Richard Lettis: The Hungarian Revolt

29 October

AVO

GYOR
Dear listeners, a four-member delegation of faculties of the Sopron University, representing professors and students, has arrived in Gyor. They represent 1,600 young students and will present their demands. The first point is that further bloodshed should be stopped. In order to do that the Government should withdraw without delay requests by which it attacked our insurgents. In accordance with the peace treaty it shall take steps in order that Soviet armed forces may be withdrawn from Hungary in the shortest possible time. Many demands of Sopron students agree with the demands of trade unions, the Petofi Circle, etc. But the demands of Sopron youth call the attention of the country to very many correct things. They too want a free and democratic Hungary with all power concentrated in the hands of the people. They stated that they do not agree with the present composition of Parliament and Government, and therefore do not believe them suitable to draw up a new electoral law. They demand that a new parliament should be formed from representatives of town and village national councils; this provisional assembly should then immediately take adequate measures and also elaborate a new electoral law. They demand a revision of all our relations with the Soviet Union and full compensation for damages which were caused by our dependency on the Soviet Union.
They do not agree with that part of Imre Nagy's address yesterday in which he announced that the AVO will be disbanded. They demand that the Government announce that the AVO has been disbanded.
Radio Free Gyor

BUDAPEST
The Minister of the Interior has abolished all special police organs invested with special rights. He has also abolished the State Security Authority (AVO). There will be no need for such an organisation in our democratic public life. No formation belonging to any kind of State Security organ is now on duty in the streets of Budapest. Those now serving in our State police force, which is being reorganised, are people who are in no way responsible for past crimes.
Radio Kossuth (16:57) [126/128]

PROGRAM OF THE HUNGARIAN INTELLECTUALS

BUDAPEST
The Revolutionary Committee of Hungarian Intellectuals was formed on 28th October in the Central Building of the Lorand Eoetvoes University of Sciences, Budapest. The Committee united every organisation of intellectuals -writers, artists, scientists and university students alike. The Committee then issued the following appeal to the Nation's population...
Praise to all who, sword in hand, fought against the enemy's overwhelming superiority, and praise to the man in the street who, unarmed, fought against tanks and machine-guns! Our thanks go to those Soviet soldiers who refused to raise their arms against the Hungarian people.
Hungarians! We proudly face the world's judgment . . . The power of our country is, at last, in the hands of the people. Our youth, our army, our police, the worker councils, and the peasants have fought side by side. Together, we have the strength to organise our life, independent, free, and democratic. This is the reason why we appeal to our heroic fighters, to the young workers and peasants, to the students, the members of the Petofi circle, and to the members of the peoples' colleges, to enroll in the national guard so that, along with the army, the police force and the workers councils, they may safeguard order and security in our country. We trust that our claims will be satisfied by peaceful means, and that there will reign perfect understanding between our government and the workers councils under the combined protection of the national guard and other patriotic formations. We will not stand for, and are ready to fight against, any attempts tending to restore Stalinism or bring about a counter-revolution.
Hungarians! We may disagree on certain problems, but we all agree as regards our principal claims. Here is the program that we propose to submit to our government:
(1) The immediate settlement of our relations with the Soviet Union. The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungarian territory.
(2) The immediate cancellation of all commercial contracts with foreign countries which are prejudicial to the interests of our national economy. The country must be informed as to the nature of these commercial contracts, including those covering uranium and bauxite exports.
(3) General and secret elections. The candidates must be nominated by the people.
(4) Industrial plants and mines must really become the property of the workers. Factories and land are to remain the people's property and nothing is to be given back either to capitalists or big landowners. Factories must be managed by freely elected workers councils. The government must protect the craftsmen's and small tradesmen's right to do business.
(5) The ruthlessly exploitative norm schemes now in effect must be abolished. Low salaries and pensions must be increased as far as economically possible.
(6) The union must really defend the interests of the working classes and their leaders are to be elected freely. Working peasants may create their own associations for protecting their interests.
(7) The government must guarantee free agricultural production and help small landowners and cooperatives formed voluntarily. The hated system compelling delivery of produce must be abolished.
(8) Peasants who have sustained losses by the enforcement of collectivisation must be done justice and receive compensation.
(9) Absolute freedom of press and assembly must be guaranteed.
(10) October 23, the day our nation's uprising against oppression began, shall be declared a national holiday.
In the name of the Hungarian Intellectuals' Revolutionary Committee:
(Signed)
The Students Revolutionary Committee: Istvan Prozsar, Jozsef Molnar, Janos Varga.
The Hungarian Writers Association: Sandor Erdei, Secretary General, Gyula Sipos, Tibor Merai.
The Hungarian Press Association: Sandor Haraszti, Miklos Vasarhelyi, Ivan Boldizsar, Sandor Fekete.
The Fine Arts Association: Laszlo Benca, Jozsef Somogyi.
The Hungarian Musicians Association: Endre Szervanszky, Pal Jardanyi.
The University Professors: Tamas Nagy, Mate Major, Ivan Kadar, Gyorgy Markos.
On behalf of the people's colleges: Laszlo Kardos, Otto Toekes.
The Petofi Circle: Gabor Tanczos, Balazs Nagy.
MEFESZ: Gyorgy Liebik..
Szabad Nep (Budapest), 29 October [127/128]

