Polish Prisoners of War - Documents (II)

Instructions for the Organization of an Administration of Prisoners of War under the NKVD and establishment of Prisoner of War camps.

Secret

Order of the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs Union SSR

19 September 1939
No. 0308
Moscow

1. To organize an Administration of Prisoners of War NKVD based upon the Regulations concerning Prisoners of War.

2. To approve the attached staff establishment of the Administration of Prisoners of War.

3. To appoint as Chief of the Administration of Prisoners of War Major com[rade]. Soprunenko P. K. and as Commissar of the Administration - Regimental Commissar com. Nekhoroshev.
To appoint as deputies to the Chief of Administration:
1) Lieutenant of State Security com. Khokhlov I. I.
2) For security - Major com. Polukhin I. M.

4. To organize the following 8 camps for the confinement of prisoners of war:
1) Ostashkov - on the premises of the former NKVD children's colony on the island of Stolobnoe [Stol'bny] (on lake Seliger), Kalinin oblast, for 7 thous. persons with an increase to 10 thous. persons by 1 October.
2) Yukhnov - on the premises of the "Pavlishchev Bor" sanatorium at Babynino, Western railway, for 5 thous. persons with an increase to 10 thous. by 1. X [October].
3) Kozel'sk - on the premises of the Gorky rest home at Kozel'sk station, Dzerzhinsky railway, for 7 thous. persons with an increase to 10 thous. persons by 1. X.
4) Putivl - on the premises of the former Sofronievskii monastery and peatbog at Tetkino station, Moscow-Kiev railway, for 7 thous. persons with an increase to 10 thous. persons by 25. X.
5) Kozel'shchansk - on the premises of the former Kozel'shchanskii monastery near Kozel'shchina station, Southern railway, for 5 thous. persons with with an increase to 10 thous. persons by 1. X.
6) Starobel'sk - on the premises of the former Starobel'skii monastery near Starobel'sk station, Moscow-Donbass railway, for 5 thous. persons with an increase to 8 thous. persons by 1. X.
7) Yuzha - on the premises of the NKVD children's labour camp at Vyaz'niki station, Northern railway, for 3 thous. persons with an increase to 6 thous. persons by 5. X.
8. Oransk - on the premises of the former Oranskii monastery at Znamenka station, Moscow-Kazan railway, for 2 thous. persons with an increase to 4 thous. persons by 1. X.

5. To approve the attached model for the staff establishment of the camps for prisoners of war, instructions concerning work activity of the camps and the daily routine for the camps for prisoners of war.

6. To approve as commanders and commissars of the camps:
1) Ostashkov -
Major com. Borisovets P. F. - as commander
Senior politruk [political instructor] Yaroslav I. V. - as commissar
2) Yukhnov -
Major com. Kadyshev F. I. - as commander
Battalion Commissar Gil'chonok Ye. Sh. - as commissar
3) Kozel'sk -
Major com. Korolev V. N. - as commander
Senior Politruk Alekseev M. M. - as commissar
4) Putivl -
Major com. Smirnov N. N. - as commander
Battalion Commissar Vasyagin S. P. - as commissar
5) Kozel'shchansk -
Senior Lieutenant s/s com. Sokolov V. L. - as commander
Captain com. Akulenko F. S. - as commissar
6) Starobel'sk -
Captain s/s [state security] com. Berezhkov - as commander
Battalion Commissar com. Kirshin M. M. - as commissar
7) Yuzha -
Junior Lieutenant s/s com. Kiy A. F. - as commander
Senior Lieutenant s/s com. Korotkov G. V. - as commissar
8) Oransk -
Senior Lieutenant s/s Sorokin - as commander
Lieutenant s/s Kuznetsov V. D. - as commissar

7. Operational security and maintenance of prisoners of war in the camps to be placed upon the Special Section of the NKVD USSR and its local organs. Com. com. [Comrades] Kobulov (convening), Belyanov, Soprunenko and Kornienko are to work out the necessary instructions for the district Special Sections over a two day period and present them to me for approval.

8. To approve the pay scale for commanders and commissars of the camps: Ostashkov, Yukhnov, Kozel'sk, Putivl, Kozel'shchansk and Starobel'sk at a rate of 2400 rub.; Yuzha and Oransk - at a rate of 2000 rub.
To approve the pay scale for officials in the Administration and in the camps for prisoners of war at the level currently in effect in GULAG and in the camps of GULAG.

9. To entrust to GULAG NKVD the determination of necessities and the timely delivery of stocks of food, clothing and sanitary supplies.
Personal responsibility for the provisioning of supplies for the prisoner of war camps is to be placed upon my deputy, Komdiv [Divisional Commander] com. Chernyshov.

