Working ClassComintern 7th WorldCongress Part 3: TheWorking Class AgainstFascism ResponseGeorgi Dimitrov1935 London: Modern Books32p.AgainstFascismSPEECH IN REPLY TO THEDISCUSSIONMODERNBOOKS LIMITED, LONDON

The W orking Class Against FascismCOlllrade Oilllil ,o .... 's Spuch i t! R eply 10 t il e Dis"usion.••I•Comrades! T h e: \'(!ry full d iscllssion on my r Cl)Ort ShOW5 the:. lW el1SC interest taken by Ihe Congress in the fund:lmental t ac:oI~ I problems and tasks of the struggle of the working classtlC:ins t t he offcnsiv(' of capital a nd fa scism , against the threat of~g ptrinlist W:lT.1111 SUlIlIn ing up . t ~le cighl.d~r d i~uss i on we can state that all the. cip:l l p roposltlollS contained In the report have met with the"rill ' I (he "niOlOUS apl)TOV:l 0 t e o ng re ~. ~one of l hi: speakersuna .ob'cCted to the tactlca1 I"me weh. ave proposed or to the rcsolu-• J owh ich has been submitted.110 I venture to say that at no ne of the previous Congresses of thec ommunist I nternational has such ideological :l.Od politicalsolidarit)' been r eve."l~d as. at the prescnt Congress. lA ppla use.l'The cO l11p ~etc una n~ l~lI ty d 15pla~ed at the C~ n~ ress indicates t~ a.the necessity of revlsm g our pohcy and tactiCS III accordance With,'he ch anged conditions and with due regard for the most abun-"" (da nt and instructive expe ri ence 0 the past few years, has comebe fully recognised in our ranks.10 This cuani mity may undoubtedly be regarded as one of th l.!most im portant prereq uisitesJc:· suc~ess in so\ving.the paramount·nifllediate problem of the mternatlonal proletarian movement,lamely, u tab/islzillg u nit). of actiOI! of all sccliolls of thoU/o rking~las s i" Hi e strugglc against fascis m.The successful solution of this problem requires, first, thatcommunists skilfully wield the wcapon of Mar;dst-Lellillist111141),sis. while carefully studying the specific conditions and thealignment of class forces as they develop. and plan their activityand struggle accord ingly. W e must mercilessly root out the,,·eakness. not infrequently obse rved in our comrades, for cutand-driedschemes, lifeless formulas and ready-m ade patterns.We must put an end to the state o f affairs in which Communists,when lacking the knowledge or ability for Marxist-Leninistanalysis, substitute general phrases and slogans sllch as " therevolutionary way out of the crisis/' without making the slightestserious attempt to explain the conditions, the relationship of classforces, the deg ree of revolutionary maturity of the proletariatand the toiling masses, and the lev'el of influence of the CommunistParty necessary to render such a revolutionary way out ofthe crisis possible. Without such an analysis all these catcb-3

,.. t JI5 t' m p t)' phrn ~s wh ich oUly obwords btl, roach to thecoP] s th at confront us. with n proper comprehension of the~ ions adopted and a real und erstanding of the muns anddtCethodlS 1S by Wh' IC I I t I I(!Se. ( I CC ' ISIOIl!S , arc to be nllplied to theIII 'cular ci rculIlst:\I\ces of each country .partlJ\ ((cr a ll. we have before no\\' IIn:minv)\\-;ly adopted Rood n:s.o­• o S bllt th

- , . _. ' 0 h" 1I0 wII II 1111; \·c r .o>:11 ~ ••,___ " 1111 " :U.:.. · . • ~ fIt wO'lllcl bt' I' I:~ - ' 0 ('O\'ef nil ('ountrieS n nd nil I~I' 0f nlSCIS/lI,•• I t'ecI(,I'd OPI1lCll t 0 , ,> b u t hRIIII)('r u s III (,:l!' rY Ill ~ on a .SuC'h, lid 1101 Ie J • " ' d ft'1I,111 rll e \\'01 . . t hi n ~ elsc , sue I n fit c wo u r C5ttl, -t fro ll1 Cltt) ' ( -, I.s truggle, I \ pnr . ;1110 tin' calliI' 0 :I-.cl:-Ill t lOSe Sect;indlscrtllunn_ _ - '_'"\:thrustLllg. h -( ,Ironi·rly nppro.le. I " . I' 0",l~( . {O U ( • at n c, 'on wlll