A "SUSPICIOUS" YUGOSLAV FEELS "UNEASY"

BUDAPEST
Today at last we succeeded in getting into Budapest . . . We have been trying to do so in vain for the last four days.
Our first impressions of the capital: It looks like war time . . ., everything seems like the situation on a battlefield immediately following a cease-fire.
In Ferencvaros, the well-known suburb of Budapest, a part of the capital which suffered serious damage in the last few days, tanks were to be seen left and right; several buildings were damaged. Next to the Hungarian colors black banners were also flying on each house.
Suddenly we noticed two or three young men with rifles. They were in plain clothes carrying a tricolor . . . We were ordered by one of them to stop. The young man asked for our papers. He then pointed to the dead bodies and destroyed arms.
The young man warned us of the danger in which we were and offered to help us get out - . . He took us to a half-demolished house in a street where young men with rifles and tricolors were seen. The house was also full of armed young men and girls. A woman was preparing coffee. The young man said: "These are Yugoslav journalists."
One of the Hungarians who had come along with us addressed the young man as "Comrade".
They said in reply: "Here, we're not in the habit of using such greetings."
This sounded suspicious. Only then could we realize that we were not among civil guards appointed by the Government but in a group of rebels. They immediately started to talk about their bravery, about the number of tanks destroyed. First, they wanted to take us to the first floor, to the Headquarters, but they changed their mind and took us to the first aid station instead.
This was a small room in which we were met by five or six doctors who started to discuss things with us . . . First of all, they stated that as long as Soviet troops are stationed in Budapest and Hungary they would not give up fighting. Of course, there were various people there and different comments were made. The arguments given by some were quite correct. Some were boastful and used reactionary slogans too often.
A young man -he could not have been more than sixteen- had a bunch of onions. He explained that on Tuesday, when it all had broken out, he had bought a kilo of onions for his mother; later on, he kept the onions for luck. He boasted about his bravery and wanted to give the impression of being politically a very mature man. Actually, he held no conceptions and was unable to say just what was at stake.
As soon as we realized where we were we began to feel uneasy. When we were about to leave, a kind of commander, in plain clothes and unarmed, apologized and asked for our papers. We produced our passports and explained how we got there. He excused himself again, questioned us, and let us go. One man with him unbuttoned my coat, touched my overcoat and said that there was no need to question me any more as it was obvious who I was and where I came from. To tell the truth, the material of my overcoat appealed to him.
When we walked out in the street we became aware of machine-guns in the windows of neighbouring houses. Young men were also on the [128/129]

alert there. One can presume that they could not feel exactly at ease, but, luckily, there was no firing at that time. We went back to our car. They even suggested escorting us "to the other side" . . . We returned without any difficulty along the main road leading to the centre of the city and soon reached our destination. The situation was quite normal there. People were busy and moved quickly in the street. Many shops were opened. It was getting dark already and it was necessary to look for accommodations.
Those are my first impressions of Budapest.
Vlado Teslic, Borba (Belgrade), 30 October

