Grigory Zinoviev

“ It is clear to everybody that this was not a peaceful trade-union movement, but the beginning of a really revolutionary struggle. The Party, under the leadership of Serati, has done all in its power to smash the movement on the rocks and throw the working class helplessly into the clutches of the bourgeoisie, which did not fail to take advantage of the situation. We must never forget this lesson. We must not start an offensive unprepared, but we cannot afford to lose a single chance for a possible offensive. ”

“ If they now withdraw, they will be withdrawing at the moment when we have a mass party in Germany, which has been tried in the struggle, which has perhaps made great mistakes—we all make mistakes—but we have now a big, experienced revolutionary party in Germany, the party of the revolutionary proletariat, possessing altogether a different moral value in the eyes of the working class. If it should be our misfortune to lose Gorter and his friends, we shall in some way or other survive. ”

“ In our capacity of Executive Committee we have done everything in our power to give the comrades, who had no mandate with a decisive vote, the opportunity to defend their points of view before the congress of which they have already availed themselves and are still going to do so. But we urgently beg the comrades to understand one thing, which must also be understood by the comrade of the K.A.P.D.; they must tell themselves, Levi may have been their friend, but the Communist International and the proletarian revolution ought to be greater friends for them. ”

“ Our French comrades say themselves that they admit their mistakes. Let them, therefore, accept from the Executive the advice of the Communist International. The Executive must declare frankly and clearly, by a resolution or by a letter, what it has to say to the Party. There can, of course, be no talk of a proposal to be made by us for the expulsion of Frossard. Such a proposal cannot even be the subject of serious discussion. The development in France is moving forward, while opportunism, our enemy, is still there. We must overcome the enemy. We must tell the French workers what is at stake. ”

“ We are more in favour of mass parties, far more indeed than the gentlemen who, like Levi, have constantly the argument of mass party upon their lips, but who, as we can easily prove, created nothing but sects. ”

“ Much nonsense has been written about the dictates of Moscow. In reality the only reproach one can make against us is that our organisation was not sufficiently binding, not sufficiently centralistic. (Calls: "Quite right.") The bourgeoisie is organised much better than we are. We must at least limp along: we must grasp the fact that it is our duty to build up a United International Party.
Comrades, let us have your judgment; we recognise our mistakes ourselves. You must delegate your best men from every country to the new Executive Committee. ”

“ Whatever name the persons standing at the head of the Amsterdam Secretariat may bear, it is without doubt that the many millions of the international proletariat, which is united under its banner, is bound up with the oppressed of the whole world by mutual interest ”

“ Comrades, the real substance of the question is this. At the time of the Second Congress it was the general opinion that Italy had made the nearest approach to a proletarian revolution. This was admitted by Serati himself. If ever history gave us an example of how a party missed its opportunity, to the great detriment of the movement, it is the example of Italy. Never has such a good opportunity been lost as in the case of Italy. A year ago the working class of Italy was enthusiastic, ready to fight, and better organised than in any other country. The bourgeoisie was hard pressed. ”

“ We are being reproached with having made mistakes; we are being told that our connections were very bad. But, comrades, I return the thrust and ask of the parties: "What have you done for an international organisation? Almost nothing, Your criticism is welcome, but exercise self-criticism as well!" We need the best elements, numerous men with sufficient technical assistants for the Executive Committee, and real sacrifices must be made by every party. If so, we shall have an Executive Committee which will be worthy to be called the General Staff of the Proletarian Revolution. ”

“ Therefore, I believe that we ought to overcome all difficulties of organisation, and concentrate the general political administration in one place, which may be in Russia to-day, and in Germany or France to-morrow, in accordance with the development of the World Revolution.
In any case, we must give much greater support to the Young Communists than we have done heretofore. They have done splendid work up to now, and have always been in the front ranks in Czecho-Slovakia, France, and other countries: where we had to fight against the social patriots and centrists. ”

“ Thus, at a trade union congress a friend of Serati's offers a resolution that the Congress protest against any act of violence of whatever origin. Quite a neutral attitude making no distinction between acts of violence coming from the bourgeoisie or from the proletariat:—it is always bad. ”

“ Had there been no counter-revolutionary Social Democratic mass parties, we probably might long since have had the revolution all over the world. ("Hear, hear.") We can easily imagine that there are mass parties which still uphold bourgeois and semi-bourgeois ideology. A considerable part of the masses is still susceptable to Centrist influences. We must clearly see this and take it into consideration. It has long been our wish to have this party as a mass party within the frame-work of the Communist International. ”

“ Comrade Trotsky was quite right when he said that the young generation is of more importance to us than we had thought until now, because the working class had sunk to such a low level in consequence of the war.
The work that we have done and the support that we have given to the young Communists must be increased a hundred fold. It is one of the most important questions. We hope that this World Congress will promote the movement among the young people, and will support it by all available means. ”