, nce with which faSCism I. t\CCOf

.h w ill e I' t:\Skli h e re . 0 1. Ih- I \'c~ n l \ll .. ,0 o u r :-c ,. thl1" , " , e1l:1I t il''' we s lall ". b ' sellIn,.. 'C I I~' " '' 1111I1'01(' \1111('5 ) . 11;11)0: to U' IIIO\ . prcpnrc t h e Krolln d fo r tI(' It rnry . ill " ~I , ill OIl ,,"(ll'd!' uI ,'" nt of b:lttl " I "It> orkcrs' tUI • 'I' the qllestlon til t ItS Way Ylt" ~ fore a w D tad:.,',etIlghereI I "lI" • creflted? Y peasantry , wou ( 11\ eft ......" R ble ~ IS ' . t from . ~ '\GIl 0 !>. ,"e I)roletana fie . grarian revolution, WOuldI l 'sointe " °wou ', I ' .,tl " • ,g the slog-ai,' f h l)Cople to d islllllte the prolt ..'.h 'Ithdr:l\\ ln ' (;S 0 t e . , ,l}\; \1. -ier for the enel ll · 1 the peasr.-\try III OpPOsItion tomake It en !> I .~. s antr)', and SC. d tie y-" ' , I1lrades, ".,.." is well known, was on.tarlat :lll . I 55 Yet thiS, co 'k' g clasS was defeated in th~the w o rkl~g c a · nS why the wor IIIf the 1l1aln re3S0 .o events of 19.}4' t be forgotten : 10 all countrit!October one thing must no _, Iy small in numbers, whtrtl'Iowe\'er, . omp.'lratlve 1 'he proletariat IS c t _bourgeois strata pre( om1nale,where t try and the urban pet Y d every effort to set up a firrtthe pea~~le more nccessary to b e \ elf so that it may be able toit i,~::ilfront of the work~ng ~Ia~~rl '~' itl; regard to all the toilers,link' 't place as the leading a,c the problem of the proletarl~ta -e 1 s , a\lac\-ang l'Thus comrades, 11l h can be no genera panacea sun·nd the people's fronl~ t erIe I peoples, In this matter uniHt.t ron t a . II untnes, a - II I 'blfor all cases, a co d the same recipe to a coun ntSa e . . of one an 'II ' the apphcatiOn to say so to Ign orance:; ie.sa Ism, " 11 alloW me ' bis equivalent, if you \\1 ed even when it st3lks a. out, nay,ignorance should ~e flo~g bo t in the cloak of u1llversal ttt,." I I when It stalks aU.parUc~ ar Y (APplause.)3ud-dned schemes.10T/tll R olli oj Socia /-D ctlloCFncy and itl A II it 14 de T O,,,llrd, theU"i/ccl F,tnl/ oj tll ll P,oltJta ,ial.COlliratk s, in "iew of Ihe IflCtic:l1 problems confro nting \1 5 , it, ,er)' important 10 gile fl correct reply to the question of whether~ i !l I . De\lloCrncy al Ihe pre;,cn t time is :;till the pri ncilml bulwarkf tho.: bourgeoisie, aud if so, where?o Some of the comr:_des who participated in the discussion(Col1lrades Florin , Dutt) touched upon this question, but in viewfits illlllOrt:lUcc a fulle r reply mu ~ t be given to it, for it is "Ouest ion wh ich workers o f all tre nds, particularly Social·bel\lOC r:ltic workers, are askillg' and cannot help ask ing.It llI ust be borne in mind that in a number of countries the :)Osition o f Social-Democracy in the bourgeois state , and its atti­~ude towards the bourgeoisie , h3vc becn undergoi ng :1 ch :lnge.In the first pl:'ice, the cri sis has thoroughly shaken the positionf even the 1110st secure sectio n of the working- cl:lss, the so-called:ristocraCy of labour, upon which , as we know, Social-Democracyelies for support. T his sectio n, too , i!' begi nning more and more~o revise its views :lS to t he e:>.:pedi -::ncy of the policy of classcollaboration with the bourgeoisie,Second, as I IlOil1ted out in my report, the bourgeoisie in anumber of countri es is itself compelled to abandon bourgeoisdemocracy and resort to t he terroristic form of its dictatorship,depriving Social- Democracy not only of its prcvious position inthe political system of fi nance capital, but also, under certainconditions, of its legal status, persecuting and even su ppress·ing it. .Third, under the lIlfluence of the lessons learnt from t1, .:defeat of the workers in German y , Austria and Spain, a defeatwhich waS brgely the result of the Socin.l-Democratic policy ofclass collaboration with the bou rgeoisie, :md, o n the other hand,under the influence of the victory of Socialism in the Soviet Unionas a result of Bolshevik policy :md the application of living, revolutionaryMarxism, the Social·Democratic workers are becomingrevolutionised, are beginning to tum to the class struggle againstthe bourgeoisie.The joint effect o f all this has been to make it increasinglydifficult, rind in some countries actually impossible, for Social·Democracy to preserve its form-cr role of bulwark of the, "bourgeoiSIe.Failure to understand this is particularly harmful in thosecountries in which the fascist dictatorship has deprived Social·Democracy of its legal status , From this point of view tbe sclf-11