WATCHING THE RUSSIAN RETREAT

BUDAPEST
Soviet tanks and troops crunched out of this war-battered capital today carrying their dead with them. They left a wrecked city where the stench of death already rises from the smoking ruins to mingle with a chill fog from the Danube River. I arrived here from Warsaw by plane, car and foot, walking the last five miles.
No sooner were we on the road north to Budapest than we ran into a massive southbound Soviet convoy headed by two armored cars. Ten T-54 tanks, their Red stars still visible through [129/130]

the grime of gunpowder, oil and blood, waddled behind, leaving Budapest behind. Then came numerous motorcycles and trucks. On the back of one tank lay the corpse of a Soviet soldier, his eyes staring vacantly back at the Hungarian capital. Other bodies were in the trucks. The Russian tankmen in their black crash helmets looked tired and grim. They were retreating for the first time since they steam-rolled out of mother Russia into central Europe during World War II. Whether they are moving on order from Moscow is not known.
A Hungarian peasant spat on one tank as it passed him an arm's length away. The Russian crew did not notice. Hatred literally oozed from the Hungarians who silently lined the roadsides watching the Soviets evacuate Budapest. The Russians were nervous but alert. They manned their 100 millimeter tank cannon which were zeroed at the horizontal for firing straight ahead if necessary. And they held tightly to the handles of machine-guns mounted in the tank cockpits and on truck tops.
Soon we came across the first signs of fighting. Huge cannon holes punctured workers' houses. Windows were shattered. A strange music filled the air -the tinkling of broken glass being trod on, driven on, swept aside. Telephone and high tension wires hung crazily and tangled like wet spaghetti as if a hurricane had passed through. We reached a railroad crossing. The crossing gates appeared ridiculous, they were so unnecessary. No trains would be running on that railroad for some time. Sleeping cars had been turned over as roadblocks. Their sides were stitched with machine-gun bullets as if a giant sewing machine had methodically worked them up and down, zigzagged and came back for a final floral touch.
Now we ran into convoys of Hungarian trucks pressed into duty as ambulances and flying Red Cross flags. The doctors looked like butchers, so blood-spattered were their once-white aprons. Trucks passed full of moaning wounded. Then a truck with a large sign proclaiming "Dead Bodies." The stench now was overpowering and as we neared the city the acrid smell of cordite also assailed our nostrils.
We were now in the Budapest suburbs, and more and more Soviet troops and tanks could be counted hurrying the wrong way. I counted at least 60 Red Army tanks in one convoy. They looked like circus elephants lumbering one be hind the other, twitching from side to side as their heavy steel trucks slipped on debris or an oil slick. "Budapest city limits," the sign said, and with it came the distant chattering of machine-guns. An impressive-looking Soviet tankman blocked the road and waved us into a detour. "Mopping up" operations were still going on. A tank gun coughed in the distance and a split second later came a muffled concussion that pressured the eardrums. The crack of rifles sounded from snipers who would prefer to die rather than give up.
The street now was so littered I had to abandon the car. I began walking... There was Rakoczi Street, one of the main thoroughfares, leading down to the bank of the gently flowing Danube. A Soviet tank was roaring down the street and I jumped quickly into a doorway
Hungarian women completely ignored the tank except for looks of such cold hatred that the emotion must have penetrated the steel side like x-rays .
The curfew is still in force from 3 p.m. until 10 a.m. but people did not seem to be taking much notice of it. Reports circulated here that rebels in the West of Hungary were marching on Budapest. The reports could not be confirmed here .
It is doubtful if the Soviets have ever churned up such hatred, anywhere, anytime...
A. J. Cavendish, United Press, 29 October. By permission. [130/132]

