Gorbachev Praises Russians Who ‘Barred the Road’

Following are excerpts from Friday’s appearance before the Russian Parliament by Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev:

I want to call particular attention to the outstanding role of the president of Russia in these events, Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin. I was always convinced . . . that these adventurists (the coup plotters) would be defeated. . . . Nonetheless . . . their intent was very far-reaching . . . (standing ovation).

They thought that the union was on the verge of catastrophe, of collapse, that there would be a national calamity and that the people would support them. That was the main miscalculation of the organizers of this plot.

The people did not support them. The army would not go with them, although they were pushed. And so the forces upon whom they were counting, the special forces for combating terrorism, they were sent to strike a blow at the leadership of this democratic process, but people refused to follow orders.

The armed forces, even those who went out or were ordered into the streets in contacting the workers, took a position of principle, almost every one of them, to the last man, soldiers and officers, the overwhelming majority.

. . . An element of this pressure on the president of the country was their telling me (that) Yeltsin was arrested. . . . That was their intent, to isolate the president of the country if he refused to cooperate with these forces of reaction and isolate the president of the Russian Federation . . . .

First of all, it was the Russians in their enormous mass . . . the government joined together and barred the road to the plotters. . . . I was always convinced . . . that this adventure would not succeed and that these adventurists would be defeated and would end as criminals who were pushing the country in a terrible direction, a catastrophe. . . .

Their calculation that they would be supported and that the difficulties of the country would help them in carrying out their plans were not justified . . . because we have reached such a stage in the development of our society when it has only become clear that everything has got to change--the authority, the federation, the economy, our attitude, our relationship with property and the position of the individual.

And we are already a different society, where there is no place for those reactionary forces. And that is why this was the last adventurous attempt to try to exact revenge and stop this process and seize power. . . .

Government Shake-Up

I think further that without altering the direction we have taken, we should go further along it. . . . We need a major regrouping of political forces. We need a reliable governmental authority and a disposition of personnel in our forces in order to provide this support. We’ve already started, these last hours today (Friday) along the lines where there might be some danger. . . .

We’ve just had some contacts with (Yeltsin) and have worked out an approach to these questions. We’ve decided the question of the Ministry of Defense. We have confirmed a former commanding officer of the air force, (Yevgeny I.) Shaposhnikov. We have resolved the question of appointing the president of the KGB, (Vadim V.) Bakatin. We have confirmed the minister of the U.S.S.R., Comrade (Viktor) Barannikov. . . .

Now, we have to resolve some matters connected with the functioning of the U.S.S.R. Cabinet of Ministers . . . . I know of only two cases when people refused to carry out the orders of the plotters.

I had information of various types about the behavior of the minister of foreign affairs. This (Friday) morning I got information that at least either he was trying to maneuver or worse and I have now relieved him of his responsibilities. I’m talking about Alexander Bessmertnykh.

We have to pay particular attention to the formation of a Cabinet to take into consideration both the competence and devotion, the political position, adherence to democracy and attitude to the democratic transformations of the government and in particular of the governments of the republics. . . .

We have to work more rapidly for the Union Treaty. On the whole, the signing of the new Union Treaty, despite the criticisms of it from various sides, was ready and we even had a time determined.

And it was what incited these reactionary forces to undertake their putsch because they knew what the consequence would be.

We agreed that the opinions of the republics are particularly important, that we must be all together in this difficult time. We can criticize the slowness of the process. . . . But we need such a mechanism and we’re on the right path. If we were not able to achieve this, we would have been defenseless in this very dramatic moment.

Investigative Body Planned

. . . We must act in such a way as to distinguish ourselves from the plotters and demonstrate to the public that we have the courage to examine ourselves in all stringency. . . . We’re going to establish a unified investigation body and this body is going to investigate all of them under the guidances of two procurators . . . .