who ;n their !!peechu 1Tlen.In C'OlllnH C • I I 'bt'C GenUll ' I,' " " 10 I Ie eltCf 0 0 SOle"0 " O (t lO~ · ' 1g to C ...cnllCISn1 ("6Sit)' o f C(,:&:.11 . ~ 5oc i(lI _ D c lll oc r a~y . of ceasingl;otl~1 the nd~ l ('C i SiOIt5 COllcc nll ll~ kl'lI plnec in its posit ion, Wa!l.{ormulM an (1Iall "e5 !IUlI h:'l,"(' 1.1 these c hanges, it w ill lend to, ,ore the C .,. ", ,gnore .' I 'to 11;1 ' , \cM that I w\:! f c .. l!lbilshmg t II! u n ity o f thl!C(lrrcosition of claSS s r, orgnnisations will contilltlGtogeDlsle 0 , p' tics all( " '0 __,'" DemocratiC .11' orgnni satlonS or pa.rt les, InsontC~ . , , "'udent . f I 0 _ _ ', f n time nS lit( el.... I.ft nO thought 0 SliC I ~ Ial.eXIst or f course, ..,.. d' ,h'cnt therc cn.Il, 0 'being regarde :"IS:l 1\1 warksuc C\ , ' tions or partIeSDemocratIc or~a,1lIS3 ,of the bourgeoiSie,h ,,., Social.Democratlc workersted that t o~ I' be 't cannot be e... tJCC h 'deology of class co a ration, fl ence of tel d' h ' hvho are under the III u , h been instille lilt . em In t e" vhlch as f I 'vith the bourgeol s l~, \ ,' th this ideology 0 t IC'lr o\\:n accord,course of dccades, \\'111 pa~t "I No It is our busmess, theb' live causes,.. ' , factuated solely by 0 Jcc , to help them free themse ves rombusiness of the Con~mu~lsts, The work of explaining thethe hold of rcfornllst IdeolOrgyC' lmunism must be carried onIIImeO on dprinciples nnd progra f h' and must be ndnpte to thepatiently, in a comradelY or ti~~t, individual Social·Democraticdegree of de\'el?~n:'entSocial.Democracy mllst become moreworkers, Our cfltlcl~ m of d must be based on the experience ofs,>CCific and s),st-c matlc, an 1, . masses themse ves.the Social-Democratic, . d that primarily by utilising theirt must be bo:n,e m nun I 'ith the Communists against theexperience in t?e J,omt strug~b~e \\nnd necessary to facilitate andclass enemy will It be ~sst development of the Social,accelerate, the revoluTl1honarrS no more effective means of theDemocratic workers. ereI2I5oCiBI_Dellloc rnti ~ . w~ rkon si b l e for having supported the Social·Democratic policy of class collaboration, the policy which in anutUber of European countries doomed the revolution in 1918and cleared the wny for fascism,The nttitude adopted towards th ~ united front is the dividingline between the reactionary sections o f Social-Democracy and thesections that are becoming revolutionary . Our assistance to thelatter will be the more effective, the more we intensify our fightagainst the reactionary camp of Social.Dem

, _ T hIll iii how the question ......,. 'orll ..:I ill d cc( ,," , . , r , "b ll . the Ulllh~( ron gOVt'runiCIlI ', , rO Il ~ \11 II ~ "at the 11111(' IS,,0 • t ulC •. I I), b IICOPe s fr onl1111111 , ' front j.:OI·crJln IC II • ,li lions of their (ormatio n ,( he Ulllte< , . the ("011 • 0o 'as weI :l~. . To c:o.:pcct us O\'er and abo ,'('rn llU'lll , . I (11 r('cIlOIi . , . . , "':0 1 . cner:iI I :lCI1(':I, frillS nnd :III ('OIH ULo n s 1111( cr whichp r ~\, l(l e. 1-': 1i('lI t C nil l)Oss,bl c 0 " II'oultl lIIean but 10 in"it\: (UtilthiS 10 III( . '1\' be formlauRh t of fasciMIl against ther~ g ht s of the toilo.:r5 , the. P ~li sh Pa.r ~y at the salll,t: lime had i~si "iv ings about forlllubllll j{ pOl>lttvC (\.:!IIlOCratlc demands IIIfI\rderl>~uot to create (, 1!lIIOC ratlC . I .,' uSlons ' among the masses, .. "1'1 Ie;olish P ~ r tyis, ~~ course , not ~ he only one i n . w ~ i ~h such fear offormulating j"l(bltlVC dl!mocratlc demands eXIsts til one way oranother.\Vherc docs til at fear come from, comrades? It comes fromall incorrect, nOll,dialectical conception of our aUitude towardsbourgeois democ racy. W e, Communists, arc unswerv ingupholders of Soviet democr:lcy, the great protot ype of ..... hich isthe proletari an dictatorship in the Soviet Union where the iotroductionof equal suffrage, and tbe direct and secret ballot is proclaimedby resolution o f th e. Scventh Congress of Soviets ~ t thesame time that the last vestiges of bourgeois democracy arc beingwiped out in the. capitalist countries. This Soviet democracypresupposes the vict·.lry of the proletarian rcvolution, the con­"I!rsion of private property in the means of product ion into publicproperty, the embarking of the ovcrwbelming majority of thepeople on the road to Sociali sm , This democracy does not repre·5Cllt a fin al form; it develops and will continue to dcveloll inproportion as further progress is made in socialist construction,in the creation of classless society and in the overcoming of thesurvivals of capitalism in economic life and in thc minds of thepeople,But to~day the millions o f toilers living under capitalism arefaced with the n ecessity of tnking a d efinite stand on th es e form sin which the 1'Illc of 1,11 e bourgeo isie is clad in the variouscountries. We are not anarchists and it is not at all a matter ofindifference to us what kind of political regime exists in anygiven country: whether a bourgeois dictatorship in the form ofbourgeois democracy, even with democratic rights and libertiesgreatly curtailed, or a bourgeois dictatorship in its open, fascist15