BETWEEN HATE AND PRIDE

BUDAPEST
From the military point of view Hungary is now back precisely where she started a week ago, with the difference that the Red Army garrison, which had always been stationed only in the countryside, is now nearly four divisions strong instead of two. Reports from the eastern frontiers suggest that Russian forces are still moving into Hungary despite all the conciliatory moves announced in Budapest yesterday.
Even Hungarian anti-Communists I have spoken to admit the speech by Mr. Nagy, the Prime Minister, last night had a ring of sincerity. But it is argued that even if his intentions are as honest as those of any discredited Communist in present day Hungary can be, he still faces two big obstacles in living up to them. One is the opposition of some of his party colleagues still known to be bitterly hostile to any form of genuine coalition rule. The other is the Kremlin's reluctance to abandon its military grip on Eastern Europe as a whole.
Until Hungary is allowed to secede from the Warsaw Pact, which virtually binds her to a permanent Soviet garrison, little hope is felt on the military front. And on this vital point the regime has not even dared to raise hopes, let alone make promises...
Meanwhile Budapest is returning to a stunned semblance of its normal self. The shops have reopened. The first street-sweepers are at work clearing some of the numberless mounds of brick and glass splinters. . . . Occasional gun-fire has been heard in the city during the past 12 hours. There is still a general tension, from which new flare-ups may at any moment spring.
In any case, as I reported yesterday, it is in the Hungarian provinces that widely-scattered rebel movements are now at their most defiant, and it is not known what the Red Army may feel compelled to do there to "restore order." . .
The rebel activity at Veszprem is particularly impressive, since this province, north of Lake Balaton, is the seat of the permanent Soviet garrison. There are signs that the Russian troops themselves are becoming increasingly uncomfortable in their role. Some of them have told Russian-speaking Hungarians that the Soviet orders of the day, which preceded the advance on Budapest, alleged that a "Fascist revolution aided by Western troops" had to be put down in the city. Instead, they have been blasting from street barricades soldiers from a Communist army side by side with young students and workers. The hate which has welled up against them must have penetrated the thickest Mongolian skull. One or two cases of Russian looting have been reported, but in general there have been no excesses. It is likely that all Soviet troops are under strict orders to be on their best behaviour when not actually occupied with exterminating rebels.
The moral discipline and loyalty of the Budapest population have been astounding to anyone who knows them, and remarkable by any standards. There has been an unwritten law, obeyed throughout the city, that no plundering should take place. In one street I saw watches and fountain pens lying untouched in a smashed shop window. Another food-shop with an empty display counter had the notice "Goods not plundered but removed inside for safety." . . . The people have taken a fierce pride in disproving the lies put out by Radio Budapest last week that the capital was "a prey to looters and rioters."
Gordon Shepherd, The Daily Telegraph, (London) 30 October

MOSCOW VIEWS: SHEPILOV, ZHUKOV, "PRAVDA"

MOSCOW
At tonight's reception in the Turkish Embassy, the Soviet Foreign Minister Shepilov and the Minister of National Defence, Marshal Zhukov, replied to questions put to them by foreign journalists in connection with the latest events in Hungary.
Asked whether the Soviet government has received a message sent by the Austrian government about the cease-fire, Minister Shepilov replied that he heard about it over the radio. He went on to say that the Soviet troops have already stopped firing, and if the insurgents cease fire and if there is no danger, Soviet troops would withdraw from Budapest.
Speaking about the causes of events in Hungary, Shepilov said that there are circles who wish to improve the work of the state administration and also the welfare of the people. One cannot deny the fact, Shepilov went on to say, that there were bureaucratic manifestations in the past. One must satisfy the demands of workers, [132/133]

