Original subtitles

According to article 127.3 of the Soviet Constitution,

and following demands of the people to prevent a national disaster,

a state of emergency is declared from 4 p.m. Moscow time on August 19.

THE EVENT

Address to the Soviet People:

Compatriots! Citizens of the USSR!

In this dark and critical hour for our fatherland and our people,

we appeal to you.

Our great country is in mortal danger.

Reforms, started by Mikhail Gorbachev,

in order to boost development,

have failed for a number of reasons...

In several regions of the country a state of emergency is declared.

A state of emergency is declared in Moscow.

The military obey orders they control major streets and central squares,

Television centre, news agencies and, of course, the Kremlin.

The city lives a normal life.

So far, the only casualties of the military presence

are drivers, avoiding traffic jams, and road surfaces, damaged by tanks.

Let's hope that there will be no more damage done.

All city enterprises and offices are open for business as usual.

Suppose there's a conflict. Do you have the right to shoot?

Yes. We can use weapons if we are under attack, or

in cases of civil disobedience... in cases of armed resistance.

By the state of emergency law?

In spite of all that, the streets are calm,

and only such constructions in the centre of the city,

and military vehicles at strategic points

remind us of the difficult situation in our Republic.

Appeal to the Russian citizens: during the night of August 19, 1991

The President of the country has been removed from power.

No matter what reasons are given to justify such actions,

we are facing a reactionary, anti-constitutional coup d'état.

In spite of all the hardships our people have to endure,

the process of democratization has become irreversible.

The peoples of Russia are becoming masters of their fate,

resisting anti-constitutional bodies, and the party establishment...

Information has been circulated that he might be dead...

Quiet! Quiet!

Might be dead... Gorbachev.

Reuters report says it hasn't been confirmed.

What did he die of?

Don't know. They say Gorbachev is dead.

Is Yeltsin still alive?

It's up to the people. You see? The people have the right to decide.

They choose their destiny. What do you think?

Gorbachev is not Jesus Christ.

It's not fair, what they've done to our people!

Let's bring back private property, as it was before 1917.

Or there will be a collapse. Nothing good will come of it.

Our compatriots will resist the lawless dictatorship

of the shameless coup leaders.

Thank you!

You can get it there... all the remaining bits...

If you were in my place would you...

Guys, I've just finished... Let's go - that house and the hotel...

The people must know their executioners.

Are you serious?

I'm serious. You think it's a masquerade?

If you think it's a masquerade, I have nothing to say to you.

There was a battalion, ten tanks, you know...

The situation is the same everywhere. Nobody understands anything.

Decrees are published. Then, immediately after, new decrees

overrule the previous ones. And this goes on and on...

The Ministry of Communications suspended its work.

Friends! War is for enslaved nations! Free nations do not fight!

A free nation is a happy nation!

Friends! We shall be free when we're rid of the communist plague!

We shan't need to fight any more!

Down with the Communist party! Down with the Communist party!

Nobody, not even soldiers, wants to defend cowards!

We need to show them that we are human beings.

That we are citizens of Russia!

Citizens need to be defended but not cowards!

Citizens fight for freedom not for a slice of sausage!

Only for freedom! Gentlemen, behave like citizens!

In fact, the Soviet power has been demolished.

Such bastards should be put on display! For other people to see!

You are a bastard!

Me? A bastard? Yes, I am! My pockets are full of dollars.

We expect an offensive from KGB special forces...

TOGETHER WE DEFEND LENSOVET!

FASCISM WILL NOT PREVAIL

NO TO DICTATORSHIP

There's no panic. All is calm.

Do you believe me or not?

Yeltsin trusts me, and I trust him.

Is Gorbachev still alive?

There is a fascist committee set up in Moscow!

Don't! Don't say that. Be calm!

Behave yourself!

Why should they listen to you? It's their strike!

It's their barricades! It's their LENSOVET!

Comrades, I have a request. Clear a passage for the residents.

There is a passage!

There's a passage for people and a passage for vehicles.

Good. It's okay then.

Behave yourselves.

We don't need provocations.

What do you mean?

TOGETHER WE DEFEND LENSOVET! FASCISM WILL NOT PREVAIL!