" ,', I dt'!'I\OCfM'Y. wr .fll edl d II ~ of :-,0\1 1; ' e t tldll eirl~ "phol( (' ' I,i,.$ 1.,I,i(. 11 Ou: WO I ' H'R clau ,,,)nll.. h / /111\ 1I"",,,,wI U ' R / s/llbbo rll sh IlGJ:/ e. (It.d ,'Ill",,11'.1' "fj"" ,1' 0/ )'t/J's o . ''' ''11I.d i" Ihe (Ot!d til tS" X(I\tlJ.1I't4lS, I I ,/i,,/I l 10 r ."' ~ '1 'fi "' of the Bri t is h workinH AIr Utl II r J ,. t (' 5,'1CrI IC~ . f . ... 1l5!How grcal wefC t I, h I to strike. R kgal .!>ta tus o r Its tt~t1t. ~-" ured the rig I II (rc{'dom of the p rcl'is, CXtCIl .!>I·~ro rc II ".... ( s:;t'lIlb)' 1111 (011the ri~hI 0 (l • hiS I How llIany Il'U.!> 0 thous,'lnd1II1iO Il5 (, chist ond olhcr ~ Ig Ihc re\'olutionary battles fOIlRht . ~of the ran 'h ' Ih~s 11\ • I I Int . r5 gil' '\! t cit ry to obwtll t Ie l.' emcnta,), tit'hlof wor",(' . nth cen lU . . I ' ( • ,'n ,hc nUlett'e . ( or"'alll :'lIlg t IClt o r~cs for thFrlln« I rtUnlt)' 0 l!> • (II •I h I"wflll oppo . " The proletari at 0 a COU lilril"!iam t I' .goinst the esploltr r!; ·:n bourgeois-delllocrat ic libcrtil"strugg ~ . blood 10 \\1 • I " ,shed much of It5 . II .(5 SlrenJ1;lh to ret:lIn I len} .h" II fi"ht with" I .d will nalura )' Ie. eois democracy IS not the S.'llllton Our 3lt itudt t o\\"ard~ ~U~lg:tn c e nt the time of the OCtObet.. J·or ln!; ' 1 ' 1' ( Iullcltr nil C'Ondl uon~ ._ . Bolshevik s ruga,!.:.:( 111 a I c-al\( ·dcathRc,.olutioll, the RUS!iIll.lI . I p:lrties whit-h oppo ~cd the establish_stru/:/; Ie against all l ~ htIC ~ic t a to rship uncier th~ sios,:an of the'.lIt of the proletarlRn ( 'fhe Bolsheviks fought IhestII )..; • democracy. I dddt'llce of bou rgeoiS r of bourgeois democracy la at thatI mrlies be; which had tllkclI place, but contot.I" d to repeal t I lose s I 0K:l II 'I , 11I:llIIlalll " t I 10lle tactlca . I poSIuon5 ..lin uc . h had beel! correct a (I ew years }c( ore , espeCla . II y w h t n t I l~",hie "Ie for tile pro I etaTl:l ' n d IC ' , li tor!i I np ' was nn . IIll1ne d lale 'I~ue,.stt ugl)I when th\: entire. Gern.lan coulltcr-revoIullon.was raIIylnK".11 11' 1 r the balllle r of the Weimar RepUblic , a5 it d id in 19 18-20.\I11 ( CAnll thc circlllll o;t:ul ce Ihat c\·cn to.d:. }' we must still nl ake.{crCII CC to fear, in our .ranks , of launching positi ve: democraticrl t.nns indica tes how little our cOlllr:.

, , C'(Ultlilioll'" Inu ,:.;inn Bolsheviks in the period of prCl1aration forta cU October ",eva, II tlOIl . COllslste( ' , 11\ ' t , lelr ' a b •' ,' tty correctly tothe .... line the Il:l th al1(l the turns which nalur:lll)' \c3d the massesdete. .. p ,the slogans of the a rt y , to the vcr}' ' threshold of lhe rc\'olu·t? ,J helpin.': them to .:icnsc, to test and to rcali~ fro m their own110~rie n ce the correct ness of these s lo~ ans . They d id not con·~:seleadership of the Party with Icadcr::.hip of the mnsscs, but, ,Iy53W the diffcf{:nce betwccn le:ldership of the fir.;t kind andC1eaclership of t, , •.', , .H! secont "lIle. n thiS way they worked outefl tics as the science, not o nl y of Party leadership, but also of the,ac leadersh ip of t I lC IIlI ',,' Ions 0 f t O',I Cr!>.Furthcrmore, it must be bo:'oe in mind that Ihe broad I114SSt:S(a nnat assimilate o ur d u isio tu ulIless we lea r" to s peak IIl e Ian·uage w llicll tll£: "Hi sses IIlId n sta tld . \\le do 110t always know~ow to speak simply, concretdy , in images which are familiar(ld intelligible to the masses. W e arc stillloalh to d ispense with"bstract formulas which we have learnt by rote. As a matter of~aet if you scan our leaflets , neWSpapers , resolutio n::. and theses,ofte n written in a language and style.you'will find tha t they a~eSO heavy thnt they are difficult for even our P nrty functiona ri e~10 understAnd, let al o n~ the mnk·and·filc work ers. -If we reflec t, comrades , thnt workers , especially in fascistcountries, who distribute o r only read these leaflets risk their verylives by doing so, we shall rcalise still more clearly the need ofwriting for the masses in n lnnguagc which they understand, sothat the sacrifices made l1Iay no t have been in vain.The same applies in no less deg ree to our oral agitation andpropaganda. \Ve must admit quite frankly that in this respecttbe fascists have often proven more dexterous and flexible tbanmany of our commdes.1 recnl1. for exa mple, a meeting of unemployed in Berlin19

