THE COMMUNIST

[dhkc at dds.nl]

From: DHKC Informationbureau Amsterdam <dhkc at dds.nl>

THE COMMUNIST

A Journal of Marxist-Leninist Politics Published by the Communist Action Group 
and the Revolutionary People's Liberation Front of Turkey (DHKC)

Issue 1
February 1997

Contents
Editorial: A New Voice For Communism
Communist Unity: Two Steps Forward
Communists, Elections and the Socialist Labour Party
Liverpool Dockers: Still Fighting
IRA: New Year Statement
Bloody Sunday: New Revelations Condemn British Cover-Up
For Revolutionary Unity: PKK & DHKP
Turkey: The Contra-Guerilla State
Armed Struggle in Mexico: Manifesto of the EPR
Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Peru: Interview With the MRTA and Reports 
on the PCP
History of the New People's Army of the Philippines
Anti-Stalinism and the World Situation
General Strike in South Korea


Editorial

A new voice for Communism

This is the first issue of the new magazine, The Communist, which is
published jointly by the Revolutionary People's Liberation Front
(DHKC) and the Communist Action Group.

The new magazine has been launched following a period of close
collaboration and discussions between comrades from the CAG and the
DHKC in London. It reflects a shared commitment to building communist
and anti-imperialist unity, and to the rebuilding of a genuine
communist party in this country.

There are many who talk of proletarian internationalism. Here is a
concrete example of what this can mean in practice. The comrades from
the DHKC and the CAG recognise that we face a common enemy, and that
the unity between communists from Britain and communists from other
countries who are living here can play a vital role in the
regeneration of communism in this country.

The Communist will not only cover events in Britain and Turkey, of
course. The first issue contains reports, analysis and documents on
the rising tide of revolutionary struggle which is in evidence across
the five continents. We will continue to reflect the struggles of the
working class and other progressive forces on a world scale.

As communists, we understand that to succeed we must unite all genuine
progressive forces into a revolutionary united front. Our enemies have
long recognised that our disunity is their greatest strength. By
combining our forces, by concentrating out blows on the enemy, we will
once again shake the world.

In Turkey and Kurdistan, the two major revolutionary forces have come
together, and are calling on others two join them (see the joint
statement from the PKK and the DHKP-C inthis issue). Communists in
Britain should do the same. Given the weakness of our forces at this
time and the enormity of the tasks we face, we really have no choice.

Let us unite to build the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party that our
class so badly needs.

Long Live Internationalism!


Communist Unity: Two Steps Forward

Len Holloway
Communist Action Group

In a very significant step, the Communist Action Group and the
comrades of the Revolutionary People's Liberation Front of Turkey
(DHKC) have formally agreed a framework for co-operation between the
two organisations in this country.  This includes joint propaganda and
joint contingents on demonstrations, joint meetings, and a joint
publication in Turkish and English, the first issue of which will
appear in the immediate future.

It has long been our position that the comrades from Turkey and
Kurdistan have a critical role to play in the reforging of a genuine
Communist movement in this country. The Turkish and Kurdish
communities here have strong, militant traditions. Their revolutionary
organisations, which are far stronger than the communist movement of
Britain, have led the way for many years now on May Day, keeping the
red flag flying with the annual May Day march in London, while the
British left has for the most part been content to let the tradition
die. Now, with this agreement, the comrades of the DHKC are lending
their forces to the struggle to build a Communist Party here as well
as waging their revolutionary struggle against their "own"
bourgeoisie.  

In the past, there have been many other waves of migration which have
brought substantial numbers of Communist militants to these shores. In
the 1950s, the migration of Italian workers brought thousands of
Communist militants. The vast majority retained their allegiance to
the CPI, and did not see themselves as a part of the British working
class so much as temporary visitors, certain the return when the time
arose. In towns with a substantial Italian community, branches of the
CPI were formed, usually many times larger than the local branch of
the CPGB. Though these workers stayed here for many years, bringing up
families who became fully integrated into the local working class,
their strength was not usually channelled into the task of building
Communism here.  

The same pattern was repeated with later migrations, most notably from
the Indian subcontinent.. These comrades, organised under the banner
of the Indian Workers Association, always played an important role in
the class struggle here, and yet the majority retained the perspective
of being Indian Communists. For them, it was the party "back home" (be
it the CPI, CPI-M or CPI-ML) which was their party. As with the
Italians before them, the Indian Communists were never fully
integrated into the Communist movement here.
	
The largest part of the blame for this lies with the local movement. Much 
could have been done to unite Communists from different national backgrounds. 
But the dominant trend within the Communist movement in this country 
throughout the post-WW2 period was revisionism. We should not be surprised 
that their commitment to genuine proletarian internationalism was lacking in 
this sphere as in all others. The very weakness of Communist forces here also 
played a significant role: compared to the movements in the countries of 
origin, Communism in Britain - and particularly the anti-revisionist movement 
- was extremely weak. As time went by, this was even more the case.
	
Now the situation has reached the point where Communism in Britain
badly needs the input of these comrades if it is to survive, let alone
face up to the challenges that lie ahead. They can make a very big
difference indeed at this stage. Their experience, their dedication,
and their numerical strength can help turn things around at this
critical juncture.
	
Capitalism is in crisis. The forces of genuine Communism are at an al
time low within the British working class. With social democracy
looking set to assume to reigns of government before too long on a
viciously anti-worker platform, the stage is set for a major upheaval
in the politics of this country. If the Communists are to mount a
realistic challenge from the left, they need from the outset a certain
minimum strength which is presently lacking. Only fighting unity can
overcome division and weakness, and the fighting unity of Communists
from Britain and Communists from Turkey and Kurdistan is a vital
aspect of this.
	
As reported in earlier issues of Communist Action, the Association of
Indian Communists have arrived at the conclusion that it is a burning
necessity for them to commit themselves to building a Communist Party
here. Together with the Association of Communist Workers they issued
an appeal to marxist-leninists to unite on a principled basis to build
the kind of party the working class needs of it is to carry out its
revolution. This appeal fell largely on deaf ears - apart from
individual militants, the CAG was almost alone in welcoming the call,
which we reprinted in full. The comrades of the AIC and ACW have now
formally founded a new organisation, and have agreed a constitution
which we hope to be able to reprint soon. This, too, is a very
significant development, and one which genuine marxist-leninists will
wholeheartedly welcome. Unity discussions are continuing between our
organisation and theirs, alongside a growing practical co-operation on
many fronts. It is to be hoped that this unity can be taken to a
higher level in the near future.
	
As marxist-leninists, we are not free agents. We are bound by our duty
to the working class. The interests of the working class are
everything to us, and those interests above all demand that we do all
that we can to create the kind of party that the working class
needs. We will not shirk our responsibility.  Indeed, with these two
important steps, we feel that Communism in Britain is starting 1997 in
a far stronger state than it started 1996. Let us build on this
excellent beginning. Seize the time!

	For Communist and Anti-Imperialist Unity!

	
Communists, Elections and the Socialist Labour Party

Ruari O'Leary
Communist Action Group

With the likelihood of a New Labour election victory, Communists must
seriously re-examine their view of social democracy and the threat it
poses when in power.

New Labour describe themselves as a radical alternative to Tory rule,
but when New Labour fails to come up with the goods, who will the
working class turn to for the alternative radicalism?

Already some sections of the working class believe that the fascists
of the British National Party represent this 'alternative
radicalism'. This is not the fault of the working class, it is the
fault of the left in failing to present themselves as a viable entity
and for constantly urging support for the Labour Party.

The time has come for those on the left to stop calling for a vote for
Labour, as this will only discredit the left in the advent of a Labour
victory.

So what is to be done?

This general election will see the BNP field up to 50 candidates,
their most serious effort yet. They will be contesting mostly working
class areas, as they quite rightly realise that the working class are
the ones who will rebel against Labour when they are in office. Of
late, they have beenable to count om there being no viable left
alternative to challenge them in these areas.  Anti-Fascist Action has
over the past decade managed to successfully physically challenge the
fascist presence on the streets with a host of impressive
victories. But now they realise that this is not enough, stating in a
recent document that "... in working class areas where they, the BNP,
have a real resonance, they must be challenged and exposed
politically."

Failure to do this willmean that to the working class only the BNP
will be seen to have a seemingly 'radical' anti-Labour stance. This
will benefit them in the form of recruits under a Labour
government. For them, the election is nothing more than an opportunity
to set out their stall so as to benefit later once Labouris in office.

Two recent developments on the left have the potential to put an end
to this drift towards fascism in some working class areas: the
emergence of the Independent Working Class Association (IWCA) and the
Socialist Labour Party (SLP). The iWCA, built on the back of AFA, has
rightly made the political exposure of the BNP a priority, knowing
thegains the BNP are set to make under social democracy. The IWCA's
anti-Labour stance is progressive and has set a demarcation line
forthe left. It has yet to make its debut, but intends to have a
series of activities leading up to the election.

AFA has always stated that it doesn't believe in maintaining the
status quo and that AFA's long-term objective is to "create space for
a political alternative to Labour in working class areas." Just as AFA
has created or maintained the space forthe IWCA, so too is the IWCA of
value to the anti-fascist struggle. Not all forces within AFA support
IWCA, of course. Some anarchists do not like the kind of alliances
thatit could imply, while individuals from the revisionist Communist
Party of Britain - and individual pro-Labour anti-fascist militants -
do not like the prospect of not calling for a vote for
Blair. Nonetheless, it is clear that the two projects are
complementary.

The SLP, while it is dismissed by some groups within AFA as being a
utopian attempt to resurrect 'real' Labour, still has a lot of
potential. What is more, it has proven in recent by-election results
that it can perform better than the fascists. In Newham, for example,
they polled 20 per cent. It is not so long ago that the BNP themselves
polled 30 per cent in a south Newham council vote. Though its appeal
is by definition much wider than that of the fascists within working
class areas, to a certain extent the SLP is contesting the same
constituency as the BNP: the disgruntled white working class ex-Labour
voter. It appears at this stage that they are able to do this more
effectively than the fascists, something which is verymuch to be
welcomed by communists just as it is to be feared by the fascists. The
truth is though, that pretty soon this is going to put the SLP and the
BNP in direct conflict with each other.