I think that in demonstrating this approach we must show our maturity and what we have already done. You will say that they raised their hand against us, wanted to turn us into meat, wanted to annihilate us. That is all entirely true and clear. And for that they must bear the most severe responsibility, those who raised their hands against the constitutional order, against the constitutional bodies, against the people.

There can be no deviations here. But it has to be done according to the law, and so that we all together will be balanced and responsible and so that nobody should be able to reproach us for carrying out a witch hunt. We know who started this, and we know what happened. . . .

We should take the most severe methods permitted by law against those who prepared this putsch, but we should not permit any kind of anti-Communist hysteria because that again would be used against the people.

I think that Russia took a firm and clear position and brought to everyone’s attention what was going on. Moscow altered the whole situation. . . .

After emerging from this crisis, the Russians must act together with all the other supreme soviets of the other republics and the peoples of the other republics. . . .

Today in particular, we have enormous opportunities for Russia’s unifying mission, for the Supreme Soviet of Russia, the government and the whole people of Russia. This mission we Russians have got to discharge.

Let us not simplify things. We still have the greatest difficulties ahead in the next couple of months. We’ve got to convince people that their lives are changing to their benefit.

I know what’s in your eyes and in your hearts. But the person standing before you is also a human being.

They (the plotters) panicked, and if they had more sense they wouldn’t have taken this course in the first place. They are people who lost their heads, lost all sense of responsibility. You can even call them traitors. Traitors!

Today . . . I have to say this is a very heavy drama for me. This was a very severe trial because they brought me an ultimatum. The chief of the president’s staff, (Valery) Boldin . . . a man I totally trusted. . . .

The greatest gift we could give to the conservatives or reactionaries, to anyone who wants to push the country backward, would be if the democrats lose their unity. There are differences and nuances among the different types of democrats, we know that. But the democratic forces have got to be unified. In particular, these latest events have called us to do this.

In the situation the country was in, the Russian leadership did not have any other way of acting and everything which it did . . . was compelled by circumstances and is legitimate and appropriate. (Amid applause at this statement, Yeltsin asked that Gorbachev’s last statement be put in the form of a decree.)

On Communist Party Ban

Socialism, as I understand it, is a type of conviction which people have and we are not the only ones who have it but it exists in other countries, not only today but at other times. And we have declared here freedom of conviction, freedom of belief . . . .

The task of driving socialism from the territory of the Soviet Union, nobody has the right to ask such a question or make such a demand. It’s another type of utopia. It’s the same kind of witch hunt that I’ve been talking about. Let the people find their own positions vis-a-vis the party or vis-a-vis any other parties . . . .

When you say that the party should be prohibited, I cannot agree with that because in this party there are people, there are currents of opinion which were indeed involved in this process of the (plotters’) Emergency Committee. They have to bear their responsibilities, legally and politically.

But I never will say that we have to drive out all your workers and peasants who happen to be Communists. No, no, no, I can’t go along with that.

I took a decision to this effect: The building of the party Central Committee has now been sealed.

I understand we (Russia and the rest of the Soviet Union) need each other, since we are all devoted to democratic transformation and we cannot permit any division between us. If we did this it would condemn our course to failure.

The whole point is that at this stage, we now directly realize what goals we have to pursue to reach a new life. We have to sign the Union Treaty, we have to have an anti-crisis program, a fuel program, a food program, finances have to be stabilized. . . . We must have a major regrouping of forces, a new legislative and executive which will take on themselves responsibility, which would have confidence to solve all these problems. . . .

I will take measures of utmost determination. Therefore, I am ready, morally and politically, for this. But I am going to insist to the end that if we divide our society, if we do not strive to have everybody unified around the democratic movement, then it’s going to be a fight in society. This is something we have to avoid. The people will not accept that.

Sometimes people say: “Let us have (Leonid I.) Brezhnev or (Josef) Stalin back--at least we’ll have order.” There are people who think that way. We have to show them we can solve things in a legal and democratic way. This is something I will insist on to the end. But this does not mean that I will not manifest determination.