peasants and intellectuals for the improvement of the situation.
Shepilov said that it is a well-known fact that there were counter-revolutionary elements and criminals, who were also referred to in the declaration of the Hungarian government; they were the first to take up arms. According to Shepilov, they had long prepared themselves to do that.
Asked whether the Soviet troops will withdraw, Shepilov replied: "The sooner the activity of anti-national and anti-democratic elements stops, and if there is no danger, the sooner would the Soviet troops withdraw."
Asked what he could say about Nagy's statement that he would demand that Soviet troops definitely withdraw from Hungary, Shepilov replied: "I have said all that I have to say about that".
The Minister of Defence, Marshal Zhukov, also replied to questions of journalists.
Asked whether Soviet troops started action in Hungary because they were asked by the Hungarian government to do so, Marshal Zhukov replied: "Yes".
Asked whether the Soviet troops in Hungary suffered heavy losses, the Marshal replied: "No".
Replying to a remark made by journalists that in the Security Council today there was mention of new Soviet troops having been sent to Hungary, Marshal Zhukov said that no new Soviet troops had been sent to Hungary in the course of the last 24 hours nor in the course of the last 64 hours either. He said that there were enough Soviet troops in Hungary to proffer aid. However, Zhukov said, the situation in Hungary is improving. A government has been formed which is enjoying our support and the support of the Hungarian people.
Asked what he could say about the statement made by the Hungarian Prime Minister Nagy about the formation of new armed forces composed of workers, Zhukov replied that this fact shows that the Hungarian government is relying on the working class.
Asked whether the Soviet troops will definitely withdraw from Hungary, as was said by the Hungarian Prime Minister Nagy, Zhukov said that he could not reply on behalf of the government to this question.
Asked by the journalists whether the Warsaw Pact included a clause according to which one country should lend support to the other not only in case of danger from abroad, but also with regard to internal problems, Zhukov replied that the stipulations of the Warsaw Pact in some statements and in the writing of the western press have been wrongly interpreted and that the provisions of the Warsaw Pact also apply to internal aid.
At the end of the conversation with the journalists, Zhukov said that agreement should be reached on the disbandment of NATO and the Warsaw Pact. -
T. Popovski, Borba (Belgrade), 30 October [133/136]

30 October

"NOT INSURGENTS, BUT FIGHTERS FOR FREEDOM!"

BUDAPEST
This morning Budapest awoke in mild October sunshine. People were walking about in the vast Square of Heroes. All vehicles are flying the Hungarian tricolors. A few Soviet armored vehicles roared by. No shooting was heard. A man distributed newspapers in the street; people
snatched them . . . At a street-corner they gathered around a policeman. There were lively discussions. Everyone carries one or two newspapers. These are the latest editions calling for the withdrawal of Russians and free elections.
Some shop-windows are riddled with bullets, but shoes, or candy, have remained untouched. Not a single factory is working; yet no one is short of food. "Such is this revolution, such are these people. And above all they are not thieves -a student told me. I asked him whether this applied to those who were still holding some districts by armed force. "Of course," he said, and he gave the following illustration. This morning these so-called "plunderers" took a group of people caught stealing to the police, with posters on which was written: "We are thieves and brigands" .
We called on the commander of the city police . . . The news came that insurgents had attacked the Municipal Party Headquarters. The Colonel shrugged his shoulders in resignation . .
Then we started towards the Danube to Eotvos University. The headquarters of the students is there. A tricolor sentinel is in front of the building . . . Armed young people are running up and down. We entered the printing room. Students are running off mimeographs, putting the question to Imre Nagy: "Let him say who called in Soviet troops!"
We are received by a member of the Presidium of the Committee. He told us they are strong enough so that when the Russians withdraw, he is convinced they will be able to maintain law and order. He too is a Communist. He assures me that socialist accomplishments are not at all threatened. "We are able to stop any attempt to restore the old order. We are convinced that we can gather into our organisation all those who are still fighting. They are not fascists," he said.
In another room there is an elderly man, a captain, and a middle-aged civilian. The civilian is a representative of former Horthy officers and he came with the suggestion that they, too, as an organisation, should be included in the National Guard. The old man is a Writers' representative serving as liaison to students and the police. He rejects steadily the proposal of the Horthy follower. "We do not want to restore Horthy's Hungary, just as we do not want Stalin back."
I ask about the insurgents. . . The captain corrects me- "Not insurgents, but fighters for freedom."
In one street we are stopped by young men with rifles. They are fearless. In our car is a young man with a machine-gun. The driver shows the permit of the "Students' Revolutionary Committee". The young men smile, salute, and let us go on...
Vlado Teslic, Borba (Belgrade), 31 October

