INDICATIONS OF DOMESTIC VULNERABILITIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP78-04864A000200050009-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 29
• Document Creation Date: November 17, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 7, 2000
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: October 24, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION .REPORT
COUNTRY SOVIET SATELLITES
SUBJECT INDICATIONS OF DOMESTIC VULNERABILITIES
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THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE
OF THE UNITED STATES WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE ESPIONAGE ACT 50
U. S. C.. 31 AND 32. AS AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION OR THE REVELATION
OF ITS CONTENTS IN ANY MANNER TO AN UNAUTHORIZED PERSON IS PRO-
HIBITED BY LAW. REPRODUCTION OF THIS FORM IS PROHIBITED.
ILLEGIB
ILLEGIB
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
CPW REPORT--No. 12--S atellites* .
29 September 1951
(Covering Broadcasts Monitored Between
21 August and 16 September)
RETURN TO RECORDS CENTER
IMMEDIATELY AFTER USE
JOBTBOX-__s
Poland . . . . . . . ? ? . . . . . . . . . . . . P
Czechoslovakia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-11
? ? . . . ? ? ? ? . . ? ? . ? . . ? . . q ? p. 21
There were admissions of economic dislocations of varying intensity from all three of the
satellite countries covered in this report. In Poland, the difficulty was a serious
meat shortage caused, it was claimed, by Anglo-American war propaganda which had
influenced peasants to begin a mass slaughter of live-stock during the summer. In
Czechoslovakia, the difficulties here on both the industrial and agricultural front, and
a radical shakeup of the Party and Governmental machinery was the result. In Hungary,
there was "deliberate sabotage" of agricultural deliveries and it was evident that some
sectors of heavy industry--and mining--were behind plan.
The Polish radio was concerned to keep alive "an atmosphere of hatred" against the
speculators and profiteers allegedly responsible for the country's acute meat shortage.
But an exceptional harvest was claimed and a vigorous campaign urged peasants to breed
and deliver pigs to the State. There were further references to the Gomulka "deviation"
but no hint as to the fate of this formerly prominent Party official. The anniversary
of the liberation of Warsaw brought pro-Soviet propaganda and diatribes against the
leaders of the Home Army responsible for the premature revolt in the capital,
Industrial news dealt largely with expansion of strategic plants, chiefly in the
lc-stern territories, A drive to recruit miners indicated that the coal supply is fall-
ing behind demand. School opening ceremonies. featured the customary bows to Soviet pedagogy.
*This is one of a series of periodic reports of domestic difficulties within countries
in the Soviet orbit, Other reports in the series describe difficulties within.the USS
a'Retease 50-009=3
DATE OF INFORMATION 21 August-16 September
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The most arresting development from Czechoslovakia was the announcement of a
thorough shakeup in the Communist Party and the Government. A regular Politburo was
established in the Party and a number of significant changes in the membership of the
political hierarchy were announced.
It was evident from the volume of Prague's exhortations and admonitions that there were
difficulties in persuading the peasantry to deliver as much grain and other agricultural
produce as planned, On the industrial front there were continuing troubles with the
manpower situation. Another move to raise production--the upward revision of labor
norms--appeared'to proceed. The importance of proper political training of the Army
was emphasized and Minister of Defense Cepicka admitted that the situation in the Army
had "at times threatened to get out of hand" after the discovery of the Sling-
Svermova-Clementis conspiracy.
The Hungarian radio admitted a number of shortcomings in heavy industry and mining,
and severe measures were taken to tighten industrial discipline. A good harvest was
claimed but "deliberate sabotage'' was said to be slowing up deliveries in some quarters.
It was evident that over officiousness on the part of local authorities was responsible
for some of the trouble.
POLAND
Earty Affairs. Ideology and Internal Propaganda: Major propaganda task undertaken by
the Polish radio during the period under review was the whipping up of hatred against
kulaks, speculators and illegal slaughterers allegedly responsible for the acute meat
shortage now plaguing the country. Advantage was also taken of the situation to
encourage hostility toward the Anglo-Americans whose war propaganda was said to have
inspired the mass killing of farm animals. Great publicity was given to the Govern-
ments ruthless steps to stem the illegal meat trade and the public was constantly
reassured that the shortage was only temporary. Another propaganda device was the
emphasis placed again and again on the unsanitary conditions in the illegal slaughter
houses, and broadcasts cited a number of cases of poisoning from tainted meat.
The line for this propaganda campaign was set on 23 August by Warsaw commentator
Kaden, who urged the creation of "an atmosphere of hatred" against the illegal
slaughterers. But it was not until a week later that the Warsaw propagandists really
widened the front by claiming that the meat shortage was due to "the lies broadcast
by the Anglo-Saxon radio" whose rumors of imminent war had induced Polish farmers to
kill their sows last summer, This, said an anonymous speaker on 30 August, was a
lesson to those who thought the warnings against rumors were exaggerated. Even now,
he said, rumors were being spread by hostile agents in meat queues and elsewhere and
they must be silenced. ,
The class warfare program was expanded through the emphasis placed on the fact that
the majority of captured speculators were large land holders, former capitalists
and the like. A Warsaw broadcast of 2 September, for example, said that the campaign
against profiteers had exposed the class enemy who was trying to disorganize markets
and injure the-working class.
There was little reference to the Tatar trial of former Army officers, heavily
stressed earlier in August, until 3 September, when a TRYBUNA LUDU editorial noted
the third anniversary of Bierut's exposure of the "right wing and nationalist
deviation" of the Gomulka group. Gomulka, said the editorial, had tried to impose
on the party a line hostile to Leninism, that is, abandonment of a militant class
approach to internal and international affairs, and his policy was a combination
of right wing. opportunism and bourgeois nationalism and hostility to the USSR. The
Tatar case proved that the nationalist deviation had undermined national independence
by giving foreign spies and diversionists access to responsible posts in
administration.
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The Tatar defendants were accused, among other things, of having prematurely ordered
.an uprising to free Warsaw of the Germans in which thousands of patriots were killed.
