Against The Plague of Nations: An Address to Thinking People on The Polish Question

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An

Address to Thinking People On

By NICOLAI LENIN

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The Co-Operative Press, 15 Spruc e Street , New York

Nations

ainst the

The so-calle d League of Nation s has become in reality a plague of nations . Born of the hatred engend ered by four years of world war, ruled by the unscrup ulous, moribu nd servant s of greedy imperia lism and capitalism, this organiz ation is doing its utmost to prolo11g the sufferin gs of human ity. This so-called League of Nation s is sending to slaugh ter British worker s in Mesopo tamia and India, French worker s in Syria, Polish worker s in Russia. and Turkis h nationa lists and Greeks thruou t Asia Minor. It is starvin g to death the innocent childre n of Vienna , even th~ Lord Mayor of tht City of Cork in the Tower of London. Above all, this Plague of Nations is blockad ing, starvin g and fighting openly and secretly the peasan ts and workers of Soviet Russia. The anti-Bo lshevis t Polish nationa lists, Pilsuds ki and Paderewski, have openly stated that it was this Plague of Natioh s (''Leag ue of Nation s'') which preven ted them from concluding early peace with Soviet Russia. It is this same Plague of Nation s again which is threate ning Soviet Russia with new ultimat a and injectin g itself betwee n the Poles and Russian s at the presen t peace parleys at Minsk. It is this same Plague of Nation s which is sending munitions, officers and aviator s to the Polish front, thus clearly demonstratin g the ''neutra lity'' of that decrepi t imperia lism. Great Britain , the most elusive and most powerf ul membe r of the League , is being kept at bay by its revolut ionary workin g class organiz ations demand ing immed iate lifting of the blockad e and recogn ition of So\riet Russia. This explain s the waveri ng and double- cross attitud e toward Soviet Russia on the part of Ll9yd George , who is suppor ting Genera l Wrang el with ships and munitio ns while asserti ng His Majest y's neutral ity toward s that German baron bandit. Italy has been forced by its workin g class revolut ionary or anizations to abando n all attacks against Soviet Russia and virtual y to recogni ze the Soviet Govetn ment of the peasan ts and worker s of Russia. France remain s the sworn enemy of every progress, especia lly in Russia. Her generals, her officers, guns, munitio ns and airplanes have been fightin g the Soviet armies on the Polish front ever since the beginn ing of the presen t offensive of Poland against Soviet Russia. France has recogn ized Genera l W rangel as the govern ment of All Russia. France is bent upon destroy ing the Soviets by starvat ion, hatred and violence. There are still other governments support ing Poland morally and immora lly, with empty words and promis es. These wanton onslaug hts against the peacefu l Republ ic of Soviet Russia have aroused the worker s of the world to the highest pitch of indigna tion. They have become conscio us of the fact that poverty.. 8

disease and starvation cannot be eradicated from the face of the earth unless Russia, this giant nation, is permitted to rehabilitate itself. The imperialistic policy of capitalist governments is calculated to prolong the sufferings of Russia and of the workers the world over. Here is the toll of epidemics exacted from the workers of Petrograd during the single week from May 30 to June 5, 1920: 246 cases of Spotted Typhus

88

''

10 18 10 45

'' '' '' ''

'' Repeated Typhus '' Smallpox '' Dysentery '' Acute Diarrhoea '' Other Diseases

Total 41 '1 cases of needless suffering caused by filth and starvation imposed upon the Russian people by the horrible blockade of the Plague of Nations.

The Poles are spreading false stories about alleged atrocities ,,;of the Soviet Armies. We need not say much to refute tlieir falsehoods. The massacres perpetrated upon the Jewish population by the Poles have been established beyond a scintilla of doubt by the most aµtiBolshevist investigators, by the High Commissioner of Great Britain, Sir Samuel himself. The inhuman treatment accorded by the Poles to the conquered nations was not confined to the Jews alone. They have maimed and killed peaceful peasants, even cattle, which they could not take with them.. Upon the capture of Kiev they destroyed a freight depot, a sugar refinery and were about to burn the railroad station offices, which they were prevented from doing by the employees. They blew up the palace of the former governor-general, his church, the Girls' Gymnasium with the church, four bridges, waterworks, railroad cars, houses, and the big Georgiev Works, taking the machinery with them to Warsaw. The Ukranian Executive Committee of the local communes have addressed a solemn protest to the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Russia, G. Chicherin, against the Polish atrocities perpetrated before the evacuation by them of the captured cities. They mention the destruction of the famous Cathedral of St. Vladimir in Kief, a relic of antiquity as old as the famous Rheims Cathedral in France. They protested against the complete destruction of the town of Borisov by Polish artillery. There is system in the madness of the henchmen of the Allied managers of the Plague of Nations. Their aim is to so weaken and dishearten the workers of Russia as to compel them to submit to the dictates of greedy imperialism and capitalism. But the Soviet Goyernment and its leaders have risen to the occasion. Their wits are more than a match for the war lords' dying Plague. The gradual disorganization and decomposition of the League is taking place before our eyes. The Soviet Government, on the other hand, is gathering its forces and straining every nerve to unite and to strengthen the power of resistance and the morale of the People of Soviet Russia. It is hoped that the workers in other countries will realize the worldwide significance of the battles going on at the Polish front, that they 4