. to I>ower It was at Ihe time of the~(or~ Hitler':J nccC'$Slon . ,"Ars ~nd s pecu l nto r~ . the Sk, ttilllious SWill .. . . att!(of tho~ lI o~or n ed on for scvcrlil months. A Nationbrothers, which ~r 1;1;" c " ing the meeting Illnde demagogic IIISocia ' " 1St :;1>' cnkcrllln«r I " ~ OWII cuds. H (' re f cHe( '" to I IC sWi nd! " s,oClha! trial, to further I~\es committed by the S kJarck bro t! es,' I. 1(\ other Ctl1l . • f letsthe bnlJcr), ar h' 'rll had been drag ~ lt\g or Illonths •h' d that t en., , ' f (jill!emp IlSlse' • I tlndrcds of t iOusaIH S 0 marks it Iiig'ure

(ll h"IIP/1" fIIdtrs, d(lch/r rvr' ytld"g '1',list't'll»' M 'hI I' ' i' , . , " • ICy"II I 'h I COlllrnd~ ... //1 HI tlllI,!:: I I IIl1 0 ( 0, l1aln('1 !lI tunllble 10 ( 0,,\\ Silo" ml.,IIt' T (,lIl l i\'l1l1.'5 his (!I \,ou r il ... fr\li~' Cl1lli.\' 31t' ('.1flre~ II,., . " trl'''' I.• . ' (0\\'11, IlIUr " tth~ ron· t; " , " , Ir O\\'. "., P" ' ~ ill (."Ollci:n lrat lOli (':II11pS:l1H SII )Jccts to e"cru,', . 'mlO Jill • :; ".", ', "rlkul:trh' in f:lsclst counltll.'S,atu".liS cr(':ltcs til " ..l orlur~, I · " , , ' ... \'tr, n .... ~~.:: '· " . of col1';lnn ll" r('pll'llls illig the milks ClI',,·, .. urgen tn~~ " , ahn:lllu" ,rainillg'new C:ldr~s as \\'ell :lS c:lrdully prcservin .... "c> t It~:d sli /lg cIlClres,The Queslion of C:l(lres is of, fl:l~ l icnlarnrJ:ell cy for the add '·on.' re3son Ihnl ti nder our mflucll cl' the I1l:'l SS uni led r ,.mo\'eme-nl, ' b" [ rOIl!' is g:'lining momenlum :In( rmgmg orward mIhollSIlllds of new \\'~rklll.g.c, ., " " an}':'ISS 1111 IlalllS, . oreol'er, it is nOIon'" young rc\'OhlllolHl ry elements, not on ly workers '. ' h b[ '. JUStbecoming re\'olullon:'lry, \\' 10 ave .l1 e\·('r e ore partlCIP:lted in .71political mo\'eI1lCllt , that. ~ t re:l1l1 IIlto O U~ T:'I llks, V~ ry of lenformer members flnd actl\'lsts of the SocI:'lI·OemocT:'ltic Par,'. ' ] . lesRlso join us. These ne\\, c:'l~res re< I~lll'e 51>(-ua \ but ,one.of the Ilormal functions of the Party.It is bad whcll p~ omo tl,o n IS made cxclusivf:\Y o n the basis ofnarrow P:lrly conSi deratIons , without regard to whether the Com.munist promoted has contact with the masse.!> or not. Promotionshould wkf: !l!ace 011 the ?:l~ i s of the. ability of the various Partywork ers to (llscharge particula r fUl1ctlons, and of their popularitya010ng II ~c lIIas~s, \Vc have eX:II11ples in our Part ies of prolllo.tions which ~la \' C proouced excellent results, For inst:mce, wehave :l Spanish ,woman.Communist , silting in the Presidium ofthis Congrl:!>5. Comrade Dolores, Two years ago she was still ar:Ulk.:llld.file Party worker. Out in the vcry firs t clashes with thecl3SS enemy she proved to be au excellent ag itator and fighter.SubSCCluently promoted to the leading body of the Party, she hasproved herself,a most worthy member of that boey, (Applau se. )I could POlllt to a number of simil:u cases in several othercountri e~, but : n Ihe majority of C:lSCS promot ions arc made in anunorgalllscd and h~ phaz:lrd Ill~ nll e r, and therefore arc not alwaysfortunate, Sometimes morahscrs, phrasemongers and chatter.bo,:e ~ who :lc t ll ~dly harm the cause are promoted to leadingposItIons.Third, ti, e a b il~t)1 to tl se ,people to best adva ntage. We mustbe able t~ ascertam and ulllise the valuable qualities of everysingle acti ve worker. T her-c are no ideal people; we must takethem as they are ,and Correct t~eir wcaknesess and shortcomings,We know o f glnrmg eX:lll1ples III our P arties of the wrong ulilisa~tion of good, hones.t Communists who might have bew very use.ful had they been g IVen work that they were better fit to do.Fourth, proper distribution 0/ cad res, First of all we mustsee to it that the main links of the movement are in the' charge ofstrong people who ha\'e contacts with the masses, have sprungfrom the very depths of the m asses, who ha\1e initiative and arest~unch. The more imp~ rt .ant districts should have an appropnatenumber o f such activists. In capitalist countries it is Dotan easy matter to transfer cadres from one place to another. Such