Much use was made of this theme in propaganda dealing with the anniversary of the
liberation of the Warsaw district of Praga. At the dedication of a plaque unveiled
on Wybreze Kosciuszkowskie, where the 3d Polish Infantry Division supported by
Soviet aircraft and artillery landed seven years previously, the secretary of the
Warsaw Party Committee, Morski, charged that "the leaders of the Home army idly
watched the bloody battle fought by troops entrenched on the Sparpie. The Home
Army leaders would not plan a joint action against the Nazis The traitors of
the London and Wall. Street brand preferred to surrender Warsaw and the detachments
under their command rather than help the S-)viet Army and the Polish people to
triumph over fascism." (Warsaw, 15 September.)
A TRYBUNA LUDU editorial quoted the same day said that the Doboszynski and Tatar
trials clearly exposed the aims of the people who started the Warsaw rising and thus
condemned the city to destruction. The Polish people, the editorial said, rejected
with disgust and hatred the traitors, agents of Anglo-American imperialism, who had
collaborated with the Nazis, invited the destruction of the city and caused the
deaths of hundreds of innocent beings.
The announcement of an official decree confirming ownership of land in the western
territories was also publicized. A TRYBUNA LUDU editorial. broadcast 13 September,
affirmed that the regained territories, acquired with the blood of Soviet and Polish
soldiers and rehabilitated by a colossal national effort, were the pride of Poland's
socialist drive. The majestic economic achievements there, said the paper, were
consolidating peace on the Odra-Nysa line, which has become the "frontier of
peace." The paper mentioned as examples of these economic achievements the great
chemical works at Kendzierzyn, the power station at Dychow, the synthetic yarn
factory at Gorzow, the sulfuric acid plant at Wizow and the electrical engineering
works at Wroclaw.
The murder of at least eight Polish officials was admitted, and that of Stefan
Martyka was heavily exploited for propaganda purposes, Martyka, one of the first
producers of the anti-imperialist "Fala 49" (wavelength 49) radio program, was
reported on 11 September to have been "murdered by fascist bandits," The announce-
ment claimed that "the foreign imperialists behind this crime had'tried to.silence
the voice of truth by murdering Martyka," and a statement by Producer Jerzy Wasowski,
a "non-party man," broadcast the same dey asserted that the enemy.had miscalculated
if he hoped to frighten the broadcasting staff.
A curious propaganda tactic concerning the murder was used the following day when
a broadcast stressed that the assassins had succeeded "because in the last six
years we have become used to living in a climate of law, security and peace."
There is no needy the broadcast said, "for anyone to distrust a passer-by in the
street or the man who rings the bell or who works in the office next door," The
hand which murdered Martyka, the broadcast added, is "murdering Korean children
and rearming the Wehrmacht." Martykavs funeral was held 13 September and was
attended by Deputy Minister Sikorski and by Polish radio representative Ziebicki, who
spoke. The Knights Cross of Polonia Restituta, which decorated his coffin, was
given to his widow, the actress Zofia Lindorf.
On the day of Martyka's internment, Warsaw radio announced that two terrorists,
described as "fascist bandits," had been executed for murdering seven party
officials and members of the armed forces. The names were not clearly heard and
it was not stated that there was any link between them and the Martyica murderers.
They had-been sentenced by the Regional Military Court at Cracow and their appeal
to Bierut for clemency had been rejected. The next day it was reported that the
Warsaw Regional Military Tribunal had sentenced to death three more "fascist
criminals," members of terrorist bands operating in Warsaw Province. The President
refused clemency.
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Other propaganda points of interest included:
A speech by Vice Premier Chelehowski at the opening of the Grudziadz Bridge warning
workers that "it is our task to protect industrial objects from the enemy"
especially as "the American imperialists are trying through their agents and traitors
to hamper the tempo of our work," and;
The fact that at the harvest festival at Poznan, attended by President Bierut,
Premier Cyrankiewicz and Marshal Rokossowski, the crowd sang the Polish Socialist
Workers Revolutionary Song (0 ('zesc Wam Panowie Magnaci), not heard from the Polish
radio since the merger of the Socialist and Communist parties.
Government and Civil Affairs: A new development it the Polish Government during the period
under review was the setting up of Commissions for Combatting Profiteering and Trade
Abuses at District, Municipal and Parish National Councils. Each such commission, set
up to combat the acute meat shortage includes a member of the Presidium of the
National Council concerned, a representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office;
employees of the State Trade Insroctorate and representatives of social organizations,
the last to be appointed by the Presidium of the National Council, The Public,
Prosecutor's Office is charged with coordinating all measures, in particular with
the Citizens' Militia and the State Trade Inspectorate. The Commissions are given
extraordinary powers of search and seizure. (Warsaw, 24 August)
Industry Broadcasts continued to report progress in the development of heavy
industrial constructions, mostly in the Regained Territories and mostly of prime
strategic importance. There were no monitored references to industrial shortcomings.
Agriculture: Despite the admittedly grave meat situation, the Polish radio claimed
great agricultural successes and record grain deliveries. The Government's campaign
for the signing of pig delivery contracts in the coming year, an offshoot of the
campaign against illegal meat sales, was heavily emphasized. While the advantages
of cooperative farming were publicized, there appeared to be no undue pressure for
collectiviza+ion, The Government took steps to regularize the holding of land in
the western territories, confirming titles up to a certain acreage and permitting
inheritance of such land.
"The tempo of the planned grain purchase is increasing daily. Not just hundreds but
thousands of tons of grain are being supplied by peasants to the cooperative purchasing
centers." Thus Warsaw radio on 22 August set the tone for its subsequent harvest
propaganda. The same day PAP reported that the State Farms were making good progress
in sheep breeding. Flocks had increased 60 percent in a year and were nearly two and
a half times as large as in 1949. Sixty percent more wool would be produced than in
1949. Harvest festivals were held throughout Poland on 26 August and the radio
reported that everywhere the peasants promised to implement the grain purchase plan,
as well as the pig contract plans and to perform autumn sowing better than in the
past. There was considerable stress in harvest festival propaganda on the close
links between the peasantry and the Army, representatives of which were conspicuous
at many festivals, Rokossowski himself emphasized this point at the Poznan festival
on 9 September.