Gorbachev has to address the people.

We demand an emergency session of the Congress of People's Deputies!

We're not going to obey...

Enough, enough. Stop.

Don't, don't. Leave it.

What's up? What are you doing?

Stop!

ALL ON STRIKE

These tanks are here to defend the communist system.

As long as communists are in power there won't be any order.

There will only be dictatorship. That's it. Nothing else.

He wants the right thing!

Do you understand? He is not allowed to do much.

Uncle Boris, lazy swine - good for nothing, stinks of wine.

Empty-headed, drunken leach - always falling off a bridge.

WE SHALL NOT GIVE UP LENSOVET!

NO TO DICTATORSHIP

As far as I know, a priest is not allowed to bear arms.

What do you propose?

Shoot the enemies. But without hatred.

Remember, the main thing - shoot them, but without hatred.

Do not let hatred into your hearts do not let fear into your hearts.

What's your weapon? Holy Scriptures?

My weapon is the Holy Grail.

And let your Guardian Angels be with you, my dears.

YANAEV, YAZOV, PUGO AND PAVLOV - TO JUSTICE!

Compatriot. A simple word. But it means a lot.

We belong to this country. To its long, troubled history.

I'll just say a couple of words! Thank you all for being what you are,

thank you for what you were and for what you will be!

Together, holding hands, we shall not perish alone!

Thank you!

ALL ON STRIKE

First one was in charge of crown And a boss of mighty army:

Could not tell a gun from pumpkin,

And confused a tank with a monkey.

Second guy was full of glory

He was bald and rather gory,

On his forehead shone in flames

Sickle in a golden frame

Hammer beating on his whim. Let the earth be light on him!

In view of the political changes, in the country and in the region,

committee members and heads of local authorities

must remain on duty, until the situation is stable.

So, Yeltsin is sitting in his office. Members of parliament are with him.

They discuss the logistics: spades, chainsaws, crowbars, trucks,

which will deliver concrete slabs

they decide who will dig trenches, how deep the trenches should be,

and how wide and how to fill the trenches up with water.

Patrol guards - each needs a thermos of tea, warm clothes, each person

has to know the rota. In emergency, everybody stays where they are.

Friends! Let an ambulance through!

Has anyone here served in the army? There are some useful tricks.

If you have a handkerchief - dampen it. Use damp handkerchiefs.

This will give you some protection. The rest depends on the situation.

We must not let them get inside the building.

This building...

Comrade YANAEV stalled an attempt to reform our country peacefully.

The man who once said about his health "that "his wife doesn't complain"."

This gang - YAZOV, Kryuchkov, PUGO, they used to be Komsomol bureaucrats.

All grand Komsomol projects failed. When Komsomol members try

to build something, it always falls apart.

Today, the military are confused. KGB and police are confused.

It means that we should not treat them as our enemies.

They are ordinary people, like us.

Only they wear uniforms.

If you do not treat them as enemies, they will be on your side.

We must explain to KGB officers, to the police, to the military

that even a few drops of blood

could turn into an ocean, in which they will drown...

There is no state of emergency in Leningrad and Leningrad region.

There is no document, declaring state of emergency in the region.

Public order is fully maintained.

Meetings and demonstrations in support of the Russian government

and against the criminal gang

were peaceful and orderly.

Today Leningrad lives a normal life, and is not in a state of emergency.

There are no additional troops within the city limits at present.

Give us the leaflets! We shall go to the TV centre!

Do you realize that tonight you carried out a coup d'état?

Would you compare this to 1917 or to 1964?

You claim it's a coup d'état. I disagree with you.

We follow the Constitution.

Confirmation of our decision

will enable us to demonstrate

that we act legally.

Volodya! Volodya!

(President Yeltsin on the radio)

"So called "order", promised by" "the self-proclaimed "saviours"

will turn out to be a dictatorship. An illegally formed committee

demands to dissolve legally elected governing bodies.

What can be more absurd than this? Elected members of parliament

cannot address their electorate.

The speeches of the coup leaders are full of old Soviet demagogy.

The events of the past 24 hours are nothing but a coup d'état.

We, cultural workers of Leningrad, are outraged by the way,

in which the President of the USSR has been removed from power.

