This alteration of the exhibit was one of the few cases where group pressure was able to change the policy of the delegation for, as Warshaw points out, the U. S. group worked in "an internal atmosphere of fear and suspicion. "The suspicion and mistrust within the group," he states, "worked against democracy and fair play."

There were definite majority attempts to silence dissenting delegates. First example of this "pressure," as Warshaw calls it, came after the opening speech of the delegation. The speech had been dutifully reported in the Hungarian Press, picked up by the U. S. embassy and included in its daily press summaries. These in turn were given to the U. S. delegation for distribution to its members. This was a regular service of the Embassy; it sent the Steering Committee of the delegation 150 such press summaries every day.

On August 23, in a meeting of the entire delegation, Warshaw accused the Steering Committee of withholding the U. S. press summaries. (Another delegate took notes on this meeting: Warshaw now has them in his possession. A third delegate has confirmed their accuracy.) The girl who had made the opening speech admitted that the summaries were not being distributed, and stated that "we are not here as agents of the State Dept., and we are not here to disseminate their propaganda." Shevstated further that the release was "slanted and mistranslated."

According to the notes on the meetings, 'Warshaw cut in and stated that the Steering Committee was wrong in claiming mistranslating. He said that he would like to read the translation along with the official Festival copy and compare them. The chairman said that the committee shouldn't discuss specific differences but principals.' Someone also said 'you have to see the incident in its total context.'

Warshaw Charges

Members of the Steering Committee, as reported in the notes on the meeting, claimed that the translations were radically different, and that anyone who would bring up details like these was trying to "sabotage ... cannot really be here for peace." Warshaw moved that the Steering Committee be censured for "Falsifying facts, distorting facts, suppressing facts, and coveying false impressions to the delegations. The motion was defeated, 13 for, 107 against, 10 abstentions.

Next, the notes said, "A girl arose, and with deep emotion, spoke slowly, forthrightly, and earnestly. 'I work in a trade union. We try to keep people together. There are over 200 of us and we can't stand for any wishy-washy business. People are either for or against. We get rid of those who are against. Here there are a small group of vicious people trying to disrupt our delegation. There is another small group that is native. We came here for peace. Let's make decisions. There are too many disruptive points. Let's prevent it from recurring. Let's slap these people down--verbally, I mean. I'm fighting for peace ... I'm fighting for all of you.' Motion of censure withdrawn. Discussion closed."

Less than an hour after this meeting, one of the girls who had voted for the motion of censure found her passport ripped apart. She had returned to her room after going out for a cup of coffee, and discovered her passport lying outside of her suitcase. The pages stamped with her Hungarian Visa, her U. S. Military Permit, and her identification photograph and been torn out.

The girl rushed downstairs and tried to phone the embassy. She was prevented from doing so the said in a public statement of which Warshaw has a copy, "by the interpreter on duty, who forcibly held the phone. I threatened to go outside and scream for help, and he then permitted me to use the phone," Embassy officials rushed over and emphasized that this was a criminal act; the girl wired the organization she was representing and they ordered her to by home from Budapest immediately.

Before the girl left, the delegation held a meeting at which the incident was discussed. She stated at this time, that "I have continually been in the minority of this delegation. After the meeting yesterday in which I voiced sentiment against those of the majority I observed my suitcase and passport in good condition. Twenty minutes later my suitcase was opened and the passport tern up."

Discussion

Warshaw's notes are marked "discussion" at this point. One delegate arose and said he believed "it must have been a member of the minority who had done it, because the incident provided an excuse to make an official statement and call unfavorable attention to the delegation." Warshaw parenthetically remarks that the girl promised without qualification that the required statement would be given only to the State Department. The notes continue "other people expressed the view that the incident was provoked for the purpose of giving the embassy a pretext for entering the delegation and investigating its activities. Others claimed the incident was caused in order generally to disrupt the delegation and create dissension. The Steering Committee finally moved that 'We condemn this action as a criminal act. We regard it as part of a plot, and if we discover the perpetrator we shall expel him. This is but another crude attempt to disrupt the unity of this delegation and out work for peace, but we shall not be disrupted. We shall go on in militant solidarity." The motion was approved, 94, 5 and 5.

The leader of the Committee explained to Warshaw what he had meant by "plot." He told Warshaw that the incident was probably done by a "disruptive element, to place the blame on the majority group of the delegation. This same thing is systematically done at all congresses." According to warshaw the leader spoke in terms of a "master plot." "Each piece is part of the puzzle, and must be made to fit in," said the leader.

There were similar incidents of intense majority "pressure tactics" against the minority. One meeting was called in which the Steering Committee demanded the power to investigate "rumor-mongers." Warshaw notes that rumors were circulating throughout Budapest when the Americans arrived; rumors of secret police raids, of Russian troop movements, of the torture of political prisoners of widespread poverty in Hungary. The meeting was called by the chairman of the Steering Committee to discuss the fact that "these rumors are dangerous to the delegation."

The meeting was held in a park, and to "preserve security," the speaker asked for "last initials only" and shooed away passers-by. The speaker stated, according to Warshaw's notes, that the "rumors are being spread to defame the present regime ... to disrupt the delegation." He went on to say that a girl within the group had admitted the night before that she was guilty of spreading rumors.