V.I LENIN ON GUERILLA WARFARE
Despite all attempts by the bourgeois regimes to bring the labour movement to its knees, despite all their applied repression, workers and working people are rising up to fight for their rights.
In this issue we publish materials from Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, on the unfolding struggle.
Especially interesting are the letters of young readers of our newspapers, including political prisoners. Political prisoners from the "Odessa case" have not given up, have not broken, have not betrayed their communist beliefs. They, from the torture chambers continue their publicist, ideological, moral fight –- to defend their communist beliefs and ideals that call for working people not to give up and fight for the overthrow of the power of capital.
Noteworthy is the article of our reader Vikhrev about events in Primorye. And in this context I would like to learn from the experience of our Leninist party, the experience of the revolution of 1905-1907, when Lenin and the Bolsheviks paid much attention to the question of armed struggle in general and the partisan struggle in particular.
Analyzing the “Lessons of the Moscow Uprising” (works, vol.13, pp. 369-377, August 1906 - Russian) – of the December armed uprising in Moscow in 1905, - and the reasons for his defeat, Lenin noted that the general strike as an independent and main form of struggle, had outlived its usefulness, what with the spontaneous, irresistible force coming out of these narrow confines and producing the highest form of struggle, the uprising. "The strike grew into an uprising, especially under the pressure of the objective conditions" (p. 370).
"From the strikes and demonstrations to individual barricades. From individual barricades to massive construction of barricades and street fighting with the army. Over the head of organizations, mass proletarian struggle crossed over from strike to uprising. In this, lies the greatest historic gain of the Russian Revolution reached by December 1905, the gain, bought, as in all the previous ones, at the price of enormous sacrifices "(p.370-371).
"And now we must, finally, openly and publicly recognize the inadequacy of political strikes, to agitate among the broadest masses for armed insurrection ... To hide from the masses the need for a desperate, bloody, destructive war as the immediate task of impending action, means, to deceive oneself, and the people"(p.372).
"... The inevitable wavering of troops, whatever the true people's movement, leads under the aggravation of the revolutionary struggle to a true struggle for winning over the troops. The Moscow uprising shows us exactly the most desperate, most furious fighting of reactionary power and the revolution for winning over the support of the army"(p. 372).
Lenin, analyzing the causes of the defeat of the December armed uprising, reminds the revolutionaries of Marx's words, "who wrote that insurrection is an art and that the main rule of this art –is the desperately brave, final, decisive assault" (p.374). "We should ring all the bells on the need for a bold offensive and attack with weapons in hand, on the need for extermination with this, of the commanders, and the most energetic struggle for the wavering troops "(p.374).
"Moscow - Lenin notes – put forth "new barricade tactics." These tactics were the tactics of guerrilla warfare. The organization, using such tactics would be mobile and very small detachments of tens, triples, or even two people "(p.374-375).
Lenin went on to note that Moscow put forward a new tactic of guerrilla warfare, but did not develop it. "Vigilantes were insufficient in numbers, the mass of workers had not received the slogan of bold attacks and did not use it, the nature of guerrilla units was too fixed, their weapons and their methods inadequate, their ability to lead a crowd was almost undeveloped" (p.375).
“Social-Democracy (Communists-FB) must recognize and adopt as their tactics this mass terror, of course, organizing and controlling it, subordinating it to the interests and conditions of the labour movement and the general revolutionary struggle ... "(p. 375).
The heroic struggle of several thousand armed Moscow workers lasted 9 days. Tsarism sent troops into Moscow, many times higher in strength than the rebel forces, had used artillery against the barricade and drowned the uprising in blood. The Moscow Committee of Bolsheviks was arrested, and the rebels did not have a single centre, fought piecemeal and limited themselves to defence. This was the main source of weakness of the Moscow uprising and one of the reasons for his defeat (material from the History of the CPSU (b), OGIZ, Gospolitizdat, 1945, p. 79).
Lenin, in the above work, notes that "military tactics depends on the level of military equipment - Engels chewed upon this truth and put it into the mouth of Marxists." (p.374).
The Bolsheviks after the defeat of the Moscow uprising did not lost heart. They believed that there was an impending new wave of armed struggle and proposed to prepare for it more carefully, prepare weapons and to really confront the armed to the teeth, Tsar’s punitive forces, called on them step up the fight to win over the wavering troops, which mainly consisted of peasants dressed in soldiers' uniforms. "We can and must take advantage of improving technology, to teach the workers’ detachments to make bombs en-mass, to help them and our fighting squads to stock up explosives, fuses and automatic rifles. With the participation of the working masses in the urban uprising, with a mass attack on the enemy with a strong skillful fight for winning over the army, which will waver even more ..., ensuring the participation of the countryside in the common struggle - victory will be ours in the next all-Russian armed uprising" (p.376 ).
