Peasant Abuses in Russia Get Court Airing

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 149, 25 June 1937, Page 3

Peasant Abuses in Russia Get Court Airing

MOSCOW.—A “demonstration” trial has been held in Lepel, White Russia, on the Soviet-Polish border, and widely reported in the Soviet press, in order to show peasants that they need not submit permanently to abuses by arbitrary and inefficient local Communist Party and Government officials. The trial resulted m conviction of several leading district officials, who received prison sentences of from six months to two years. The officials were convicted of “terrorising” both individual and collective peasants. The case was regarded as particularly important because it resulted in disaffection of peasants so close to a foreign border. The chief difficulty appears to have arisen from tho state’s decision.to grow flax in this district, where conditions were not suitable. Tho peasants were unable to harvest crops sufficient to pay the taxes in kind fixed in advance of the harvest. Local officials, under compulsion to complete State deliveries, thereupon organised ‘‘mass searches” of peasant huts, confiscating clotiling and food in lieu of taxes. jr Tried Flax /igarn According to the published testimony, the Commissariat of Agriculture finally decided in 1936 not to grow flax in this district, but for some unexplained reason local officials ordered peasants to make another attempt. The harvest was «a failure, and most of the peasants failed to pay taxes in kind. In December, 1936, district officials visited one village in tho group, and began to search peasant huts. From one woman who owed 100 roubles in taxes they took all her clothing and food, including bedding and mattresses. They valued four mattresses at 50 kopecks each. The most valuable item they took was an overcoat which vhey

valued at four roubles. The Government newspaper Izvcstiu commented: “This unlawful act, carried out by tho chief leaders of the district, influenced local chairmen to follow their example.” Clothes and food were taken from one individual peasant to cover delinquent taxes of 22 roubles. From another a cow was taken because he owed 30 pounds of meat in taxes. Fines for Slight Offences Fines were imposed on peasants for trifling infractions of regulations. Some were fined because they failed to attend meetings; others because thy failed to deliver packages promptly. The prosecutor pointed out that these ifficials had violated Soviet laws; no emphasised that peasants need not submit to such treatment. But the testimony revealed that hundreds of complaints had been mado for years to higher committees, and had been ignored. Now that Soviet peasants have become cogs m one vast state-controlled agricultural machine, directed from the centre, it is apparent from published reports that their welfare depends moro and more upon local officials,