HE Socialist revolution,
‘accomplished by the
peoples of Russia under

the leadership of the Bolshev-
ik Party in November 1917,
represents a great landmark
in the history of all mankind.

The characteristic feature of
the economy of tsarist Russia
was the prevalence of semi-feudal
relations. . The peasants tilled
the land with.primitive imple-
ments, such: as>.the wooden plow
and the mattock, and crop yields
were so low.-that famines were
quite a frequent occurrence.

In the ‘cultural sphere the
characteristic feature of tsarist
Russia was the widespread illiter-
acy among the: masses. Only
the chosen few had access to
real knowledge.

The autocratic regime ruthless-
ly suppressed .every liberal move-
ment, every manifestation of free
thought and of sound, creative
initiative. Tsardom was the em-
bodiment of the old and the ob-
solete, and was mortally afraid
of everything that was new and

_ progressive, let alone revolution-

ary.

To European and world re-
action pre-revolutionary -Russia
was a source of cheap man-

power, a semi-colonial market ,

and a military force that could
be used to further the aims of
foreign imperialists.

The historic significance of the
October Revolution lies in the
fact that it wrought a radical
change in the destiny of ‘Russia
and started the numerous peoples
inhabiting it on an entirely new
road of - development.

IN the past, the vast masses *

of the population in Russia
were suppressed, enjoyed no rights,
and were subjected to inhuman
exploitation. The people of the
Soviet Union today are the freest
in the world, citizens enjoying
full equality, knowing no exploita-
tion or oppression, working for
themselves and. for their own
society. :

In the past there was much
enmity and strife among the
numerous peoples and nationali-
ties of Russia, which weakened

‘them in the face of common

enemies. The peoples of the
Soviet Union live in unshakable
friendship with one another, and
these new relations are a major
factor of the country’s strength
and power. :

In the past, the ideas of Marx-
ism-Leninism were persecuted in
Russia, and socialism and com-
munism. were regarded as sedi-
tious doctrines. In the Soviet

Union today socialism has be-—

come the way of life.

In the past, Russia and her
peoples were dependent upon
international imoverialist forces
and pawns in their imperialist
game. The Soviet Union today
is a world power, independent
and self-reliant, developing on
its own lines and playing a lead-
ing role in the international
arena.

Hence, the. Socialist October
Revolution marked a_ radical
change in the development of
Russia and the destinies of her
peoples. It came to be the great
divide between the hated
past and the socialist present.
And even this alone lends the
October Revolution a major in-
ternational. significance. For
Russia is not isolated from other
countries and nations, not separ-
ated from them by an imvenetr-
able wall. What takes place in
Russia.or in any other ocuntry
necessarily produces  repercus-
sions in the international arena.

“The October Revolution,”
wrote Stalin, “is not merely a
revolution ‘within national
limits.” It is, primarily, a revo-
tution of an international world
order; for it signifies a radical
turn in ‘the world history of
mankind, a turn from the old,
capitalist world to the new
socialist world.”

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1947

Rationing has ended in Canada but constantly
foods beyond the reach of many families.
appearing, but there food prices are going down. Russi:
and here farmers from the Lenino district are shown
vegetables they collected for the city’s rec

In Russia too,

The international significance
of the Russian Revolution

by F. OLESHCHUK

rising prices are now placing even essential
line-ups outside food stores are dis-
a has had a bumper harvest this year
bringing ‘to Moscow the 300 tons of
ent 800the anniversary celebrations. —

DAY hardly anyone will
’ seriously venture to assert
that socialism is only a Russian
phenomenon. The science of
Marxism-Leninism has established
with sufficient cogency that
human society develops accord-
ing to definite laws, and that
this development determined by
the class struggle and the growth
of productive forces, represents
an advance from less perfect to
more perfect forms.

We know from history that in
the upward development of man-
kind the slave system was super-
seded by the feudal system, which
was in its turn superseded by
the capitalist system. In this
upward development, socialism
and communism are the historic-
elly inevitable stages supersed-
ing capitalism. And the fact of
the matter is that today social-
ism is on the order of the day
in the life of the peoples of the
world.

No revolution has menat so much
in the life of human _ society
as the October Revolution in
Russia. All the previous revolu-
tions did not as a rule remove
the class foundations of exploita-
tion—the system of exploitation
remained unshaken.

