Pompolit

Pompolit or shortly jargon pompa—the rank on the Soviet merchant, passenger ships and other ships sailing outside USSR borders. Do not mix with the politruk as politruk is the rank in military subdivisions and armies.

The words "politruk", "pompolit" and difference

• "Politruk": on Russian "Политрук" was shorted from "политический руководитель" ("political leader" or "political supervisor") and cut to combination "полит+рук" ("polit+ruk")

The Soviet ship's crewmembers followed the English rules—here that means that ship's master is the tsar and god on the ship. Due to on the ship can have only one leader the name of rank politruk did not apply this situation. The ship's captain needs an assistant, mate and not a leader or supervisor during peacetime.

• "Pompolitn": Russian "Помполит" was cut from "помощник по политической части" ("mate (assistant) for political affairs") or "помощник по политике" ("assistant (mate) in politic"). As result we have "пом+по+лит" (pom+po+lit).
• "Pompa": it is seamen's jargon due to duties of "pompolit" to teach and explain Soviet politic ideas. Seamen say that he fills up the brains with the Soviet politic. From here the pompolit received other short name or jargon—the pump and on Russian "помпа" (pompa). It is also was cut from "pompolit" to "pompo" and changed to "pompa" that on English means "the pump". It is means that he is the pump to fill up the brains.

The pompolit's check

The Soviet pompolits were instructed to make the following checks (not full list):

• No one crew member speaks English to any foreigner except the officers during the mooring operations, cargo operations, bunkering operations and ship's supply. If cargo officer or master speaks English with representatives of foreigner port the pompolit has to sit in during this conversations.
• Pompolit has to check moral character of any crewmember and write appropriate characteristics. It is include alcohol abuse, sex, anti-Soviet conversations, visits to any unmoral show in other countries (like stripteases), etc.
• He must instruct the crew of politically at least one time per week to reduce and keep under control free time of crew members to avoid bad thoughts or actions (like alcohol use). It is means: less free time—less problem.

That is the main instructions for pompolit and not all.

So good knowledge of English for low rank sailors was dangerous. If any crewmember sees that pompolit is close he will stop conversation with foreigners to avoid a misunderstanding with the pompolit.

The cargo officer had to call the pompolit to sit in during his conversations with the chief stevedore about cargo operations. And mostly the pompolits had not speak English. On one Soviet ship the cargo officer said to another officer:

Which reason to sit in during the conversations if he do not speak English? I can talk to chief stevedore about anything including anti-Soviet conversations and the pompolit will nothing understand.

Mostly the Soviet deck and radio officers including captains did not spoke English good due to they had commenced to teach it properly in rank cargo officer only to avoid any problem with Soviet reality. Engine officers did not teach English properly.

The pompolit had to take free time of crewmembers and only two persons in Soviet crew had a lot of free time - the ship's doctor and the pompolit.