The SLP represents the radical Labourism of class conflict. As well as
being a problem for the BNP, this is also a worry to the revisionists
such as the leaders of the CPB, who for all their 'communist'
posturing have never managed to pose a threat to Labour or the
fascists. This is because they are social democrats themselves, with a
shameful record on anti-fascism and other issues such as the Irish
struggle. It is no accident that good communist militants such as the
Liverpool dockers leader Jimmy Nolan are moving over to the SLP.  The
effect on the CPB couldbe fatal. In any case, genuine communists
within their ranks should draw the conclusion, and quit the sinking
ship - not for the SLP, but to build a genuine communist party.

The SLP is not communists and despite all the positive points we must
not forget the task of building a communist party in this country.

The Communist Action Group would call on all militants to vote for the
SLP and would like to see AFA and the IWCA work with the SLP.

Social democracy in power creates fascism to divide the working
class. The fascists know they have more chance to grow under Labour
than under the Tories. It is time for the militants to unite in an
anti-Labour and anti-fascist front.

When Labour become national hate figures within the working class, we
must ensure that the left benefits from this rather than giving the
fascists an opportunity to grow. A pro-Labour stance canno longer be
justified. This line poses serious dangers in the present
situation. Thise, like the Trotskyists and the revisionists, who
continue to advocate such a vote, will continue to part of the
problem, not part of the solution.


Liverpool Dockers: Still Fighting

The Liverpool Dockers have stood firm now for fifteen months. They
have given us all a lesson in working class militancy, solidarity, and
struggle.

Their fight is the fight of all workers - in every aspect. It is a
struggle against privatisation, against casualisation, and for basic
trade unionism.  When Torside tried to push through 20 redundancies in
August last year, they were met with a united and militant response:
80 per cent in favour of strike action. Because of this, Torside
threatened to fold their company, with all 80 dockers they employ
being dismissed. Again, workers unity was the key, and Torside had to
back down. Then, when Torside illegally sacked five workers, the
dockers from all over the port refused to cross the picket line,
resulting in 500 sackings. Never once have the Liverpool dockers
wavered: they know better than anyone that an injury to one is an
injury to all.

What is at stake in this dispute? 

The Mersey Docks and Harbour Company, and the privatised companies
which it still largely controls, are imposing casual work contracts
which introduce 12 hour shifts, get rid of week-ends, and cut
wages. More work for less pay, and with less security. It amounts to a
massive increase in the rate of exploitation in order to boost
profits. This pattern is reproduced across the country, in countless
sections, and the dockers are leading the fight back, alongside
workers such as the Hillingdon Hospital workers. As with Hillingdon,
the casualisation and increased exploitation are bound up with
privatisation.  The struggle against casualisation is inseparable from
the struggle against privatisation.

The MDHC has de-recognised the docks shop stewards (in 1993), and has
victimised shop stweards and union militants. Again, this pattern is
to be seen across the country. It is a frontal assault on the right to
organise. The bosses need this attack on union rights in order to push
through their plans for increased exploitation.

Official inaction

The official union structures have labelled the dispute "unofficial"
and have shirked their responsibilities. They say to back the dockers
is simply not legal.

The problem is that the set up in the Liverpool docks is based on
divide and rule. The new, privatised companies are not really
independent of the MDHC, but are a legal convenience which has helped
push through the deterioration in conditions. When dockers are in
dispute against one of these companies, support from dockers in other
parts of the port is deemed "secondary action".  They cannot even
ballot on action because they do not share the same official
employer. Again, this is the pattern in other sectors.

Anyone can see that this is a scam. If the unions want to fight
casualisation then they have to fight against the union laws. In the
present conditions, you cannot break the resistance and the bosses
without breaking the law, even on basic issues like victimisation.

Solidarity

The Liverpool dockers have been forced to mount a rank and file
campaign.  Because they have not had official backing from the T&G,
TUC and Labour, they have had to build their own network of national
and international support.  Indeed, they have had terrific
international support from dockers and other workers across the world
- collecting money, moral support, and direct action.  They have also
built strong links with other militants like the workers at JJ Fast
Foods and Hillingdon Hospital.

We need a Communist Party

The Liverpool dockers have fought courageously to defend basic working
class rights. Labour and the official union movement have stood
by. The Liverpool dockers have shown the way forward for all workers
faced with casualisation, privatisation and derecognition.

But if we are to really move forward towards socialism, we need a
genuine, revolutionary Communist Party, a party made up of the best
class fighters and based on Marxism-Leninism.  A [arty in the
tradition of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin. We have no need of a
talking shop, where windbags can dominate. We need a party of
proletarian action.

In the past, it was the Communist Party which provided the backbone of
the workers struggles on many fronts: the Hunger Marches of the 1930s,
the National Unemployed Workers Movement, the National Minority
Movement, the Battle of Cable Street, the International Brigades, and
of course the General Strike. Wherever the workers were in struggle,
the Communist Party was at the forefront.

Such a party no longer exists in this country. We need to rebuild
it. We can win these struggles if we stand together, and confront the
employers and the laws that have been passed to protect them. This is
the only way to victory.  And there is no higher form of workers unity
than a genuine Communist Party.


IRA "unified, confident and steadfast"

The full text of the IRA's new year statement.


The leadership of Oglaigh na hEireann extends New Year greetings to
our friends and our supporters at home and abroad.

We send solidarity greetings to our comrades imprisoned in Ireland,
England and the USA.

Our thoughts, at this particular time of year, are also with the
families of Volunteers Ed O'Brien and Diarmuid O'Neill who tragically
lost their lives in the past year.

As we move into the New Year we feel it appropriate to again reaffirm
our steadfast commitment to our republican objectives. Our primary
objective remains the reunification of our country. We reiterate also
our commitment to the establishment of a just and lasting peace in
Ireland.

Time and again in the past we have demonstrated clearly that we will
face up to our responsibilities, either in the direct pursuit of our
objectives or in assisting in the development of the conditions
necessary for the establishment of a meaningful process with the
potential for securing a lasting settlement to the conflict in
Ireland.

On 9 February last we announced, with reluctance, an end to our
complete cessation of military operations. Whilst we take full
responsibility for that decision we remind John Major and his
government that the opportunity for lasting peace, created by our
initiative of 31 August 1994, 18 months earlier, had been gradually
strangled to the point of extinction by himself and his cabinet long
before our decision to resume military operations.

We commend those who, despite British bad faith, continue to rise to
the challenge of attempting to put together a meaningful process aimed
at initiating inclusive negotiations with the goal of attaining a
lasting peace settlement.

In the 18 months prior to 9 February the British refused to do
this. Events since then have demonstrated a continuing lack of
political will, on their part, to do so. They remain both firmly
opposed to the development of the required process and also committed
to underpinning the Unionist agenda in whatever process takes root in
its place, nowhere better exemplified than at Drumcree, on the Ormeau
Road and in Derry in the summer months of last year.

Lasting peace requires an inclusive negotiated settlement. 

There can be no preconditions on participation in such negotiations.

We approach the year ahead unified, confident and steadfast in our
commitment to succeed. No amount of British obduracy will deflect us
from the task we have set ourselves. Beirigi bua.

New 'Bloody Sunday' evidence confirms British cover-up

On January 30th, 1972, British troops opened fire on a peaceful civil
rights demonstration in Derry, leaving 13 dead and many more wounded.

The British establishment tried to portray the Derry massacre as a
case of self-defence by British troops who had come under fire from
IRA gunmen. This tissue of lies could not be maintained for long in
theface of eye-witness reports and confessions from paratroopers
involved.

Now new revelations link other British regiments to the killings
besides the paras. This report, taken from the Irish Republican news
service, RM Distribution, looks into thenew facts that have surfaced,
and places them in context.

Relatives of 13 Catholics shot dead by British troops in 1972 called
for a fresh inquiry on Friday after reports that Britain covered up
key facts of what became known as "Bloody Sunday."

Britain's Channel 4 News last night televised evidence that successive
British governments have sustained a cover-up on Bloody Sunday for 25
years.  The evidence was confirmed by an Irish writer who has found
proof of previously undisclosed British Army gunfire against a
peaceful Irish civil-rights demonstration.

"I would like to see the case reopened, that is the first priority,"
said John Kelly, whose brother Michael was a victim of one of the
British region's most controversial episodes when paratroopers opened
fire at an Irish civil rights rally.

An official inquiry headed by Lord Widgery, Lord Chief Justice,
exonerated troops saying that they had come under fire.

But locals have long dismissed the findings as a white-wash and an
attempt to vilify the casualties who were unarmed victims of the
deliberate shootings on Sunday, January 30 1972.

There has never been a formal British government apology for the
Bloody Sunday killings, and no soldiers were ever charged in
connection with the deaths and injuries.

"Murder was committed that day in the name of the British government,"
Kelly, chairman of a families' Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign, told
Reuters.

A report on Channel 4 News based on audio tapes of military radio
messages "suppressed since the official inquiry," which refused to
accept them as evidence because they had been illegally obtained.

The programme was aired on Friday night ahead of the 25th anniversary
of Bloody Sunday and against a background of renewed conflict in
Ireland.

"Recorded by a radio ham, the tapes prove that soldiers other than the
Parachute Regiment were positioned along the old City Walls of
Londonderry [sic] and indicate that these men fired and hit
civilians," the television news organisation said.

"Channel 4 News has obtained post mortem evidence which shows that at
least three unarmed men were killed by bullets fired down through
their bodies from above.

"The City Walls are located high above the Bogside area where people
were killed and are in direct line of sight to where the three men
fell."

A separate investigation by an Irish human rights activist, Don
Mullan, who studied many of the original first-hand accounts, turned
up a similar finding.

