Moscow: another young communist arrested by FSB

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Title: Moscow: another young communist arrested by FSB

Russian Federal Security Service: aggression is intensifying Just a week since a rally to free the political prisoners fighting for socialism was held in Moscow, another young communist has been arrested. On the 22nd of June 2000 Andrei Sokolov, a member of the CC of the Revolutionary Young Communist League (Bolshevik) was stopped and taken into custody. Police claim that they found a gun and explosives’ radio controlling devices in his possession. Andrei was born in 1979. His parents divorced as he was just seven. When the “democratic change” came in 1991, it made his life particularly difficult. His sister Natalia, five years elder than him, and Andrei lived with their grandmother in poverty. Their only sources of income was her miserable pension and, later, Natalia’s tiny earnings. For these reasons, Andrei joined the Communist Party of Russian Federation, but he soon got disappointed in the passivity of that organisation. In 1996 he finally found what he was looking for — the Revolutionary Young Communist League (Bolshevik) (RKSM(b)). He indulged in reading left-wing literature and started writing articles and pamphlets for the League. He became an active participant of the radical opposition actions. He understood that the evil imposed forcibly over the Soviet Union could only be counteracted by force of the organised working class. For him, the teaching of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin was not just something he read in books, but also his real life experience. Andrei finished school with excellence. Desperate to improve his living conditions, he decided to get qualifications of a baker. Having qualified, only after months of job search and with great difficulty was he able to get employment in Yeltsin’s Russia. He was strongly worried about the developments in the country, about the fact that every year Russia loses a million in population under the free-market reforms. This is why Comrade Sokolov was eager for the most urgent actions. The fact that he was thrown out from work unfairly has contributed to his anger. Andrei felt that Yeltsin’s rule is very similar to the rule of Nikolai the Second, the last Russian tsar and the ruthless murderer of workers and peasants. Small wonder that the new government has been put up a monument to him in 1997. It did not last long, however, as it was exploded and an anonymous organisation claimed responsibility. Andrei was relieved by that news, but shortly found out that the government had put up a new tombstone to Nikolai II at a cemetery near Moscow. With no job and nothing to lose, Andrei decided to revenge to Nikolai II and to Yeltsin’s power. He prepared a low-power explosive, and during the night on 19 July 1997, on his own, controlling the situation so that there could be no casualties, conducted an explosion of the tombstone. Leaving the cemetery, he wrote “Wages to workers!” and drew Hammer and Sickle with red paint. On 22 July 1997, a number of members of Revolutionary YCL (B) and of Russian Communist Workers’ Party (including Andrei Sokolov) were arrested and had their homes searched. To free his comrades, Andrei admitted destroying the gravestone. He was charged with vandalism, article 214 of the Russian Law Code. Seeing the political aspect of the arrest of 18-year-old worker, the Federal Security Service (FSB) took over the case from the ordinary police. He was suddenly accused of two other explosions, for which responsibility was claimed by terrorist organisations. The charges with vandalism were replaced by the charges with “terrorism in a group”. If that was not enough, FSB decided to try him on the basis of articles 222 (storing and transporting explosives) and 223 (producing explosives). Another member of RKSM(b) Igor Gubkin was arrested in July 1997 under similar circumstances. The Federal Security Service claimed that Gubkin and Sokolov were secret members of the Revolutionary Military Council and that the Revolutionary Military Council was responsible for exploding the monument to the tsar. Igor was released after several months. Andrei was less lucky. For over a year the Federal Security Service found no evidence to link Andrei’s case with the case of Revolutionary Military Council regarding explosion of the monument. This all, however, did not make to drop the charges of terrorism; they only replaced “group terrorism” with “terrorism on his own”. What a laugh is this accusation provided that the cemetery administration estimated the damage he made at 188 roubles (30 USD at that time)! While in jail, Andrei managed not to get depressed. He demanded Marxist-Leninist works to read. Finally, the trials started in December 1998. There, Andrei proved himself a hero. He justified his action by explaining the nature of Nikolai II’s rule and by saying: “Today, nobody listens to anything quieter than an explosion.” At trial, he was subjected to a strong psychological pressure, but he did not break down. He declared: “My revolutionary convictions remain the same.” With all the support outside and with efforts of lawyers from the Russian Communist Workers’ Party, Andrei was finally released after over 10 sessions of trials. It was proven that his action could not be classified as terrorism, because there were no casualties, no significant damage, no effect on local population and no pressure at powers. This forced the powers to release him with two years of a suspended sentence. By the age of twenty, Yeltsin’s rule still took twenty months off Andrei’s life. He later confirmed his words. As soon as he was free, he rejoined the active struggle and became one of the leaders of RKSM(b). He married Tatiana Nekhorosheva (now Sokolova), another member of the CC of RKSM(b). When she was arrested with two other young women from RKSM(b) in February, he started campaigning actively in defence of her and two other comrades. Nadezhda Raks, Tatiana Sokolova and Larisa Romanova were put in jail with the case of the New Revolutionary Alternative (also referred to as “New Revolutionary Initiative”; the organisation which claimed responsibility for explosions near FSB building in Moscow in 1998 and in 1999), and accused of organising the explosion. The friends in the Revolutionary Young Communist League (Bolshevik) have reacted promptly to this provocation by the Federal Security Service. In solidarity with the arrested revolutionaries, it was decided to organise a picket in front of the FSB building. And since all of them were girls, 8th of March — the International Women’s Day — was chosen. The protesters started the action by throwing balloons at the FSB building saying “Bomb” and “For FSB”. On March 22 Andrei Sokolov was taken under arrest on the basis that he did not subordinate to legal requirements by police at the 8th-of-March protest. He was transported to Petrovka-38, the central police building in Moscow. Police officers were trying to get information concerning the case of explosions near the Federal Security Service in 1998—1999. So absurd were their demands — during that time Andrei was in prison! Although on that occasion, Andrei was released ten days after, he was severely beaten while in custody. And despite this fact was confirmed and recorded by doctor, his inquiries into this case after he was released have been ignored. That arrest did not come as surprise, because this is something Tatiana Sokolova was threatened in prison. She was offered release for giving false statements against her comrades. When she rejected this offer, she was told that she herself may be moved into a cell with worse conditions, and that her husband should expect trouble. This is just one of the violations of their rights which has come out of the case. As it was mentioned at the rally on the 15th of June, Nadezhda Raks’ lawyer was only able to meet her 6 weeks after she was arrested. Their letters are not being sent off for 1.5 months instead of 3 days required by law. Tatiana Nekhorosheva was allowed to see her relatives just two times in 3.5 months she has been in jail, instead of two times every month provided by law. (It is when she met them, she told about the threats.) However, the Federal Security Service could not rest as long as Andrei, who knew so much about both about the arrests for the cases of the Revolutionary Military Council and of the New Revolutionary Alternative, was free and campaigning. Although he was arrested by ordinary police on June 22, it is clear that it was FSB who wanted him. In the process of protests against arrests of Raks, Sokolova (Nekhorosheva) and Romanova, Igor Gubkin was also taken under arrest. This makes 5 young communists imprisoned in Putin’s Russia at the moment. This is not counting the non-communist left activists (mainly from radical ecologists movement), whom FSB has also been targeting for their unconditional opposition to Yeltsin—Putin régime. At the time of deepening crisis of Russian capitalism, the Federal Security Service is intensifying its aggression against the leaders on the radical left. This means that FSB sees danger in the communist opposition. The fact that the class struggle has reached the stage when capitalists find it necessary to isolate the opposition from its leaders means that the socialist revolution is one step closer. The arrests will probably not stop there, but nobody is going to give up. As Andrei said when he was on trial in 1999, his revolutionary convictions remain the same. It is also the case for all true communists in Russia, who are determined to wage an irreconcilable struggle against the oppressing power. That includes the struggle in defence of the arrested comrades. Viktor Bourenkov. Send letters of support to: Russia, 111 020 Moskva (Moscow), E-20, p/ja 201, N. G. Raks.