7 December. As no answer to their proclamation was received, on 9 December the Greater Budapest Workers' Council called a 48-hour strike to take place on 11 and 12 December "in protest against the repression of workers and their chosen representatives". The Government thereupon declared illegal both the Greater Budapest Workers' Council and all Workers' Councils above the factory level and issued a decree abolishing them. At the same time, a series of decrees was issued: one required all factory guards to inform the competent police authorities of any arms they might have in their possession or be subject to summary jurisdiction." It made the specific crimes of murder, homicide, robbery, looting, arson and concealing weapons punishable before courts of summary justice empowered to pass death sentences."2 On 11 December, the Chairman of the Greater Budapest Workers' Council, Sándor Rácz, and its executive secretary, Sándor Báli, were arrested. In the following days, further arrests of workers' leaders were made, and further decrees were issued banning meetings without police permission and authorizing detention by the police for a period of six months of those endangering public order, in particular those hindering the resumption of work."

53

653. On the whole, the Greater Budapest Workers' Council appears to have been more willing to conciliate Mr. Kádár than the rank and file of the workers. In November, as a token of good faith, the Council called for a return to work, at a time when many workers wanted to remain, and did remain, on strike because their demands were not met. In December, the Council seemed rather disposed to compromise, and it appears that it was Mr. Kádár's intransigence or, rather, as the Council put it, his powerlessness, that finally drove the Greater Budapest Workers' Council to call a strike." With the dissolution of this Council, the Workers' Councils lost much of their power as a political institution, and it became clear that their functions were to be restricted to certain limited internal problems of individual enterprises.

654. Some negotiations were still taking place towards the end of December between representatives of Workers' Councils and the Government. Delegations from mining centers came to see Mr. Kádár and expressed their willingness to resume production gradually, should the Government accede to their demands on the 27th. Mr. Kádár also received representatives of the Central Workers' Council of Csepel, who had wanted to see him for some time. On this occasion, according to testimony, there was considerable tension between Mr. Kádár and the workers. The delegates protested against the fact that former AVH members were being recruited into the militia, as well as into the workers' factory guard. Mr. Kádár is said to have answered: "What do you think? Do you really think that we will reinforce the militia with fascists? These people are all victims of the counter-revolution and are supporting the Government. It is clear that it is on them that we rely." To the workers' request that they be allowed to have a newspaper in the factory, Mr. Kádár is said to have answered: "Everyone wants to have permission to start new papers. I can tell you what the headline of your front page will be: The Heroic October Revolution of the Hungarian People.' We have already had great experience in that line, and it is for this reason that we banned all the other newspapers, because they contained such provocative articles." The delegation left the Parliament Building outraged.

655. In an interview over Radio Budapest on 28 December, the Chairman of the Workers' Council of Csepel further described the causes of dissatisfaction.

53 Ibid., No. 101, 12 December 1956 and 27 March 1957. 64 Ibid., No. 102, 13 December 1956.

On the handling of the Workers' Councils by the Hungarian Government, speaking at a joint session of both Houses of the Yugoslav Assembly on 7 December, Mr. Edvard Kardelj had the following comment to make:

The most surprising thing in the recent events in Hungary is that the Communists were afraid of the Workers' Councils. Lenin had the courage to voice the slogan "All power to the Soviets", although the Bolsheviks were not in the majority in the Soviets. However, as a Marxist, Lenin rightly expected that the working masses, once they became responsible for power, must act in their own interests, that is in a Socialist way. And he was not deceived. In Hungary nobody had the courage, not even the Workers' Councils which were too much under the influence of petit-bourgeois, abstract-liberalistic slogans, to make such a demand. But however they might have been, these Workers' Councils were the only real socialist force which probably would very soon have become free from the foreign anti-socialist influence, if they had had to take the major responsibility in factories and self-managing communities, as well as in the central authority. . . YUGOSLAV

In spite of the official assignment of certain functions to Workers' Councils, the former system of management was renewed. "The Ministries are exerting their tutelage over us, just as they did before; moreover, they would not let us even remove from the factory certain leading officials whom we wish to replace by experts. On what socialist principles do you imagine the country's future is to be built?"

