JKP
15th October 2010, 06:13
Advice to Rebelling workers
Published in 1905 by the Combat Organization of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party [later the CPSU], Moscow Chapter.
Comrades!
Street-fighting has broken our between police and rebelling workers. In this struggle many of our brother freedom-fighters may perish, if you will not follow simple rules. The Combat Organization at the Moscow Comittee of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party hereby informs you of these rules and asks you to follow them carefully.
1. The first rule - never act as a crowd. Act in small groups of 3-4 men, not more. Make sure these groups are many. Let each of them learn to strike quickly and disappear. The police try to use a hundred Cossacks to destroy a crowd of thousands. You should put up a shooter or two against a hundred Cossacks. It is easier to hit a hundred men than it is for the hundred to shoot one, especially if he shoots suddenly and vanishes. The police and the army will be powerless if all of Moscow will be covered with these little teams.
2. Comrades, never seize fortified spots. The army will seize them eventually, or break them up with artillery. Let us take up walk-through yards or other places where one can easily shoot and runs away. If such a place can be taken, they will catch none there, but will lose many. And they cannot take up all of them, as they'd need to put Cossacks in every house.
3. Therefore, comrades, if a man calls you to go somewhere in a crowd and fortify that place, call that man a fool or an agent-provocateur. If he is a fool, ignore him. An agent you must kill. Tell all, again and again, that we should act in ones and twos and threes, and that the police benefits from shooting us wholesale, by the thousands.
4. Do not attend mass-rallies. We will see them soon in a free country. Now we must fight, and only fight. The government knows this and it uses our rallies only to beat us up and disarm us.
5. Instead, gather up in small meetings for battle briefings each in his own area, and when the army appears, scatter at once into the yards. From these shoot and throw rocks at the Cossacks, then climb into the neighboring yard and disappear.
6. Separate carefully your conscious enemy from the unconscious, accidental one. Exterminate the first, have mercy for the second. Avoid harming the infantrymen. The soldiers are children of the people and would not fight you if they had the choice. It is the officers and commanders that send them. These are the men you should concentrate on. Every officer that takes his men to murder workers is an enemy of the people and is an outlaw. Kill him without any second thought.
7. No mercy to the Cossacks. They are covered with the blood of the people. They are always enemies of the workers. They should go home to their parts, where they have land and families. Or let them sit in their barracks. There do not touch them. But when they are in the street - armed or unarmed, mounted or on foot - look upon them as your worst enemies and exterminate them without mercy.
.
8. Assault and destroy dragoon formations and any patrols.
9. If you're dealing the with police, kill all upper ranks down to the bailiffs without mercy. The boroughman is to be disarmed and arrested. Those known for their scummy and cruel behavior must be killed. Patrolmen are to be disarmed and made to serve us rather than the police.
10. Forbid streetsweepers from locking gates. this is important. If one of them does not do it, beat him up the first time, kill him the second. Make them serve us and not the police. Then every yard will be our shelter and ambush point.
These are the main rules, comrades. In the next rules the Combat Organization will issue additional advice on attacking, defending, building barricades. Now let us say a few words on other things.
Remember, Comrades, that we wish not only to destroy the old regime, but to create a new system, wherein a citizen will be free from compulsion. Immediately begin protecting all citizens, make useless those police that, under the guise of protectors of public order rape the poor, imprison us, and organize Black Hundred pogroms.
Our closest aim, comrades, is to transfer the city into the people's hands. We will start from the suburbs, taking over part by part. In the parts taken we will run our own elected rule, create our own rules, an 8-hour workday, an income tax etc. We will prove that our rule will make public life fairer, protecting the rights and freedoms of everyone better than today. While Fighting and destroying, remember your future role and learn to govern.
Combat Organization of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party [later the CPSU], Moscow Comittee
Distribute this piece of paper everywhere, put it up on street walls, give it to passers-by.
"Moscow SRD News", Issue 5, December 5th 1905
Relevant still today.