He uncovered almost 50 statements from people who said soldiers were
positioned on the walls and many were "very clear that firing was
coming" from that vicinity, he said.

Mullan, whose "Eyewitness Bloody Sunday" is published on Saturday,
said: "Widgery confines himself to...the 108 rounds allegedly fired by
paratroopers at ground level. He did not deal with the role of the
British army on the walls."

Three of the victims had been hit from a 45 degree angle.  Mullan said
that from the statements and autopsy reports, an independent ballistic
expert, Robert Breglio, who had spent 25 years with the New York City
Police Department, had concluded that they were likely to have been
"hit by a single marksman using a telescopic sight operating from a
height."

"I think that the case must be reopened because we have always known
that these people wre murdered. We have raised enough suspicion... to
warrant an investigation, especially into these three, and preferably
into all 13 killed that day," Mullan said.

Corroborating evidence by a Derry GP, Dr Raymond McClean, who attended
the dead and wounded, indicated that the trajectory of the bullets
which killed these three was such that they could only have been fired
from the area of the walls.

Dr McClean told Channel 4: "I wrote a detailed submission to Widgery
and I was told my evidence would not be required . .  . I just could
not believe it."

Dr McClean's assessment was supported on last night's programme by a
former British army surgeon, Mr Hugh Thomas.

A compendium of hundreds of eyewitness statements, uncovered and
analysed by Mr Don Mullan in a book to be published next Tuesday,
reveals at least 45 separate claims by witnesses that shooting took
place from the Derry city walls as well as from Parachute Regiment
soldiers at ground level.

These statements were also made available to the Widgery Tribunal, but
were not explored in evidence.

And a hand-written note by a British official after the murders
discovered by Mr Mullan indicates that the outcome of the tribunal had
been pre-determined: "LCJ (the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Widgery) will
pile up the case against the deceased . . . but will conclude that he
cannot find with certainty that any one of 13 was a gunman."

The British government, moving quickly to stem international interest
in the story, rejected the demands for a fresh investigation into the
Bloody Sunday killings.

"There are no plans to set up a further inquiry," a British official
said yesterday.

Last night Sinn Fein chairman Mitchel McLaughlin, who is from Derry,
called on all political parties in Ireland to demand an international
independent inquiry under the auspices of the European Court of Human
Rights.

He said: "The dead and injured were deliberately vilified in a
carefully orchestrated Government propaganda exercise to make the
world believe that what happened in Derry was not mass murder,
sanctioned at the highest level of the British cabinet."

Our Call To Form A Revolutionary Front!

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) 
Revolutionary People's Liberation Party (DHKP)

Ever since the present stage in the struggle for freedom in Turkey and
Kurdistan began, the nightmare of the fascist oligarchy has been that
the PKK and the DHKP would form a revolutionary united front. That
nightmare became a reality on December 26, 1996, with the joint
declaration for revolutionary unity issued by these two
movements. This is a hugely important step towards the unification of
all the revolutionary forces in Turkey and Kurdistan, coming as it
does at a time when the reactionary forces are deeply divided.  Here
we reproduce the text of the joint statement.


We, the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) and the DHKP (Revolutionary
People's Liberation Party), would like to make the following statement
public:

As the result of the discussions and talks which we have been holding
for some time now, once again our parties are forming a united front,
which will be active on all levels in the interest of the liberation
of our peoples.

The preparation of such a revolutionary front is a fundamentally
significant expression of the process we are currently engaged in,
namely the cooperation and alliance of our parties.
     
The democratic and revolutionary struggle of our peoples and the
creation of a revolutionary front are important tasks. We are well
aware of how significant this task is, and that simply stating "we
have formed a front" is by no means enough.

The DHKP and the PKK will undertake, within their organizations, to
foster unity among cadre and supporters at all levels, and we call on
all progressive and democratic forces to join us in this task. The
first step towards this is this protocol, which we are now publishing.

The enemy's strength lies in the disorganization and disunity of the
people's forces. With each passing day, our responsibility to unify
our peoples and organize the popular forces becomes greater, and each
day we are called upon to take bigger steps.

The enemy is able to continue its war against the people and the
revolutionary and patriotic forces, even at a time when the system is
on edge and its dirty business has been exposed, and despite all of
its internal struggles, the system is able to sustain itself on the
basis of its own interests. So shouldn't we - revolutionary,
patriotic, and democratic organizations and institutions - unify
ourselves as well?

     There is no reason whatsoever not to.

     One of the most important factors in this seems to be the
negative tradition of unity here.

     But our duty for our peoples and our striving towards revolution and the 
seizure of power demands that we overcome this negative tradition.

     While the discontent and anger among the people is growing
everywhere - except among a handful of collaborators, who are enemies
of the people, and the members of the bourgeoisie - as a result of the
cover which was given to the murderous, fascistic, and destructive
face of the regime, it is important for the people's forces to become
united, to organize their solidarity, and to develop a common
struggle. But this has not yet become reality. That is the main reason
why, despite the perfect conditions, a massive popular movement has
not yet arisen.
     Our call is directed at all popular forces: those who demand
democracy and independence, those who demand freedom and justice,
those who demand freedom of worship and freedom of the press, those
who demand the right of self-determination for all peoples, those who
demand a end to the unjust war, all those who wish to live in a land
where there is no torture, no executions, to disappearances, no
murders by unknown assailants, a country where villages are not
burned, a country where there are no persons forced into exile, where
there is no prostitution, drugs, or mafia gangs. Our call goes out to
all those who don't want our country to be a satellite of imperialism
and to all those who are struggling against the exploitative and
repressive regime.
     All of these demands can only be realized if all those who are
making the demands are organized into one unit.
     It is our duty and our responsibility to our peoples to struggle
against this regime which is waging a war on our peoples. Our struggle
must be on all levels, legal and illegal, peaceful and armed,
military, political, cultural, economic, and democratic. We must
develop all forms of solidarity and a common struggle and take steps
forward in each of these areas.
     Our parties, who recognize the importance of this, are making
this call as allies, and we call on everyone to develop a
revolutionary front and unity between our peoples.
     The face of our country is a bloody picture of brutality. This
picture is ripe with the necessary conditions for revolution: The
regime is at its end.  It is trying to extend its existence by
oppressing the people and by increasing poverty and degeneration. This
has deepened the contradictions within the regime.
     Without hesitation, we can say that the preconditions for
revolution in our country have been fulfilled. The problem is to
organize and unite the revolutionaries, the peoples, and the
progressive forces.
     We must be united in our opposition to fascism, which is
responsible for the brutality, for depriving the people of their
rights and freedom, and for terrorizing those who stand up and demand
rights and freedoms. This unity is necessary at all levels. Only in
this way can the nations, peoples, and organizations fighting for the
liberation of the peoples achieve victory.
     All oppressed people, all nations and minorities, all workers,
and even individual persons, patriots, democrats, and progressives -
whom the regime seeks to oppress and destroy - all those who are
against this regime and who are against imperialism, yet who cannot
freely express their opinions, must become united.
     These alliances must seek to serve all of these
people. Exclusionary tactics only broaden the front of the enemy.
     The freedom of our peoples will be gained by overthrowing the
system. But this system can only be destroyed if the people struggle
together. It is always the same ruling class which exploits and
blackmails both the Turkish and Kurdish peoples. Both peoples have the
same enemy. This enemy is the central ruling authorities in Turkey and
Kurdistan.
     Although the Turkish and Kurdish ruling classes have propagated
numerous campaigns of chauvinistic and nationalistic hatred, they have
never been able to turn the two peoples against one another. They have
sought to suppress the strengthening national liberation struggle of
the Kurdish people by means of terror. When terror alone was not
enough, they turned to chauvinistic and nationalistic policies and
attempts to turn the Turkish and Kurdish peoples against one another
and thereby prevent the independence and freedom of the two
peoples. But despite all their attempts, they could not make enemies
out of the Turkish and Kurdish peoples.
     The future and destiny of both the Kurdish and the Turkish people
are mutually dependent upon one another.
     All forces which believe in revolution and socialism must accept
this fact. Now more than ever it is clear that no strategy or tactic
which ignores this fundamental truth has a chance of reaching its
goal.
     Because of this fact and necessity, the PKK and the DHKP see the
formation of a revolutionary front as a precursor to achieving and
building a free future for our peoples. We are proud and happy to have
taken this step of building an alliance.
     The task of building a revolutionary unity between our peoples
and their revolutionary, democratic, progressive, and fighting forces
can not be put off any longer.
     The unity of our peoples is a necessity. Without taking up this
great and historic responsibility, which necessity has forced upon us,
no unity can be achieved.
     We realize that an organization without answers to the goals,
hopes, and aspirations of the people has no chance of
survival. Recognizing that, an organization which does not address the
demands for organizing resulting from burning necessity will be
confronted with its own demise.
     Every step, every resulting organization must have answers to the
needs of the nation and the society. That is their very reason for
existence. Our peoples have sensed the desire for joint organizing and
common methods of struggle which have arisen from national and social
needs. Our people need a very broad front of organization. Since even
the smallest of demands have been crushed with violence, the thoughts
and languages of peoples banned outright, people wallowing in torture,
disappearing, being executed, villages burned to the ground and
forcibly evacuated, since murders by unknown assailants are now part
of daily life, the fight against our common enemy must be carried out
on the basis of unity, solidarity, and a joint struggle. No one can
flee from this urgent and historic task or fail to address it.

As the PKK and the DHKP, we declare:

Our Goal Is A United Front Between Our Peoples!  
The main goal of this unity is to join together our peoples in one
front and to link up and develop the struggles of our peoples on all
levels. This alliance, along with the necessary courage and commitment
from us, will allow us to create a revolutionary front between our
peoples and all legal and illegal groups, parties, and institutions
who are suffering under this system and who are struggling or who wish
to struggle against this system. We seeks to unite all of these people
under one roof.