will giv e the ir mo ral and ma ter ial sup por t to the Sov iet Republi·c of Ru ssi a in its dar kes t hou r of tria l. Th e rem ark s of Co mr ade Len in, cha irm an of the Council of the Peo ple 's Co mm issa rs of the Sov iet Republic, bef ore a rec ent conferenc e of Ru ral Co mm issa rs of Sov iet Ru ssi a ma y we ll ser ve as an inthe and lic pub Re iet Sov the ing fac k tas ic ant gig the for ion rat spi pro leta ria t of all cou ntr ies . CO MR AD E LE NI N ON TH E PO LIS H OF FE NS IV E (Sp eec h of Len in at the 2nd All Ru ssi an Co nfe ren ce on Par ty Wo rk in the Vil lag es.) ''Co mr ade s, you of cou rse are fam ilia r eno ugh wit h the sal ien t facts of the Pol ish Offensive. ''Im me nse qua nti ties of falsehoods are cir cul ate d on thi s sub jec t ow ing to the so-called freedom of the pre ss wh ich con sis ts in the fac t tha t all main organs of publicity abr oad are bought up by capitalists and 90% of the m are filled wit h arti cle s wr itte n by pro stit ute s of the pen . ''T he Pri nci ple of the Pol ish Off ens ive !' ''It is alle ged tha t the Pol ish offensive wa s sta rte d because the Bo lsh evi sts sub mit ted to Pol and impossible dem and s. As a ma tte r of fact, you kno w ver y we ll tha t we we re wil lin g to gra nt the Pol es ir the to or pri ed upi occ had y the ich wh ry rito ter ous rm eno the n eve offensive. We val ue hig her the pre ser vat ion of the lives of our Re d Sol die rs tha n wa r for the sak e of Wh ite Ru ssi a and Lit hua nia captur ed by Pol and . ''W e mo st sol em nly dec lare d bot h in the nam e of the Co unc il of Peo ple 's Co mm issa rs and in a special ma nif est o of the All Ru ssi an Ex ecu tiv e Co mm itte e of the Sov iets add res sed to the Pol ish Go vern me nt, asi de fro m ou r app eal to the Pol ish wo rke rs and pea san ts, tha t we we re rea dy to beg in peace par ley s on the bas is .of the fro nt exi stin g at tha t tim e. Th at is to say , on the bas is of the fro nt accor din g to wh ich Lit hua nia and Wh ite Ru ssia , alto get her non -Po lish terr itor ies , rem ain ed wit h the Poles. ''W e we re con vin ced and stil l con tin ue to be con vin ced tha t the Pol ish cap ital ists wil l not be abl e to ret ain for eig n lan ds and tha t even thr u a mo st dis adv-a nta geo us pea ce tre aty we wil l gai n mo re by saf egu ard ing the live s of our Re d Sol die rs, bec aus e eve ry mo nth of pea ce ma kes us ten tim es stro nge r, wh ere as eve ry bou rge ois gov ern me nt, including tha t of Pol and , is getting mo re and more disorgan ize d. ''W e do not wis h to wa ge wa r, bec aus e to us the blo od of Ru ssia n wo rke rs and pea san ts is dea rer tha n any victories_ To pro ve thi s we we re wil lin g to giv e suc h concessions as no oth er gov ern me nt can. We gav e to Pol and a bet ter bou nda ry tha n tha t pub lish ed by s. list eria imp nch Fre rand tish Bri ied All the of il unc Co e rem Sup the Th ese gen tlem en cap ital ists of Great Bri tain and Fra nce are ima g-· ini ng tha t the y are set tin g the bou nda ries , bu t tha nk God, the re is 5

somebody who is deciding the boundaries besides them. The woYkers and peasants have learned to define the boundaries themselves. The eastern boundary of Poland set by ·the Allies is further west than the one proposed by us. ''Capitalist Support of the White Guards.''

''The agreement reached in Paris between them and General Wrangel clearly indicates the undercover dealings between the capitalist governments and the White Guards. These governments are assuring us that they are desirous to conclude peace with Soviet Russia, that they are not supporting Poland nor General Wrangel. But we said that this is an outrageous lie, behind which they are hiding. ''They say that they are not giving the Poles any munitions, but these munitions are being given no less than several months ago. Today's communications received by us show that we haye captured a great booty: we have tal