Lenin CW-Vol. 23.pdf - From Marx to Mao

338V. I. LENIN2) It would forthwith publish all these treaties inorder to hold up to public shame the predatory aims of thetsarist monarchy and of all the bourgeois governmentswithout exception.3) It would forthwith publicly call upon all the belligerentpowers to conclude an immediate armistice.4) It would immediately bring to the knowledge of allthe people our, the workers’ and peasants’ peace terms:liberation of all colonies;liberation of all dependent, oppressed and unequal nations.5) It would declare that it expects nothing good from thebourgeois governments and calls upon the workers of allcountries to overthrow them and to transfer all politicalpower to Soviets of Workers’ Deputies.6) It would declare that the capitalist gentry themselvescan repay the billions of debts contracted by the bourgeoisgovernments to wage this criminal, predatory warand that the workers and peasants refuse to recognise thesedebts. To pay the interest on these loans would mean payingthe capitalists tribute for many years for having graciouslyallowed the workers to kill one another in order that thecapitalists might divide the spoils.Workers and peasants!—the Soviet of Workers’ Deputieswould say—are you willing to pay these gentry, the capitalists,hundreds of millions of rubles every year for a warwaged for the division of the African colonies, Turkey,etc.?For these peace terms the Soviet of Workers’ Deputieswould, in my opinion, agree to wage war against any bourgeoisgovernment and against all the bourgeois governmentsof the world, because this would really be a just war, becauseall the workers and toilers in all countries wouldwork for its success.The German worker now sees that the bellicose monarchyin Russia is being replaced by a bellicose republic, arepublic of capitalists who want to continue the imperialistwar, and who have confirmed the predatory treaties of theTsarist monarchy.Judge for yourselves, can the German worker trust sucha republic?