Lenin ends this work on an optimistic note with a deep faith in the creative forces of the revolutionary working class, - "Let us remember that the great mass struggle is nearing. This will be an armed uprising. It should be, if possible, at the same time. The masses must know that they are going on an armed, bloody, desperate struggle. Contempt for death must be spread among the masses and ensure victory. The attack on the enemy must be the most vigorous; attack and not defence should be the slogan of the masses, the ruthless extermination of the enemy – will be their task; the organization of the struggle will be developed mobile and flexible; the wavering elements among troops will be drawn into active struggle. The party of the politically conscious proletariat must fulfil its duty in this great struggle (p.376-377).
Lenin devoted questions on guerrilla action in his special work "The Guerrilla War" (PSS, v.14, p.1-12, September 1906). Speaking of forms of struggle, Lenin noted that, firstly, "Marxism is different from all the primitive forms of socialism in that it does not connect the movement of any one particular form of struggle. He recognizes a variety of forms of struggle, does not "invent" them, but merely summarizes, organizes, gives consciousness to those forms of struggle of the revolutionary classes, which arise of themselves in the course of the movement "(p. 1). "Marxism in this respect is learning, so to speak, from mass practice, far from the claims to teach the masses invented "forms of struggle" by armchair" systematists (p. 2).
"Secondly, Marxism demands an absolutely historical consideration of the question on forms of struggle" (p. 2). "At different stages of economic evolution, depending on various political, national, cultural, domestic conditions etc., various forms of struggle are put forward and become the principal forms of struggle, and in connection with this, in turn, secondary and less important forms of struggle are modified, "(p. 2).
"Armed struggle pursues two different objectives ... this struggle is aimed, firstly, to the murder of individuals, superiors and subordinates in the military and police - and secondly, to confiscate the funds from government and private entities. Confiscated funds go to the party, part of it goes towards the armament and preparation of the uprising, and part of it towards the maintenance of those leading the struggle characterized by us"(p. 4). "The worsening political crisis to the point of armed struggle and in particular the worsening poverty, hunger and unemployment in villages and towns have played a major role among the reasons for the described form of struggle" (p. 4). "The spreading of the "guerilla" struggle namely after December and its connection with the aggravation of not only the economic but also political crisis are obvious. Old Russian terrorism used to be the affair of the intellectual-conspirator, but now the guerrilla struggle is carried out, as a general rule, by a worker-fighter or simply an unemployed worker "(p.5-6).
"Guerrilla struggle is an inevitable form of struggle at a time when the mass movement is actually ready for an uprising, and when enter more or less large intervals between "major battles" in a civil war" (p.7).
"A Marxist stands on the class struggle, and not on social peace. In certain periods of acute economic and political crises, the class struggle develops to outright civil war, i.e. armed struggle between two sections of the people "(p.8). "In the era of civil war, the ideal party of the proletariat is a belligerent party "(p.8). And Lenin concludes: "It should learn to fight" (p.9).
“In such an era, in an era of nation-wide political strikes, the uprising cannot be moulded into the old form of individual acts, limited by very short time and very small areas. It is natural and inevitable that the revolt takes higher and more complex forms of a continual civil war covering the whole country, i.e. armed struggle between the two sections of the people "(p.11).
"Social-Democracy (communists -FB) must necessarily set its goal of the establishment of such organizations, which would be most able to lead the masses in these large-scale battles and, if possible, in small skirmishes. Social democracy (communists) in an era of intensified class struggle up and to civil war, should set itself the task of not only participation, but also the leadership role in this civil war. Social democracy (communists) must educate and prepare their organizations to ensure that they really act as a belligerent party, and not to miss a single opportunity to inflict damage on enemy forces" (p.11).
The Draft resolution “guerrilla fighting operations”, as proposed by the Bolsheviks to the IV (amalgamating) Congress of the RSDLP (Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) (April 1906) was written precisely in the Leninist revolutionary spirit. The Congress however, where the majority were Mensheviks had adopted the more subdued version of the Resolution. But on the V (London) RSDLP Congress (April-May 1907), when it became clear that the revolution had subsided, the Bolsheviks in the draft resolution to Congress “About guerrilla actions" wrote: "At the moment, in the absence of conditions for a mass revolutionary upheaval, guerrilla actions are undesirable and congress recommends an ideological struggle with them, and that it is also permissible under the conditions of mass revolutionary struggle, guerrilla performances can be carried out only at the initiative of local party committees, with the permission of the regional centres, and under their strict control. A system of party militia, which consists of military training for all party members within the existing party cells are a form of combat organizations, with the most appropriate task of training the militant vanguard of the proletariat for an armed uprising, (CPSU in Resolutions and Decisions of Congresses, Conferences and Central Committee Plenums, Moscow, Politizdat, 1983 , Volume 1, s.254-255).