umber of ob51nd u find cliffi c u lt i ~s ,inchrd '" I,,$k ('110011 ~11 e rs 1~ I J: j'ons id('ral iOIl" , ('I C. I cI i ffi e t! It i ~s wh ich In Ill frla('k 01 f \l ~ Hb . ( li ll ) I fi nd prol>el'ly o vercome. Bu t II sunll liStbe laken nllo n('('OlI lIY \\'~le-cl to do this altogether . ....n eg / ' ssist(JIl u to (od ,n, 1 11I~ :l:;$I!Stnncc IIh''ilth s)-slr-ma Ie 1I . d , , OUld• f (':\refill instructIOn, ("amm C)' con tro , ~c l i fitoke ' the (orlll o . and mista kes lI ml cO llcn 'le, eVe r .'"tion oC shortco l1l1n /::I • Y a)'guicln ncc . lor Ili r "rrsfJ r:.'otiol/ 0/ t:ad, rs. \Vc IISixth prop" rare I lUSt. • . to withdraw Pnrl)' workers to I Ie ren r whcucvclearn prompt!) ' re and rcplllec them by others. \V c rill! rcirc IlUl s l a ll ccshso ,~cqtl)I,1 Ic~ :lcrship JlM t iculnrlr in cOll ll tries whe SIdemand that l e ar ·' " '" ", " " aSSUllle PMMllOllnt r~po Il S I )1the Pnrtles are I ega , ""Ity for.th,.' ( cndres. (A PP/llIlst' . ) Ie p ro p~ r ,?h:serva tloll ofpre5('n at 10 11 0" highl)' efliciell t org:lIlls:u loli of secrecadres also presupposes . d Oy, ,t ' 1\ of our Par!lcs lIIallY COlilra es thin"m the Party. 1\ cer 1\1 (' ', """'jelltly prepared or till( erg ro und existIhat the Par!le5 nre 5U .. . d , 'h, thc) ' h3\'C rcorgalll se t lemsd\'es on'ence even t OilS I ' . . , yfdOng to read)" 1U3dc rules . Wc 13d to P3y vcr),ormn y aC'('()r I k ( "dearly {~r having "tartep05i.:i~n to all dcv iations fr om the Dolshc:vik line.We must place all the more emphasis 011 these conditionswhich d e t e r lll i l ~e the corn.-