The campaign for the bulk purchase of potatoes through cooperatives began 10 September.
Warsaw announced that peasants will get 18.75 zlotys per hundredweight for freely
marketable potatoes in all provinces except Katowice, Opole, Wroclaw and Cracow,
where the price will be 20.25 zlotys. For potatoes delivered under contract between
10-20 September growers will get a 15 percent premium; 10 percent between 21 September
and 10 October; and 5 percent between 11-22 October.
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Simultaneously with the campaign against illegal meat slaughtering, the Government
pressed a drive for the signing of pig delivery contracts in the next 12. months.
Contracts will be placed between 1 September 1951 and 1 September 1952 for 5,100,000
porkers and for 6,100,000 bacon pigs, Contracts will be made with all individual
creeders, without exception and irrespective of the size of farms, and with
producers cooperatives. A Council of Ministers decree broadcast 22 August stressed
that purchase was guaranteed at fixed and profitable prices, 5 percent above those
for non-contract pigs, Registrants will be eligible for coal and skimmed milk,
free purchase loans and relief from the land tax.
Speaking on 31 August, Bankowski said that the government was planning to purchase
6,800,000 pigs in 1952 and he announced that the signing of contracts was to begin
3 September, He said that the terms were particularly advantageous this year and
that peasants on signing could claim a cash advance for which 21,250,000,000 zlotys
had been set aside by the State. Signatories were eligible for interest-free loans,
cuts in their grain delivery quotas, reductions in the land tax, coal grants and cheap
veterinary service. He said that every sensible peasant would sign the contracts
within the next few days, since a simple calculation would make breeders "turn their
backs on speculators and on those who spread stupid rumors in our villages."
On 4 September, Warsaw announced that thousands of peasants in all parts of the
country were signing contracts and that many had decided to breed and deliver more
pigs in 1952 than ever before. Further progress was reported on 6 September, when
it was announced that innoculations against swine fever were due soon a The price
for contracted animals would be 4.50 zlotys as compared with 9.00 zlotys for non-
contract pigs" No specific figures on the numbers of those signing contracts were
given by 16 September, however.
It was announced on'5 September that 1,000,000 peasants had signed sugar beet delivery
contracts this year. Growers have already received 40 percent more sugar in return
for their crop than last year.
The Minister of Agriculture on 1 September asked peasants to begin preparing soil
for the winter and to use only high grade seeds. These could be obtained on favorable
terms from State farms, cooperatives and seed centers at a rate of 110 kilograms of
average seed for 100 kilograms of high grade seed. High grade seeds, he said, were
also avail&- e for peasants whose crops had been destroyed by natural causes. Another
broadcast the same day said that cooperative machine centers would help small and
medium holders in the, fall sowing and that some 38,600 machines would be used on
718,000 hectares,
A TRYBUNA LUDU editorial, marking the seventh anniversary of the land reform, asserted
that the working peasant is highly patriotic and understands his duty to the State.
The peasants, said the editorial,"profoundly hate the imperialists who are striving
for war and the revival of capitalistJ*ivilege, Increased productivity and the
development of producer cooperatives, the editorial concluded, point the way to
general prosperity,
President Bierut emphasized in a Harvest festival speech at Poznan on 9 September
that the development of agricultural coop.?`atives, of collective work in farming;
is a matter for the conscious and voluntary ,lecision of peasants. Only by enlighten-
ment and by steady persuasion, supported by exrnples illustrating the advantages
of collective farming, can results be obtained.",, The State, he said, had a high
respect for every hard-working peasant, whether p*ivate or a collective member,
but State aid for modernization and mechanization possible only through produe-
tion cooperatives, He said that the demand for agrl` u.tural produce eras expanding
faster than production and that, although Poland now'. as nine million pigs as
compared with four million in 1929, there were ''temporkry difficulties" in the
supply of meat because the population, although smaller\than in prewar years, is
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Warsaw radio broadcast on 11 September the text of a decree regularizing the property
rights of settlers in the Western Territories. It confirms full"rights of ownership
on settlers who possessed farms but had not yet got legal ownership. The new rights
guaranteed ownership, however, of no more than 15 hectares of land--20 for cattle
breeders--and such buildings and equipment as were necessary. In special cases, the
Ministry of Agriculture could increase the size of the holding. The District Land
Commissioners will issue deeds of property which will constitute proof of ownership.
The following day, a Warsaw commentary said that 500,000 peasants had received
3,700,000 hectares in the Western Territories, adding that the land ownership decree
had removed "some doubts and irregularities concerning property deeds," The talk
pointed out that Article 7, which lays down that once a deed is issued the
boundaries of the farm dould not be altered, makes it quite clear that the new
property rights are complete and inviolable. The decree also provides that the
farms, buildings and chattels can be bequeathed withir the owners family. The
decree provides a penalty of three years' imprisonment for those who seek to obstruct
its application.
Mining, Oil and Timber: An indication that Polish coal supplies are falling behind
demand was given by a PAP campaign to entice recruits into the mining industry by
describing underground work as a pleasant and lucrative occupation. An item on
29 August: pointed out that the Miners' Charter provides special privileges for
miners, and it said that "hundreds of new flats are being built and old ones being
reconditioned" for miners. Production is being steadily mechanized "at great expense"
and the work of miners is becoming "easier and pleasanter," On the following day,
PAP reported that a "vigorous campaign for recruitment of fresh labor for the mines
is being waged by Provincial and District National Councils. The item stressed the
"excellent working conditions, good wages and extensive social and health facilities"
available to miners. PAP said that starting wages are 500 zlotys and that a
beginner, after three months, could be employed as a loader on piece rates, earning
up to 720 zlotys. Another PAP item described the holiday scheme for miners'
families, saying that 46,000 benefitted from it last year.
