SOVIET HATERS STAGE ANOTHER OFFENSIVE

Grey River Argus, 17 March 1945, Page 8

SOVIET HATERS STAGE ANOTHER OFFENSIVE

The Soviet-haters are again in full blast. The Polish question gives them the opportunity they have been waiting for for a long time. Not since the Russo-Japanese war nave the enemies of the Soviet Union had such a chance to launch a major propaganda assault on the Land of Socialism.

But between times the smashing' victories of the Red Army have built up prestige and compelled the admiration of open-minded people throughout the world for the workers and farmers of the Soviet Republics. Incidentally, the fact that the Soviet people could perform such prodigies as were involved in routing an immensely powerful Gerinan-Finnish-Rouinan-ian-Hungarian war machine—prodigies of valour, of endurance. of organisation, of initiative, of efficient direction and intelligent leadership—has exposed many a lying slander concocted in the past by the Soviet-haters. So this campaign will fall on less fruitful ground than when ‘ big brutal Russia made an unprovoked attack on poor little peaceful Finland.”

It matters nothing to the Soviet-haters that our fighting men, along with their Russian comrades-in-arms, are laying down their lives to protect our way of living from destruction at the hands of Nazism. To them the enemy is not Hitler Germany, but Soviet Russia! Proof of this attitude can be found in a New Zealand perodical, which, on the occasion of Russia’s entry into the war, stated during the course of a virulent attack on the Soviet Union, that “it would be better to go down in honourable defeat at the hands of Germany than from an alliance with Russia.” This periodical wears a thick religious cloak.

In the light of the terrible sufferings of the people whose hands have been occupied by the foul and bloodthirsty Nazis, we leave to the imagination of readers what would have been the fate of British peoples had we gone down in “honourable defeat” to Hitler.

Linked up with the campaign of hate directed at Soviet Russia are the incessant attacks on Communists outside of Russia; and everybody who expresses friendliness towards the Soviet, or voices sympathy with the ideals of Socialism, is a ‘Communist’ or ‘Communist sympathizer’ and so conies under fire. Scratch a red-baiter and invariably you find a Soviethater.

The Tory press gives the Soviet-haters its earnest cooperation. Any near-nonentity can hit the headlines if he can frame a sufficiently potent diatribe against the Soviet Union or against the Communists in general. Truthfulness or justification is not in the least essential.

Take the recent case of one, Major W. S. Jordon. Overnight he became a celebrity (just for a day) for a slashing attack on New Zealand Communists. Unfortunately, due to the Major’s sublime ignorance, lie stumbled on to the toes of the Trade Union Movement and was sharply rebuked. By the time the Major had finished explaining what he had meant to say, had retracted so much that all that was left were a few abusive utterances that were familial' when grandfather was a boy and the working-class movement’ was struggling in its infancy. So one, Major AV. S. Jordan sinks back into his comparitive obscurity-’ but he has played his little part in keepingalive the Red Bogey!

Our Soviet-haters, like Goebbels and his anti-Rod propagandists, make light of. the fact that fre(|uently their lies are later nailed; by the lime this happens they are away on a new task, and place their trust in the notoriously-short memory of the general public. They throw so much mud they hope a little splash-back now and again will hardly be noticed.

Soviet-haters frame their propaganda to appeal to different sections of the community. The religious-minded are told that Russia is anti-God; that religion is suppressed with an iron hand; that all churches have been destroyed and that priests are maltreated and murdered.

Afany eminent churchmen,'including Dr. Hewlett Johnson. Anglican Dean of Canterbury, have investigated at first hand the matter of religion in Russia. They utterly refute the assertions of the Soviet-haters. It is incredible to us that these churchmen are so dull-witted as to allow themselves to be completely hoodwinked, or alternatively,; they are all shameless liars. <

To lovers of freedom and democracy, Soviet-haters insist that the Russian people are the.oppressed slaves of Stalin and his wicked Bolsheviks. But, to the person who stops to reason, the outstanding fact that Russia, is the only country always entirely free from, mass industrial and political disturbances, and needs no armed police to maintain this state of affairs, tells its own story.

The Russian people appear quite happy in the “enslavement of their totalitarian state.” So much so, it will be just too bad for anyone who attempts to “rescue” them and return to them that “blessed freedom” of old Csarist Russia; that “freedom” to live in poverty, dirt, misery, illiteracy, and superstitious ignorance; that “freedom” to carry the burden of exploiting’ capitalists, landlords, and privileged parasites to rob them of the fruits of their toil. ..That kind of “freedom” has gone for ever from their lives.

-Soviet-haters have endeavoured to provoke a Holy War against -Soviet Russia for many years. It was a bitter disappointment to them when Russia became lined-up with Britain and the U.S.A, against Hitler Germany. If they had had their way—and they certainly did their utmost—the line-up would have been against Russia, with the unspeakable Nazis as our ally. Which shows that the Soviet-haters have little farther to go to become full-blooded facists.

The first objective of the Soviet-haters in the present campaign is to sow suspicion-in the public mind of the future intentions of Soviet Russia towards Poland’s national independence.

Russia hah given her pledge in regard to Poland’s independence. We have the assurance of no less a person of Mr. Winston Churchill, that Soviet Russia has never yet broken a pledge, a pact, or a promise! There is not the slightest reason for belief that she will do so on this occasion.

Post-war unity between the three major powers is essential for the future peace of the world. Of this there can be no question. Soviet-haters endanger that unity. If they finally succeed in breaking it—and we must not underestimate their strength —then another terrible war will become a definite possibility.

The history of events preceding- this war proves that the activities of the anti-Soviet gang; if not entirely responsible for the war, were at least the greatest contributing factor. Let us never forget this. It is a sure antidote to the poison of the Soviet-haters.