A. MAYEVSKY
In this issue we publish materials from Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, on the unfolding struggle.
Especially interesting are the letters of young readers of our newspapers, including political prisoners. Political prisoners from the "Odessa case" have not given up, have not broken, have not betrayed their communist beliefs. They, from the torture chambers continue their publicist, ideological, moral fight –- to defend their communist beliefs and ideals that call for working people not to give up and fight for the overthrow of the power of capital.
Noteworthy is the article of our reader Vikhrev about events in Primorye. And in this context I would like to learn from the experience of our Leninist party, the experience of the revolution of 1905-1907, when Lenin and the Bolsheviks paid much attention to the question of armed struggle in general and the partisan struggle in particular.
Analyzing the “Lessons of the Moscow Uprising” (works, vol.13, pp. 369-377, August 1906 - Russian) – of the December armed uprising in Moscow in 1905, - and the reasons for his defeat, Lenin noted that the general strike as an independent and main form of struggle, had outlived its usefulness, what with the spontaneous, irresistible force coming out of these narrow confines and producing the highest form of struggle, the uprising. "The strike grew into an uprising, especially under the pressure of the objective conditions" (p. 370).
"From the strikes and demonstrations to individual barricades. From individual barricades to massive construction of barricades and street fighting with the army. Over the head of organizations, mass proletarian struggle crossed over from strike to uprising. In this, lies the greatest historic gain of the Russian Revolution reached by December 1905, the gain, bought, as in all the previous ones, at the price of enormous sacrifices "(p.370-371).
"And now we must, finally, openly and publicly recognize the inadequacy of political strikes, to agitate among the broadest masses for armed insurrection ... To hide from the masses the need for a desperate, bloody, destructive war as the immediate task of impending action, means, to deceive oneself, and the people"(p.372).
"... The inevitable wavering of troops, whatever the true people's movement, leads under the aggravation of the revolutionary struggle to a true struggle for winning over the troops. The Moscow uprising shows us exactly the most desperate, most furious fighting of reactionary power and the revolution for winning over the support of the army"(p. 372).
Lenin, analyzing the causes of the defeat of the December armed uprising, reminds the revolutionaries of Marx's words, "who wrote that insurrection is an art and that the main rule of this art –is the desperately brave, final, decisive assault" (p.374). "We should ring all the bells on the need for a bold offensive and attack with weapons in hand, on the need for extermination with this, of the commanders, and the most energetic struggle for the wavering troops "(p.374).
"Moscow - Lenin notes – put forth "new barricade tactics." These tactics were the tactics of guerrilla warfare. The organization, using such tactics would be mobile and very small detachments of tens, triples, or even two people "(p.374-375).
Lenin went on to note that Moscow put forward a new tactic of guerrilla warfare, but did not develop it. "Vigilantes were insufficient in numbers, the mass of workers had not received the slogan of bold attacks and did not use it, the nature of guerrilla units was too fixed, their weapons and their methods inadequate, their ability to lead a crowd was almost undeveloped" (p.375).
“Social-Democracy (Communists-FB) must recognize and adopt as their tactics this mass terror, of course, organizing and controlling it, subordinating it to the interests and conditions of the labour movement and the general revolutionary struggle ... "(p. 375).
The heroic struggle of several thousand armed Moscow workers lasted 9 days. Tsarism sent troops into Moscow, many times higher in strength than the rebel forces, had used artillery against the barricade and drowned the uprising in blood. The Moscow Committee of Bolsheviks was arrested, and the rebels did not have a single centre, fought piecemeal and limited themselves to defence. This was the main source of weakness of the Moscow uprising and one of the reasons for his defeat (material from the History of the CPSU (b), OGIZ, Gospolitizdat, 1945, p. 79).
Lenin, in the above work, notes that "military tactics depends on the level of military equipment - Engels chewed upon this truth and put it into the mouth of Marxists." (p.374).
The Bolsheviks after the defeat of the Moscow uprising did not lost heart. They believed that there was an impending new wave of armed struggle and proposed to prepare for it more carefully, prepare weapons and to really confront the armed to the teeth, Tsar’s punitive forces, called on them step up the fight to win over the wavering troops, which mainly consisted of peasants dressed in soldiers' uniforms. "We can and must take advantage of improving technology, to teach the workers’ detachments to make bombs en-mass, to help them and our fighting squads to stock up explosives, fuses and automatic rifles. With the participation of the working masses in the urban uprising, with a mass attack on the enemy with a strong skillful fight for winning over the army, which will waver even more ..., ensuring the participation of the countryside in the common struggle - victory will be ours in the next all-Russian armed uprising" (p.376 ).