656. On 5 January 1957, a declaration on "Major Tasks" was made by Mr. Kádár, which throws some light on the attitude of the Government towards the political issues for which the Workers' Councils had fought so hard. The declaration reviewed the situation in Hungary from 4 November and, after stating that "the treachery of Imre Nagy had opened the road to counter-revolution", declared that the task of the Hungarian Worker-Peasant Government was to crush it. This had been effected with the assistance of the Soviet Army, which came in "at the request of the Government on the basis of contractual obligations". No mention was made of negotiations for their withdrawal. It was declared that the purpose of the Government was the furtherance of "the proletarian dictatorship"; political activity, therefore, was to be confined to Communists and to persons who, although not belonging to the Party, accepted its policy and direction. The leading forces in Hungary were the Hungarian Socialist Workers' (Communist) Party and the People's Patriotic Front which "unites all democratic forces and is guided by the Party." The Government's aim was to ensure freedom and democracy for workers, peasants and the intelligentsia loyal to the people. However, elements opposing the Government's aims would not share in these freedoms; "their lot will always be the severest punishment the law can decree". The establishmnt of Workers' Councils was held up as one of the achievements of the régime. Their scope, however, was redefined and, contrary to the often reiterated wishes of the Workers' Councils, it was stated that the directors of enterprises were to be appointed by the State and to be personally responsible for the economic management of the factories. The director was bound "to prevent and refuse to implement any Workers' Council resolution which clashes with a law or a decree, should such a resolution be passed". Workers' Councils should lend a helping hand in the socialist State leadership and industry. Together with Government authorities and trade unions, they were "to elaborate the wage and bonus system. . . and see that workers adhere strictly to Government resolutions".

657. The uncompromising tone of the statement, the failure of the Government to abide by its promises, the belief that the Government did not seek co-operation with them but rather wanted to whittle away their powers, the increased police and Party activities, prompted a number of Workers' Councils to resign. In "Red" Csepel, where two former directors had been reinstated over the protests of the workers, there was a mood of discouragement, and the workers, whose attitude had been branded over and over again as "counter-revolutionary”, greeted each other ironically as "Baron" and "Count." On 8 January, the Central Workers' Council of Csepel, which had been elected in mid-November and was composed of fifty-eight members, forty of whom were labourers, resigned and issued the following proclamation:

"It was the hallowed events of the 23 October Revolution of the Hungarian people that brought us into being so that we could build an independent, free and democratic Hungary, and establish the basis for a way of life free from fear. "The events that have taken place in the meantime, however, prove that we are unable, in present circumstances, to fulfill our mandate. We have no other role but to carry out orders of the Government. We cannot, however, carry out orders that are against our convictions and we cannot sit by passively when members of Workers' Councils are being arrested and harassed without any reason and when the entire work of the Workers' Council is, in fact, branded as 'counter-revolutionary'. We have finally come to the conclusion that we cannot realize the wishes of the workers and, regardless of our personal fate, we are unanimously resigning our Workers' Council mandate.

"Our decision does not mean that we are trying to evade responsibility, but it is our opinion that since we are not in a position, in the present situation, to fulfill the wishes of the workers, we should not mislead our comrades by our existence. For this reason, we are returning our mandate to the workers."

658. With the removal of the Workers' Council buffer between the régime and the workers, labour troubles flared up even more violently. In Csepel, for instance, a demonstration was organized on 11 January to protest against the confirmation of the Government commissioner and the director in their positions.

The militia tried to stop demonstrators from entering the administration building. The militia was reinforced, Soviet troops surrounded the factory and, after three hours' fight the crowd was forced to scatter. The disorders at Csepel were such that, on 12 January, the Government issued an order forbidding newsmen to visit the island.

659. It was announced over the radio on 13 January that, in view of the strikes and disorders, the existing powers of summary jurisdiction had proved "inadequate" and that "expedited procedure had now been introduced." The decree enlarged the power of courts of summary justice and made the death penalty applicable to the crime of "causing wilful damage to factories of public interest" or of "intentionally disturbing the functioning of such factories by inciting others or calling upon others to strike". Persons accused of such crimes could be charged orally, no bill of indictment being necessary.

660. In the meantime, a new set of rules is said to have been issued to cover the activites of Workers' Councils. They stated that activities of the Workers' Councils had to be directed so that the enterprises might achieve as great economic results as possible; workers of enterprises working economically were to receive a share, amounting to half a week's wages. However, if an enterprise was working uneconomically, the workers concerned were not to get their full wages. In these cases, the State guarantees only 75 per cent of their full wage. In case of bankrupety of an enterprise, all decisions as to its future belonged to the Ministries. Complaints were again voiced concerning the Government's refusal of permission to organize Workers' Councils in railway and postal communication enterprises and in internal trade. Mr. Kádár declared in a statement to the Trade Union Council at the end of January that he considered the demand for establishment of Workers' Councils in the Hungarian State Railway as prompted more by military considerations than by a desire to obtain representation of the interests of the workers.

