Stalinist Era: The Gulag and Children


Figure 1.--.

Children were also caught up in the Stalinist Terror and the Gulag, but we have limited information to date on just how the children of those arrested were dealt with. There were transports of whole peoples east. Here whole families involved, but this was not commitment to the Gulag. Generally speaking those committed to the Gulag were arrested as individuals. Thus arrests usually involved the moter or father, leaving one parent to raise the children. In somes cases the other parent was subsequently arrested. We believe that many of the children were then taken in my other family members. We are not sure how the NKVD handled. Were the children taken into custody are delivered to family members or left on their own in an empty apartment. Age may have been a factor here. Some children may not have had family to take them in. They may have becomne street children or assigned to orphanages. Many camps had nurseries. I believe that these were primarily for the children born to female inmates, but some women arrested may have had their children taken as well. One nursery supervisor reports how she had to forbid mothers from taking their children for walks because some would kill their own children. [Appelbaum] Here we are not sure if the camp had so unhinged the mothers or if this story was used to justify the separation of mothers from their children. Another question we are still unsure about is how juvenile delinquents were dealt with by Soviet authorities. Children were also involved indirectly in that as part of the Soviet athiest campaign, it was a political crime to teach religion to children. [Soviet Criminal Code, Article 58-10]

Arrested Parents

We have limited information to date on just how the children of those arrested were dealt with. Generally speaking those committed to the Gulag were arrested as individuals. Thus arrests usually involved the mother or father, leaving one parent to raise the children. In somes cases the other parent was subsequently arrested.

Other Family Members

We believe that many of the children were then taken in my other family members. This could be grandparents or aunts and uncles.

NKVD Policies

We are not sure how the NKVD handled. Were the children taken into custody are delivered to family members or left on their own in an empty apartment. Age may have been a factor here.

Street Children and Orphanages

Some children may not have had family to take them in. They may have becomne street children or assigned to orphanages.

Camp Nurseries

Many camps had nurseries. I believe that these were primarily for the children born to female inmates, but some women arrested may have had their children taken as well. One nursery supervisor reports how she had to forbid mothers from taking their children for walks because some would kill their own children. [Appelbaum] Here we are not sure if the camp had so unhinged the mothers or if this story was used to justify the separation of mothers from their children.

Juvenile Delinquents

Another question we are still unsure about is how juvenile delinquents were dealt with by Soviet authorities.

Athiest Campaign

Children were also involved indirectly in that as part of the Soviet athiest campaign, it was a political crime to teach religion to children. [Soviet Criminal Code, Article 58-10] Here both parents might be arrested because religion was commonly a family matter. One report suggests that one parent occcasiinally recanted so they could care for the family. This often was the father because women commonly were more fervent about religion. Apparently many women found guilty of religious offenses were sent to the Solovetsky Islands with 10 year terms. Prostitutes were also sent to the Solovetsky Islands, but only with 3 year terms. Women with religious offenses were after completing their sentences wer not allowed to return to their himes or contact their children. [Solzhenitsyn, pp. 37-38.]

Anti-Kulak Campaign

The campaign against the so called Kulaks affected children differently than other campaigns aided an individuals. The Kulaks were defined in Soviet terms as unscrupulos rich peasants. They were in fact the usually better farmers. The campign against the Kulaks was part of Stalin's collectivization campign. (Soviet agriculture never recovered from these campsigns.) The anti Kulak campaign was not jyst directed at the head of the family, but involved the entire family which was evicted from their homes. The great historian of the Gulag writes, ".. in this wave they (GPU) burned out whole nests, whole families, from the start; they watched jealously to be sure that none of the children--fourteen, ten, even six years old--got away; to the last scrapings, all had to go down the same road, to the same common destruction." [Solzhenitsyn, p. 87.]

Collective Farms

Quite a number of children were arrested as snippers--a new crime. This took place during the 1930s on the new collective farms. Hunger drove many to go out at night and snip ears of corn. Some times it was adults, not uncommonly parents sent out children to do this. Ten of thousands were arrested and they received 10-year terms for theft of socialist property. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 57-58.] A new decree after World War II in 1947 was even more draconian. People on collective farms, and this included children, could be arrested for any unauthorized group activity. And this included children who might try to grab a few cumbers or apples. The common sentence was 25 years. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 89.]

Railroads

The Soviet Government iduring World War II issued the Decree on the Introduction of Military Discipline on Railroads (April 1943). The railroads were the primary transport used by the military in the Soviet Union during World war II. As the Wehrmacht found, the Soviets had a poorly developed road system. (This changed somewhat as the Red Army moved west where the roads improved and American Lend Lease trucks arrived.) Because of the need for men at the front, much of the work maintaing the Soviet rail network was done by women and adolescents. When authorities imposed the military discipline regulations, apparently they were poorly understood by rail workers. Thus quite a number of those workers committed violations of the new regulations causing delays. The lack of barracks training seems to have been a major problem. Quite a number of the work crews thus were sentenced to the Gulag by military tribunls. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 87.]

Vengefull Children Campaign

Stalin after Wotld War Ii apparently started thinking about the children of those arrested in the purges. He thought that they were a potential danger as they might seek revenge. This was not one of his largest campaigns, but it did occur. This campaign was more selective. He seemed particularly concerned with the children od the military commanders purged before the War. For some reason the children of Trotskites were untouched. Stalin ordered the NKVD to track down the children and arrest them. This included bothteen agers and the adult children. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 90.]

Sentences

Soviet tribunals before World War II issued 10-year sentences for a range of crimes. This was the most severe sentence commonly granted to those not executed. Stalin apparently decided after the War that this was not sufficently severe. Thus 25 year sentences became the sandard for a range of political crimes including such outrage as praising American technology or democracy or "todyism toward the West. The former 10-year sentence became used for juveniles. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 91.]

Ukranian Children

The Ukranine was a persisent problem for Stalin because of the importance and the strength of nationalist sentiment there. The campaign against the Kulaks, cillectivization and the Great Famine was all in part aimed at the Ukraine and children were affected by all of these campaigns. This was one reason that many in the Ukraine at first saw the NAZIs as liberators with the on set of Barbarossa. Even after incredibly brutal behavior some in the Ukraine fought with the Germans. Other nationalists fought against both the Germans ans Soviets. The Banderovtsy cintinued to resust in the forests of the western Ukraine even after the War. Several years after they had been killed ao arrested, Stalin decided that theur wives needed to be arrested. This was a 1-year campaign (1950). Their crime was failing to denounce their husbands. [Solzhenitsyn, p. 91.] I am unsure what happened to the children.

Deportation Transports

There were transports of whole peoples east. Here whole families involved, but this was not commitment to the Gulag.

Sources

Applebaum, Anne. Gulag: A History.

Solzhenitsyn, Alexander. Godlessness, the First Step to the Gulag.

Solzhenitsyn, Alexander. The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-56 (Harper & Row: New York, 1974), 660p.

Soviet Criminal Code.






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Created: 5:52 PM 12/9/2007
Last updated: 5:52 PM 12/9/2007