" ,-"""'me so 10 SIJ, 11 mil:> ...... ~. • ~sional I)('OP t'. • {ronl of the proll!lRfint rut( I Ie anti· fn .rOSS" of the 1I1111{"(1 . Ulilliou .. o f toililn: po..'OI}lc the" ~I ' t'hehereIof-:leln'lt\". .or IIICI,I- . 0 . SlIC . II an athtud. nin geller:tl, III I e!lll .,.. ( I ) '1" •. '1 ,." der,"tS on the CrIIllIli al. tlpp (illS!! . 1(' fightersIsnnc"I UV f .' •... , . the VICtllllS of react lOll :"II\( I f aSC1:-;1 ··- 11 who a,. .of the wor"mg c nSS, . .. . . '\ torture chambers and COllcelltmtlOn cant""stllfenng :"I!:'ony 11 . . I Id I' . ''',.' I . nt s amI their fanlilles 5 lOll a meet WIth thepollllcn ellllgf:l · · . . fl''m ).1thetic care and soliCItude on the part 0 t Ie organls,1.~ost 5) Il'f"" etiollaries of the LL.D. (Pfolo"gcd applausl".) ihtlions nn 'll • better apprecIate . f1n( I ( I' ISC I large ItS . ( I Uly o(LL,D. must s t L . d . f ..' th fighters in the prolel:·.nan an a nI!· :lSClst 1110\'(,.nSSlstmg e I"t · I rl)' ,'n I,h)'sicnlly lind mom Y preserv1I1g thement pM ICU a ." f th labour movement. The COllllllUII15tS lind revolu.carcsO d e 10 ' .. ,. r ' ,,'ho "r' nctive in the J,.. . org:1Il1 5:ltloIlS mUSttlOnnry \\'or",-, :;.. . . ,. t e 'cry step the enormouS respolIstlJlhty they benr beforerelllSCn' " Ifthe workill ~ class nnd the COIllJ1lUIl1St Internatlona or the sue·"cessful fulfilment of the role lind t:lsks of the I.r., D. (A PPlflllsc.)Comrlldes, as you know, ('(Idres recei,'e their ~st training intil e procrss oj struggle, in surmounting difficulties and with·standing teslS, in studying Ja'i.'OIHablc :lnd IlIlJa, ' o llrab /~ eX:l.Inplesof conduct. We have hundreds of examples of splendid conductin times of strikes , durin~ demonstrntions. in jail. in court. Wthave thOll5.1 nds of instances of heroism , bllt unfortunately alsonot B few ('ases of pigeon-hellrtedness, lack of firmness, and evende~ rtio n . We often forget these examples, both good nnd bad,We do not teach people to benefit by these examples. \Ve do not.6IIII110\\' th.:1Il what should I,c clIlulated anel what rejected . We5 .\ 5Wtly the COllcl u(,t of our c(.tInradc'S and active kIII Ii!> n' t t · . ... • cia» ('a ll I('!I, at powar usICc COUlt heanngs III th ..\ ddurlfl . . , t: Jill 5 anncelltratlO~1 camps, III court, etc: , The good liides should bt:cO .. ht to h~h t ami hel ll lip a .. m()(lcl~ to be. folio' I h'\brotl & . ' , \ _. • .... e(."' II: 1111which I' rotU' lI , 110 11 · Jo "he\'lk and ,)hllbtilll': is , b. .th3 t . , , "' , OI!C:R~ tas" e SUICC tie .el l/Zlg tna we have l1 ',d {",,','" ' " b f. ' f , ' .. " mn (.:r 0cOfllradl'S appe arl~l J.:. be or.: bourgeOiS ll":d f a~iS l COllrts who haveShOI\'1I thnt, UUI\IHulh cadres ar.: g r~wmg up wi th an excc1h:lltullderS!:IlIdm g: of 1(./wl rea lly c:onstltllte .. Bobhevik conduct incOurt,"LItuhoW lIIany.evell, I of yOIl ' deh:f;: ates 10 the Con" .... tess . ' k nowtttede t ail so f .~hc tna 0 the railwa)'lIlc n in Rumania, kllOw abouth trinl of I'lete Schulz who W:"I S !'>ubsb luelltl" behe:\('ed bte . G t\' 1 ( . Y'thf~ists III crmany, Ie tria 0 ollr \'ahant J:tpant!M: comr:ld"'awn, the trilll of the Bulgarian re,"olutionarv soldiers ed'1 II" . , I . I I ' . ' , anIlla n)' other In ~ s at II' ~IC 1 nt 1I11mbie exampleli of proletarianberoism were displayed , (S~ o 'm of ~ppla u s c , all rise.) Such'orth)' examples o f pro\etan an hcrolsm m u ~ t he ,,,,pula,,"'·"mI . I I 'f . ~~,llstbe contraste( Wit I tIC lIlallI e~ t a t l o ns of faintheartednesshilistinism, alld e,"cry. kind of rot and frailty in our ranks andPhI' ranks of the \\'o rkm ~ class. These eXrll"plcs must be used~os t extensively il' CdUC3till:;.! the cadres of the labour 1ll0\,'C.nent.Comrades! Ollr Party leaders often complain that th crt. art.nO peoplo; that they are short o f people for agitational and propa.ga nda work, for t he newspapers , the trade unions , for workamong Ihe youth, .am? ng women , Not enough, not -c.noughthntis the cry. \\ e sun ply haven't got the ptople. T o this wecOuld reply in the old, yet eternally new, words of Lenin :" TIIHC arc 11 0 people-yet thae arc cno rm ous tlUlllb ers ojpeople. There are enormous, numbers of people, bcause theworking class and the ~n os t dl\'erse strata o f society, yellr afterrenr, advance from th~lr ranks an increasing number of discontentedpeople who deSire to protest, who are ready to render allthe assistance they .can, in the fi Rht again ~ t absolutism, theintolerableness of whic h IS not yet recognised by all, but is neverthelessmore ~lIld more, acutely sensed by increasing masses of thepeople. At the ~a.1l1e tune we ha,'e no people, because we have noluders, no poht.lc.al le adcrs~ we have no talented organiserscapable of org:ulIslllg extenSIve and at the same lime uniformand harmonious work that would give employment t o all forceseven the most inconsiderable. ".'Lenin, "What I s to be Done 1" Sclocted W orks, Vol. 11, p, 142,27'