If the President is ill, why is it necessary

to bring tanks to the city and to declare a curfew?

This brings lies and cynicism back into our lives.

The State of Emergency Committee stifles freedom of speech

and brings back censorship.

They destroy the fruits of freedom, born in such hardship.

Violence is used against Russia and its people.

It is bound to end up in a return to Stalinism,

to lawlessness and dictatorship.

We witness a shameful and illegal coup d'état...

under the circumstances, we consider it our duty

to voice our support for the government of Russia,

and for its President - as the supreme and legal authority.

Granin, Lebedyev, Likhachyev, Bassilashvili, Strzhelchik, etc.

We worked in the metro. The presidential decrees

were broadcast in the metro.

They were also broadcast at the train stations

and in the airport. Tens of thousands of leaflets

were printed and circulated among vast numbers of people,

who spread this information via their own channels.

A group of Afghan war veterans

guarded the building at night.

We are in constant touch with the railway management.

We also monitor all cargo transport in the direction of Leningrad.

The deputies work with the military, inform them about Yeltsin's decrees

and their appeal to the army, issued during yesterday's session.

Leningrad Publishing house refused to follow censorship rules.

We can solve this problem together with the army leadership.

I stress that Colonel General Samsonov is willing to cooperate with us.

I think he is doing much more than can be expected of him

in such a difficult situation.

Let us work together the army and the deputies.

Together we shall fight against the disaster,

which was forced upon us.

There were no cases of public disobedience.

No measures to restore public order were necessary.

The criminal situation is normal.

Russian leadership takes measures

to liberate President Gorbachev.

Vice-President Rutskoy, Prime-minister Silaev,

and Deputy Speaker Khasbulatov saw

the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet...

and other representatives of the country's leadership.

A demand has been issued to organise a meeting

between USSR President Gorbachev

and Russian President, Yeltsin, within the next 24 hours.

Both presidents must have access to public broadcasting channels.

The activities of the so-called State of Emergency Committee

must be suspended.

We shall not obey the orders, issued with one aim -

to force the people back to the past to make the people silent

to make the people forget the years of Perestroika,

which were spent on reforming our country.

Leningrad has made its choice!

It stands for freedom, democracy

and for radical economic reforms.

(Anatoly Sobchak, Mayor of Leningrad)

Members of the so-called State of Emergency Committee

committed crimes against the state.

The Prosecutor General and the Minister of the Interior

have been instructed to arrest them.

Finally, I'd like to announce the decision of the President

and the government of Russia, according to which

it's illegal to follow orders issued "by the "State of Emergency Committee"."

Public servants, who obey such orders,

will be removed from office at once!

I'd like to assure you that Leningrad City Council

has the situation under control.

Shops and public transport work as usual.

We'll do everything to make sure that the citizens of Leningrad

do not experience shortages of supplies during this time.

If you want your rights and freedoms to be respected,

it's essential to respect the rights and freedoms of others,

irrespective of their citizenship.

Don't forget this!

ALL ON STRIKE!

FASCISM WILL NOT PREVAIL!

Please, do not bring any alcohol! Do not bring alcohol!

Do not offer alcohol to anyone. Drunkards are not allowed here.

If we're friendly and hard-working. I'd like you all to understand it.

What shall we do now? First, you must split into groups.

One group is in charge of one sector.

We have lots of crowbars and spades.

You must go to each house in the neighbourhood.

Collect more tools from the people.

In our building we have a shortage of crowbars.

There are a lot of deputies, but very few crowbars.

We're getting inconsistent reports. TV is practically cut off.

On TV you see only Bolshoi ballet.

SELF-PROCLAIMED RULERS - TO JUSTICE!

I believe that we shall succeed in keeping the situation under control.

Due to mass demonstrations and social tension,

we put a lot of effort in protection

of strategically important buildings.

We do have to make a big effort, but, I repeat, we are in control

and we are able to sustain public order.

We understand that under the circumstances,

when people are exhausted by waiting in shop queues,

by the lack of consumer goods, and by the lack of hope,

the only thing which remains - is public order.

If we deprive them of order, the situation may become hopeless.