661. During February, the membership of the remaining Workers' Councils seems to have changed sufficiently for the Government to issue decrees on the use of workers in the militia and the authorizing of armed factory guards. There was more and more talk about returning to the piece-rate system and output norms; the Minister of Finance, Mr. Kossa, described pay by the hour as "wage demagogy".

662. At the meeting of the National Assembly on 10 and 11 May, Mr. Kádár summarized the situation in Hungary. He made no reference to the role of the Workers' Councils, but he did make certain remarks recognizing the dissatisfaction of the workers. In this connexion, he called for a closer relationship between the masses and the leadership. He went on to make the following statement:

"In my opinion, the task of the leaders is not to put into effect the wishes and will of the masses. In my opinion, the leaders' task is to realize the interest of the masses. In the recent past, we have encountered the phenomenon that certain categories of workers acted against their own interests and, in this case, the duty of the leader is to represent the interests of the masses and not to implement mechanically their incorrect ideas. If the wish of the masses does not coincide with progress, then one must lead the masses in another direction."

B. THE ROLE OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY IN THE WORKERS' COUNCILS

663. The dissolution of Party cells was one of the first acts of the Workers' Councils during the Revolution, and the workers were anxious to receive assurances from the Government that no Party organization whatsoever would again be authorized in factories. However, official declarations on this subject from 4 November onward were uniformly opposed to this demand. "To call for the abolition of Party organs within the factories", Mr. Kádár declared at his first meeting with representatives of the Greater Budapest Workers' Council, "is clearly a counter-revolutionary objective. *** There is no Communist Party in the world without its factory organization. *** The Communist Party cannot give up its organization within the factories, even if some misguided workers are now clamouring for it."

56 Magyar Közlöny, No. 5, of 15 January 1957. By a decree supplementary to the law, factories employing regularly 100 people or more are defined as being "factories of public

664. During November, a campaign was launched to reactivate the Party movement. At a meeting of the activists of the Communist Party which took place on 27 November, Károly Kiss, member of the provisional executive committee of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' (Communist) Party announced that the formation of Party cells in the factories was part of the plan, as was "the winning over of the working classes, the elimination of confusion of ideas, the combating of still strong nationalism and the strengthening of the armed forces". He stressed the importance of the press and radio as a means "to win over the passive layers, and first and foremost the workers". In the first resolution passed by the Socialist Workers' (Communist) Party on 8 December, it was stated that Workers' Councils were "to be taken over by the Communists and cleansed of unsuitable demagogues".

665. In the meantime, Communist infiltration into the factories had begun and Party organizations, often with the help of the militia, were able to secure office space in the factories. When the Csepel Workers' Council delegates raised the question at their meeting with Mr. Kádár on 27 December, he answered "You will see, the time will come when the workers themselves will demand that the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party should function within the factory". Official sources admitted, however, that workers were opposed to the setting up of Party organizations within factories. For example, at the end of December, the Hungarian Telegraph Agency reported that Communist activists had met at the Lenin Metallurgical Works "to inform workers that the Socialist Workers' Party will begin its activities in the factory". Many workers opposed the formation of a Party organization in the factory, but the Communists and workers who supported the Party pronounced themselves in favour of it. According to the same source, the total Party membership in Hungary towards the end of December amounted to 103,000 out of a population of less than 10 million. Membership was particularly low in the working-class areas of Budapest. There were only 500 Party members in the Csepel Iron Works; total membership in Budapest was 21,000.

666. A tone of greater urgency was evident in the official statements in the first months of 1957. In his speech on "Major Tasks" of 5 January, Mr. Kádár stated that the Government "regards the party of the Hungarian working class, namely the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party and the People's Patriotic Front, as the leading forces in the country". In another speech at the end of the month, Mr. Kádár expressed the opinion that the functioning of the Workers' Councils could be really useful and fruitful only if they were guided by the Communist Party, the party of the working class. More and more Workers' Councils found themselves, therefore, in a position where they had to negotiate on all major issues with the delegates of the factory Party cell; witnesses reported such negotiations in Csepel, and in Dunapentele, where a joint statement by the Party Branch Chairman and the Workers' Council Chairman asserted that "the Workers' Council needs the Party's help and will co-operate in plans of a social character calculated to permit the building of socialism".

