BY GREGORY ZINOVIEV  
From the first day of its existence, the Communist International said: In Asia live four times as many people as in Europe; there are 800 million people in Asia. And we want to free all the peoples, a1l the toilers, regardless of the color of their skin, regardless of whether they are white, black, or yellow.

We want to do away with every kind of exploitation of man by man. In our view, anyone who does not understand this stands outside the ranks of socialism. We fight against those who help the bourgeoisie or stand aside when the task is to help the oppressed peoples. We are for organizing the blacks and all others who live by their labor, for organizing all the working people and all suffering and weary humanity, for struggle against the capitalists, the world’s oppressors.

This was why, when we concluded our work at the Second Congress of the Communist International, we swore an oath and issued a manifesto in the name of the Communists of thirty-seven countries.

In this manifesto, addressed to the workers and peasants of the entire world, we wrote these words: “The Socialist who directly or indirectly supports the privileged position of one nation at the cost of others, who has made his peace with colonial slavery, who makes a distinction between peoples of different races and skin colors, who helps the bourgeoisie of the metropolis to preserve its domination over the colonies instead of helping the cause of the armed rebellion of the colonies, the British Socialist who fails to support by all possible means the rebellion in Ireland, Egypt, and India against the London plutocracy—such a Socialist deserves, if not the bullet, then certainly the mark of infamy, and no mandate or confidence from the proletariat.”

This was our declaration, this was the solemn oath that we took before the workers of Europe and America, and that we solemnly repeat in Baku before the representatives of the laboring masses of the entire East assembled here.

We shall fight to the death against those who forget, even for one moment, their duty to the oppressed nations, to the laboring masses of countries that are being plundered and exploited by capital…

Comrades! Much has been said about “holy war” in recent years. The capitalists, when they were waging their accursed imperialist war, tried to present that slaughter as a holy war and made many people believe this. When they spoke in 1914-18 of a “holy war,” that was a monstrous deception. But now, comrades, you, assembled here for the first time in a congress of peoples of the East, must proclaim a genuine holy war against the robbers, the Anglo-French capitalists. Now we must say that the hour has sounded when the workers of the entire world can arouse and raise up tens and hundreds of millions of peasants, can form a Red Army in the East as well, can arm and organize a revolt in the rear of the British, can hurl fire against the bandits, can poison the existence of every insolent British officer who is lording it in Turkey, Persia, India, and China.

Comrades! Brothers! The time has now come when you can set about organizing a true people’s holy war against the robbers and oppressors. The Communist International turns today to the peoples of the East and says to them: “Brothers, we summon you to a holy war, above all against British imperialism!'” (Loud applause. Prolonged shouts of “Hurrah!” Members of the congress stand up, brandishing their weapons. The speaker is unable to continue for some time. All the delegates stand up and applaud. Shouts: “We swear it!”)

May this declaration made today be heard in London, in Paris, and in all the cities where the capitalists are still in power. May they heed this solemn oath sworn by the representatives of tens of millions of toilers of the East, that the rule of the British oppressors in the East shall be no more, that the oppression of the toilers of the East by the capitalists shall cease!

Long live the fraternal alliance of the peoples of the East with the Communist International! May capital perish; long live the reign of labor! (Burst of applause)  
 
 
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