LettertoBolshevik

TothePresidiumoftheCentralExecutiveCommitteeof
theAllUnionCommunistParty(Bolshevik)
Weappealtoyou,askingyoutopayaminimumofattention
toourrequest.
WeareprisonerswhoarereturningfromtheSolovetsky
concentrationcampbecauseofourpoorhealth.Wewentthere
fullofenergyandgoodhealth,andnowwearereturningas
invalids,brokenandcrippledemotionallyandphysically.Weare
askingyoutodrawyourattentiontothearbitraryuseofpower
andtheviolencethatreignattheSolovetskyconcentrationcamp
inKemiandinallsectionsoftheconcentrationcamp.Itis
difficultforahumanbeingeventoimaginesuchterror,tyranny,
violence,andlawlessness.Whenwewentthere,wecouldnot
conceiveofsuchahorror,andnowwe,crippledourselves,
togetherwithseveralthousandswhoarestillthere,appealto
therulingcenteroftheSovietstatetocurbtheterrorthat
reignsthere.Asthoughitweren'tenoughthattheUnifiedState
PoliticalDirectorate[OGPU]withoutoversightanddueprocess
sendsworkersandpeasantstherewhoarebyandlargeinnocent
(wearenottalkingaboutcriminalswhodeservetobepunished),
theformertsaristpenalservitudesystemincomparisonto
Solovkyhad99%morehumanity,fairness,andlegality.[...]
Peopledielikeflies,i.e.,theydieaslowandpainful
death;werepeatthatallthistormentandsufferingisplaced
onlyontheshouldersoftheproletariatwithoutmoney,i.e.,on
workerswho,werepeat,wereunfortunatetofindthemselvesin
theperiodofhungeranddestructionaccompanyingtheeventsof
theOctoberRevolution,andwhocommittedcrimesonlytosave
themselvesandtheirfamiliesfromdeathbystarvation;theyhave
alreadybornethepunishmentforthesecrimes,andthevast
majorityofthemsubsequentlychosethepathofhonestlabor.
Nowbecauseoftheirpast,forwhosecrimetheyhavealready
paid,theyarefiredfromtheirjobs.Yet,themainthingis
thattheentireweightofthisscandalousabuseofpower,brute
violence,andlawlessnessthatreignatSolovkyandother
sectionsoftheOGPUconcentrationcampisplacedonthe
shouldersofworkersandpeasants;others,suchas
counterrevolutionaries,profiteersandsoon,havefullwallets
andhavesetthemselvesupandliveincloverintheSoviet
State,whilenexttothem,intheliteralmeaningoftheword,
thepennilessproletariatdiesfromhunger,cold,andback
breaking1416hourdaysunderthetyrannyandlawlessnessof
inmateswhoaretheagentsandcollaboratorsoftheState
PoliticalDirectorate[GPU].
Ifyoucomplainorwriteanything("Heavenforbid"),they
willframeyouforanattemptedescapeorforsomethingelse,and
theywillshootyoulikeadog.Theylineusupnakedand
barefootat22degreesbelowzeroandkeepusoutsideforupto
anhour.Itisdifficulttodescribeallthechaosandterror
thatisgoingoninKemi,Solovky,andtheothersectionsofthe
concentrationscamp.Allannualinspectionsuncoveralotof

abuses.Butwhattheydiscoverincomparisontowhatactually
existsisonlyapartofthehorrorandabuseofpower,whichthe
inspectionaccidentlyuncovers.(Oneexampleisthefollowing
fact,oneofathousand,whichisregisteredinGPUandforwhich
theguiltyhavebeenpunished:THEYFORCEDTHEINMATESTOEAT
THEIROWNFECES."Comrades,"ifwedaretousethisphrase,
verifythatthisisafactfromreality,aboutwhich,werepeat,
OGPUhastheofficialevidence,andjudgeforyourselfthefull
extentofeffronteryandhumiliationinthesupervisionbythose
whowanttomakeacareerforthemselves.[...]
WearesureandwehopethatintheAllUnionCommunist
Partytherearepeople,aswehavebeentold,whoarehumaneand
sympathetic;itispossible,thatyoumightthinkthatitisour
imagination,butwesweartoyouall,byeverythingthatis
sacredtous,thatthisisonlyonesmallpartofthenightmarish
truth,becauseitmakesnosensetomakethisup.Werepeat,and
willrepeat100times,thatyes,indeedtherearesomeguilty
people,butthemajoritysufferinnocently,asisdescribed
above.Thewordlaw,accordingtothelawoftheGPU
concentrationcamps,doesnotexist;whatdoesexistisonlythe
autocraticpowerofpettytyrants,i.e.,collaborators,serving
time,whohavepoweroverlifeanddeath.Everythingdescribed
aboveisthetruthandwe,ourselves,whoareclosetothegrave
after3yearsinSolovkyandKemiandothersections,areasking
youtoimprovethepathetic,torturedexistenceofthosewhoare
therewholanguishundertheyokeoftheOGPU'styranny,
violence,andcompletelawlessness....

Tothiswesubscribe:G.Zheleznov,Vinogradov,F.Belinskii.
Dec.14,1926
Truecopy

.................................................................
TRANSLATOR'SCOMMENTS:Theletteriswritteninverypoor
Russian.Forthesakeofclarity,thetranslatorcorrectedthe
grammarandsubstitutedafewwords.

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