which ha.ve novcr be!onged to thc Sovicta. To rcgard E:rlich and Alt,cr aii "Soviet nationals" isul\jUlltifiod cve11 in tho light of oortain fa.cui and documctl!s of Soviet pro.ctico itself. Thus, for examplc, thc Soviet Govornmont o:preu/y rewgn~ tho Polish.citiwnship of Erlich and Alt.<:rwhcn it rcloosod thcm from izaol in Soptembcr, 1941. And fora timo cvcn aftcr thoir seoond nrrestitdidnotquct1tionthcirPaiishcitizcnshipt-'lll-o-t-'Ìllthc1'0lishGo,·crn. mimt. To tho orni and writtcn repre-scntutions of tho latt-Or. tho Soviet Go,·enm,cnt at first rcplicd with _various c,ceuse11, bot not "~th the prctc.d thnt thcy wcrc. fon,ooth. "' So,·,ct nat,onali!." 'J"hu, ,.,,g,mw_nt mado 1l@ ,,ppcaranoo only Inter. almost_two months nft,:,r thmr npprehcna10'.'· nlthough 110ciremrustancM lrnd anse,, sn,oo Scptembcr. 1941 (whcn tho Sovwt Go,·cm• mento.cknowlcdgcd Erlich nnd Alt,:,r'ij l'oli.<h citiwnshi1l) to justify thc -suddon classification of ISrlich nml Altcr ns ""Soviet citizcns.'" Thcrc is only 0110 rea!rN1sonforthia:thedc-sirotogetridofthcn~itytoexcui,etothc outaidoworldthcnrbitr11ryMl'Cl!t ofD<;-,:,.:,mbcr,19,11, thc dcsire to be ablo "frody"tocoJ1demnaml l.>ci!mirchthepriaoncns. The Soviet, Govcrnmcnt cxl-eut-od Erlich ami Alter dnring the great viot-0ri011 ofthe Red Anny, flguring, apparently, thatthe Soviet triumphson rho bet~le1\clds of Stalingrad, tho CalljjCasus. tho Ukrninc, and the foolinga of JOy arouscd in us by thcm, would drown out th() protùets llgainst tho crimo pcrpotratcd. But howcvcr grcllt lh() hcroi-sm of tho Red Anny. it mu11t not be mia~ to cover up or justify W'imc,,. 'l'ho blood of the Red A11ny men, shed in tho battlo with Xazisrn. dOffi not wash away thostain ofthejudi,:i,,/ 11mr1/er oommitt< .'.<l agair,.st Erlich and Alter to the detriment o/ the war a!J<li>ut Nazi8>11. \\'eaffirm: J:lonryk Erlich and \'ictor Alter wc'".° not Cornmm,ists. Th~y fought fora aocial order that would combino Soo,ahsm with froedom, w1th domocrncy, with r,;spcctfortho human pcl'l!On. \\'ithout blinkingatthe ncgotivcsides ofSo,·iot rcalitie11, thcy n()vcrthcleas rooogniscd tho positive clcmcnt,s of th,:, So,·ict'a oonstructiv,:, work ,md oricnted thcm,iclves t.o tho <.'O•opcration of the Soviet Union with thc unÌ\'crsa! forccs of dcmocraoy, progre>!ll, and Socialism. 1n their nttitudc to the Soviet Union they accordingly took a stand which coincidcs with thc vio"'l! of tena of milliorut--democrnts, libcmls, SocialisUlin America and in Englnnd, a stand which also hns tho full a.ppro_val of !hc fight111g umli'rground workcrs of Poland and throughout NM.H><.11.mptcd .Europe. Erlich and Alter, both membors of tltc Exe()utÌv() oftho Labour ,md Socialist Iuternationa!. are tho first ""'i.Rus.ffim ,md ,,,.,,1-Commu»Ùlt labour looder8 tho Soviet Government haa J)(:nnittOO itsclf lo ,irroat. try, ami put t-0 de»th morely, as a mnttcr of flwt, l>c<!auso thcy wcro fre«lom•loving SocialisU!, Socialisti! wìth a name nnd influcnoo in tho intenrntional labour movemcnt. The old Commnnist hRtred of tbc free, indep,:,ndont and, abo,·c all, Socialis~ labour movement-, d0800ndcd in ali its fury upon thcir hcads. Hcnryk Erlich a.nd Yict-0r Alter 1,.-::rishcdiu a Soviet prison M martyl">I to tho sa.crod. liber tarian, Socialist idoo1s in whioh millions bclicvo and which tho Soviet regimo cannot tokrate. 'J"I>() murd,:,1· of .Erlich and Alt-ùr is tl,efirsl """e o/ iUJ killd si»a the outbrwk oftheu'<lr. ThiBprove,,ano"·thotorriblcconsequcnccsl'Cl!ultingfromaroign oftcJTO.-,.tHI de1<potism and revcals plainl_y tho ~at perilsithol<.1$ for tho new ordcr that will h,wo lo be rcared on the ruma of Faa,csm and Naztsm As pa,1icipanl@ in thù strugglc for n ncw ancl froo wor!d, M childrcn of a poople that iB making tho grcateflt sacrifiooa of blood and trcasure in this strugglc,anclasrepreiientati,·csofthcJcwi-shelcmenU!inthovastunderground 29 Biblioteca Gino Bianco
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