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The day the police state triumphed in Russia

Sniegon, Tomas LU (2025) In The Barents Observer
Abstract (Swedish)
December 20th is marked in the Russian calendar as a day dedicated to the workers of the "security organs". However, these are not just any "organs" that have security in their job description. In this case, the term “security organs” emphasises exclusively the importance of foundation of political police in the emerging Soviet Russia.
On December 20, 1917, the Russian Communist Party established its own security and intelligence agency, the VChK, an "extraordinary commission" (All-Russian Extraordinary Commission against Counter-Revolution and Sabotage) to promote its political interests and suppress the opposition in the country. This commission, known by its Russian abbreviation as the "Cheka", instead of being an extraordinary one,... (More)
December 20th is marked in the Russian calendar as a day dedicated to the workers of the "security organs". However, these are not just any "organs" that have security in their job description. In this case, the term “security organs” emphasises exclusively the importance of foundation of political police in the emerging Soviet Russia.
On December 20, 1917, the Russian Communist Party established its own security and intelligence agency, the VChK, an "extraordinary commission" (All-Russian Extraordinary Commission against Counter-Revolution and Sabotage) to promote its political interests and suppress the opposition in the country. This commission, known by its Russian abbreviation as the "Cheka", instead of being an extraordinary one, became a permanent repressive force, and its brutality gave rise to the infamous term "Chekism". The "organs" were later reformed several times, and the "Cheka" evolved into, for example, the NKVD, the MGB, and the KGB. Despite the tragic signs of this Soviet legacy, Russian state security workers still proudly call themselves “Chekists.”
The Bolshevik Revolution, which took place a month and a half before the formation of the “Cheka,” marked the emergence of the first globally significant state based on the dictatorship of a single political party and a single permitted political ideology. Other similar one-party dictatorships—Italian fascism and German Nazism—followed shortly thereafter. But in terms of duration, they were not nearly as successful as Soviet communism. Nor did their political security forces develop anything that could be described by such a specific term as Chekism (for example, a specific “Gestapism”). (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to specialist publication or newspaper
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Soviet History, KGB, Soviet Reoressions, Communist terror, Russian history
categories
Popular Science
in
The Barents Observer
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
cd359d2c-12f5-42ca-919b-74899cc01e59
alternative location
https://www.thebarentsobserver.com/opinion/the-day-the-police-state-triumphed-in-russia/442300
date added to LUP
2025-12-31 01:11:37
date last changed
2026-01-21 13:52:03
@article{cd359d2c-12f5-42ca-919b-74899cc01e59,
  abstract     = {{December 20th is marked in the Russian calendar as a day dedicated to the workers of the "security organs". However, these are not just any "organs" that have security in their job description. In this case, the term “security organs” emphasises exclusively the importance of foundation of political police in the emerging Soviet Russia.<br/>On December 20, 1917, the Russian Communist Party established its own security and intelligence agency, the VChK, an "extraordinary commission" (All-Russian Extraordinary Commission against Counter-Revolution and Sabotage) to promote its political interests and suppress the opposition in the country. This commission, known by its Russian abbreviation as the "Cheka", instead of being an extraordinary one, became a permanent repressive force, and its brutality gave rise to the infamous term "Chekism". The "organs" were later reformed several times, and the "Cheka" evolved into, for example, the NKVD, the MGB, and the KGB. Despite the tragic signs of this Soviet legacy, Russian state security workers still proudly call themselves “Chekists.”<br/>The Bolshevik Revolution, which took place a month and a half before the formation of the “Cheka,” marked the emergence of the first globally significant state based on the dictatorship of a single political party and a single permitted political ideology. Other similar one-party dictatorships—Italian fascism and German Nazism—followed shortly thereafter. But in terms of duration, they were not nearly as successful as Soviet communism. Nor did their political security forces develop anything that could be described by such a specific term as Chekism (for example, a specific “Gestapism”).}},
  author       = {{Sniegon, Tomas}},
  keywords     = {{Soviet History; KGB; Soviet Reoressions; Communist terror; Russian history}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{12}},
  series       = {{The Barents Observer}},
  title        = {{The day the police state triumphed in Russia}},
  url          = {{https://www.thebarentsobserver.com/opinion/the-day-the-police-state-triumphed-in-russia/442300}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}