WOMEN IN THE SOVIET ARMY/WOMEN IN THE MVD

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600060401-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 16, 2011
• Sequence Number: 401
• Publication Date: October 28, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

CLASSIFICATION S3CRST
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY REPORT
INFORMATION REPORT
COUNTRY USSR/Germany (Soviet Zone)
SUBJECT Women in the Soviet Army/
women in the MVD
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LIS.ED BELOW)
50X1-HUM
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION I
50X1-HUM
1. The Soviet Goverms&nt'always thought of roam not only as mothers and as a work
force, but also as a potential reserve for the Soviet Arnq. As is veil known,
Awowomen's o of many thousands carriediout the din cult and sometimes impos-
aray sibie work of a front-line soldier on all the fronts. Women coaDatents were to
sible
er service, c an and iinaatl almost mite, from platoon
be found in almost all branches of
to gray. The greater percentage
tions and medical sections.
2. The first draft of vosen into the Soviet Army took place in 1941-1942. In this
draft, only voasn with middle aid bigber dmcatiom s!o were swears of the party
or the Komsomol were taken. In s3seun= des, vosen with only fire to seven
years education (bat not lass) wase ',ekes, and !arty states an w w.) a
factor. Not all girls were smtioes to change their civilian dresses for uniforms,
but they did so beesmes of military low.
3. Military service for the girl-soldler is very difficult, aneh more so than for
the son. for this reason, many girls tried to get out of the army under a
variety of pretests and reasons. Mamy girls, fobbing the advice of their
mothers, got prapiant, and any others sip!,," asserted. Approximately 20-29%
of the girls in the Asq were of this category. 9w aa3ority of girls, bowevei,
resigned themselves to the difficulties of military life and became excellent
soldiers.
4. The work of vomsi in the Away van of great variety. Yawn worked as radio opera-
tors, teleg More. scouts, drivers, ire, aviator., in artillery, with
machine gwis, etc. Almost all radar stations, YJOS Vats, (Air aeconomiscance,
Intelligence, Lialson), antiaircraft batteries, field post offices, censorship
offices, hospitals, bsdNaartere of =its sal cosmads were complemented 50-900
by vowen.
OIgImIgY1~Om
ABR N? I I I
CLASSIFICATION
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Women who had a good general education learned their specialized work very quickly and carried
out their work sometimes even better than men. By using women in rear installations and in
sectors of secondary importance, the Soviet Command was able to free an enormous army of men
for combat at the front.
6. In addition to the great usefulness of the girl-soldiers. they also did a great deal of harm
in the Army. Thousands of men-officers and women-soldiers committed suicide because of love
affairs, and there were thousands of illegitimate children. In spite of the very strict
orders against relations with girl-soldiers, there were few who were able to resist this
temptation. The presence of girls In the ranks of the Soviet Army disrupted it to a certain
extent, undermining morale and morals. The girl-soldiers acquired the worst sort or reputa-
tion; hundreds of ditties and sayings were composed, such as the following:
"She came as a maiden,
"Left as a mother;
"She came as a virgin,
"And left as a whore."
7. At the end of World War II, almost all the women were demobilized from the Soviet Army and
poured into another army - the army of labor. All the former women-soldiers are on record in
military commissariats and are treated as 2nd and 3rd category reserve.
8. after World War II, the number of women in the Soviet Army decreased great'r 1_ HIIM
who remain serve in medical, supply and liaison units. In medical units, the women serve as
doctors, surgeons' assistants, hospital crderlies, pharmacists, etc. In such capacities,
all the women have middle and higher medical educations and carry military ranks from
lieutenant to colonel inclusively. Woman medical personnel can be encountered in regiments
and divisions and right up to the medical directorate of the Soviet Army.
9. There are much fever woman working in supply units than in medical units, but on the other
hand, a great number of civilian women personnel are engaged in this type of work. Most of
these women have middle and higher education and are used in the capacity of chemists, and
laboratory assistants in the rear area directorates of the Army, military districts and in
the Chief Quartermaster Directorate. They are used in the organizational, planning, finance,
records, message center, procurement, supply and other sections. In these sections, women
work as typists, assistant section chiefs, carry on correspondence, maintain records, etc.