The Socialist Ocober Revolu-
tion, on the other hand, destroyed
those foundations in Russia and
ushered in a classless society.

Is not this the reason for the
extraordinary fury with which
the October Revolution was at-
tacked by all exploiters and their
sérvitors? And is not this the
reason for the relentless fight
they have been waging against
the Soviet Union in all the thirty
years of its existence. |

The Socialist October Revolu-
tion revealed the. motive forces
of historical development with

utmost clarity; it fully corrobor-
ated the correctness of the Marx-
ist-Leninist science of society.
Therein too lies its immense in-
ternational historic significance.

In the thirty years of its ex-
istence the Soviet Union has
shown beyond the shadow of a
doubt that it is really the people,
the masses, the working classes
that are. supreme in the life of
society. It is they that create
the material and spiritual wealth
cf society. Ae

The success of the USSR in all
spheres of activity — political,
economic and cultural — is ex-
plained above all by the fact
that the people is the real ruler
of the country, that democracy in
the USSR is no hollow phrase,
but real government by the
people.

re experience of the Soviet
Union has’ fully  confuted
pseudo-learned disouisitions to
the effect that the common people
are incapable of administrating
intricate affairs of state, that
political and economic leader-
ship is the privilege of a special
caste.

In the face of handicaps with-
out number, the- peoples of the
Soviet Union have puilt up a
social and ‘political system ané
created a culture of which all
mankind may be proud.

Marx once said that revolu-
tions are the locomotives of
history. This description fits the
October Socialist Revolution
more than any other. This revo-
iution has given a powerful im-
pulse to the development of
human society toward commun-
ism. The Soviet Union, the child
of the October Revolution, has
advanced at such a sveed that
today, after a mere thirty years,

it marches at the head of pro-
gressive mankind, showing. the
way for the further development
of society.

The advanced social and polit-
ical system of the Soviet Union,
its planned economy, the absence
of exploitation, crisis and un-
employment, the great friendship
among its nations and its Marx-
ist-Leninist ideology are all points
that have gained for it the
sympathies of democratic people
everywhere, making it a model
to be imitated, an example which
many today seek to follow.

“The reactionary press often
depicts the Soviet Union as a
“conspirator” and ‘“inciter of
world revolution.” Certainly
communism and the USSR com-
mand increasing sympathy all
over the world.

But the reason for this does
not, of course, lie in any machin-
ations on the part of the Soviet
Union, but in the fact that the
USSR has patently proved the
superiority of the socialist sys-
tem as compared with the capital-
ist system.

The growing sympathies for
the Soviet Union and commun-
ism are explained by the fact
that with every passing month
and year the capitalist system
increasingly reveals its defective-
ress and incurables sores. Every-
one sees that the capitalist sys-
tem cannot ensure people a happy
and secure existence. The longer
capitalism is in power the more
the masses suffer from starvation
and poverty, the more often are
they visited by crises, unemploy-
ment and wars.

That is why the Soviet Union
has the sympathy of the masses;
that is why its very existence
is propaganda for socialism, for
communism,

ODAY when a fierce struggle
is raging in the international
arena between the forces of re-
action and the forces of democ-
racy, the international signific-
ance of the October Socialist Rev-
olution is particularly great.

International imperialist reac-
tion is now doing its best to rob
the freedom-loving nations of
the fruits of the victory in the
war against fascism. Inter-
national reaction, headed by the
American imperialists, it out to

destroy the widespread democra- ,

tic and national-liberation move-
ment which developed after the
second world war, to isolate the
Soviet Union and reduce its in-
fluence in international affairs.

In the struggle against these
plans of international reaction
the Soviet Union is leading all
the forces of democracy.

Tsarist Russia thirty years ago
was a weak country despite its
geographical size. The USSR
today is a major world power, a

bulwark of peace, freedom and

the independence of nations. This
metamorphosis,
accomplished in so brief ‘a histor-
ical period, became possible only
by the October Revolution be-
in November 1917 the
peoples of Russia, led by the
Bolshevik Party, overthrew the
rotten landlord and capitalist
system and laid the foundations
of a new, socialist, system.

“miraculous”

cause

In the future, when mankind
will be living under communism,
it will count the new era from
November 7, 1917, justly regard-
ing that day as the most momen-
tous turning point in the history
of humanity.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—PAGE 10

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