Power and Transportation-, Early warning was given to railroadmen to get prepared for
heavy fall traffic, when large cargoes of grain, beet and foodstuffs must be carried
to the towns. Leon Gehorsam, Director General in the Ministry of Railways, said on
24 August that the number of cars to be moved in October and November would be 20
percent above the average figure for the rest of the year; 13,3 percent more than the
same period last year. He said that all preparations had been made by the Ministry
but that these would be useless without the cooperation of'institutions and enter-
prises. The failure to report carriage plans well ahead of time made it impossible
for the railroads to put the available rolling stock to the best use. Only if the
strictest transportation discipline were shown and a great organizing effort made,
could the autumn transportation plan be successfully implemented. On 3 September
the Central Board of the Railroad Workers Union met to discuss the increased traffic
for the fall. To meet the planned increase of 17 percent, the unionists decided to
make use of all reserves and to carry out minor repairs on cars without withdrawing
them from circulation.
On 26 August, a new road and rail bridge over the Vistula at Grudziadz was opened,
two months ahead of schedule. The bridge shortens the rail distance between
Grudziadz and Bydgoszcz by two hours, and it links the Swiecie and Tuchola districts
with Grudziadz and the right bank of the river.
Several steps were taken to improve the output of electrical power. Warsaw broadcast
on 25 August that a vast dam on the Vistula and a waterworks at Goczalkowice are under
constructiora. The new waterworks will supply twice the quantities now consumed by
the entire Silesian area. Another huge water works is under construction near Nowa
Gora, according to the same broadcast. Three days later it was announced that "a
modern giant power station which will satisfy the growing electrical demands of
Silesian industry" is rapidly being built at Miechowice, Katowice Province.
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A broadcast on 29 August stated that by mid-1952 all electrical suburban trains in
the Warsaw area are to be equipped with heating. Two model trolleybuses'of a series
ordered from East Germany are to arrive soon; Each will carry #30 passengers.
(Warsaw, 11 September)
F,ducation. Culture, Youth and Sport: Major. development under this heading was the
school opening ceremonies observed at the end of August. School slogans for the
coming year, according to Warsaw radio, were as follows: "The struggle for better
results in learning and education is our contribution to the fight for peace and the
.Six-Year Plan." "We welcome to our schools the children born in the people's
Poland," "Not one child outside the school." A broadcast on 25 August said that
there would be no difficulties about textbooks this year: 23 million copies are
available.
Earlier it was announced that during the 1951-52 academic year special departments
for two ye.r preparatory studies will be organized at 12 schools of university standing
to enable young workers and peasants without secondary education to study at the
universities. (21 August) Nine modern well-equipped schools were to be opened in
Warsaw on 1 September, according to a broadcast of 29 August. These will accommodate
3,360 pupils "per shift," Seven new nursery schools, accommodating 1,392, are also
to be opened. In Lodz, five huge new schools are nearing completion, and a new
training establishment for the building industry is to be opened soon in Szczecin.
Minister Jaro Sinski, according to PAP, urged teachers to improve their ideological
consciousness and to avail themselves of Soviet experience. He'wanted the young
generation to be brought up to understai_d and serve socialism, and he urged the
young to be on their guard against rumor mongers. (31 August)
Warsaw claimed that since the beginning of the anti-illiteracy campaign some 757,000
people had been taught to read and write. The campaign would be intensified this
fall and winter. (22 August) A late- broadcast said that more than 100,000 workers
and peasants would be attending adult evening classes on the elementary and secondary
school level. (24 August)
A decree on the reorganization of the Ministry of Culture and Art said that the new
Department of Cultural Policy would, among other things, supervise theater programs.
A Central Arts Board would control art galleries and exhibitions; and the Directorate
General of the Polish Film Industry would be converted on l January to the Central
Office of Cinematography. A separate department would take charge of rural libraries
and houses of cultures (3 September)
Speaking at the opening of the Al] Polish Sports Festival in Warsaw, Cyrankiewicz
stressed that the Government and Party are doing their best to encourage sport
because it serves -co multiply the country's constructive forces and to educate the
masses in the spirit of international solidarity. The aim was to produce a generation
of happy, healthy and brave Poles, staunch champions of socialism and peace. Ho said
that the number of clubs attached to factories and other work places would exceed
3,700 by the end of the year, with a membership totalling 300,000. Polish sportsmen,
he said, must fight for peace by becoming more responsible citizens, strengthening
the country's defenses and drawing on the experience of "the best sportsmen of all
the world--those of the USSR." (Warsaw, 9 September)
Church-,state Affairs: There was no broadcast reference to friction between Church
and State. It was announced that Catholic priests in the Bydgoszcz Province of
Warsaw have responded to an appeal issued by the Priests Committee attached to the
Peace Partisans Association and are taking a prominent part in the building of
Warsaw National Council for distinguished work in the peace campaign. These
included Father Jan Czuj--Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta;
Father Henrys Werjnski--Officer's Cross; seven others--Gold Crosses of Merit; and'
11 Silver Crosses.
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Army and Civilian Defense: Only two significant developments were noted--the celebration
of Polish. Air Force day on 26 August and the issuance on 5 September of a decree
extending the rights and privileges of the members of the armed forces.
An Order of the Day, signed by Lt. Gen. Wiadyslaw Korczyc, Chief of Staff of the Polish
arm:~d forces and Deputy Defense Minister, issued in honor o:.' Air Fore Day, said that
Polish airmen were constantly improving their flying skill and their modern aviation
technique. The airmen, he said, would honor the day by "new achievements in the
consolidation of conscious discipline, in military and political training and in
mastering modern flying techniques." Lt. Gen. Jan Turkiel, Commander-in-Chief of the
Air Force, asserted that help of the Soviet instructors, who had introduced Polish
fliers to "the principles of Stalinist war strategy, the strategy of victory," had
played an important part in the training of new cadres of officers and instructors.
He also singled out Rokossowski for special praise, as did a speech by Brig. Gen.
Kagazanowi.cz, Chief of Air S taff . (all Warsaw, 26 August)
The following day details were given of the models on display at the Air F-rce Day
show, These included CSS-11, Zilch--l, Zuch-2 and Yak-18 types which performed acrobatics.
They were followed by "Zukhuruzhnik" planes towing "Kaczka" gliders, the "Junak"
trainer, the "Nietoperz" flying wing, the Polish-made "Mis" passenger plane and by
nine "near sonic" jet aircraft of "various models." Five UT-2 planes gave a display
of formation flying.