In liaison units, women work as telegraph operators, code clerks and radio operators, as
well as telephone operators. A wall number of women also vork in political sections of
armies, military districts, training establishments and supply depots. This latter category
usually includes women with party m mberabip, and technical adac tion. All wow ccmne^_tAA
with secret or personnel correspondence are given careful security screenings by security
organs and an controlled by Use.
10. The work of women in military organisations is in no may different from that of men; they
must know their work well and be able to repair any machine with which they work. In most
instances, women work under the direction of men and most complex or heavy work is done by
men. For example, where a total of 41 pessoms would be employed at a radar station, 32 would
be women and 12 would be man. Men would carry out the following talks: Chief and deputy
chief of the radar station, operators, linemen, signal center chiefs, electricians and
machinists. All other duties are carried out by woman. The same can be said of other units
where there is a large percentage of woman.
L1. It can be stated approximately that women are used in situations where the nature of the work
calls for a woman or wherre a vomea can rALme a man. The press a of woven in military
establishments and units creates certain technical difficulties and security problems. forever,
when the work is well organised, the discipline tight and control by security constant, these
dangers are held to a minimum. Noy officers and generals do not willingly take women under
their command, and coatis s to regard this ac roams rather than as soldiers tand heir are
spite of this resistance from the officers to the use of vomen In the Army,
constantly growing and fora a ^mch larger percentage nor than before World War II.
2. The use of women in the 13-M in Western Germany as well as in the UM stuld be touched
on eepecially. Too categories of women work in the.. organisations: Those with military rank
and those w thnut military rink. The majority of woman-otfieerv mars trarferrsd into terri-
torial MID nrgaot from MOME sad WD border its whore they were raznar neerous. irns}, vi
them received their prosttSel 4e4eriemes sad military soak dm tai World War II. As Is koown,
all punitive orgems bad to re-orranise an a military footing at the beginning of World War II.
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Since SMERSI was attached directly to the Army, all the people in it wore military uniform.
Women and girls were transfered into S) ! from territorial MVD organs or selected from
Party and Komsomol organizations. After the war, with the liquidation of Std;88E, most of
the women officers were again attached to the territorial organs of the KVD. In this con-
nection, many women officers were obliged to doff their uniform and put on civvies. lowever,
some women officers remain in uniform to this day. Most women employees in security organs
wear civilian clots for cover :k"_Toews, but in case of need, these civilians can again be
transformed into military personnel.
13. Women in MID organs work as typists and stenographers, maintain records end card files and
carry on business correspondence. There are no women investigators anywhere in MVD unite
from Moscow headquarters to rayon divisions. In wartime of course, anything was poe,ible,
and occasionally one would encounter women investigators.
14. The MVD-l 3 always sowed unbelisvesble terror and unceremoniously humiliated people. The
whole atmosphere of nocturnal arissts, the wailing of families of arrested persons, the
system of mutual distrust, denunciations, interrogations, and torture could not fail to
leave a trace on women. Women insecurity organs who have passed though the "glorious way"
of M0-MM are usually extremely taciturn, distrustful, unsociable, and some try to rid
themselves in general of this "trust" which their motherland has confided to them.
15. Military rank does not automatically place women officers higher than their civilian colleagues.
both categories receive almost the some salary seals (depending on the position they occupy)
and take advantage of the sass privileges created for the MID. Normally military rank for
woven in the MVD does not exceed captain and major. Most of the woman are lieutenants and
senior lieutenants.
16. Military censorship offices in the occupation forces in Germany are entirely staffed by women,
most of whom have the rank of lieutenant. Military censor work Is one of the most highly
classified and is intimately connected with the Special Section (Gsobiy otdsl) in Army head-
quarters. This secretiveness of military censorship can only be explained by a necessity
to insure that information on the illegal activities of the KID does not leak out. After
all, the Stalin Constitution does guarantee inviolability of the person and privacy of per-
sonal correspondence.
17. Even within the 1888, where censorship "does not exist", in every rayon and municipal post
office a functionary of the the MVD who has the right to examine all letters is employed.
Of course, these functionaries do not wear a uniform and few people know of their existence.