Our Goal Is Common Resistance And A Joint Popular Power
Every where we live, we are mercilessly attacked by the enemy. The
central authorities are seeking to eliminate our struggle. The
division of our peoples is a serious setback to our struggle. For
independence, democracy, and the right of self-determination for all
peoples, our peoples must fight the enemy together and overthrow
it. Only an independent, democratic popular power can secure the
rights for all nations, national minorities, and classes of people.

Our Goal Is To Guarantee The Free Exercise Off All Rights For The Kurdish 
People, Including The Right To Form An Independent State 
A joint struggle for the shared liberation of our peoples is a means of 
increasing the brotherhood and unity of our peoples. We accept, without 
preconditions, the right to self-determination for the Kurdish people, 
including the right to form an independent state.

One Of The Foundations Of Our Unity Is To Oppose Imperialism And To
Defend Our Independence
Today, the imperialists are directly or indirectly responsible for all
the attacks being carried out against our peoples. The continuing
unjust war of the ruling classes in Turkey against our peoples is
being kept in motion with the support of imperialism. Imperialism is
primarily responsible for the picture which exists in our country
today. It is the enemy of independence, democracy, and the peoples'
right to self-determination. It is clear that we cannot achieve these
goals without struggling against imperialism. We state that we are
against imperialism and for the independence of our lands and for the
defense of our peoples, that we wish to drive out and remove all
military installations in our country which belong to the imperialist
states, and that we will not grant the imperialist powers the right or
privilege to establish military bases on our territory, and that all
of the united patriotic forces are prepared to enforce this. Our
alliance views our peoples as the true owners of all our natural
resources and all the fruits of our land, and our peoples and we see
that an end to exploitation and plunder is a precondition of
independence.

Our Goal Is To Unite All Popular 
Countless contradictions exist between the various classes of peoples
and the regime. We accept that one of the fundamentals, from the
perspective of power as our goal, is to broaden the revolutionary
front and to make more narrow the front of the enemy, and on the basis
of the contradictions we will unite all nations and nationalities, all
religions and faiths, and all occupations and classes of people.
     We view our alliance as a democratic undertaking and we aim to
create the conditions in which all national minorities and religious
groups and freely express and develop their cultures and faiths.

The Demand For Democracy And Independence Is The Actual And Concrete 
Foundation Of The Unity Of The Popular Forces
Bearing that in mind, we seek to undo all anti-democratic practices
and as well as the fascist Constitution of the September 12th putsch,
which ignores the will of the people, bans forms of organizing, and
robs the people of their right to free speech and decision making. A
new draft Constitution will be prepared by the broadest of popular
forces, with the goal being democracy and independence. All
anti-fascist and anti-imperialist groups and all those organizations,
parties, and persons on the side of freedom and justice will be
involved in this process.

Our Goal Is To Practice Unity In All Areas
In light of the concrete tasks which lie ahead, we have established
the following goals, namely to organize the democratic opposition of
our peoples, to develop a Parliament which represents all of the
popular forces, to give our people the right to speak and make
decisions by means of this Parliament, and to create the possibility
of establishing popular assemblies from every tiny settlement to the
largest of the metropoles so that people can put their destiny into
their own hands.
     Our alliance, which seeks to establish and extend a common front
between our peoples, requires both parties - in all legal
institutions, such as labor unions and various associations, in which
our parties are organized, in all democratic fields of struggle among
workers and bureaucrats, in the villages, in the press, on the
cultural front, among the students and youth, in the prisons, in the
factories and neighborhoods, and in countries abroad - to wage a joint
struggle against our common enemy, to increase shared organizing
efforts, and to give each other assistance and develop mutual
solidarity.
     All of this is necessary to build up the revolutionary front, at
the base, among the masses, step by step in the struggle. This is how
the revolutionary front of our peoples will come about. Our alliance
has decided to create unity in the democratic struggle in all areas of
life, and to take steps to build up the democratic front. Now is the
time to unite all forces on the basis of this unity into the
revolutionary front.
     We, the PKK and the DHKP, see this first step as a way to begin
bringing all revolutionary, democratic, and progressive organizations
and institutions together, on all levels and in every form, without
excluding any form of struggle or organization, and we call on all
peoples, organizations, and institutions to join us in this and
thereby make it stronger.


Turkey: The Contra-Guerrilla State

DHKP-C

For many years now, the Turkish state has been carrying out a dirty
war against the Communist movement and the Kurdish national liberation
movement.  This dirty war continues to this day, despite the
'democratic' facade of the government.

Some see the contra-guerilla as separate from the state. This is
wrong, say the DHKP-C: in Turkey the contra-guerilla IS the state.


     The contra-guerrilla needed and established a large number of
gangs, consisting of traitors, fascists and policemen, to carry out
all the "disappearances", the kidnappings and the massacres. And now
every gang is just interested in its own profits. The gangs are no
longer under control.
     A traffic accident has revealed what hundreds of murders by
"unknown perpetrators", hundreds of "disappearances", had not made
clear to a lot of people already, in a manner pamphlets and articles
could not. In the past years the existence of the contra-guerrilla was
much discussed. The oligarchy and the parties of the establishment
have tried for years to keep the existence of the contra-guerrilla a
secret, they denied everything. The provocations and activities of the
contra-guerrilla began to mount in the mid-seventies. This was not a
coincidence; those were the years in which the revolutionary movement
grew in strength. The provocation on MayDay 1977 was a first clue that
from now on, the contra-guerrilla would be employed more often. Then
we saw the bomb explosions in the Sirkeci station and in the terminal
of the Yesilkoy Airport, the arson attacks against the Ataturk
Cultural Centre and the ferry "Ankara" near the Golden Horn. The
contra-guerrilla activities had two goals: the "terror" demagogy had
to be strengthened, and the left, the revolutionaries, were to be
blamed. By accusing the revolutionaries, claiming the communists were
responsible, they tried to denounce the revolutionaries in the eyes of
the people, on the other hand they used these actions as a pretext for
operations. The massacre in Maras before 1980, and the attempted
massacres in Corum and Sivas showed the contra-guerrilla knew no more
limits in its attacks against the people.
     Since the eighties, the contra-guerrilla organisation (in its
military outfit) has been used all over Kurdistan, in accordance with
the policy of the oligarchy. With the expansion of the revolutionary
struggle, led by the revolutionary movement, the contra-guerrilla
accelerated its institutionalisation by expanding its terror, its
organisation, and its policy. The most striking contra-guerrilla
attacks in this period were the murders of Muammer Aksoy, Cetin Emec,
Bahriye Ucok and Turan Dursun.  These were attacks with a certain
goal. They tried to blame the Islamic organisations for these murders,
covering the role of the state. But this tactic has not been
successful. The knowledge of the people, based on the propaganda and
information by the revolutionaries since the seventies prevented the
state from reaching its goal. Although the state tried to blame the
Islamic organisations, once again, for the murder of Ugur Mumcu, the
demonstrations where tens of thousands yelled "the contra-guerrilla
murdered Mumcu" and "Damn the contra-guerrilla", showed that the
people did not believe these statements anymore.  Thereupon the
general staff stated: "....There is no such thing as a
contra-guerrilla. There is a Ozel Kuvvetler Komutanligi (Special Unit
Command), previously known as Ozel Harp Dairesi (Department for
Special Warfare), under the command of the general staff. With
indignation we condemn these contra-guerrilla accusations, aimed at
the Turkish Army..." Thus denying the existence of a contra-guerrilla
on the one hand, conceding on the other that is does exist under
another name. Nowadays nobody, neither the people, nor the oligarchy,
discuss the existence of the Ozel Harp Dairesi, the
contra-guerrilla. Discussed is the function of the contra-guerrilla
and its influence on the policy of the oligarchy. Since the nineties,
the contra-guerrilla is not just an organisation of gangs, committing
murders, it's a camp where policy is determined. It determines
politics, and these are put into practise by its gangs, by the police
and the army.
     With its declaration of war against the people, and because of
its brutality, the power of the contra-guerrilla increased from the
moment it started to determine politics. Apparently all, especially
many in parliament and the bourgeois press are baffled about this
network, revealed by the accident in Susurluk. But this is not the
case. These are connections, known by almost all circles in the
oligarchy, connections they must have known about.
     The power and the hegemony of the contra-guerrilla are quite
demonstrative. The connections are the source where the
contra-guerrilla takes the courage for its brutality from. And it is
this brutality which makes certain circles among the bourgeoisie say:
"This can not be true". Even though the state does not openly confess
to all the variations of murders and massacres, it now has practically
taken responsibility for it.  Since 1990, the contra-guerrilla
increasingly used the method of "disappearances". Now an estimated
4-500 people have "disappeared". The war has extended to such a level
that the contra-guerrilla is now acting quite openly, no longer
feeling the need to cover its activities. On the contrary, it speaks
quite openly about is existence and its dirty activities, trying to
give the impression it's everywhere and omnipotent, trying to
intimidate the people and the revolutionaries.
     The oligarchy has not been able to prevent the development of the
opposition among the people, it could not prevent the revolutionary
and the nationalist struggle. The more the oligarchy attacked the
people, the greater became the influence of the contra-guerrilla. This
development has caused several problems for the oligarchy. The
contra-guerrilla needed - and established - a whole range of gangs,
consisting of traitors, fascists and policemen, to carry out its
"disappearances" and its massacres. Nowadays these gangs are only
concerned about their own personal profits. The gangs are no longer
under control.  Those who are the enemies of the people have come even
closer together in their front against the people, against the
revolutionaries and the national people's movement, but they did not
succeed in fully solving their internal conflicts. The opposition
among the bourgeoisie has been silenced with similar methods as were
applied against the people. That's why nobody should be astonished
about the gangs, revealed in recent months, and their connection with
the contra-guerrilla. In reality, these connections are nothing new,
but the extension of the war influences and extends this network. At
present some circles still discuss whether the contra-guerrilla is a
body, autonomous from the state, which is nested inside the state
structures, or not. Some of those who do not deny and cover everything
in order to protect the state, hope - confronted with the seriousness
of the situation - the contra-guerrilla is independent from the
state. Some, certainly because they are afraid, try to assess the
situation like that, because they would otherwise risk the wrath of
the state. But some, especially in the circles of the reformists who
believe in the existence of a - albeit a defective - democracy and who
don't see through the state apparatus and its characteristics, can not
let go from their babbling about "secret structures" and "dark
forces".
     In essence everybody who has a functioning brain, and who says
"at present the MGK (Military Security Council) rules the state",
knows that this is actually the centre of the contra-guerrilla; the
MGK is in fact the contra-guerrilla. The contra-guerrilla has never
been independent from the state, because it was set up by the state
itself. What it has to do, and how, its strategy and its tactics are
determined by the state.  Maybe it could be argued that the parliament
did not have a clue and that it did not steer the activities of the
contra-guerrilla.  But this is hardly surprising in a system which is
a fascist one, and where the parliament, elections and delegates are
merely window dressing.