Lenin ends this work on an optimistic note with a deep faith in the creative forces of the revolutionary working class, - "Let us remember that the great mass struggle is nearing. This will be an armed uprising. It should be, if possible, at the same time. The masses must know that they are going on an armed, bloody, desperate struggle. Contempt for death must be spread among the masses and ensure victory. The attack on the enemy must be the most vigorous; attack and not defence should be the slogan of the masses, the ruthless extermination of the enemy – will be their task; the organization of the struggle will be developed mobile and flexible; the wavering elements among troops will be drawn into active struggle. The party of the politically conscious proletariat must fulfil its duty in this great struggle (p.376-377).
Lenin devoted questions on guerrilla action in his special work "The Guerrilla War" (PSS, v.14, p.1-12, September 1906). Speaking of forms of struggle, Lenin noted that, firstly, "Marxism is different from all the primitive forms of socialism in that it does not connect the movement of any one particular form of struggle. He recognizes a variety of forms of struggle, does not "invent" them, but merely summarizes, organizes, gives consciousness to those forms of struggle of the revolutionary classes, which arise of themselves in the course of the movement "(p. 1). "Marxism in this respect is learning, so to speak, from mass practice, far from the claims to teach the masses invented "forms of struggle" by armchair" systematists (p. 2).
"Secondly, Marxism demands an absolutely historical consideration of the question on forms of struggle" (p. 2). "At different stages of economic evolution, depending on various political, national, cultural, domestic conditions etc., various forms of struggle are put forward and become the principal forms of struggle, and in connection with this, in turn, secondary and less important forms of struggle are modified, "(p. 2).
"Armed struggle pursues two different objectives ... this struggle is aimed, firstly, to the murder of individuals, superiors and subordinates in the military and police - and secondly, to confiscate the funds from government and private entities. Confiscated funds go to the party, part of it goes towards the armament and preparation of the uprising, and part of it towards the maintenance of those leading the struggle characterized by us"(p. 4). "The worsening political crisis to the point of armed struggle and in particular the worsening poverty, hunger and unemployment in villages and towns have played a major role among the reasons for the described form of struggle" (p. 4). "The spreading of the "guerilla" struggle namely after December and its connection with the aggravation of not only the economic but also political crisis are obvious. Old Russian terrorism used to be the affair of the intellectual-conspirator, but now the guerrilla struggle is carried out, as a general rule, by a worker-fighter or simply an unemployed worker "(p.5-6).
"Guerrilla struggle is an inevitable form of struggle at a time when the mass movement is actually ready for an uprising, and when enter more or less large intervals between "major battles" in a civil war" (p.7).
"A Marxist stands on the class struggle, and not on social peace. In certain periods of acute economic and political crises, the class struggle develops to outright civil war, i.e. armed struggle between two sections of the people "(p.8). "In the era of civil war, the ideal party of the proletariat is a belligerent party "(p.8). And Lenin concludes: "It should learn to fight" (p.9).
“In such an era, in an era of nation-wide political strikes, the uprising cannot be moulded into the old form of individual acts, limited by very short time and very small areas. It is natural and inevitable that the revolt takes higher and more complex forms of a continual civil war covering the whole country, i.e. armed struggle between the two sections of the people "(p.11).
"Social-Democracy (communists -FB) must necessarily set its goal of the establishment of such organizations, which would be most able to lead the masses in these large-scale battles and, if possible, in small skirmishes. Social democracy (communists) in an era of intensified class struggle up and to civil war, should set itself the task of not only participation, but also the leadership role in this civil war. Social democracy (communists) must educate and prepare their organizations to ensure that they really act as a belligerent party, and not to miss a single opportunity to inflict damage on enemy forces" (p.11).
The Draft resolution “guerrilla fighting operations”, as proposed by the Bolsheviks to the IV (amalgamating) Congress of the RSDLP (Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) (April 1906) was written precisely in the Leninist revolutionary spirit. The Congress however, where the majority were Mensheviks had adopted the more subdued version of the Resolution. But on the V (London) RSDLP Congress (April-May 1907), when it became clear that the revolution had subsided, the Bolsheviks in the draft resolution to Congress “About guerrilla actions" wrote: "At the moment, in the absence of conditions for a mass revolutionary upheaval, guerrilla actions are undesirable and congress recommends an ideological struggle with them, and that it is also permissible under the conditions of mass revolutionary struggle, guerrilla performances can be carried out only at the initiative of local party committees, with the permission of the regional centres, and under their strict control. A system of party militia, which consists of military training for all party members within the existing party cells are a form of combat organizations, with the most appropriate task of training the militant vanguard of the proletariat for an armed uprising, (CPSU in Resolutions and Decisions of Congresses, Conferences and Central Committee Plenums, Moscow, Politizdat, 1983 , Volume 1, s.254-255).
A. MAYEVSKY