On 5 September, Warsaw broadcast a decree extending the rights and privileges of
members of the armed forces. Free medical care and mother and child welfare were.
made available to soldiers and their families. The decree forbids the removal of
soldiers from their homes. Where exceptional public interests require such action,
alternative accommodation must be found. From 12 January, soldiers, families with
farms will enjoy special advantages in the payment of land tax and compulsory
deliveries, as well as special priority in the supply of materials and financial
aid for'the reconstruction and extension of farms. Reservists returning must get
their old jobs and. they can claim promotion on grounds of the greater skill, higher
qualifications and improved political knowledge gained in the forces. Comment on
the decree broadcast the following day stressed that it had been warmly welcomed by
soldiers and civilians alike.
Sovietization and Relations with Nei~hbors: The anniversary of the liberation of
Warsaw, was fully exploited to impress on the Polish people the need for gratitude
toward the USSR. A Belgrade broadcast in Polish marked another anniversary--the
Soviet-Gel ian agreement on the partition of Poland, a subject understandably neglected
by the Polish radio. Preparations were made for the forthcoming celebration of
Soviet-Polish friendship month, and one broadcast said that the central.task would
be "to -inform the broadest masses of our population of the importance of the peaceful
policy of the Soviet Union." The celebrations will include demonstrations of the work
methods of Soviet stakhanovites and collective farmers. (23 August)
The Cracow Provincial Peace Committee, it was announced, has opened an essay contest
under the title, "This is.how I see Germany.", The purpose, it was stated, is to
deepen the Polish peoples understanding of the profound ideological changes taking
place in the peace-loving German Democratic Republic. (13 September)
Consumer Supply, Social Services qnd o using., As already indicated, the major
development in Poland was the admission that a serious meat shortage had been in
ev'stence for some time. Even if it had not been frankly admitted, the gravity and
duration of the meat supply crisis could be inferred from the ruthless efficiency
of the legal and propaganda forces mobilized to combat it. Obviously, the official
machinery to meet the crisis was carefully prepared and it may be concluded there-
fore that the difficulties are of longer standing than officially admitted. However,
despite the heavy judicial and propaganda attack, the supply situation does not
appear to have materially improved by 16 September, the end of the period covered
by this report. .
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First official indication of the difficulty came in a late night bulletin on
22 August which said that the authorities were taking strong measures against
profiteers engaged in the illegal slaughtering of pigs and cattle. It said that a
number of "economic saboteurs" had recently been sentenced by the courts, and cited
three cases where prison or labor camp sentences had been imposed.
The following day Warsaw commentator Gustav Kaden admitted that for several weeks
the urban population had been suffering from a serious shortage of meat due to a
"temporary" shortage of livestock for slaughter. He assured his listeners that the
Government was taking all necessary measures and drew attex}tion to a decree on pig
breeding. "But every sensible person realizes that a radical improvement cannot
take place between one day and the next. Patience must be exercised." There is no
doubt, he added, that illegal slaughtering and he illegal trade in meat "has
recently assumed serious proportions and that large quantities of meat are being
diverted from the proper channel:,,." He stressed the danger to health of buying
illegal meat and cited the recen- Piotrkow case where five had died of food poisoning.
He also stressed that the illegal traffic had "a definite political aspect" since it
was organized by enemies of the peoples state, particularly former capitalists and
exploiters. "Anyone who listens to such blandishments acts as an enemy agent and
harms the community and the peoples state," he said. He promised that the guilty
would be justly and severely punished. "An atmosphere of such hatred must be created
around the hyenas preying on our difficulties that they will not dare show themselves
in the streets or in our homes."
Having thus set up an ideological strategy for the campaign, Warsaw next outlined
the legal measures to be employed. At 0630 on 24 August, Warsaw broadcast the text
of an official decree authorizing the setting up of Commissions for Combatting
Profiteering and Trade Abuses at National Councils at all levels. By early after-
noon it was said that this action was meeting with universal acclaim from "the
broadest masses." By nightfall, the commissions had been set up and had caught,
tried and sentenced a number of speculators. The 2200 GMT bulletin told of two
cases where labor camp sentences of one-two years had been imposed.
On 25 August it was apparent that the judicial machinery was in full swing. The
heaviest of 12 sentences announced was given to a butcher who got six years. The
broadcast stressed the unsanitary condition of his premises.
Every day from then on the radio reported sentences of varying severity. A
27 August broadcast said that individual racketeers as well as orvanized,.gangs were
being "systematically rounded up," and that the courts and sT:ecial commissions were
"mercilessly meting out justice." A "class warfare" case was reported on 29 August,
when it was announced that the trial was to start soon of a gang of racketeers, led
by "the owner of several houses in,Lodz, a big estate and coal business owner."
The gang, it was claimed, had bought pigs "known to be diseased or to have died of
disease." On 29 August it was also announced that a conference of activists of the
Warsaw National Council had decided to appoint special civic investigators, equipped
with warrants to "carry out investigations, to ensure that scarce article are
properly distributed, that correct prices are charged, that correct weight is given
and that sanitary conditions in shops and feeding centers are up to standard."
The following day the Government's measures were lauded by the Central Trade Union
Council as "an expression of the peoples' regime's solicitude for the working masses.
A similar message was sent by the Peasants Mutual Aid Union.
Broadcasts heard from 31 August through 2 September told of a number of further
sentences, mostly ranging from one to two years. It was said that the drive was
already showing results as was demonstrated by the increased sale of cattle in the
markets. On 4 September it was claimed that. several organized gangs operating in
the Cracow region had been discovered and liquidated. A severer than usual sentence
was announced on16 September when it was said that Jan Taran, manager of No. 17
Cooperative Food Store in Warsaw, had been given six years and three years' loss of
civic rights for economic sabotage. He had sold a ton of sugar to a so-called
peasant who was really a profiteer.
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Despite Warsaw's warnings, cases of food poisoning continued to crop up. At Chrzanov
the lives of 17 persons were saved only through timely medical intervention.