The Mexican Revolution Is Not Over!
Long Live The Popular Revolutionary Army!

Manifesto Of Aguas Blancas

While the Zapatista movement has gained widespread press coverage, the
Ejercito Popular Revolucionarion (EPR) remains largely unknown in this
country. A marxist-leninist organisation, the EPR has emerged over the
past year as a significant force on a national scale. We reprint this
important document from the armed resistance in Mexico, in order that
revolutionaries in Britain can find out more about the situation in
that country.

     Rights do not exist in Mexico! Our political constitution is dead
through the government's actions, individual rights are violated
daily, our people find themselves in the margin when it comes to
economic and political decisions, all power has been concentrated by
the federal executive, subordinating all other powers of the union and
disrespecting the sovereignty of the states. Actual power usurps the
sovereign will of the people turning that government into an illegal
and illegitimate one, fundamentally sustained by the arms of military
and political bodies.
     In the face of institutionalized violence armed struggle is a
legitimate and necessary resource for the people to regain their will
and sovereignty, and to reestablish their rights.
     We have sprung forth from the sorrow of orphans and widows, from
the absence of loved ones disappeared, from the pain of the tortured,
from the anger of those unjustly incarcerated, from those who suffer
from political and social persecution, from the situation which daily
kills with repression, misery, hunger and disease, such as the
abandoned children on the streets. We are a small part of the
thousands of Mexicanos who through roads and mountains, villages and
cities, forge a new consciousness of the necessity to construct a new
Mexican patriotism, with those whose sweat irrigates the fields of
Mexico and of foreign lands, with those whose strength moves the
machines and factories, those who survive daily on the streets of our
giant cities, those who in the classroom receive and plant the seed of
knowledge, those who in every home resist the lack of bread and work,
those people forgotten.
     Reason and justice are on our side. Because of this, as Mexicans
dissatisfied with this national reality and not allowing the
government any other road; we have decided to trade in our tools for
arms of liberation which will combat and contribute to the fall of big
money and the unpopular government. Today, inspired by the unjust
conditions of life and work, we have decided to struggle in an
organized fashion to contribute to the revolutionary democratic
transformation of our nation, and based on a conscious and voluntary
act we have created an instrument of struggle which we call the
Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR).
     The Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR) is formed by men and women,
from the different exploited and oppressed sectors of the people, that
have comprehended the necessity of organization against the
reactionary violence of the exploiters and oppressors, that for
decades intended to drown in blood the struggle of the Mexican people
and their legitimate aspirations.  This gives it an essential popular
character because of the participation of simple men and women.
     Our army also struggles for the profound transformation of our
society through the path of armed revolution as one more form of
struggle that our people develop in defense of their interest and for
the continuity of their objective.
     The Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR) is the sector of the people
who aspire to be a part of the achievements of liberation and combats
that our people have liberated from exploitation, injustice and
oppression throughout its history and which today manifest itself in
the struggle for democratic revolutionary transformation of the
country, that the people have developed against the repressive
politics of a state which is supported and financed economically and
militarily by imperialism, there is no lack of resources to oppress
and massacre the Mexican people and to continue to keep them down. We
are the results of the determination to struggle against political
demagogue of the anti-popular government who in defense of the
financial elite and of corporations, as well as the foreign interest
in Mexico, has always neglected to satisfy the demands for justice,
liberty, democracy of the people, and who has demonstrated that it
will never bow down to such demands as such we have decided to defeat
them with the strength of reason and arms.

     For them we prepare to struggle:

1) We struggle to overthrow the anti-popular, anti-democratic,
demagogic and illegitimate government which works in the interest
of national and international capital and those forces that
sustain that capital. We struggle for the establishment of a new
and distinct government from that which presently exists.

2) We struggle for the reinstatement of popular sovereignty and
reinstatement of the fundamental rights of man. We will achieve
this goal with the participation of the people and with the
establishment of a popular and democratic republic upholding the
legitimate right of the people to alter or modify their form of
government.

3) We struggle for resolution and fulfillment of the immediate
needs and demands of the people implementing the necessary
social, economic, and political modifications to bring about
these changes.

4) We struggle for the establishment of just international
relations with the international community.

5) We struggle for the punishment of those responsible for
political oppression, corruption, misery, hunger, and crimes
against humanity.

     The escalated repressive conditions that plagues the entire
country, the Revolutionary Popular Army (EPR) is making a call out to
all the organizations that are popular, democratic, armed and
revolutionary, to condemn aggressive action against the people, and to
come together to organize and form one political front and struggle
for liberty, democracy, justice and a life with dignity.
     To the people of Mexico lets raise the banner of struggle that
our brothers/sisters have carried until their death at the hands of
repression by the government.
     We struggle against oppression and injustice, against humiliation
and theft, in defense of the dignity of our children, women, working
class, farmworkers, indigenous, colonized, and students to reestablish
order and rights, to reinstate popular sovereignty.
     That indignation and profound pain are not left alone in our
memory and in our hearts, that the pain and nostalgia for our loved
one's who are disappeared, tortured and massacred, strengthen our
conviction with which we clutch our arms of liberation; that the pain
would transform into the spirit of struggle to confront the
anti-popular government and its oppressive forces, that the spilt
blood of the martyrs of Mexico were not in vain. No more massacres
against the people, no more crimes without punishment.
     Our struggle is just and legitimate, it is the expression of the
popular will to recuperate our nation and construct freedom and
sovereignty.
     We call on all the people to join our democratic revolutionary
struggle for the liberation of our nation from the chains of
capitalism and an oppressive state.
     We call on all democratic syndicalists, political, progressive,
and armed revolutionaries, on social activist and progressive
personalities to incorporate all forms of struggle into the democratic
revolutionary struggle for justice, democracy, liberty, and a
dignified life for all Mexicans.

Join The Ranks Of The Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR)!
Join Popular Tribunals To Condemn The Enemies Of The People!
Form Self-Determined Armed Formations!
In The Face Of Repression And Impunity, Exercise A Popular
Revolutionary Justice!
Respond With Organized Struggle To The Violence Of The
Government!
With Popular Struggle The EPR Shall Triumph!

General Command Of The Popular Revolutionary Army
Aguas Blancas, Gro., Mexico - June 28, 1996


Peru: Revolution and Counter-Revolution


The occupation of the Japanese ambassador's residence in the capital,
Lima, has brought international media attention on the situation in
Peru, where there has been a bitter armed struggle against the
reactionary bourgeois state for more than two decades now. The group
which organised the attack, the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, is
less well known than the older, and larger Communist Party of Peru,
known in the bourgeois media as Sendero Luminoso, or Shining Path. In
this special feature, Communist Action is highlighting the struggle in
Peru, a struggle which we have not been able to cover inmuch detail up
until now. [For an analysis of the strategic situation from the point
of view of the PCP, see Communist Action 5]. As Communists in an
imperialist country, it is our proletarian internationalist duty to
support all genuine movements which are struggling against imperialism
and local reaction. Although we are not in complete ideological
agreement with either the PCP or the MRTA, we support their struggles
from the perspective of unwavering anti-iperialism.


Editorial Notes
The MRTA's seizure of the ambassador's residence was a bold move which
appears to have caused considerable problems for the Fujimori
regime. In order to shed some light on the origin and perspectives of
this group, we are reprinting here an interview with their European
representative, published in the German left paper, Junge Welt, in
December.
	We do not see it as our job to criticise any movementwhich is
fighting against imperialism. However, two comments have to be made
about the following interview.
	Firstly, and fundamentally, the MRTA has a perspective of
forcing a negotiated settlement along the lines of the agreement
recently brokered in Guatemala, or those of the recent past in El
Salvador and Colombia. In all these examples, former armed
marxist-leninist organisations have traded in their weapons in
exchange for participation in the political system. In each of these
cases, the movements have abandoned their commitment to
marxism-leninism andhave begun operating as a left social democratic
opposition, usually with some success. The CAG is not in favour of
anyone abandoning marxism-leninism, and we are opposed to social
democracy, though we recognise that negotiated settlements do not
necessarily mean abandonment of a revolutionary perspective. At
present, the MRTA is still fighting with guns in hand, and we continue
to give our support to the extent that they deliver their blows
against imperialism and local reaction. But we must stress that we are
not in favour of social democratic liquidationism, be it in Britain,
the former Soviet Union or anywhere else, including Latin America.
	Secondly, it is a negative feature of the MRTA that they adopt
such an anti-PCP political line. In this interview, the MRTA
representative condemns the PCP. In its public statements since the
state of the residence occupation, the MRTA has repeatedly distanced
itself from the PCP, condemning the latter as terrorists in the same
tones as the imperialist media. In this interview, the MRTA
specifically accuses the PCP of liquidating MRTA units and cadres, an
accusation which the PCP supporters will be answering in the enxt
edition of Communist Action. In the meantime, the CAG would like to
stress its commitment to unity of the revolutionary forces, and its
opposition the splittism and sectarianism, from whatever quarter.
	Thirdly, and importantly, the MRTA reproduce here the slander
that PCP leader Gonzalo has capitulated and signed a peace
accord. There is no evidence for this, and plenty of evidence against
it. Shortly after his arrest by the fascist regime, Gonzalo was
paraded on TV in a video which purported to show that he was in favour
of a peaceful settlement and the abandonment of the armed
struggle. The PCP immediately denounced it as a SIN (Peru's CIA) hoax
aimed at splitting the PCPand confusing the people. If the peace
accord were genuine, the Peruvian authorities wouldhave had Gonzalo on
the TV all the time. The truth is thathehas not reappeared since the
video was first put together. And far from abandoning its armed
struggle, or collapsing after its leader was arrested asmany thought,
the PCP has regrouped and is delivering heavy blows against the
enemy. The MRTA admit as much in this interview, which makes it all
the more lamentable that they should choose to repeat the regime's
propaganda about Gonzalo's supposed capitulation. For our part, the
CAG has not doubt that the peace accord was a SIN hoax.  Is The MRTA's
Action Weakening Fujimori?

