X CONGRESS OF THE RCP(b)
INITIAL DRAFT RESOLUTION OF THE X CONGRESS OF THE RCP ON PARTY UNITY
1. The Congress draws the attention of all party members to the fact that unity and cohesion within its ranks—ensuring complete trust among party members and fostering genuinely harmonious, truly unified work that embodies the will of the proletariat’s vanguard—is especially imperative at this juncture, when a number of circumstances are intensifying instability among the petty-bourgeois strata of the country.
2. Even before the party-wide debate on trade unions had begun, certain signs of factionalism had already emerged within the Party—namely, the emergence of groups with distinct platforms, each striving to some extent to insulate themselves and establish their own internal discipline. Such tendencies toward factionalism were clearly evident, for instance, at one of the Moscow Party Conferences (held in November 1920) and at the Kharkov Conference,38 where they manifested themselves both among the so‑called “workers’ opposition” and, to a degree, among the group known as the “democratic centralists.”39
It is essential that all conscious workers fully recognize the harm—and the utter inadmissibility—of any form of factionalism. For even if the representatives of individual groups sincerely desire to safeguard party unity, in practice such efforts inevitably lead to a weakening of concerted action and provide renewed opportunities for those enemies of the Party who seek to attach themselves to the government party, exploiting divisions to further their counterrevolutionary aims.

The enemies of the proletariat have demonstrated, perhaps most vividly, their capacity to exploit every deviation from a strictly adhered-to communist line through the example of the Kronstadt Rebellion. At that time, the bourgeois counterrevolution and White Guard forces across the globe immediately revealed their willingness to embrace even the slogans of the Soviet system—so long as it meant overthrowing the dictatorship of the proletariat in Russia. Meanwhile, the Socialist-Revolutionaries and, more broadly, the entire bourgeois counterrevolution used the slogans of revolt in Kronstadt, ostensibly in the name of Soviet power against the Soviet government of Russia. These facts amply demonstrate that the White Guards not only strive to—but also know how to—masquerade as communists, even as the most radical of communists, all in order to weaken and ultimately topple the bulwark of proletarian revolution in Russia. The Menshevik leaflets circulating in Petrograd on the eve of the Kronstadt Rebellion likewise reveal how the Mensheviks exploited the divergences and nascent tendencies toward factionalism within the RCP, effectively encouraging and supporting the Kronstadt rebels, the Socialist-Revolutionaries, and the White Guards—while outwardly presenting themselves as opponents of rebellion and staunch defenders of Soviet power, albeit with only minor, supposedly corrective amendments.
3. Propaganda on this issue must, on the one hand, consist of a thorough explanation of the harm and dangers of factionalism from the standpoint of party unity and the realization of the unified will of the proletariat’s vanguard—as the fundamental condition for the success of the dictatorship of the proletariat—and, on the other hand, of an elucidation of the distinctive, newly emerging tactical maneuvers employed by the enemies of Soviet power. Having become convinced of the futility of counterrevolution under the openly White Guard banner, these enemies are now redoubling their efforts to seize upon divisions within the RCP and to advance the counterrevolution in one way or another by transferring power to a political faction whose outward appearance most closely resembles recognition of Soviet power.
Propaganda must also draw upon the lessons of previous revolutions, when the counterrevolution sought to support the most radical revolutionary

X CONGRESS OF THE RCP(b)
opposition within the Party itself—aiming to undermine and overthrow the revolutionary dictatorship, thereby opening the way for the eventual, complete triumph of the counterrevolution, of capitalists and landowners.
4. In the practical struggle against factionalism, it is essential that every Party organization rigorously ensure that no factional activities whatsoever are permitted. While criticism of the Party’s shortcomings remains absolutely necessary, it must be conducted in such a way that every concrete proposal, presented in the clearest possible terms, is forwarded without delay—without unnecessary procrastination—to the deliberative bodies of the Party: the local committees, the regional committees, and the Central Committee itself. Moreover, anyone offering criticism must, in addition to carefully considering the Party’s position amid the hostile forces arrayed against it, also test the practical correction of the Party’s errors—or those of individual Party members—in their own direct participation in Soviet and Party work.
Any analysis of the Party’s overall line, or any assessment of its practical experience; any examination of the implementation of its resolutions, or study of methods for correcting errors—such matters must never be directed toward preliminary discussions among groups forming around some “platform,” or the like; rather, they must be channeled exclusively toward open, full-scale discussion among all Party members. To this end, the Congress mandates the more frequent publication of the “Discussion Leaflet”40 and of special collections, tirelessly striving to ensure that criticism is grounded in the substance of the matter itself—not adopting forms that might inadvertently aid the class enemies of the proletariat.
5. While fundamentally rejecting the tendency toward syndicalism and anarchism—which is the subject of a separate resolution41—and while entrusting the Central Committee with the task of completely eradicating all forms of factionalism, the Congress nevertheless affirms that, on questions that have attracted particular attention—for example, the issues raised by the so‑called “workers’ opposition”—the Party must continue to purge itself of non-proletarian and unreliable elements; to combat bureaucratism; to foster the development of democracy; and

The self‑activity of workers and the like—whatever business proposals may arise—must be examined with the utmost care and tested through practical application. The Party must recognize that, when it comes to these issues, we have not yet implemented all the necessary measures, encountering a wide array of diverse obstacles; and while the Party relentlessly rejects what purports to be non‑professional or factional criticism, it will tirelessly continue, experimenting with new approaches, to combat bureaucracy by every available means, to promote greater democracy and self‑activity, and to expose, unmask, and expel those who have attached themselves to the Party—and so on.
6. Accordingly, the Congress declares all groups formed on any platform whatsoever (such as the “Workers’ Opposition,” the “Democratic Centralists,” and the like) to be dissolved and orders their immediate dissolution without exception. Failure to comply with this resolution of the Congress shall entail, without fail and immediately, expulsion from the Party.
7. In order to enforce strict discipline within the Party and throughout Soviet work, and to achieve the greatest possible unity while eliminating all forms of factionalism, the Congress empowers the Central Committee to apply, in cases of disciplinary violations or of the resurgence or toleration of factionalism, all Party sanctions up to and including expulsion from the Party; and, with regard to members of the Central Committee, to reclassify them as candidates—or, as an ultimate measure, to expel them from the Party. The condition for applying this extreme measure to members of the Central Committee, to candidates for the Central Committee, and to members of the Control Commission shall be the convocation of a plenary session of the Central Committee, with all candidates for the Central Committee and all members of the Control Commission invited to attend. If such a general assembly of the Party’s most responsible leaders, by a two‑thirds majority vote, deems it necessary to reclassify a member of the Central Committee as a candidate or to expel them from the Party, then this measure must be carried out without delay. 42
First published in 1923 in issue No. 22 of the journal “Prozhektor.”

Printed from manuscript.