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DOCUMENTS ON GERMANY, 1944-59
the closing of factories and mines and the sacking of workers is begin-
ning to develop on an ever increasing scale in- West Germany.
We workers, the toiling people, must be fully conscious of our class
interests and rally our ranks more closely. We must be able to come
to terms with our class brothers, to display a maximum of will and
patience, exploit every means to convince those' who today do not
understand us yet. This is a case for will, ability, reason. But the
capitalist world is a different proposition. In this case one must be
on one's guard and not slide from class positions.
Dear friends, this is the first time"in 40 years that I have seen such
an audience as yours. Only in the first years after the 1917 revolution
did we have meetings attended by communists -and mensheviks and
social revolutionaries and representatives of other parties. Your con-
ference, too is attended by communists and social democrats as well
as representatives of other parties and nonparty people. I think that
You hold differing opinions, differing views. And I am ready-to listen
exhaustively and patiently to each one of you. I have patience, but
I would not be frank if I failed to tell'you that, communist that I am,
I will parry to the best of my ability everything I cannot agree with.
In conclusion, allow me to thank you once more for the cordial,
reception and attention. We-are'leaving today for Berlin and thence
for the Soviet Union. I am very pleased with the visit to the Leipzig
fair, and meetings with the. people and with business circles. I am
especially touched by the fact that'you invited me to your conference
and allowed me to listen to you, and to speak to you.
Friends, to the last beat of. our hearts we shall be loyal to the work-
ing class, to the toiling people; we'shall always fight for its freedom
and happiness, for the triumph of the teaching of Marxism-Leninism,
for the construction of a communist. society! Long live proletarian
solidarity! Long live the German working class which will free the
peoples from the fetters of capitalism and establish'a world in which
the means of production will be common property, will belong to all
the people, and consequently the exploitation of man by man will be
abolished, where all men will be brothers. And that is what com-
munism will be! Long live communism! Long live world peace!
Address by Premier Khrushchev to a Rally in East Berlin, March
9, 1959 1
Dear comrades and friends, inhabitants of Berlin, the capital of the
GDR, permit me to thank the Central Committee and the Berlin area
committee of the SED and -Comrade Walter Ulbricht personally,
Comrade Paul Verner, the, Council of Ministers of the GDR, and
Comrade Otto'Grotewohl personally, and the national council of the
National Front of Democratic Germany and Prof. Correns personally
for the opportunity given to! us once more to meet the inhabitants
of Berlin.
During our stay in Leipzig and here in Berlin, we have heard many
good words addressed to the USSR and our people. I have had the
opportunity for much conversation with the most varied people,
citizens of the GDR and of the German Federal Republic. I am
East German broadcast, March 9, 1959.
3.99;