RIGID RESTRICTIONS OF SOVIET ON ENVOYS OF DOMINION

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23092, 3 November 1949, Page 6

RIGID RESTRICTIONS OF SOVIET ON ENVOYS OF DOMINION

Revelations of life behind the Iron Curtain of the Soviet Union have been given by Mrs. C. W. Roswell, wife of the former New Zealand Minister to Moscow, in an interview with the Auckland Weekly News. The interview is the first public statement made by either Mr. or Mrs. Boswell since they left for Russia in 1941.

Mrs. Boswell throws light on the Russian attitude towards foreigners within the borders of the Soviet Union. With other representatives of foreign Powers, she and her husband were treated with suspicion, and Mrs. Boswell. has returned with definite opinions on communism.

“Altogether, our time in Moscow was a frustrating experience,’’ Mrs. Boswell states “We would write letters home and tear them up. for nothing could be said. Once we got very angry at seeing in a Russian newspaper a quotation from a New Zealand journal, which is quite non-existent, describing how the Dominion Government told its employers to treat old workers as machines. We answered it, but our letter was never published. “It was like living in a strange dream world, wher# there is no criticism at all and where all values are topsy-turvy. Mrs. Boswell describes life in what must be one of the strangest diplomatic courts in the world. There every representative of a foreign Government is a potential enemy, is treated with suspicion and is prevented, wherever possible, from meeting the people. Food Difficulties “When we came back for a short trip at the end of 1947 we were unable to say anything,” says Mrs. Boswell. “However, during our first two years there my husband and I were mildly amused by reports in the New Zealand press that the Boswells were living in luxury in Moscow. At that time, at the end of the war, we stayed at the National Hotel in Moscow. The place catered specially for diplomats, and the food was the best available. But it was still so bad that it was inedible. In the first eight months I lost 131 b. in weight. “At least we were allowed to have a hotplate in our rooms, and could buy 40 per cent of our food at the special ‘diplomatic shop’ and cook it ourselves,” says Mrs. Boswell. “Even so. if the British had not shared some of their food we would almost have starved, as our own food from New Zealand was lost.

Mrs. Boswell says food is still very short in the city. Although those in the first class (the politburo. scientists and ballerinas Hive quite well, those in the second category (teachers, doctors and higher Government officials), and in the third- (the ordinary workers) have meagre rations, their wartime ration of meat, for instance, being 2Jlb a month. However, food was very scarce in every country at that time and it was known that shortages could not be avoided, says Mrs. Boswell. Still, they could not be mentioned. Transport and Housing “The transport is bad and the housing situation is terrible,” says Mrs. Boswell. “Still, no one dares to say so, whether they are Russians or foreign visitors. “In 1944 we were friends and allies of the Union, but during the last 12 months the diplomatic corps has been the particular target of a campaign of hate.” Mrs. Boswell continues. “During the first couple of years we were in Moscow, people in the streets would talk to the diplomats, children would accept their sweets and, although women <vould not visit them, they would talk freely when they met. “I learned Russian for three years and could speak the language fluently. When I went to the village and homes I was able to get to know the people well. All that changed in the last couple of years. People would not even at us in the streets. We could speak only to certain officials at public functions, for perhaps five or ten minutes, and we saw only one or two wives of these officials at the larger State functions. Travel Restriction “If we held a dinner or reception, a few wives of officials or artists would come,” says Mrs. Boswell, “But they would never visit us. They would make all kinds of excuses, often at the last minute, and then conclude, 'We do not think it very wige.’ ” One of the most humiliating restrictions placed on diplomats was the rule forbidding them to travel more than 50 kilometers from Moscow, says Mrs. Boswell. Sometimes, they would be stopped 30 kilometres along one road, or 10 kilometres along another. There were three or four towns they could visit if the journey were direct, but special permission was still required for the trip. “On one occasion when we were taking four recently-arrived Americans for a picnic, the car was stopped by a militiaman, who turned up his notebook to make sure that the New Zealand car had permission to travel on that road on that particular day,” says Mrs. Boswell. “He said that only four passengers could proceed, as the others had not registered their names. That*was on a road near Moscow.

“In the last few months, members of Mr. Boswell’s staff began to disappear,” says Mrs. Boswell. “My Russian teacher just did not turn up one day and we heard no more of her. Then our housekeeper did not arrive. All the teachers of Russian employed by the foreigners also vanished and, although there was little difficulty in obtaining domestics through the official bureau, .they could never stay long. We do not know exactly 'why. Probably it was to ensure that they did not become too fond of any foreigners.” Education System

Mrs. Boswell says she and her husband visited a couple of schools, but that was before they knew very much about the language. The curricula seemed to be very much the same as that in New Zealand, with, of course, the perpetual Marxist-Lenin-Stalin bias. Education is now entirely free only to the fourth grade, which children reach at the age of 12. By invitation, Mr. and Mrs. Boswell visited the creche-cum-hostei attached to one of the large State plants. They were welciyned hospitably and shown around the rooms, which were poorlooking, but good compared with the average home. They were invited to go again and, some months later, Mrs. Boswell. having collected many Christmas cards and little pictures, went to visit the children. Her arrival caused some consternation and it was not until a Union official arrived that she could see over the creche. The official escorted her everywhere, watched while she spoke to the children and finally inspected all the Christmas cards. He put four on one side, but said that the rest, which were chiefly of, the robin-and-snow variety, would be %11 right. The remaining four were pictures of houses in New Zealand. The children were not allowed to see them in case comparisons were made. “We once showed a film of Taumarunui to a group of servants," says Mrs. Boswell. “They thought it very pretty, but could not believe that each house was for only one family—they are so used to thinking of a home in terms of one room.” The wealthy class, which is growing rapidly, can obtain a good flat, says Mrs Boswell. For instance, the ballerinas receive tremendous salaries. But no one ever offers an opinion. No “Public Opinion” “The tramlines were up in front of our hotel on one occasion and many were grumbling about the inconvenience,” Mrs. Boswell continues. “We suggested that a resolution, embodying public opinion, should be passed and sent to some local body. That created some surprise: Public opinion? There’s no such thing. ‘Russians are proud of their election system, where there is one name on the ballot paper. They are incredulous of

the British way, regarding it as impossible that anyone could be opposed to the Government. ‘ Artists write, sing, compose, paint and think as they are told. Tschaikovsky and Rachmaninoff are popular today in Moscow, but they have not been examined for party affiliation, although present-day composers are disciplined for a non-party tune or song.” Mrs. Boswell has a copy of a Pravda article giving (he “Directions of the Central Committee on Literature and Art.” It states that “the dramatist must be a politician . . The director and actors must also be politicians.” Some of the modern plays had been having their political message deleted, but now that it is being laid on thickly again, people are turning back to the old ballet and plays, where the players do not “agitate from the stage.”

“Women do much manual work," Mrs. Boswell slates. “They do most of the street cleaning and shovelling of ice and snow. They excavate and tar the streets, clear, refuse, lay tram rails, and even operate the welding machines. They lay bricks and do plastering. They have been emancipated to the extent that they have the right to do heavy work. The peasant woman, however, has always worked hard in Russia.”