militiamen and their families, etc.

The coordination of the Revolutionary Neighborhood Committees was carried out at the meetings of the Regional Committee, attended by the secretaries of each Neighborhood Defense Committee. There was also a permanent Confederal Defense Committee with its headquarters at the Casa CNT-FAI.

With respect to all matters relating to the confiscation of large quantities of money and valuable objects, and in relation to all those tasks involving arrests, information and investigation that surpassed the means of the Revolutionary Neighborhood Committees, they were referred to the Investigation Service of the CNT-FAI, directed by Manuel Escorza from the Casa CNT-FAI.

Thus, in the city of Barcelona, the Neighborhood Defense Committees were subordinated to the following superior Committees:

1) With respect to the recruitment of militiamen (in July and August) andthe supply of the popular militias (up until mid-September) they answered to the CCMA.

2) With respect to the supply of food and other basic needs they were responsible to the Central Supply Committee.

3) With respect to organization and resolution of problems, they were subordinated to the Regional Committee of the CNT, which issued orders and directives for them to follow. This reflects the famous dependence on the trade unions and the negation of the autonomy of the defense cadres, resolved at the Presentation of 1934.

4) They were coordinated and shared experiences in a Defense Committee of Barcelona, which was nothing but the organizational level above the district committees. This institution was hardly operational.

5) With regard to questions of information, investigation, persecution of fifth columnists and other armed “police”