REVELATIONS ABOUT THE SOVIET’S CAMPS

Grey River Argus, 24 February 1949, Page 5

REVELATIONS ABOUT THE SOVIET’S CAMPS

Russian’s Account After Nine Years’ Imprisonment PARIS, Feb. 22 At the hearing to-day of the case in which Victor Kravcnenko, autnor of “1 Chose Freedom” is suing for libel the Paris Communist paper “Les Lettres Franchaises,” evidence was given oy Nicholas Antonov, who stated ne spent nine years m a concentration camp in North Russia near Murmansk. Aravcneiiko’s counsel, M. Georges Izard, challenged the Russian Government statement that it hud learnt ciDoui the present m raris of Nicholas Aantonov irom the French newspapers.

The Russian Government had stated this in its Note to the French government demanding that Antonov and two others be handed over as “war criminals.”

M. Izard said it was impossible lor the newspapers to know that Antonov was in Paris, because Antonov had not then given evidence. M. izard said the Russian Government must have secured Antonov's identity from a document which Kravchenko’s lawyers had, “in good faith,” given the defence lawyers in J anuary. M. izard added that the Soviet action would have been impossible without assistance from the defence. This statement caused a heated argument, in which the judge ana lawyers were ail speaking at once. Then the white-haired, broad-shoul-dered Antonov gave evidence. Weeping, he said he was arrested and torcured by Russian secret police and imprisoned for nine years in a concentration camp near Murmansk. Antonov said that after his arrest in 1931 he was thrown into prison. He became ill because of exposure and bad food. My tongue was swoilen in my month from sickness and f could not eat for six days,” he said. "1 was taken out of my cell after 1 fainted. The guards took me to a room where I was laid on a table. A large torch was Hashed into my' eyes for two and a half hours.” Antonov said he was later taken to hospital. He added that on another occasion he was given “monkey treatment,” when nine men fired questions at him one after another. Some of the questions were silly, some serious. He had to answer quickly. Antonov said that one series oi concentration camps on the BalticWhite Sea canal construction team held 1,000,000 prisoners. Antonov said that Russian secret police once beat him insensible. He denied the allegations in the Russian Note. . Antonov described ivravchenKo as u a sober, good-hearted man of high character.” There was pandemonium in the ftourt-room and Kravchenko and the defendant Wurmser almost came to blows when the relevancy of a question put to Antonov was disputed. Gendarmes barred the gangway be tween Kravchenko and Wurmsei. who shouted insults at eacn oth< i. in French and Russian.