Eleventh All-Russian Conference of the Russian Communist Party

held on Dec 19–22, 1921, in Moscow and attended by 125 delegates with a casting vote and 116 with a consultative vote.

The agenda included a report on the current tasks of the party in restoring the economy (L. B. Kamenev), a report on industry (P. A. Bogdanov), a report on agriculture (N. Osinskii [V. V. Obolenskii] and D. Z. Manuil’skii), and a report on cooperation (L. M. Khinchuk, S. P. Sereda). Also on the agenda were a report on the preliminary results of the party purge (P. A. Zalutskii) and a report on problems of the Communist International (G. E. Zinoviev, L. D. Trotsky). Because he was ill, V. I. Lenin was unable to attend the conference, and the overall political report of the Central Committee, which he was to have delivered, was removed from the agenda.

The Eleventh All-Russian Conference of the RCP(B) reaffirmed the necessity of the transition to the New Economic Policy (NEP) at that time and pointed out that in the further implementation of NEP the party should take into consideration the new economic situation—that is, the formation of a domestic market and the development of monetary exchange. The resolution emphasized that the basic economic task of the RCP(B) at that time was to guide the economic work of Soviet power, with a view to taking control of the economic regulation of the market and of monetary exchange. The conference noted the need for a rapid upswing in industry and in agriculture, as well as the need to establish a firm monetary system and a balanced state budget and to develop all forms of cooperation. Furthermore, the conference pointed out the importance of putting into effect profit and loss accounting (khoziaistvennyi raschet), reducing the size of the state apparatus, promoting independence among state enterprises, and increasing the workers’ direct interest in the results of work and labor productivity.

The conference emphasized that the trade unions should participate actively in the reconstruction of industry. Some small and medium state enterprises could be leased to private enterpreneurs and cooperatives, under the absolute condition that the state should strengthen its hold over the key branches of the economy (major industry, credit, and the foreign trade monopoly).

The Eleventh All-Russian Conference of the RCP(B) discussed the results of the party purge of 1921. In drawing up the resolution On Strengthening the Party, in View of the Experience of the Verification of Its Members, the conference took into consideration Lenin’s comments in his letter to Politburo members, concerning stricter conditions for the admission of new party members, especially nonworkers. The final draft of the resolution was worked out by the secretaries of oblast committees, oblast bureaus, and provincial committees of the RCP(B) at a meeting held after the conference. The resolution was approved by the Central Committee and subsequently, by the Eleventh Party Congress.

The conference noted the special importance of strictly observing intraparty democracy, of raising the level of understanding of theory among Communists, of improving the work of the party machinery, and of increasing the active participation of the masses of party members. It set the goals of strengthening Soviet legality and of restricting the authority and range of activity of the All-Russian Cheka, which was to be reorganized. The conference declared itself in agreement with the theses of the Communist International on the implementation of the tactics of a united workers’ front.