And this is why we'll do everything which is humanly possible

to maintain public order among our tired and exhausted people.

Propaganda machine is at work again.

Communists have always been good at propaganda.

The junta is full of determination

they were so hurt and humiliated during recent years.

They've been waiting for this moment for such a long time,

that they are not going to stop half way through.

They'll do everything to suppress not only physical resistance,

but also intellectual resistance, which grows in the minds of democrats.

In the minds of the best citizens of our society.

The danger lies not in the collapse of the Empire,

but in a possibility that the people might wish to bring the Empire back.

I don't know if the junta will try to bring back Finland,

or if it'll try to bring back Poland, East Germany and other territories.

But it is quite possible that they'll try to destroy ex-Soviet republics.

And our President... we are all together!

We're not going away!

We call upon all the soldiers to join us.

God Almighty, help them, give them wisdom to join us!

SOLDIERS, OFFICERS! DON'T TAKE ORDERS FROM FASCIST CRIMINALS.

DO NOT KILL YOUR OWN PEOPLE

Sobchak returned from Moscow.

First he addressed the deputies, and then, the citizens of Leningrad.

In his speech, Mayor Sobchak has asked to remain calm

he's also asked the people to remain vigilant.

His fears were justified.

A tank unit approached Leningrad from the south.

We have reasons to believe that the soldiers

were either drunk, or badly trained.

Numerous collisions took place between military vehicles

and civilian transport on the motorway.

Thank God, the tanks remain outside of the city.

FASCISM WILL NOT PREVAIL!

Bets are placed. Yeltsin's the victor. A historical moment has come.

Who else should we pray for, people, if not for the chosen one?

Democratic hysteria is over, Special forces are running the show.

Gorbachev, America's darling, Does not care for us anymore.

Yeltsin rises, colossus of promise, Yeltsin rises, confused but firm.

But the question he needs to answer: What is next? People need to know.

Mother Russia - half decomposed Wants to make a quick buck at last.

But the end will be dire and simple: Mr Bush will send bread to us.

Perestroika - what's next on the agenda? Is it possible, and why not -

That the Russians, like dinosaurs, Among others will roam with a roar...

We no longer commit blasphemy, But the curse is firmly upon us.

Our priests are like us - bastards, They are paid by the secret service.

From the depth of his darkest sorrow A true patriot will raise his voice.

He will not betray his motherland, His Russia, with its rivers of pain.

What's in store for us, Boris? Boris? Do you hear? The rest is silence.

Russia! Russia!

Times have changed, but still we're looking for happiness,

And we run after it, never ending the chase.

In this race our dearest comrades will perish,

But we won't feel the loss in our rage.

We'll continue mistaking street lights for fires,

And we'll fear each sound of footsteps at our door

Our boys will play war games and never get tired

Our world will be split, more than ever before.

When the drumbeat dies down and tears stop running,

When our horses slow down from gallop to trot,

When our girls swap their trench-coats for ball gowns,

Still - we must never forgive we must never forget.

We're in Moscow's Kalininsky avenue.

Just now, under the tank tracks...

Bastards! Stop throwing! Stop it!

I saw it - they ran a boy over! What happened to him?

Perhaps, he is still alive? God willing! But blood was spilled.

Blood was spilled in the streets of Moscow.

Abroad, they shit themselves, but here - against their own people,

they brandish weapons!

Our feelings are clear.

The people are tired of waiting!

We demand immediate resignation of the government of people's misery!

Immediate resignation!

They must resign! They must resign!

Resign! Resign! Resign!

I appeal to the President of the USSR!

It's your last chance to be with your people!

Last chance!

Last chance!

THINK OF YOUR CHILDREN! GRANDCHILDREN! WHAT WILL YOU TELL THEM TOMORROW?

ALL ON STRIKE!

They all must resign! They must resign!

Shame! There's no bread. What has become of us! No bread!

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AGAINST A COHORT OF BLACK COLONELS!

PARTY BUREAUCRATS! YOU'VE BEEN KILLING PEOPLE FOR 73 YEARS!

COUP LEADERS TO JUSTICE!

Only for Russia! For independent Russia!

QUIT THE STATE TRADE UNIONS! STOP FEEDING THEM!