“ On the contrary, our organisation has been much too loose. Of course we understand very well that many great problems are of such a nature that each party must settle them by itself within the sphere of national conditions. We demanded naively the international settlement of problems which could only be solved nationally. There are, however, problems which allow of the drawing up of international demands. We must make our organisation much more centralised; we must make the ties which bind us more numerous and better than they have been up till now. ”

“ The deviations to the left of some of our comrades during the Second Congress must be straightened out; we need a straight line. The struggle against the Right elements has not by any means come to an end yet. As a matter of fact, it has not yet begun properly, if we consider the fact that the Amsterdam Trade Union International still has twenty million workers in its organisation. The battle against the Right is our main-task. The struggle against the trade unions, and against the centrist, is a question of tactics. ”

“ When a young Communist Party, surrounded by enemies, obtains 400,000 votes and 16 mandates, this is by no means a defeat. Still less can it be considered as a defeat for the Communist International, even as it is no defeat for the International when Scheidemann can still obtain millions of votes after the murder of Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. ”

“ In a country like Russia, where the working class is in power and the workers and, peasants constitute the majority, the Party should make concessions to the masses in order to maintain the dictatorship of the proletariat and safeguard the rule of the working class. ”

“ However, they look upon the matter as if the question of the dictatorship had already been liquidated, and assert that a "revolution in Italy accompanied by violence and destruction and by the immediate establishment of the Soviet system, as was the case in Russia, for which the extremist is striving, would be doomed to rapid failure unless it could secure the active support, both political and economic, of the proletariat of the more advanced states during the period of inevitable economic decay." ”

“ It is my opinion that the Young Communists must get their political guidance where there is the political leadership of the entire International. If orders are issued by two parallel institutions, in different countries, it goes without saying that these orders are liable to clash and give rise to misunderstandings. That is particularly dangerous with regard to the Young Communist movement. ”

“ Serati came forward with a theory of equality. He demands equality between Italy and France. Why were more concessions made to the French comrades than to the Italian comrades? I shall have something to say on the French Party. It is our duty to treat every party according to the concrete conditions prevailing in the particular country. We must take into consideration the history of the Labour movement and the stage of maturity of the revolutionary situation. We cannot treat the French, American, Italian, Lettish and Czecho-Slovak parties according to one pattern. ”

“ It is also without doubt that every sincere and hearty demonstration of international solidarity will accelerate the proletarian union of the workers of all countries."
Comrades, you know how all petty bourgeois, all revisionists, all centrists cry out about the money from Moscow, although everyone understands that it is quite natural, that the victorous working class of Russia should help the workers of other countries. ”

“ The Amsterdam Trade Union International, which has sent our confederation the published expression of solidarity and sympathy, does not quite share our opinion in regard to the necessary demands of the proletarian movement. Some of its leaders are very far from our political ideals. If the present moment were appropriate for personal controversies we could reproach some of them for the solidarity, which, during the war they manifested towards those who, to-day, are in our country, and in all other countries, representatives of capitalist reaction. ”

“ We have started an International women's journal, "The International Communist Woman." We are of the opinion that the work among the women is necessary, since the proletariat cannot win its victory without their help. We must have the women; without them the Proletarian Republic could not have existed in Russia. (Lively applause.)
Of still greater importance is the Young Communist International. We shall have a Congress of this International in this city. In the course of the past year we have used every effort to support the young Communists. ”

“ In the matter of organisation we can say right at the start that our work was imperfect, at times even bad. Nevertheless, comrades, I believe we may state with some degree of satisfaction that in spite of everything we had, during this year, a really international leadership for the first time in the history of the modern labour movement. ”

“ It belongs to the Communist International as an illegal party, but the legal Finnish movement is heart and soul for Communism, in spite of the White terror. According to statistical data, this legal movement has twice as many members as the old Social Democratic Party, which had completely broken down. The plain Finnish workers who come to us always tell us that the question of Communism is no longer a question of propaganda, it is a question of action. ”

“ We know that the bourgeois press will attempt to make capital out of this compelled polemic. They will again indulge in foolish talk about the dictatorship of Moscow; or of the Hungarian comrades. I know also, that there are Party members who are susceptible to this kind of insinuation and sophistry. Indeed, our internationalism does not make it incumbent upon us to worry about such foolish prattle. It should therefore in no way whatever, affect our decisions. We must speak sincerely to the Czecho-Slovak workers. We have not a word to say against Smeral personally. ”

“ We did not receive a single official protest from any party or group or individual, not even from Comrade Zetkin herself. It is easy to come after the defeat and say: You have acted in an irresponsible way. It is easy to play wiseacres after the event. Naturally the Executive bears the responsibility for the representatives that it sends abroad. It is responsible for them just like the International is responsible for the Executive. We ask all parties to kindly see to it that the future Executive should have a better staff of workers at its disposal. ”