Interview With Isaac Velazco, European Representative Of The Tupac
Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA)

Translators note: Isaac Velazco has been active in the Peruvian
Movimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru, whose commando "Oscar Torre
Condesu" is presently occupying the Japanese ambassador's residence in
Lima, since 1984. In February 1988, Velazco was arrested and
tortured. Had he not been able to escape, he most likely would have
died in prison. When statements by a traitor led to a raid on his
family's home in 1993, the MRTA decided to send Velazco to Germany. In
November 1994, he was granted political asylum. Following a decision
by the National Leadership of the MRTA, Isaac Velazco was chosen to
act as the European Representative of the MRTA.

According to mainstream media reports, the MRTA commando, which is
still occupying the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, has
proposed a dialogue concerning a lasting and comprehensive peace. It
seems the MRTA is no longer demanding the release of all political
prisoners, rather just that prison conditions be improved. Have the
goals of the action been changed?

Not at all. The goal remains to discuss and to negotiate. The MRTA
will enter into these negotiations with the same demands it made at
the beginning of the standoff. In the confrontation with the
government concerning these demands, including the release of
political prisoners, we will see which points we can agree on. That's
how a process of negotiation works.


The Peruvian government has declared a state of emergency..

Yes, these measures are designed to retain control over all
information and people. Since Sunday, the military has taken over the
duties of the police and can arrest anyone without a reason. All
members of the opposition are threatened with arrest. This is being
done to create the necessary climate either for negotiations or a
storming of the compound by force. Both options could be behind this.

Why did the MRTA choose the Japanese ambassador's residence as the target of 
its action?

Japan today is a major economic power, which has the luxury to be able
to afford to purchase parts of Wall Street. Many major
U.S. corporations are made up largely of Japanese capital. That's why
Japan will play an increasingly important role in Latin America, and
Japan regards President Fujimori as its primary supporting
figure. Now, there is a conflict of interests in Peru between the
U.S. and Japan. Japan, in order to strengthen its position there, has
financed the dirty war. The Japanese government was even partially to
blame for the fact that two of its own citizens, who worked for an aid
agency, were murdered by a paramilitary group. Japan is deeply
involved in supporting this murderous regime. That's why the National
Leadership of the MRTA decided to attack this location - a place which
would deeply hurt the dictatorship.

To what degree will this occupation affect Fujimori's future role?
Will it help Fujimori to consolidate his base, under the motto of
"joining ranks", or will it lead to splits within the government?

The Fujimori government has its back against the wall. All those who
collaborate with the government - businessmen, politicians, and
military figures - know very well that their integrity is in
danger. If one day they, too, should become prisoners of war of the
MRTA, the government won't do anything to help them. That's very
extraordinary within the context of Latin American history. On three
occasions, the comrades of the FSLN in Nicaragua captured politicians
and businessmen with ties to the Samoza regime. Each of these
incidents ended with their demands fulfilled. Fujimori, on the other
hand, has a complete disregard for human life, even for the lives of
his partners. Businessmen who support the government ought to think
about that.


What about the relationship between the military and the Fujimori
regime?

The support which both have given to one another in the past has only
served to act as a cover for state terrorism and corruption. The
government and high-ranking military officials are very corrupt. It's
no coincidence that, for example, Mr. Montesino, a lawyer for the drug
mafia with ties to the military, was not charged despite evidence from
a convicted drug dealer. The government did everything in its power to
prevent an investigation, and the state prosecutor aided in this
cover-up by publicly backing Mr. Montesino.  That would be unthinkable
in most formal democracies. But such favors are granted to the
military by the Fujimori regime. But there is a struggle for drug
profits taking place between the military and the intelligence agency.
Sometimes they work against each other. That's why the transport of
170kg of cocaine in the President's plane was publicized, as was the
discovery of navy ships being used to transport coca paste. But all of
this goes unpunished. And the government never talks about the dirty
war, the torture, the violations of human rights, the murder of
elderly persons, women, and children.

Why did the MRTA take up armed struggle?

The MRTA formed in the early 1980s as an alliance of various political
groups.  In the 1970s, there were 60 or 70 political organizations
which approached one another towards the end of the decade. Two
tendencies developed within this.  One sought solutions to the
nation's problems through the democratic process.  The other felt that
the path of political dialogue was blocked and the time was right to
resort to other means. This development continued into the 1980s, and
the MRTA became an important crystallization point for many armed
organizations.

How many activists did the MRTA have at that time?

During the First Conference of the MRTA as a political-military
organization, which was still legal at that time, 300 activists took
part. Of course the total membership was much higher than
that. Following this conference, the organization took its work
underground and the first units were formed to carry out armed
propaganda actions. For example, they occupied radio stations,
attacked arms depots, confiscated trucks full of food and distributed
these goods in poor neighborhoods, in addition to a series of actions
designed to provide funds for the organization. The first military
clashes were in the south of the country in 1984. The military
surrounded one MRTA unit which was in the area to help establish a
rural guerrilla. Following a long battle, 12 of our activists were
arrested and many weapons were confiscated. They were then thrown into
prison and tortured. Another unit was able to break through the
military's lines and link up with other MRTA forces elsewhere in the
country. The deployment of the Peruvian military was marked by massive
attacks on the civilian population.


And how strong is the MRTA today?

For security reasons, I cannot say. But our forces are present
throughout the country. The MRTA is present at many levels and is
organized in various fields. There are rural units, special units,
commandos, and militias. In accordance with our outlook, our members
are active in a variety of fields, such as propaganda, union
organizing, social movements, and the guerrilla.

The Peruvian government and President Fujimori in particular have
declared victory over the guerrilla. That doesn't seem to be true. In
1996, the MRTA carried out several attacks on military and police
targets.

Yes, the Fujimori government claimed a great victory over the armed
movement.  Two factors played a role in this. First of all, the leader
of Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path), Abimael Guzman, signed a peace
agreement with the government. Secondly, there was tactical retreat by
the MRTA. As a result of several military offensives by the Peruvian
military, the repression against the population, and the neo-liberal
policies of the government, out social base was narrowed. We decided
to concentrate our political and military structures in the rural
areas of central Peru, in Selva Central. In the rest of the country we
only had commando and militia structures, which carried out intensive
political and organizational work in city neighborhoods, with farmers,
and with workers. The government lied to itself and even made itself
believe that the guerrilla, in particular the MRTA, had been
defeated. Now the government is faced with a new situation. We have
continued our political work over the past few years and given
political-military training to a new generation of fighters and
cadre. We were never as weak as the government supposed. The number of
actions carried out by the MRTA across the country, which dealt heavy
blows to the army, are evidence of this. The government has tried to
cover all this up, but they have failed. The people know that the
government has not defeated the guerrilla and they know that the
government's neo-liberal policies are making poverty worse. That is
evidenced by the large participation of the population in recent
riots.

A few weeks ago, there were three days of riots in Lima's historic
district, because the police tried to force all vendors off the
streets. Hundreds of people and police were injured. Have protests
against the government increased?

Yes. Since the end of 1995, the people are slowly rebuilding their
organizational and mobilizational capacities. There are more riots,
where the people defend their right to existence. But the repression
has changed as well. Before, police and soldiers were everywhere in
Lima. Today, you don't see as many. They have been replaced by secret
police and plain-clothes forces. A German friend of mine recently had
his briefcase stolen on the street in Lima. Within seconds, at least
20 plain-clothes police officers were on the scene and brutally beat
up the thief.

Sendero Luminoso has also reorganized, is active militarily, and seems
to have altered its line...

The peace deal with the government signed by a large part of the group
led to deep divisions within Sendero. That faction which wished to
continue the armed struggle has carried out armed propaganda and has
taken to interacting with the people in a way which Sendero used to
criticize the MRTA for doing. But despite some corrections in its
political methods, Sendero is still the same.  For example, in March
of this year, labor activist Pascual Arozda was murdered. They have
continued to attack all those who stand in their way or don't share
their views.

How would you describe the relationship between Sendero and the MRTA?
In the past, Sendero has attacked the MRTA.

Sendero is a very domineering force. They claim to be the sole
possessors of the truth and the only standard bearers of revolution in
Peru. That's why they have never accepted the existence of other
revolutionary organizations in Peru. At the least, they have described
us as "armed reformists" and "traitors". But Sendero has also, in the
past, described us as their main enemy and murdered many MRTA
activists. They have even ambushed MRTA units.  These are crimes which
cannot be justified in any way; they contradict the values of
revolutionaries.

How do you envision the MRTA's future?

The MRTA arose as a movement. Many social sectors are represented
within the MRTA: men and women from the cities and rural areas,
intellectuals, religious people, indeed the whole society. Of course,
to transform society we must tear down the old state and build a new
one. That means we must seize power. But seize power for whom? For
what? And to what end? That is the central question.  The answer is:
Power must be in the hands of the workers in the cities and the
countryside. There must be a participatory democracy. Mechanisms for
people's power must be advanced. And we have been doing that for
years.

