The Struggle Against Drunkenness in the Joint State Political Directorate Departments in Siberia in the 1920s

On the materials of the history of Siberia, the article raises the problem of the struggle against drunkenness in OGPU (Joint State Political Directorate). This problem is important for the history of Russian special services, and is closely connected with the formation of mechanisms of personnel selection in state security services. The analysis of the historiography of the problem draws attention to the specifics of most sources about the chekists' drunkenness: those sources appeared as a result of the struggle against this immoral phenomenon in the chekist collectives. The article emphasizes that the problem of drunkenness of OGPU employees cannot be investigated in isolation from the history of Soviet society and the Communist Party deeply afflicted with this disease in the 1920s. Therefore, the drunkenness of OGPU officers in Siberia is examined in a broad historical context. To solve the problem, four general and specific (professional) factors, which led to a wide range of drunkenness among the chekists in the middle of the 1920s, were identified. The first was that drunkenness in Soviet society was widespread, it increased significantly when the state began selling vodka Rykovka in 1925. The second was that drunkenness was widespread among members of the ruling Communist Party, OGPU was part of it. The third was that Soviet security services were very young; personnel selection mechanisms and, accordingly, the hiring of morally stable employees started from scratch and required a long time. The fourth was that constant stresses on service and household disorder were mandatory attributes of OGPU employees' daily routine. Analysis of departmental documents devoted to the struggle against drunkenness shows that the peak of drunkenness in Siberian chekist collectives occurred in 1925-1926. Since that time, the struggle against drunkenness in OGPU acquired a systematic character. Heads of OGPU constantly took measures to limit and eradicate drunkenness, which undermined the reputation not only of state security services, but also of the ruling party in the eyes of Soviet citizens. In some OGPU units in Siberia, the persistence of this struggle largely depended on the attitude of the superior to his subordinates' drunkenness. However, this detail was of a very limited value. In general, the struggle against drunkenness in chekist collectives was the most important element of the system of staff selection built during the 1920s. The author comes to the conclusion that the struggle against drunkenness brought the expected results by the end of the 1920s. The scope of drunkenness in the chekist collectives in Siberia decreased significantly due to measures taken. However, certain incidents connected with abuse of alcohol by OGPU officers happened throughout the life of this organization. It was quite natural in the society where the abuse of alcohol by citizens was provoked by the state and where state security services took an active part in mass political repressions against citizens.

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