SOPRON
Hungary's seven-day battle for freedom has reached a critical stage. I spent last night at the headquarters of the Liberation Forces of Western Hungary some 50 miles from here, and heard disturbing reports brought by student couriers from Budapest this morning. One spoke of two Rumanian infantry divisions crossing the Hungarian border in support of Soviet reinforcements which arrived from Rumania during the weekend.
It seems certain that Russian military operations, which in the early days were confused by political and tactical issues, are now running according to a well-directed and ruthless plan. The reported statement of Mr. Shepilov that Soviet troops will be withdrawn from Budapest only after the rebels "have surrendered" is taken here very seriously. Only the total and united support of the Hungarian Army could change the present situation, and this is not yet forthcoming. Though the regular army has, in the past few days, in large numbers, and in various parts of the country, sided with the Liberation fighters, and has nowhere fought against them, no major decision by the army as a whole has been taken to support the people's fight . . . [136/137]

It is difficult to see how this tremendous human struggle will now resolve itself. The concessions made by the new Government of Mr. Nagy are far-reaching, and even one-third of them would have satisfied the Hungarian people a week ago. So they might today, if only the people did not feel that once they lay down their arms the promises made would not be kept. There is no one here who dares to accept them.
I still see the same fire and determination in young and old, in man and woman, as I did in the first hours when I arrived in Hungary a few days ago. There is no sign of fatigue, and I have met no one with a thought of compromise or surrender. But there is great anxiety about the fate of Budapest here tonight. If all resistance there ends, it will be a terrible blow. Without outside military help -which they know today they cannot obtain- they know also that their ultimate fate is the same. Their hope that Moscow would withdraw when the Kremlin knew where the majority of the Hungarian people stood is steadily waning.
Lajos Lederer, Observer Foreign News Service (London), 30 October [137/138]

KILIAN BARRACKS

BUDAPEST
Kilian Barracks is the 200-year-old building in which Colonel Maleter and soldiers of the Hungarian Army's Labour Corps have been successfully staging a miniature Stalingrad against the Russians. I got into the barracks myself a couple of hours later and had a talk there with the colonel . . . He was indignant when I told him people outside were saying he had surrendered.
"Who says that? The lying radio, I suppose. We have not surrendered, and if our demands are not granted we shall carry on our fight until they are."
Colonel Maleter told me he had given his demands to a Hungarian officer admitted to the barracks after the Russians had withdrawn: -[138/139]

1. If the Government of Imre Nagy accepts and fulfills our demands, we and the other army units shall support the Government.
2. Greater Budapest must be evacuated by the Red Army by this evening and the rest of Hungary by November 15.
3. We Freedom Fighters will not surrender our arms but, with the rest of the army, we shall take over police powers to assure peace and good order until a new police has been organised to replace the present one.
4. The honour and patriotism of the Freedom Fighters must be publicly confirmed by the Government and the Government must publicly confirm its approval of their uprising.
"Do you think Imre Nagy and his Government are going to accept all those demands?" I asked.
Said the colonel, smiling grimly: "Yes, I think they will."
Sefton Delmer, Daily Express (London), 31 October [139/143]