10. Financial administration regarding the affairs of the prisoners of war as well as the prisoner of war camps is to be placed on the Central Financial Planning Department NKVD.
Personal responsibility for the financial administration of the camps is to be placed upon the Chief TsFPO [Central Financial Planning Department] NKVD USSR, Divisional Quartermaster com. Berenzon.

11. My deputy, Komdiv com. Maslennikov, is to ensure the security arrangements for the collection points, the prisoner of war convoys upon transfer from the collection points to the camps - in accordance with the orders of the Chief of the Administration for Prisoners of War, and the sucurity arrangements in the prisoner of war camps - for which the necessary number of cavalry detachments are to be assigned according to the attached list of stationed troops.

12. Assigned: Head UNKVD Kalinin region - Colonel com. Tokarev, Head UNKVD Smolensk region - Captain of State Security com. Kuprianov, Head UNKVD Chernigov district - Captain of State Security com. Dmitriev, Head UNKVD Pol'tava district - Captain of State Security com. Bukhtiarov, Head UNKVD Voroshilograd district - Captain of State Security com. Cherevatenko, Head UNKVD Ivanovsk district - Captain of State Security com. Blinov and Head UNKVD Gor'kov distrcit - Major of State Security com. Fedyukov together with the camp commanders and commissars:
1) To ensure, in accordance with the deployment plan of the Department of Correctional Labour Colonies, the development of the prisoner of war camps organized according to point 7 of the attached order;
2) To bring the staff establishments of the camps up to full strength according to the approved standard in the attached order and in accordance with the present deployment plan of the OITK [Department of Correctional Labour Colonies] NKVD;
3) To dispatch the following for a period of 10 days in order to assist in the development of the prisoner of war camps:
To Kalinin district Dep. Chief department GULAG - com. Polyakov.
To Smolensk district Dep. Chief GULAG - Brigade Commissar com. Vasil'evna.
To Ivanovsk District Chief of OTK NKVD USSR - senior lieutenant s/s com. Yatskevich.
To Gor'kov District Dep. Chief of Inspection GULAG - Lieutenant s/s com. Lobudev.
My Deputy Commissar of State Security III Rank com. Kruglov assigned for a 2 day period to bring the staff establishment of the Administration of Prisoners of War NKVD USSR up to full strength.

People's Commissar of Internal Affairs USSR
Commissar of State Security I Rank
L. Beria

Original.

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Regulations concerning the Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War NKVD USSR.

Approved.
People's Commissar Internal Affairs
Commissar State Security I rank
(L. Beria)
XX September 1939.

Regulations concerning the Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War NKVD Union SSR

I. General Regulations
1. The Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War forms part of the structure of the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs USSR with the rights of self-management.
The Chief of Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War is subordinate to the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs.
Direct management of the Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War is exercised by the Deputy People's Commissar of Internal Affairs, Komdiv com. Chernyshov.

2. The Chief of the Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War exercises management over the Administration and directs its activities in accordance with the decisions of the Government USSR regarding war prisoners, present instructions by the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs Union SSR and in accordance with the present regulations.

3. The Administration of the Affairs of Prisoners of War NKVD USSR directly supervises the organization of camps, accommodation, reception, recording, maintenance, and the labour employment prisoners of war. It devises the regulations concerning the collection centers and prisoner of war camps, and issues instructions and orders regarding the maintenance and internal order of the camps.

4. The Chief of Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War NKVD USSR is responsible for the condition of the collection centers and the camps. It supervises all work of the Administration and its peripheral organs on a daily basis.

II. Administrative tasks
The following tasks are assigned to the Administration of Affairs of Prisoners of War:
1) The organization of collection centers for war prisoners, transits camps and permanent camps for war prisoners in agreement with the General Staff of the RKKA;
2) Receiving prisoners of war from the field command of the RKKA;
3) The timely evacuation of prisoners of war from the collection centers to the camps;
4) Establishing internal order in the collection centers and in the camps, rules and regulations concerning prisoners of war;
5) Developing standards for the provisioning of prisoners of war: living accommodations, clothing allowance, rations and other items of primary necessity and the organization of the sequence of supplies according to fixed conditions;
6) Determining the monetary allowance for prisoners of war during their time in the camps;
7) Establishing rules concerning monetary sums prisoners are allowed to hold while in the camps;
8) Establishing rules concerning the rate and range of foodstuffs allowed in parcels to prisoners of war;

9) Organizing the labour use of prisoners of war in industrial and agricultural endeavours of the Union SSR, according to the "Regulations on Prisoners of War";

10) Supervising political and cultural education activities among prisoners of war and developing corresponding instructions;
11) Issuing rules concerning the imposition of order and the serving of disciplinary punishment in accordance with the disciplinary and guard regulations of the RKKA..

Chief of Administration of Affairs
of Prisoners of War NKVD USSR
(Soprunenko)