--- Chris Doss <lookoverhere1 at yahoo.com> wrote: I wrote in response to Joanna:
>
> But anyway the dichotomy of Reds as being
> super-progressive and Whites as being pure
> reactionary
> blackguards is wrong.
>
As part of my obscure area of specialization, I've been translating a lot of documents from the period -- heck, no one else will. The following is a White pamphlet from the Civil War, translation by moi, paragraph breaks inserted editorially. Not quite all the evil monsters of Bolshevik myth. I have left the untranslatable word "voisko," well, untranslated:
WHAT IS ATAMAN DUTOV STRUGGLING FOR?*
Elected by the 13 Cossack voiskos the population of three gubernias, the honored elder of all the voiskos and citizen of many cities of Russia Ataman Alexander Dutov has given himself to the service of the people without regard to faith or nationality. For Dutov, distinctions between classes, estates, nations and faiths do not exist. Ataman Dutov believes his Russia to be great and is struffling to consolidate it. All the nations inhabiting Russia must be together and work amicably for its welfare, glory and greatness. If Russia is whole, all will be peaceful within it and it will have everything; if there is no Russia, everything will collapse. Neither Muslims, nor Bashkirs, nor Ukrainians, nor any separate state will exist. A stronger people or state will smash every group into parts and the whole will perish.
Ataman Dutov believes that the large nationalities of Russia, such as, for example, the Muslim ones, must have their own laws and administrations. Other smaller peoples must be assured of the preservation of their customs, traditions, language and faith, and minorities must be gauranteed a place in state administration by law. Ataman Dutov believes that, in those regions where they are an almost exclusive majority, Muslims must have self-government, their own language and alphabet, and only use Russian in relations with the Russian Government. The freedom of belief of Muslims is inviolable, just as their mosques and prayer houses are. Where there is state assistance, schools for Muslims have the same rights to this as Russian ones and for support from the state treasury. Muslims preserve their customs, traditions, and courts entirely and inviolably according to their books, heritage, and habits. Only state crimes will be considered by a general state court. Matters concerning both Muslims and Christians are decided by a general state court with equal numbers of Muslim and Christian judges.
The territories of the Tatars, Kyrgyz, Tarnachks, Bashkirs and other Muslims are the property of the given people. Muslims can have their own voiskos, officers, commands in Muslim dialects, and bear the sign of the Moon, but discipline and organization must be federal, just as the definition of various divisions must be determiend only by the law of the Russian Government. The form of clothing of Muslim divisions, food, and barracks articles must be in agreement with their customs and the Koran. The holidays of Muslim voisko divisions are Muslim holidays. In State life, Muslims will play the same role as Russians, in agreement with the composition of the population, with preservation of the law of minorities.
???? (CD -- he lists some Muslim stuff here I don't know) are retained by Muslims, just as are many customs, processes, holidays, celebrations and the mode of family life. The rights of Muslims in trade, settlement and other branches of life cannot be limited by anything. The right to obtain higher education paid for by the Russian Government and the right to serve in Russian facilities, if so desired, cannot be taken from Muslims or infringed upon.
Ataman Dutov does not predetermine in what forms the Muslim question will be resolved, considering it on the one hand to be a matter ultimately for resolution only by a Constituent Assembly, and, on the other hand, only by Muslims themselves in their All-Russian Congress.
Ataman Dutov believes that in the new, reborn Russia the death penalty and the besmearchment of the name of a man must not exist. All requisitions, contributions and other forms of violence must be forever abolished through alteration of the law. Free trade in a free country must be one of the bases of the restoration of industry and trade. The property of citizens must be protected by law.
Neither a monarchy, nor a republic imposed upon a people by individual persons, will be durable until that time when all the people of Russia gives its commanding word on what form of government it wants to have.
Freedom, equality and brotherhood -- in the best senses of these words -- that is what Ataman Dutov is fighting for.
*(CD -- from the book "Tri Atamana," by Vladimir Morkovchin.)
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