RUSSIANS ARE GOING

BUDAPEST
Communiqué of the Minister of National Defence: As a result of the heroic revolution for the social and national rebirth of the country, I have concluded an agreement with the Command of the Soviet Armed Forces concerning the order of withdrawal of these troops from Budapest. According to this agreement, all Soviet troops stationed in Budapest will have begun to withdraw at 16:00 on 30 October. This withdrawal will be completed according to schedule by dawn on 31 October. Parallel with the withdrawal of Soviet troops, I order the concentration of certain units of the People's Army. Units of the People's Army, the police and the National Guard together will assume charge of the maintenance of order.
(Signed) General Karoly Tanza
Hungarian News Agency [143/147]

MIKOYAN "ACCEPTS EVERYTHING"

NEW YORK
On October 30th, in the Parliament building, General Pal Maleter, commanding officer of all Hungarian armed forces, reported in my presence to the government that Soviet armored units were crossing in large numbers our border in the North-East. In the ensuing discussion we agreed not to disclose this in releases to the press as long as the government had the opportunity to take up this question with the Soviet ambassador. By recalling this I wish to prove that all actions of the Nagy government were carefully deliberated with due consideration for the prestige of the Soviet Union. The government sought to avoid any break, and to solve all problems by peaceful means. For this reason, the news bulletin dealing with the new Soviet troop movements was broadcast only the next day.
On October 30, I was present when Mr. Mikoyan, member of the Soviet politbureau, put through a telephone call to one of the Ministers of State of Imre Nagy's government. He expressed his wish of meeting the Minister. The meeting took place one hour later and lasted for some 60 minutes. Before his departure I advised the Minister of State to find out from Mr. Mikoyan what the Soviet's attitude was towards the multiparty system and the withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact, and what stand the Soviet Union intends to take concerning the evacuation of its troops from Hungary. Further, whether the decisions of the government will be accepted.
The Minister of State returned from the meeting in a happy mood, saying: "He accepted everything."
Considering this, I am in a position to declare that competent Soviet circles were not only fully informed about the most minute details of all developments in Hungary's politics, but were actually in concurrence with these. -
Statement of Mr. Jozsef Koevago, former Mayor of Budapest,
United Nations Special Committee, 28 January 1957 [147/153]

31 October

A YUGOSLAV FINDS UNREST AND UNCERTAINTY

BUDAPEST
This morning the voice of the Petofi radio station woke us up: "We do not recognize this Government -we demand a provisional Insurgents' Government until elections are held." Radio Gyor -on two kilowatts- was speaking and its program was being run by speakers of the Budapest radio station in Balaton [?]. There are now two radio programs in Budapest: "Free Kossuth Radio" broadcasting government declarations, and "Free Petofi Radio" transmitting from Gyor. In Gyor a few days ago some revolutionary committee took authority and refused to recognise the Government. This small radio station relayed the program of "[radio] Free Europe" for two hours and for another two hours some announcements from Budapest were broadcast. While we are reporting this the station is broadcasting tunes from the film "The Third Man".
Our first glance at the street was focused on trucks and tanks loaded with civilians, soldiers, and policeman, who were armed from head to foot. The people greeted them. One now feels a general relaxation of tension. People were walking, seemingly carefree and gay, and went into shops where food is being sold. Excitement was introduced only by men selling newspapers, which are in great demand and are completely changed both in headlines and shape.
Rakoczi Street, the main thoroughfare of this city, offers an unusual picture. All shop-windows and walls are full of slogans: "Russki Haza" [Russians go home] or, in Russian "Russkie Domoi." There are many posters, papers, leaflets, or mere notes. There are even poems. About fifteen to twenty various "movements" are referred to, various "revolutionary committees" and individuals. Everyone is demanding something "on behalf of the revolution", "on behalf of the people". All these demands and these slogans are so different and are so varied that it is hard to find one's way. Many of these demands and slogans are suspicious. Here is a typical poster:
"Hungarian patriots! The government betrayed us again because Soviet troops are withdrawing only from Budapest. We no longer trust the government of Imre Nagy. As a member of the United Nations we demand that the United Nations immediately send international supervisory troops. Let the Soviet troops withdraw from the whole of Hungary! Until then we demand UN troops."
(signed) "Movement of New Hungarian Life"
Citizens read every possible poster, mostly without comment. The walls are covered with slogans: "Call A Strike," "We Don't Need Communism," "Free Mindszenty," "Free Elections." These slogans are typewritten or hand-written with chalk, India ink, lead pencils, or are printed on the finest paper.
On a large door in a small street there is chalk-written: "The Workers Council will be elected at 10 o'clock on Wednesday". In the same street leaflets are distributed: "We don't need Workers' Councils -the Communists have their finger in this pie."
At a place where traffic is heaviest, a hoarse voice is heard over the microphone: "We won't lay down arms! We shall not be subdued by the Government. We are the Authority until Soviet troops withdraw from the whole of Hungary, until all treaties hitherto concluded are rescinded and new elections take place". This is the loudspeaker of armed troops which even today are outside any control by organised authority. Their representative came to the Parliament for talks with Imre Nagy last evening. Talks have been resumed today. This is Jozsef Dudas. It is interesting that this man was once a member of the Communist Party, but he was expelled because of separatist tendencies. After the war he joined the Smallholders' Party and belonged to its right-wing.
This morning armed units run by Dudas people attacked Party committees. Armed groups went into the streets carrying all kinds of weapons. In contrast to students and workers who carry out police duties they do not wear badges on their sleeves.
This Dudas group is fairly powerful and numerous. One runs into it everywhere. Their leadership occupied the building and the printing office of the former Szabad Nep. . . . They call for a provisional government in which they [153/154]