(Interview by Darrio Azzellini, junge Welt, December 30, 1996)
Translated by Arm the Spirit, an autonomist/anti-imperialist inform-
ation collective based in Toronto, Canada. To contact ATS, write to:

Arm The Spirit
P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A
Toronto, Ontario
M5W 1P7 Canada


MAOIST GUERILLAS: FIGHTING ALONG THE LENGTH AND WIDTH OF PERU

Reports on the Communist Party of Peru (PCP)'s ongoing was against the
old Peruvian state. Reprinted from El Diario Internacional 37.

Speaking the Language of Armed Actions

Mixed Army-Paramilitary Patrol Ambushed

Just before dawn on September 24 a guerilla column ambushed a mixed
counter-insurgency patrol of soldiers and paramilitary.  The attack
took place in the countryside of the district of
Rapaz-Huancahuasi. For this engagement the guerillas chose a defile
between two mountains, a place where powerful dynamite charges easily
caused the destruction of the vanguard vehicles of this military
convoy with its first explosions.
	The battle was resolved very rapidly with the regime's forces
suffering serious casualties, including 3 soldiers and several
paramilitary wounded.  The government and its media tried to minimise
this "news" by restricting their media to laconic 3 line reports.
	On the same date (September 24), in the Tingo Maria region of
Angasyacu a guerilla column fought off one of the powerful army
helicopter gun-ships that the regime uses in its counter-insurgency
operations.  Even the regime's press was forced to admit that the
Russian manufactured airship suffered impacts from rockets launched by
the People's Liberation Army which nearly brought it down.
	Around 10.00 am. September 30, three large columns of the
People's Liberation Army (PLA) launched synchronised attacks on three
government counter-insurgency bases located in the central Amazon
region.  Each guerilla column was composed of over 100 combatants,
many of them young regional women with typical ethnic features.
	The lightning attack took the paramilitary look-outs by
surprise and the guerillas of the Communist Party of Peru rapidly
seized control of the towns of Matireni, Shimapango and Chikireni in
Satipo province, a zone populated by Ashaninka communities.
	It is a well known fact that in the majority of native
communities in the central Amazon region the army has been organising
paramilitary counter-insurgency bases under their direct control.  As
a result of these engagements around a dozen members of the regime's
paramilitary gangs were killed in action. The government, applying
methods of mis-information corresponding to its psychological warfare
plans, infamously alleged that the rebels had attacked "Ashaninka
refugee camps".


GUERILLAS CONTINUE TO LAY SEIGE TO THE CAPITAL

On 28 October a guerilla commando unit made up of around 50 fighters
carried out a spectacular political and military action in the very
centre of the urban township of Mi-Peru, in Ventanilla, a city located
barely twenty minutes from the military garrisons in Lima and its port
of Callao.
	It was at 7 a.m sharp while thousands of men and women were
setting out to go to work when the Maoists began their propaganda
action calling for support for the armed struggle and for the
overthrow of the Fujimori regime.  The guerillas - using big character
posters, leaflets and speeches - gathered the masses and encouraged
them to give support to the armed struggle by fighting against the
tyrannical regime in every terrain.  One of the posters left behind by
the rebels carried a warning directed against the regime's township
authority, threatening the execution of the Fujimori appointed mayor.
	"Mi-Peru" is a town of 45.000 people considered a "red zone"
by the repressive regime.  This is due to the acute and courageous
struggle by the masses of that locality against the current
government.  Up to last year, the army had around 1.000 soldiers
garrisoned at a base within the township.
	That military base was evacuated in order to give credence to
the regime's propaganda, alleging the "defeat of Shining Path".
Following the raid of October 28, both the Fujimori media, as well as
the "theoreticians" of its counter-insurgency policy, have began
demanding that the soldiery be send back to re-occupy "Mi-Peru".


TOWNS SEIZED AND PARAMILITARY THUGS EXECUTED

In Tingo Maria, where the government has concentrated an important
part of its elite troops, matters are no less serious for the regime.
	At daybreak on November 2, a column of over 100 guerillas made
a lighting raid on the town of Supte San Jorge (Tingo Maria province).
The rebels entered the town from three different directions and were
supported by guerrillas who had already infiltrated the city through
various other key places.
	The rebel column was well armed with modern weapons
confiscated from the regime's troops and retained control of the town
for over three hours. During this time the rebels achieved their
objectives, including the destruction of the headquarters of the
army's paramilitary "self-defence corps", razing the building to the
ground.  Before their withdrawal, the rebels confiscated weapons and
other war materials abandoned by the regime's troops in their flight.


FUJIMORI'S MAYORS RESIGN "EN MASSE"

The rebels' advance all over Peru is not only a smashing blow to the
regime's propaganda about "Defeat of the Maoist Guerillas".  This
advance is also bringing about in practice the breakdown of the
political infrastructure so laboriously woven by the Fujimori
government.
	This objective fact can be clearly observed from the news
	released by the Peruvian media itself. For example, according
to reports in the Lima press, during the last 4 months in the Leoncio
Prado province alone, more than 30 mayors have presented their
resignations.
	This is the result of warnings that these authorities have
received from the Communist Party of Peru (PCP) commanding them to
give up their posts immediately.  All these "mayors" were fraudulently
appointed by the military forces which occupy the region.  It is
obvious that the phenomenon known in politics as a "power vacuum" is
growing and expanding in Peru. That is, however, a "power vacuum" only
for the official regime.


A SAMPLE LIST OF RECENT GUERILLA ACTIONS FROM THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF PERU

24/09	Rapaz-Huancahuasi		Patrol ambushed: 4
	soldiers, 3 paramilitary 	
	thugs killed/wounded.
24/09	Tingo Maria			Rockets fired against
	 helicopter gun-ship
25/09	San Jose - Ayacucho	
	80 guerillas destroy
	 paramilitary base.
					2 regime's thugs killed.
29/09	S.J. Miraflores (Lima)	
	House of Fujimori
	 appointee bombed.
29/09	P. Santamaria (Ucayali)
	 Commandos execute
	 army appointed
	 vice-governor
29/09	Minasal (Ucayali)		
	Battle between regime's
	 marines and rebels
30/09	Satipo - Central Amazon	
	Numerous guerilla units
	 attack counter-insurgency
	 bases. 
04/10 	 S.Martin Pongos (Junin)
	 Several towns seized by
	 guerilla units.
06/10	 Pachakia- Ene Valley	
	3 paramilitary killed in
	 guerilla ambush
08/10 	Satipo-Ene River Front	
	Army/guerillas battle. 3
	soldiers killed.
17/10 	Ccarhuancho-Ayacucho 	
	Town seized. Two army
	 informers executed.
28/10 	Mi-Peru (Callao)		
	Armed propaganda and
	guerilla actions. 
OPERATION CAPITULATE: THE ZOMBIES SPEAK OUT

A Report from El Diario Internacional on the peace letters hoax.

In April 1994 in El Diario Internacional we wrote a lengthy piece
entitled "Operation Capitulate, The Secret History of the Peace
Letters".  In that document - translated and published in several
languages in at least a dozen international press organs - we have put
forward an approximate idea explaining how the National Intelligence
Service (SIN) had fabricated the plot known as "The Peace Letters".
	Nearly two years have gone by since the publication of that
article.  What then appeared as something confusing and difficult to
understand for the layman, can no longer be said to be so mysterious.
The Fujimori regime itself has revealed new elements permitting a
better understanding of this farce and tearing up the veil of secrecy
surrounding this "Peace Agreement" plot.

THE LABORATORY AT THE NAVAL BASE

Firstly, the fact that in the very military prison (Naval Base of
Callao) where Chairman Gonzalo is kept in an underground cell, a SIN
torture laboratory exists where prisoners are subjected to chemical
and psychological experiments aimed at manipulating their minds,
breaking their will and turning them into pliable zombies.
	This fact was confirmed by the public revelations of the well
known drug baron Demetrio Chavez Penaherrera (a.k.a. "El
Vaticano"). "Vaticano" took advantage of a careless moment on the part
of his brutal jailers to loudly denounce the inhuman experiments he
had undergone in the Callao Naval Base.  The Peruvian magazine Caretas
(August 29, 1996) gives the following version of this event:
	"On the afternoon of Thursday 22, Demetrio Chavez, in
conversation with Jose Castro Mora, his attorney, reiterated his
accusations against (Fujimori's PA) Vladimiro Montesinos.  On Friday
23, the numerous people attending the trial in the Court Room of the
Naval Base were able to witness a savage spectacle.  "Vaticano" -
looking like a Zombie - was even unable to recognise his employee and
accomplice Abel Seijas".
	Caretas asks: "What took place in the Naval Base between
Thursday in the afternoon and Friday morning".  Caretas consulted with
several psychiatrists, neurologists and other specialists.  All of
them were unanimous in saying that the "Vatican" of Friday was not the
same person who had spoken at the hearing the previous day.  It was
evident that the drug Baron who held sway over Campanilla for so many
years cut an even more unlikely figure in the state he appeared. No
one could believe that the wane and wasted man who so incoherently
spoke on Friday August 23 1996 was the same man who had been arrested
in Cali on january 1994.  Something had happened to him in the
meantime......".
	Caretas continues reporting the views of one of the experts
they consulted: "According to the psychiatrist Teobaldo Llosa, it was
evident that Demetrio Chavez had partially lost his memory, showing a
totally different behaviour from previous days. There are several
methods to induce loss of memory in a person".  The psychiatrist went
on to describe a series of neuroleptic and anti-psychotic drugs and
electric-shock methods which were likely to have been used on
"Vaticano".
	It is well to bear in mind that Demetrio Chavez is one of the
most powerful drug lords in Peru. From the mid 80s he had established
himself in the Alto Huallaga region where, with the support of the
High Command of the armed forces he organised his "drug cartel" with
tentacles reaching into Colombia and the USA. He also got involved in
the counter-insurgency efforts of the regime.  In January 1994 he was
arrested in Cali, Colombia and later delivered into the hands of the
anti-terrorist police in Peru.
	As soon as Demetrio Chavez set foot in Lima he revealed that
his principal accomplices were Vladimiro Montesinos - Fujimori's
Personal Assistant and high ranking SIN officer - and the head honcho
in Fujimori's armed forces, General Nicolas Hermoza Rios. Vaticano
described in great detail how he paid monthly bribes of $50.000
directly to Montesinos, itemising the large amounts of money he paid
for the use of military airfields for his drug shipments.  He even
described how a part of his drug transport fleet was made up of
helicopters belonging to the Peruvian army.
	It was a scandal when Vaticano, a confirmed drug baron, was
indicted as a "terrorist" and sequestered into a military prison under
the absolute control of SIN.  He was condemned to life imprisonment by
military judges and denied a public trial in open civilian courts.
	