,(6'September)
The campaign continued with each day bringing new news of prosecutions and sentences
and with no promises being made as to a resumption of normal meat supplies.
Other consumers and associated developments included:
The announcement on 26 August that from the following day the retail price of potatoes
would be 60 groszy per kilogram and the price of best grade tomatoes 2.30 zlotys.
The text of a government decree "regulating the principles of potato distribution this
year" was broadcast 28 August. Employees of socialized undertakings are entitled
to buy 300 kilograms on the installment plan, provided their wages do not exceed
600 zlotys per month. In Katowice and Wroclaw provinces persons not earning more than
750 zlotys per month are entitled to buy 100 kilograms for each member of their family.
Employees of the coal and steel industry are given similar facilities without the
qualifying wage limit.
An order by the Minister of Internal Trade introducedspecial privileges for workers
in "important" establishments in "certain industrial areas." (Warsaw, 30 August)
The establishments are authorized to issue priority cards to staff members entitling
them to purchase "a definite quantity" of meat, meat products and pork fat in
specially appointed shops. This arrangement is for September only and may be
terminated earlier if the suppl;' situation improves sufficiently. (It had not been
terminated at the time of the writing of this report.)
,There were several developments on the health front. Due to "the increased number
of polio cases throughout the country this year," the Ministry of Health issued
special instructions on the fight against the disease. Special hospital teams and
centers are to be organized for polio "prevention and treatment." (28 August)
Later it was announced that Soviet experts on polio had arrived in Poland and it was
said that the Ministry of Health had received and distributed adequate supplies of
"Gibasol," a new drug used for treating polio. (15 September) The Polish Red Cross
is to tour the country with a mobile exhibition and to give talks, film shows and
lantern lectures on the fight against epidemics, venereal disease and alcoholism.
(27 August) Nearly 700 people attended the annual anti-TB conference held at
Rokitnica Bytom. (29 August)
Unions and Labor: Acting on the advice of the Central Trade Union Council, the
Presidium if the Council of Ministers has set up arbitration committees in certain
industrial enterprises. The object, according to a Warsaw broadcast of 15 September,
is."to effect prompt and efficient settlement of possible disputes between personnel
and administration in accordance with the interests of the workers and the national
economy." Thy, committees are of a temporary nature and will decide on such matters
as the termination of employment, application of wage systems, calculations of earn-
ings and deductions from wages. Members are to be appointed in equal numbers from
works councils and by management.
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CZECHOSLOVA.1IA
Most striking development during the period under review was the announcement on
7 September of a shakeup of the upper echelons of the Czechoslovak Communist Party,
described in a subsequent RUDE PRAVO editorial as "necessary to strengthen the unity
of the political and organizational leadership of the Party." The trial of a group
of alleged German war criminals provided an opportunity for familiar propaganda about
the machinations of German and Western imperialism against Czechoslovakia, and the
opening of a museum devoted to the historical novelist Jirasek enabled Party agitators
to again claim that Communism is a present day manifestation of the Hus,;ite spirit.
There were attacks on Benes and Masaryk for allowing the Western Powers to dominate
Czechoslovakia after World War I, and the anniversary of T. G. Masaryk's death went
unnoticed. The alleged "kidnapping" of a Czechoslovak train was exploited as an
example of American hatred for Czechoslovakia.
-Party Affairs, Ideologue and Internal Propagand: The decision on the reorganization
of the Czechoslovak Communist Party was reached at a meeting of the Central Committee
on 6 September, and it was announced to the public early the following morning.
An explanation of the Party's actions was given the following day in a RUDE PRAVO
editorial written by Minister of Information Kopecky. "The Central Committee in its
former composition no longer met the needs of the day and it was necessary to strengthen
the unity of the political and organizational leadership of the Party," he said.
The Organizational Secretariat of the Central Committee, he added, would have the
task of watching carefully over the life of the Party and of safeguarding the
execution of Party tasks as well as checking on its work. The'Central Committee,
he continued, expects that "similar basic changes in the methods of Party work,
especially with respect to the organizational policy" would be carried out by
regional and district Party organizations.
There was no further broadcast comment on the Party changes, and it was not apparent
during the period under review that the district and regional organizations had under-
taken the "similar basic changes" in their organization mentioned by Kopecky.
RUDE PRAVO took up another Party matter in an editorial broadcast 28 August,
complaining that in many regions Party officials failed to make use of meetings to
enlighten the public about international and domestic topics. Ten villages in the
Cesky-Brod district, the paper said, had had no public meetings at all. Such a
situation, the paper added, is apt to affect adversely the close links between the
party and the people.
The usual amount of anti-imperialist propaganda was extracted from the trial of five
high German Army and SS officers which opened in Prague on 22 August. The prosecutor's
summing-up speech contained more invective against the Americans and the "treacherous
Czechoslovak emigres" than attacks against the defendants.
The alleged "kidnapping" of a Czechoslovak train on 11 September was also exploited
for anti-American propaganda. The official line, broadcast 15 September, was that
"a terrorist group, supplied with money and weapons and led by an American agent"
was responsible.
A considerable effort was again made by propagandists to claim that the Czechoslovak
Communist Party is the legitimate inheritor of the Hussite spirit., This was made
possible by the opening in Hvezda Castle near Prague of a museum devoted to Alois
Jiracek, a non-Communist author who specialized in historical novels, of the Hussite
period.
Premier Zapotocky said at the opening of the Jirasek Museum on 2 September: "This is
the lesson we can learn from the Hussite period: Our nation can win true happiness,
freedom and contentment only by ridding itself of exploiters at home, foreign invaders,
ecclesiastical obscurantism. and domination by a reactionary Church hierarchy."
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It was apparent, however, that Jirasek's work in its original form was not entirely
suitable to the Party propagandists. It was announced on 23 August that a 32-volume
edition of Jirasek's work is in publication under the general editorship of Minister
Nejedly. His task, a broadcast said, includes "restoration of the original wording
of certain works the manuscripts of which have gone astray or have been spoiled by
the adaptations of commercial editors."