667. Although Party cells were established by force, workers could not be compelled to co-operate with them and, at the beginning of the year, Communists remained isolated. On 24 January, the Hungarian Press reported that "there was no proper contact" between Party officials and the workers, whereas "there should be friendly and fraternal relations between the worker and his brother, the Party organizer". Even offers to protect worker Party members against dismissal did little to attract members. In a speech in the first part of February, Mr. Kiss acknowledged the existence of difficulties in organizing Party cells in factories. He said that "in coal mines, the strength of the Party organizations is growing, parallel with the output achievements. As for the large factories, the consolidation of Party organizations in these enterprises is hampered by the continued internal confusion in many places. *** Though it is not the case today, Party organizations in the large factories will again be our strongest organizations."

668. One witness testified that although in some factories where the Workers' Council had not carried out Government or Party instructions, the Government had intervened directly and dissolved the whole Council; in most cases, "the Workers' Councils have not been stopped, but their form, their activities and their personnel have been changed and they are carrying out work which is completely foreign to the purposes for which they were established; whereas in former times, workers discussed whom they wanted to elect openly and from every angle, nowadays the only question that is raised about candidates to the

Workers' Councils is whether or not they are in conformity with the system.” As the Communist Party grew stronger, in each factory it dominated the elections to the Workers' Councils. "A Party member asked to be recognized and proceeded to make derogatory statements about the nominees of the other workers: 'one was a counter-revolutionary, a second was a murderer, a third had left the country, a fourth had committed some other misdeed, therefore they are not worthy of representing the workers. However, we, the Party, recommend this able man here, that worthy man there, and so on, who are all reliable Party men and will represent the workers satisfactorily'. Then he would add 'Of course, you are in full agreement, Comrades, with their election? Say 'yes' or 'no'!" When reporting this mode of election to the Committee, the witness added "I should like to ask the Committee whether they think that, under the form of government that exists in the country presently, there would be a worker who would say 'I do not like this'. He has to earn his living because of his family, he wants to sleep peacefully at night without being woken up by the police, he has to work next day, so he cannot but agree."

669. By the end of April, the campaign to entrench the Party cells within the factories was well under way. On 20 April, an article in Népszabadság, entitled "Communist Leadership for the Workers' Councils", referred to heated discussions in factories about Workers' Councils. "Let us speak frankly, is there a need for the very existence of Workers' Councils?" The article stated that it was not surprising that the need for the existence of these Councils should be questioned as the Workers' Councils were born during the counter-revolution and bore the marks of their origin for a long time in their objectives and activities. "It is now our task to instil a socialist substance into them. Of late, process of purification has been speeded up in the Workers' Councils. Workers themselves are beginning to demand the removal of class, alien and other demagogic elements. Speaking on their behalf. . . the events of recent months show convincingly that the Workers' Councils cannot function without Communist leadership. In a dictatorship of the proletariat, the working class cannot have an organization independent of the Party. It has been proved that, whenever they tried to represent the workers' interests by opposing the Party or by emphasising their independence from it, they actually harmed the people. Let us remember in this connexion the counter-revolutionary strikes, which did severe damage. The Communist activists in the Workers' Council will be the ones who will have to carry out the policy of the Government."

670. "The Party must organize, unite and lead the people", said Mr. Kádár in his speech to the National Assembly on 11 May. Nevertheless, an article in Népszabadság of 4 May complains that, even at that date, Communists were working under a handicap in certain factories and were not promoted because of discrimination against Party members. The complaint was also made that many Communists removed from their posts by the counter-revolution had not yet been reinstated. Justice demanded that the Communist leaders and the leaders who, even though not Communist, were faithful to the People's Republic, should be reinstated, and those who sympathized with or did not fight against the counter-revolutionaries should not be allowed to remain in their positions.

C. WORKERS' COUNCILS AND TRADE UNIONS

671. After 4 November, the former Praesidium of the National Council of Trade Unions resumed its functions; Sándor Gáspár remained the Secretary-General, but the organization maintained the name National Council of Free Trade Unions, acquired during the Revolution. Some independence of spirit persisted; in a speech from which extracts appeared in the British Communist Daily Worker of 15 November 1956, Mr. Gáspár stated that it was "unthinkable that any one political party should in the future take over alone the government of the country", and added that representatives of other parties and men belonging to no political party should be given responsible posts. Adopting certain principles laid down by the provisional organizing Committee, he declared: "We are for the freedom of the trade unions and their independence from the Government and political parties." Nevertheless, he advised the workers to trust the Kádár Government and called upon them to stop the general strike. Similar declarations in favour of non-interference by the State were made by the individual trade unions, such as the Teacher's Trade Union, the Hungarian Telegraph Agency Trade Union, the local industry of music workers and of trade and finance workers.

672. On 24 November, the trade union daily, Népakarat, published an article entitled "The Workers' Councils, the Workers' Democracies and the Right to Strike", in which it criticized the decree of the Workers' Councils promulgated