Published in 1905 by the Combat Organization of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party [later the CPSU], Moscow Chapter.
Comrades!
Street-fighting has broken our between police and rebelling workers. In this struggle many of our brother freedom-fighters may perish, if you will not follow simple rules. The Combat Organization at the Moscow Comittee of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party hereby informs you of these rules and asks you to follow them carefully.
1. The first rule - never act as a crowd. Act in small groups of 3-4 men, not more. Make sure these groups are many. Let each of them learn to strike quickly and disappear. The police try to use a hundred Cossacks to destroy a crowd of thousands. You should put up a shooter or two against a hundred Cossacks. It is easier to hit a hundred men than it is for the hundred to shoot one, especially if he shoots suddenly and vanishes. The police and the army will be powerless if all of Moscow will be covered with these little teams.
2. Comrades, never seize fortified spots. The army will seize them eventually, or break them up with artillery. Let us take up walk-through yards or other places where one can easily shoot and runs away. If such a place can be taken, they will catch none there, but will lose many. And they cannot take up all of them, as they'd need to put Cossacks in every house.
3. Therefore, comrades, if a man calls you to go somewhere in a crowd and fortify that place, call that man a fool or an agent-provocateur. If he is a fool, ignore him. An agent you must kill. Tell all, again and again, that we should act in ones and twos and threes, and that the police benefits from shooting us wholesale, by the thousands.
4. Do not attend mass-rallies. We will see them soon in a free country. Now we must fight, and only fight. The government knows this and it uses our rallies only to beat us up and disarm us.
5. Instead, gather up in small meetings for battle briefings each in his own area, and when the army appears, scatter at once into the yards. From these shoot and throw rocks at the Cossacks, then climb into the neighboring yard and disappear.
6. Separate carefully your conscious enemy from the unconscious, accidental one. Exterminate the first, have mercy for the second. Avoid harming the infantrymen. The soldiers are children of the people and would not fight you if they had the choice. It is the officers and commanders that send them. These are the men you should concentrate on. Every officer that takes his men to murder workers is an enemy of the people and is an outlaw. Kill him without any second thought.
7. No mercy to the Cossacks. They are covered with the blood of the people. They are always enemies of the workers. They should go home to their parts, where they have land and families. Or let them sit in their barracks. There do not touch them. But when they are in the street - armed or unarmed, mounted or on foot - look upon them as your worst enemies and exterminate them without mercy.
.
8. Assault and destroy dragoon formations and any patrols.
9. If you're dealing the with police, kill all upper ranks down to the bailiffs without mercy. The boroughman is to be disarmed and arrested. Those known for their scummy and cruel behavior must be killed. Patrolmen are to be disarmed and made to serve us rather than the police.
10. Forbid streetsweepers from locking gates. this is important. If one of them does not do it, beat him up the first time, kill him the second. Make them serve us and not the police. Then every yard will be our shelter and ambush point.
These are the main rules, comrades. In the next rules the Combat Organization will issue additional advice on attacking, defending, building barricades. Now let us say a few words on other things.
Remember, Comrades, that we wish not only to destroy the old regime, but to create a new system, wherein a citizen will be free from compulsion. Immediately begin protecting all citizens, make useless those police that, under the guise of protectors of public order rape the poor, imprison us, and organize Black Hundred pogroms.
Our closest aim, comrades, is to transfer the city into the people's hands. We will start from the suburbs, taking over part by part. In the parts taken we will run our own elected rule, create our own rules, an 8-hour workday, an income tax etc. We will prove that our rule will make public life fairer, protecting the rights and freedoms of everyone better than today. While Fighting and destroying, remember your future role and learn to govern.
Combat Organization of the Russian Social-Democratic Worker's Party [later the CPSU], Moscow Comittee
Distribute this piece of paper everywhere, put it up on street walls, give it to passers-by.
"Moscow SRD News", Issue 5, December 5th 1905
Relevant still today.