COUP GANG TO JUSTICE!

We have lists of names of KGB collaborators...

NO TO POLITICAL CRIMINALS

Red sun's expired. So has the day.

A shadow falls on the city in flames.

Our hearts are longing for change.

Our eyes are longing for change.

SOLDIER, DO NOT SHOOT AT YOUR PEOPLE!

In our smiles, our tears and our veins.

Change! We're longing for change!

Down with Bolshevik October of 1917!

Down with Lenin!

Farewell to communism!

Dear citizens of Leningrad! Dear compatriots!

Today we are living through a difficult moment.

A group of senior party officials, pretending to be our leaders,

attempted a coup d'état.

Dear citizens of the great city of Peter!

We are here today to express

our determination to resist the coup,

to support the Russian government,

and President Boris Yeltsin,

who assumed command over all the military forces,

police forces and the forces of the KGB of the USSR,

stationed on the territory of the Russian Federation.

Dear brothers and sisters!

Allow me to bless you on behalf of His Eminence,

Bishop Johanne, of the saint city of Peter.

I'm here to convey His Eminence's wishes

for you to remain calm, to let peace and reason

be with you in all your deeds and endeavours.

The Orthodox Church has always been with its people

in the years of hardships, endured by our Fatherland.

And now we have to remain vigilant.

Remember the words of the Saviour:

mind the danger on your way.

This Slav expression means: see how treacherous your stand is.

I wish you all every success in this difficult task -

the task of defending the truth. God bless you!

Dear friends!

The most important thing is to unite against fascism.

Unity against the fat cats, who usurped power.

Not just us, citizens of Leningrad. But all the people of our country.

We must support freedom of Baltic nations, of Moldavians,

of the people of the Caucasus. Let them be free also, and let Russia

"become not just a "big brother"," but a loving sister, who will support

all the nations who desire freedom.

If my sister, Olga Bergolts, were alive

if she hadn't been killed in 1975 by the evil forces,

which are now trying to bring us back to dark ages,

she would have been here.

She would have been here, with her people.

I'd like to read one of her short poems:

The path of our generation couldn't be easier.

Look here: A prison behind us

A graveyard around us And funeral crosses ahead.

So, are we be back on this path? Prison, graveyard and crosses?

No! No! No!

No! No! No!

A huge insult has been done to our nation.

Because a nation is not a whore, which can be used no matter when,

no matter how and no matter who by.

We are the people!

I hope we shall not tolerate this insult any longer!

Thank you for your attention.

Comrades, please, step back a little!

Dear friends, back in the ill-fated October 1917,

in this very square, a bunch of lunatics and criminals,

committed a coup d'état, promising people

mountains of gold and heaven on earth.

Today, another bunch of criminals, using the same promises,

talking about the same riches, which they failed to bring in 73 years,

are trying to usurp power and reverse history.

It's amazing, how much these gangsters

despise their own people. They treat us as cattle.

Unfortunately, we were turned into cattle,

and we behaved like cattle for a long time.

They are used to dealing with crowds.

But today we are not a crowd anymore we are a nation!

I believe that this tragic hour...

This fatal turning point of history will make us a nation once and for all,

will squeeze the last drops of slavery out of us!

Long live the Russian people! Long live our great nation!

Down with junta! Down with junta!

Down with junta! Down with junta!

Shine in your glory, the city of Peter, stand strong as Russia itself!

I speak with you, my dear compatriots,

I'm proud to see this sea of faces.

There was a rehearsal in Vilnius.

They tried to stage a coup d'état in a small Baltic republic.

They failed. They failed, because millions -

there are several million citizens in that republic -

raised their heads.

Today, the whole of Russia raises its head.

Let the forces of repression, the coup organizers, know:

we, the people of this country, are loyal to our government!

We are loyal to Yeltsin!

Down with fascist junta!

Fascism will not prevail!

MY LONG-SUFFERING PEOPLE, DO NOT LET THEM DECEIVE YOU!

Dear compatriots, unfortunately, we have received tragic news:

blood was spilled in the Baltics.

Fascists! Fascists!

Let us honour the memory of those who fought for their and our freedom

with a minute of silence.

Dear citizens of Leningrad!