Prague's Evening Newsreel program on 12 September quoted from a KVETY article by
Jiri Zak attacking Benes and Masaryk,.for permitting the Western imperialists to
dominate the country after the First World War. The 14 September anniversary of
T. G. Masaryk's death in 1937 went unnoticed. Scant attention was paid to the 110th
anniversary of the birth of the composer Anton Dvorak, One monitored talk failed to
mention the composer's long stay in the United States.
Rome Radio's Slovak transmission gave on 12 September an example of a joke said to
be circulating in the "Czechoslovak underground movement." The quoted example said
that USSR Ambassador Zorin, "the Soviet governor in Prague." inspecting the Skoda
works, was greatly impressed by a luxury car. Thereupon the factory manager offered
the car to Zorin as a present. However, the Soviet ambassador insisted on paying
for it. Pressed to name a price, the manager decided to ask for a nominal one crown.
Zorin then handed the manager a two-crown piece. On being given change of one crown,
Zorin refused to accept it. Finally, when the manager insisted on returning the
change, Zorin said; "All right, I'll take another car and then we shall be even."
Government and Civil Affairs.
Simultaneously with the announcement of a major shakeup in the Party hierarchy, the
Czechoslovak radio told of an impressive reorganization of the Governmental machinery
"to overcome the difficulties caused by the rapid development of production and by
the international scene," according to Minister Dolansky, head of the State Planning
Office.
The consequent tightening of direct Government control over industrial production,
the creation of a new Ministry of State Control and of a Ministry of Manpower indicate
that there are indeed many such difficulties. To overcome them a high degree of
personal responsibility has been given the new Ministries and the factory managements.
Dolansky claimed that the reorganization would result in an eventual reduction of
administrative staffs by 39 percent, an important contribution to the manpower shortage.
Although both Vice Premier General Ludvik Svoboda and Evzen Erban, Minister of Labor
and Social Welfare, have been relieved of their posts in the Government, the-fact
that Svoboda is not in complete disgrace was indicated by a Prague broadcast on
11 September describing the Tatra Car Rally. It said that the "General Svoboda prize"
had been awarded to a Polish team.
Minister Dolansky explained the reasons for the Government shakeup in a broadcast
from Prague on g September. The guiding principle, he said, had been to replace big
and unwieldy departments by smaller and more specialized units which would make
possible a more "operational"" management of production. The abolition of General and
Regional directorates would do away with superfluous authorities standing between the
government and the industries. Industrial enterprises would no longer have to deal
with a multitude of directives--frequently opposed to each other.
Managements of. factories, he continued, would carry more responsibility with more
authority. The reorganization would put an end to rigid centralization and give more
authority to those who were directly connected with the "creative initiative of the
workers." The principles of this reorganization would also be applied to the
Ministries of Building, Food Industry, Agriculture and Internal Trade, not directly
affected by the Government's decision. The new Ministries would have direct
responsibility for the fulfillment of production plans. In. the past, factory manage-
ments had to deal with too many officials and the old system had resulted in a constant
expansion of bureaucratic methods which produced floods of instructions and directives,
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frequently holding up production.' The reorganization, based on the experiences of
the Soviet Union, would reduce administrative staffs by 39 percent, despite the fact
that a number of new ministries were being set up.
Industry.
Difficulties facing Czechoslovak industry are indicated by the radical reformation
of the Governmental machinery regulating production. The Czechoslovak radio
continued to exert heavy pressure on behalf of two other reforms--the transfer of
redundant administrative staff to productive work in industry and the revision of
labor norms to raise.output at lower cost. The norms revision program, it would
appear, went forward with greater speed than the administrative transfer.
There were constant complaints from the radio and from the officials concerned
about the slow rate of progress of the campaign to transfer 75,000 bureaucrats
from their desks to work benches by the end of the year. It was evident that
administrative departments were reluctant to part with personnel and that factory
managements were unwilling to accept large numbers of former white collar employees.
There were constant complaints that some departments were not transferring any
employees at all or that they were sending the aged and ill or women with children
to the factories.
Josef Kaminek, chairman of the Government Committee on the Transfer of Unproductive
Staff, made the above accusations in a Prague broadcast on.21 August. He said that
offices which had transferred the ailing or aged and women with children would have
to release others in their stead. and he pointed out that it was not permissible to
transfer persons now undergoing military training. It was inevitable, he stated,
that single persons or childless married couples should be given posts outside the
Prague area to enable married couples with children and, above all, mothers with
children to remain there. The labor exchanges, he charged, are failing to operate
the scheme in a flexible manner and there is no day-to-day checkup of the actual
labor demands of the individual factories. Doctors and civil engineers, he added,
would be allowed to resume their former professions, but they would have to go where
they are most needed.
A broadcast on 23 August pointed out that the Supreme Administrative Council still
had not transferred a single employee. Six days later a commentator said that the
transfer had revealed numerous examples of red tape in the administration of.
nationalized industries. The Prague nationalized dairy concern, for example,
employed two persons in its administrative offices to every three workers.
A broadcast on 30 August reported that the transfer was proceeding satisfactorily
and that the number had risen from 4 to 10 percent of those scheduled to go.
Following a close checkup by the commission a number of examples of incorrect applica-
tion of the Government directive had been corrected. But on 2 September, Vojtech
Dolejsi claimed that the old and sick were still being transferred. This was
inexcusable because they could still do useful work in administration whereas in
production they would only swell the lqt of disability pensioners. He criticized
the Prague Central National Committee fo'':,pensioning its workers at 60, even When
they asked to continue at their jobs.
,.On 13 September it was announced that 20,?322 employees had been sent to new produc-
tion jobs. Best record was set by the Minister of Internal Trade which had released
37.5 percent of those scheduled to go., The Ministry of Agriculture was lagging
behind other Government departments with only 11.8 percent. (Since the transfer
campaign has been on for 11 weeks, it is quite apparent that it will have to be
stepped up considerably if the balance of 55,000 employees is to be switched to the
factories in the 15 weeks remaining in the year,)
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An anonymous commentator on 6 September complained of the waste of paper in
administrative offices due to red tape. He said that some 750,000 persons were
employed on administrative and office work and that 11 percent of the budget was
spent on administration as compared to 3.2 percent in the Soviet Union. He gave
various examples of the waste due to paper work: in one factory the ordering of a
spare part required filling out forms weighing more than the part; to order a load
of sand costing kcs. 300 required 34 different forms, bringing the price of the
sand'to kcs. 600; 27 printed forms were required to call a meeting of a National
Committee.
