The Fifth (All-Russian) Conference of the R.S.D.L.P.[1]
December 21–27, 1908 (January 3–9, 1909)
Contents
[1] The Fifth (All-Russian) Conference of the R.S.D.L.P. was held in Paris on December 21-27, 1908 (January 3-9, 1909) and was attend ed by delegates from such major Party organisations as those of St. Petersburg, the Urals, the Caucasus, Moscow and the Central Industrial Region, as well as from the Polish Social-Democratic Party and the Bund. There were sixteen voting delegates, of whom 5 were Bolsheviks, 3 Mensheviks, 5 Polish Social-Democrats and 3 Bundists. The Central Committee of the R.S.D.L.P. was represented by Lenin.
The Conference discussed the following questions: (1) The reports of the C. C. of the R.S.D.L.P., of the C. C. of the Polish Social-Democratic Party, of the C. C. of the Bund, and of the R.S.D.L.P. organisations of St. Petersburg, Moscow, the Central Industrial Region, the Urals and the Caucasus; (2) The present political situation and the tasks of the Party; (3) The Social-Democratic group in the Duma; (4) Questions of organisation in connection with the changed political conditions; (5) Affiliation in the local areas with the non-Russian organisations; (6) Affairs abroad; and Miscellanea.
Lenin made a report at the Conference “On the Present Moment and the Tasks of the Party” and speeches on the Duma group, on the organisational and other questions. The Bolsheviks at the Conference waged a struggle against two forms of opportunism with in the Party, namely, "against the liquidators, the direct opponents of the Party, and against the otzovists, the disguised enemies of the Party”. On Lenin’s motion the Conference condemned liquidationism and called upon all Party organisations to resolutely combat attempts to liquidate the Party. The Conference is dealt with also in Lenin’s article “On the Road” (see pp. 345-55 of this volume).