Today, at an emergency session of the Russian parliament,

a decision was made to replace the Soviet flag and to bring back

the national Russian tricolour!

Together with the Chairman of Leningrad Soviet,

I signed a decree to hold a ceremony

to replace the old flag with the new national flag of Russia, at 5 pm.

I ordered to replace the flags in all the districts of our city!

And now - let us proceed

with the ceremony of lowering of the old flag

and raising of the new national flag of Russia!

This is yet another step towards the revival of Russia.

I hope that in the near future the Leningrad City Council

will finally approve the design of a new flag of our city,

and then - next to the new national flag,

we shall raise a new flag of St Petersburg!

Well done! Well done!

Russia! Russia! Russia!

Yeltsin! Yeltsin! Yeltsin!

Where? Where is the flag?

Is it down yet? Is it?

Raise the state flag of the Russian Federation!

Hurrah to the new tricolour of the Russian state! Hurrah!

Yeltsin! Yeltsin! Yeltsin!

Dear citizens of Leningrad! One more step has been made.

There's still a lot of work ahead of us.

We must proceed from talking about reforms,

about which so much was said by the previous

leaders of our country,

to the actual implementation of fundamental reforms

of the state institutions, and to eradication of old

communist structures.

We need to speed up economic reforms.

To stabilise our financial system and economic situation in the country.

We need to improve the supply system and to normalise the lives of our people.

Thank you for your support! Forward!

Don't you fly over my head, black raven.

Do fly over my head, blue balloon.

I wish we could walk down the streets and squares,

holding hands, marching together, marching together, but not as one.

Don't you fly over my head, black raven.

Do fly over my head, blue balloon.

What's going on?

Hello, hello... I'm on another line.

The one who gave orders to seal the offices.

Deputies and observers have split into groups,

and they are walking around the building,

sealing the offices.

The chief of police Kramarev agreed...

Kra-ma-rev agreed "with the definition of "archive","

as of all the documents, located in the offices of Smolny.

Communist party archives, housed in the former Higher Party School,

"which is now called the "Institute" "for the study of Political Problems","

have already been sealed.

That one is a historic archive, whereas the deputies and the prosecution

will be interested in the current documents, which are kept in various departments:

general department, secret department, protocol department etc.,

and in other offices of Smolny.

For more than an hour we experienced sabotage

of the decision of the Presidents of the USSR and Russia

and the decisions of the Leningrad soviet,

during one and a half hours the police officers in charge

of the sealing operation,

would not arrive at Smolny.

Also, the vice First Secretary of the regional Party committee,

comrade Belov, was trying...

comrade Yuri Belov, was trying to play for time

he would not give us telephone directories and maps of Smolny.

Now this issue has been resolved.

I will call you back. For Christ's sake!

I'm using the line of the BBC bureau.

Let's do it this way. We're here, aren't we?

One group goes to the left, the other - to the right.

We seal the entire floor. We meet in the middle.

Then the second floor and to the third floor.

Please, tell us - for those who just arrived,

we don't understand: what's happening in Smolny today?

What do you think about it?

My attitude is, of course, negative.

Do you have a key?

Before signing a law to suspend the activities of the Communist party,

it's necessary to have evidence,

that these activities were connected to the attempted coup d'état.

They have not produced any evidence. First of all, we shall appeal

to the President of the USSR and to the Supreme Council of the USSR.

Too much! Too much! Enough, enough.

Don't make it dirty. It's plywood.

Do we have to sign? Of course.

Terrible things are happening.

Strange vehicles are arriving at the building.

They pick up documents, which will be destroyed.

We need your help! It's necessary to surround Smolny!

We are not going to take it by storm, no way!

You just need to come here. Surround Smolny peacefully.

So that strange vehicles do not leave the premises.

Sign it and print your name. Date and hour.

THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS CEASED TO EXIST IN DECEMBER 1991.

THE CRIMES OF THE SOVIET REGIME HAVE NEVER BEEN BROUGHT TO TRIAL.

FORMER COMMUNISTS AND SOVIET BUREAUCRATS REMAINED IN POWER

IN THE MAJORITY OF STATES, CREATED AFTER THE COLLAPSE OF THE USSR.