The norms revision campaign was apparently more successful than the administrative
transfer. Josef Kaminek said on 11 September that the revision had been completed
in a majority of factories and that norms had been tightened by an average of 8-10
percent. He called on the laggards to complete the task as soon as possible, and
he said that some factories had not understood that the purpose of the revision
was to eliminate obsolete methods and not to reduce wages. The revision must mark
the beginning of a struggle to make the working methods practiced by the best workers
general throughout industry. The results must be assessed in every factory and
workshop and all necessary changes completed by the end of the year. New factory
contracts must be drafted and must incorporate the new stiffer norms for 1952, as
well as the management's production pledges.
A RUDE PRAVO editorial, broadcast the.same day, said that the norms revision was
more successful:. than that of last year due to "better political understanding in
the factories." The editorial mentioned the.CKD Stalingrad works as having achieved
particularly good results.
These good results were not achieved without a certain amount of "enlightenment"
and pressure from the party's propagandists. A broadcast on 23 August criticized
the management of the finishing shop at the RUDE PRAVO paper mill for its "failure
to explain the importance of the norms revision to all employees." Prague's
Evening Newsreel on 24 August cited the cases of factory foremen who failed to cooperate
in the norms revision. Some technicians, the broadcast said, were also considering
the norms revision as "a side issue," thus displaying an entirely wrong attitude
toward production problems. An anonymous speaker on 28 August complained that workers
who were paid by the old "soft" norms were earning more than those under the new
"stiffened" norms. This was wrong for the high wages were not justified by output
and the wages of workers using the old norms thus were being subsidized by those
producing more under the new norms. This anomaly, said the speaker, must be
liquidated as soon as possible, adding the customary reassurance that it was not
the purpose of the norms revision to lower wages. The eventual result would be
higher wages all around.
Agriculture.
The harvest was accompanied by a steady chorus of exhortation, admonition and threats
from the Prague and Bratislava radios. No overall figures on results were broadcast
by the end of the period under review but it was apparent that much work remained to
be done if production was to reach planned figures. Harvesting developments in
chronological order were as follows:
On 23 August, Prague radio stated that "not in a single district have the state.
tractor stations fulfilled their plans." The best results were in the Brno region,
which had completed 90 percent of its grain cutting and 33 percent of its stubble
plowing. The Kocice region was worst with only 30.7 percent of its grain cut and
only 11.7 percent of its stubble plowed. The radio added. that "a number of other
districts are just as bad."
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Commissioner for Trade Dr, Solte3z, according to a 23 August Prague broadcast, asked
members of National Committees to improve the organization of the bulk buying scheme
for farm produce. He said that this year's bulk buying figures were behind those
of last year and he suggested that farmers who had completed their threshing but
not their delivery duties should be visited and. the "method of political persuasion
should be applied." In the case of kulaks, "all legal means" should be used to make
them comply with their delivery obligations. Every farmer-,who,:1ad completed thresh-
ing and who had not delivered his grain should be' reported.i.edi:ately to the.
authorities. A day later, Mates, chairman of the Central Committee for Agricultural
Work, said that almost one-fifth of the harvest was still. ;i. 2,,, ,,he., fi.eids, some, of it
not yet cut. He particularly urged the.conclusion of the flax..harvest. (A Rome
broadcast in Slovak said that the emphasis.oxl`the flax hervest..wa3 due to the of 'eqt
of the American decision not to ship raw material for the Cze.ch6aovak textile.
industry.)
Several districts were censured in a 30 August broadcast for lagging behind in their
grain deliveries::...Plzen had returned only 30 percent.of its.: quota and large ..quaatlties-
of grain were still outstanding in the Karlovy Vary, Znojmo,...Ceske Budejovice, Liberec,
Usti and Hradec Kralov regions. Stubble plowing was far behind, reaching only 12,
percent of plan in the entire republic. .,..
The Government issued on 31 August a resolution on the remaining harvest operations,
bulk delive.ry.of grain and potatoesand fall field work.u?.It said that this year's
crops were good and that planned yields had been reached and even exceeded. On
24 August 3.4 percent of the grain harvest was uncut, 19.4 percent uncarted and
46.5 percent unthreshed. Better use must be made of threshing machinery and the
crops delivered to the marketing cooperatives as speedily as possible. In autumn
field work better use must be made of agricultural machinery and more care taken in
its maintenance. By 10 September a full checkup of the condition of machines should
be completed. All able-bodied villagers must help in the potato harvest and by
15 November all deliveries of potatoes and winter vegetables must be completed. The
decree asked National Committees to supervise all field work, especially that of
kulaks and it urged cooperatives to adopt higher forms of organization and to set up
permanent teams of workers who would be responsible for the fields allocated to
them. ;(The...Soviet."brigade" system, perhaps?)
Mates reported in a broadcast on 5 September that only 1 percent of the grain
harvest was uncut, g percent uncarted and 30 percent unthreshed. Flax harvesting
in Czech lands was 23 percent behind schedule, but in Slovakia it exceeded plan by
nearly 4 percent. Mates urged farmers to bring in the flay as speedily as possible
and to complete the sowing plan for rape and to make thorough plans for autumn
field work.
Bratislava said the same day that in Slovakia the bulk delivery of grain had reached
72 percent of target. Regions.such as Bratislava and Banska Bystri.ca had shown
good results "thanks to efficient political work" but the Kosice, Kilina and.Presov
regions were short of targets. Prague simultaneously reported that the bulk delivery
goal had been met in the Prague region, and said that farmers had promised to hand
over an additional 10 percent. An 8 September broadcast from Bratislava stated that
the Myjava district was the most backward in the Bratislava district. It had met its
grain delivery obligations by only 6g percent although both the socialized and
private sectors had had a good harvest.. F