18. Women are also employed in prisons subordinate to investigative sections, deportation points
and in cons.. In such places they fulfill the duties of doctors, typists, interpreters, and
matrons. According to Soviet ].mss, tats dai4 regime and systerl of puaishasnt In c:.-.:active
labor camps carrot be accompanied by "Ical suffering or the debasing of human dignity.
ilamsgmrm of esspe have, of course, ashiewad definite results in eliminating "emesies" of the
Soviet state "on the basis of a combination, of labor and edmcatioa of prisoners and develop-
ing along with this the principals of socialist hananitasiiaiw". Shame mmtbods, and the
severe, inhesmn regimen in the oo!s bas resulted In the Math of thousands, while the sur-
vivorsbave been turned Into living corpses. In order to keep women from developing pity
eM sympatby vie -a-mmis the prisoners, they are eamstantl remiaisd of the great trust put
in then by the tarty end State, and of the fact that the amps and prisons are occupied by
enemies of the Soviet state who should reselve no indulgence, and so on. In spite of an
these warnings and arg...ts, a vo^ea'e sense of ethics does not alwys permit her to regard
calmly a yiag person without sy^galhiaimg sad trying to help. Such soft-hearted women are
usually transferred to o er tyro of work.
19. In KID organs thane is also another category of women who pitilessly beat and torture their
victor. such women we ummail, given the dirty, bloody tarn
20. pass prison maticae are usually civilians and work in Its i smu'e sections of prisons of
princes and eases. Um em arrested vs^ea Is brought in, the prison, matron undresses her,
comdscts a easeful search end takes sway swery"da? VW am to Use lest safety pin. The
metros hm^dle psisosr1 only within the eemo or prison. rs OW are brought out for
exercise period or for interrogation, they on aoe&aciet by OR geasdn.
21. She greater psrmintagm of ussen toeme]mtoem (bath with ant without military rank) are employed
In ?!D cry in the Soviet epeup!tiea fseeas in Gomm. lamsmmsh as the Nomura translators
as privy to all us @onee)$ at spsee"Go l sea srsetigstiw Verb, try comet usderso a very
carom sssaeity slsagwmsa. Stay as gwsgslly with operational and investi-
gmtive moVw olep.
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 22. Translators are present during arrests (in Eastern Germany), rendezvous with agent. and as .
interprtors interrogate arrest:es at preliminary investigations. Translators sign trenni-
tions of agent reports and, together with the investigator, sign all records of interrogations
and other documents which go into an investigation file. When a case is heard by a tribunal
or troika (three-sign commission) they translate the accusations, ex;aination of the accused
and read the sentence. Because in time the translators learn a great deal about secret work
of the MGD, they have to meet the name requirements of secretiveness and discipline as opera-
tional employees.
23. Each woman translator is constantly under control and surveillance and the authorities always
know where she in and what she does in her leisure. Nigher ranking officials of the MID do
not place too much trust in women; for this reason they have developed a system of denuncia-
tions and surveillance for them.
?4. During interrogations of particularly important prisoners, stenographers are present and take
down all the questions of the interrogators and answers of the prisoners. Stenographers are
used only in the higher levels of the MID (at the republic and all-Union level), and are rare-
ly used at the level of the oblast MVD directorates. The investigation division of the central
group in Eastern Germany had two stenographers.
'5. Many woman staff employees and agents of the MID are used for special assignments. These would
include observation over persons being approached, preparation for recruitment, recruitment,
and such jobs where women are necessary. Sometimes such women reside at safe houses as regular
tenants..
6. The personnel division of the ministries and directorates select woman for employment through
the special sections of various establishments and higher education institutions. The special
section carries out a security screening for political reliability and also studies and ob-
serves the prospective employee. After meticulous screening by the personnel division of the
MVD, the prospective woman employee is invited into the MID directorate and assigned to her job.
7. Women employees are required to sign a statement that they will never under any conditions
reveal to anyone the structure and methods of the security organ.
3. Eastern Germany and the so-called people's democracies are a sort of training school where
future MID employees undergo their practical training. The greater percentage of women trans-
lators are employed in Germany where there is a large, complex MID network which carries on
great activity in the fight against all elements hostile to the Soviet Won. For this reason
it is self-evident that Eastern Germany is a good training area for future employees of security
organs and it is so used. 50X1-HUM
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