, "" bo: Ih o roLl~hly f,:Taspcd by'rh' ~" words 0C ~ S :I "uiclt: III t I Cl f c\,cryd rlY ..,J elllll III . , . OUt"" . .. b,' them 1\. ,., I" "'Otlc, , '-.. nnd RPI)lIt".. ','h '," n ;;>ct-I",ui"isl method It") the concrete situlll~owin partic ul ar COun tr ies, to definite condition5, not to the1,0 11 . .. . • ...,.]t ng :l.I l1st an tnemy III I(eneral " hut agamst n partl(::ulnr,slru ..". ,- , ' . . ."tinite enell1Y· 'or 1 1.IS. purpost: . lt I.S .1lccessflry to study .n~td I,' the lcll c-r of l.c nln1sm , hut Its Itvl n~ r(!\'ol litionnr}' splnt.Illt re C " -There nre twO wa),s 0 Irflll ll ng c~ l(l res 111 our P:lrt y schools:Firs l method: h:ac hi n ~ people ah.,tract theory, trying to give:the ~r(' a tesl r)()ssible do'ic of dry learning, coaching themthefll to write theses and resolutions in literar y style, and only~l O \~de ntallY touching uron the problems of tlH: particular country1';C: he p:lrticul:l r l:lbour. rn O \'em~ l~t, !ts his.tor), an (~ lradit ions ,. an~o ,)l.'rie ntt of the CommulII ~ t I a rt)" 111 quest IOn . Only mCItheeXdentally! . ...Second method .: such t ~)~ore t! cal. tramlllg If) the hll~dflmen t a l, -pies of MarxIS]l)-Lell1ll1sm 3S IS based on 3 prac\1cal studypnncl . ., I e student of the c:ltdmal problems conct::rIl mg the struggleb~ ~I proletariat in hi s own country. On returning to his prac-0, t,' 'ork the student will then be able to fmd his bearingsile A \\ ,'ndependently, and becomc on illl/C/,cIld c nt /Hltclical o rRalliscr, d leader capable oj /eadil'R tllC masses to batlle againsl fhe'" clalS cllcmy.Not all graduates of om P:lrty sc ~ oo l s prove to be: suitabletun , b" e.. .• Many have phmscs, abstmctlOns , book knowledge: . . andshoW of lcarning. D,.t we need real, truly BolsheV Ik org?llIsers. d leaders of the maS5(!s. And we need them badly thiS veryd an .y,It does not mattcr if such studcnts be unable to write goodtheses (though we need that vcry much , too) as l o n ~ as t~eyknoW how to organise and lead, undaunted by difficulties ,C3pable of surmounting th~m. . . .Revolutionary theory 15 the generalised, Slwltl1anscd &xpen-Ice of the revolutionary movement. Communists must carefully~~i1isein their countries not only the experience of the past butalso the experience of the present struggl(!: of other d e tachl~l~nt~ ofthe international labour movement. H owe '~r, correct utthsatlonof experience does not by any means denote m ccllanica l transposilionof ready-made forms and methods of struggle from onf! set ofconditions to another set, from one country to another, as so oftenhappens in our Parties. Bare imitation, simple copying ofmethods and forms o f work, even of the Communist Party of theSoviet Union in countries where capitalism is still supreme, may\1'ith the best of intentions result in harm. rather than good, ashas so often nctually been the case, It is precisely from theexperience of the Russian Bolsheviks that we must learn to apply29

11 uJ:8 C 1L).:!U lh t ell ,>, Y, ILm'l e ' I '/I I, lalis lIeImus t /t-arll pililc~ly 10 Ctlst ~Sl ( C, PI o ry :UI< IOld up to III \Ir" ~t. , ," J.J, , (I$t'./IIotlgi'""J: . IISi' (1/ Il(IrkllrY'd Rto .... ,r ( leu c ", . . I · / • • n. ". Ip~Ja,," J' (Hul d,ullll/OI ' sm . " Q.t.·s n«-C" ........ '1r'· 10 Iearll, colllradl:!>, If') 1t.· .. ,11 alwa}.I In s, atslt'p, " in Ihl' ('() lIr~ o( the slrug.': l ' , It! I '.... r ty and iii jail. T t\'tf'yd 10 fi nlli . 10 light nnd to I('MII. \Ve 111 11'1 he lIhle to o lCIi/ 1iUII" , . ,tlL · ' S· ""b·'r(':1f I(':aching of ;\f:lr.'\:, ~ 1I 81.''', ('IIIII all( talln 'il'ill I tntIe.,. . I '/I '>, ,. " I Sial 'j;'mnu.t al \\'ork and 111 s tr llgg e , ~ i r l I . "lIl .f '''''collcil . '.'1',0" matlus 0/ IHin, ipk, lowanl the da s.·~ e ll emy and d Q ~ l l l/ )' ... 3 0(rolll the Bolshc\'ik lillC, ,rifl! Sfil lill ' s j"nr!('sS I/('H i'l /fIC e.-V latof ~cN/firs, 'U·itlt Stillitl 's r(';'ol,I';OIll.,,I' r f'II IiSIII . (APPitlllsc. ; 0 / diJJj. IC:oUlrades! NC\'er has ~n}' . il ~ terna tiolla l, cOIlRr

. , bitl(!r lessoll!! o f n number o f ddcnts , He'ttm P1&ce. Cayton Street. E.C.t,"0 t1ft