would admit Nagy and Kadar of the Communists, and Bela Kovacs (and not Tildy) of the Smallholders' Party. The movement is called "The Committee of the Hungarian National Revolution". Dudas is even signing permits for free passage through the town.
We visited another newspaper Igazsag -"Truth," which is the organ of the youth and the army, backing Imre Nagy. It is very hard to find out who is backing whom here, who is behind whom.
From everyone with whom we talked we have received the reply that there is no danger of abolishing revolutionary achievements, such as returning factories or land to former owners. It is interesting, however, that all people are predicting a right-wing course in Hungary.
Leftist groups are the least noticeable. First of all, the Hungarian Workers' Party seems not to exist. One has the impression Communists are now seeking suitable organisational forms. This will take a long time. The trade unions were reorganised today. They are abandoning former views, but will ask for Workers Councils.
For the time being the Army is most compact, the best organised progressive force. Although passive for the most part, it was divided in the course of recent events. "Revolutionary Councils" were set up yesterday in the military commands. The commanding officer of the Air Force took the initiative. After being ordered to fire on the masses if they began to march on the headquarters, he refused and "revolutionary committees" were then set up in all services of the Army and even in the Ministry of Defence. Many commanding generals have been dismissed. Today the Army maintained order together with civilians, some wearing badges, some not.
Even today we heard shooting. A real persecution has begun against former officers of the State Security, and today it became a regular frenzy. Groups of armed civilians looked for such officers in various hide-outs. They all defended themselves and were killed on the spot. Crowds
gathered around these places and, even more, around mutilated corpses which were displayed in the streets. In front of the building of the municipal Party committee, after yesterday's clashes, a former colonel was detected. Found on his corpse was a note showing that he received a salary amounting to 9,000 florins (the average salary is 800 florins). People tore up the money found on him and pinned it to the corpse. Suspects are identified and if they belong to the Security Service they are simply hanged by the crowd.
From time to time Soviet tanks pass through the streets. Obviously they are withdrawing. They arrived as a hanging was taking place, and stopped for a moment, not knowing why the people had gathered. The crowd dispersed, but the tanks proceeded without interfering. . .
Vlado Teslic, Borba (Belgrade), 1 November

Richard Lettis: The Hungarian Revolt