THE SIN'S BOOK AND THE "PEACE LETTERS"

Another important element recently revealed comes from a 600 page book
recently published by the National Intelligence Service (SIN) in
conjunction with the High Command of the Armed forces. This book
entitled "Peru: 13 Years of Shame", admits, among other things, that
the "peace letters" have played an important role in the psychological
warfare waged by the regime.  The book also recognises that the
"letters" were cooked up "Inside the prisons" and claims that their
political effects meant "a victory for democracy against subversion".
	The authors of the book ask themselves: "What objectives was
the President able to achieve with this gambit of the letters?".  The
answer to this question makes it clear that the authors of this
concoction of "peace letters" were indeed the National Intelligence
Service in cahoots with the American CIA and that their main aim was
to undermine and try to destroy the revolutionary prestige of Chairman
Gonzalo.
	This revealing book summarises in 6 points the successes they
think they have achieved with the "peace letters" plot.  Here is a
synthesis of those six points:

1.	To destroy the mythical figure of Chairman Gonzalo.

2.	Achieving international repercussion and obtaining the support
 	of the big powers. That is why the first "peace letter" was
 	presented at the 48th Ordinary Session of the United Nations
 	(UN).

3.	To "show the capacity for victory" of the Police and Armed
  	Forces of Peru.

4.	"Political exploitation of the Peace Letters", particularly to
  	win the 1993 Referendum organised by the Fujimori dictatorship.

5. 	To present before public opinion a victorious image for the
   	Police and Armed Forces.

6.	Manipulating the figure of Chairman Gonzalo in order to
  	attempt "to split the organisational structure of Shining Path
  	by fostering a two line struggle within its ranks".  All
translations from EDI from comite Sol Peru, London History Of The New
People's Army (NPA)

(From Liberation International, March-April 1994)

Soon after its own reestablishment on Dec. 26, 1968, the Communist
Party of the Philippines organized the New People's Army (NPA) on
March 29, 1969. The NPA started with 60 Red fighters armed with only
nine automatic rifles and 26 inferior arms (single-shot rifles and
handguns).

It had an initial mass base of some 80,000 peasants in the second
district of Tarlac province, which it inherited from the old
revolutionary movement. This rural mass base was immediately put into
coordination with the legal democratic forces and an urban mass base
of no more than 15,000 people.

The Party established the NPA under the guidance of
Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought and along the general line of the
new-democratic revolution. Under the absolute leadership of the Party,
the NPA wages a protracted people's war, made possible and dictated by
the chronically crisis-ridden semicolonial and semifeudal conditions
of the Philippines.

As the advance detachment of the working class, the Communist Party of
the Philippines is determined to carry out the new-democratic and
socialist stages of the revolution. By building the New People's Army,
the Party answers the central question of the revolution, which is
that of seizing political power, and builds in the most effective
manner the basic alliance of the working class and the peasantry.

To advance the people's war, the Party wields and coordinates the
revolutionary armed struggle, the urban-based legal democratic
movement and the revolutionary united front encompassing the local
organs of political power, the National Democratic Front and various
legal alliances. The revolutionary armed struggle is the main form of
struggle for seizing political power and is waged according to the
strategic line of encircling the cities from the countryside and
accumulating strength until it becomes possible to wage nationwide
offensives and seize the cities.

The national united front musters the basic exploited classes of
workers and peasants, wins over the urban petty bourgeoisie and the
middle bourgeoisie and takes advantage of the splits among the big
comprador and landlord reactionaries in order to isolate and defeat
the worst reactionaries and their imperialist masters at every given
time.

Within the framework of the new-democratic revolution against foreign
monopoly capitalism and the local reactionaries, the Party and the NPA
pursue the antifeudal line in order to fulfill land reform as the main
content of the democratic revolution.  They rely mainly on the poor
and middle peasants and farm workers, win over the middle peasants,
neutralize the rich peasants, take advantage of the split between the
enlightened and evil gentry in order to isolate and destroy the power
of the latter.

The New People's Army has won great victories under the leadership of
the Party by carrying out extensive and intensive guerrilla warfare,
carrying out land reform and building the mass base. These three
factors are integral. When one factor is absent or done excessively at
the expense of others, there are adverse consequences to the people's
war as a whole.

However, armed revolution has its twists and turns. There are
tremendous odds arising from the ruling system, especially its
propensity for terrorism under the sponsorship of U.S.  imperialism,
as well as from subjectivist errors of "Left" and Right opportunism
that violate the proletarian revolutionary line.

The victories of the New People's Army would have been greater had it
not been for certain major errors long unrectified in the period of
1980-91. These included such "Left" opportunist errors as premature
"regularization", urban insurrectionism and military adventurism and
such Right opportunist errors as reformism and parliamentarism that
reduced the number of cadres going to the countryside.

A comprehensive and thoroughgoing rectification movement has been
carried out since 1992. It has won resounding success. The major
errors and shortcomings have been rectified and overcome. This has
raised the fighting will and capabilities of all revolutionary forces
and the people against the enemy.

Through years of successful revolutionary armed struggle, the NPA has
become a mighty force. It is battle-tested and has a wealth of
revolutionary experience. It grew strong and was tempered in the
crucible of struggle against the long fascist rule of the U.S.-Marcos
regime and against the subsequent pseudo-democratic rule of the
U.S.-Aquino regime. It continues to frustrate the U.S.-supported Ramos
regime and win victories in the battlefield.  The NPA has thousands of
full-time guerrilla fighters with automatic rifles, excluding the more
numerous forces of local guerrillas, militia and self-defense units
with inferior weapons.  They operate in guerrilla fronts which cover
25 percent of the villages (more than 10,000 out of 40,000 villages)
or substantial portions of more than 60 of the 73 provinces.

The rural mass base runs into millions administered by local organs of
political power and includes peasants, workers, women, youth, cultural
activists and children. The local organs of political power are
committees of people's government, assisted by various types of
working committees in charge of mass organizations, education, health,
land reform, production, finance, defense, cultural activities,
arbitration and other functions.

The NPA had exceedingly small and modest beginnings and has reached
its current level of development self-reliantly. Its victories are due
to the inexhaustible participation and support of the people who
cherish their own revolutionary army and fight for their own national
and social liberation.

The heroic fighters of the New People's Army fear neither hardship nor
death in fighting for the national and democratic rights and interests
of the Filipino people against foreign monopoly capitalism and the
local exploiting classes. They are ever confident of winning greater
victories. Moreover, they are conscious of performing an
internationalist duty and contributing to the common revolutionary
struggle of the proletariat and people of the world for their
liberation from imperialism and for the realization of socialism and
communism.


Theory and Practice

"Anti-Stalinism" and the Current World Situation

In the present situation, anti-Communism above all takes the form of
anti-Stalinism. In this article written by the Revolutionary People's
Liberation Party of Turkey [DHKP], it is argued that it is impossible
to defend socialism without defending Stalin.

Prior to the collapse of the socialist system, the fight for markets
and competitiveness between imperialist powers was focused on new
areas for exploitation. Now, however, in addition to these conflicts,
the main area of imperialist competition and struggle for super
profits has become the countries and regions which have broken away
from the socialist system, and which have recently opened up to the
capitalist-imperialist market. They represent new, virgin lands for
the imperialist monopolies.
	In order to gain control of these markets, the imperialists
have above all been fostering nationalism, and on this basis have
created regional wars. On the one hand, this secures bourgeois control
over class consciousness, while on the other hand, by getting people
to kill each other and use up their financial resources, they have
made them dependent on imperialism economically, politically in every
other way, thus securing their own domination.
	After imperialism brought about the collapse of the socialist
system, the New World Order demagogy had an ideological influence over
some national liberation movements which, although they had launched
liberation struggles and had even developed them to the point of
revolution, had remained dependent on the strength of the revisionist
system. They signed peace agreements with imperialism and spread the
process of disarmament. Many countries which are not under the control
of imperialism, and do not want to under such control, are continuing
to resist surrender to imperialism, while others are trying to stand
on their own feet, and to at least retain hold on their reins of
power, and thus are succumbing to the politics of surrender.
	In short, this is the picture of the world today. The question
is, how did this negative situation come about? After WW2, socialism
went from being one country to become a socialist system covering a
third of the world. As a result of the struggles for national and
social liberation, many of the newly independent countries withdrew
from the capitalist-imperialist market. In many of them, the
revolutionary struggle had intensified, and they were at the point of
progressing towards socialism with massive strides. This was a period
when the capitalist system was being turned upside down by new
revolutions, and when a socialist system was being formed. The
imperialist system was entering a stage where it was being wiped out
step by step. The compelling question we must find an answer to is how
was this situation reversed?
	To answer this question, we must begin first of all by
discussing "anti-Stalinism."
	Today, when its results can be clearly and openly seen, this
"anti-Stalinism" has become totally bankrupt. Under the guise of
"anti-Stalinism", those who collaborated with imperialism have brought
great harm to socialism; they caused the collapse of the socialist
system, and their own downfall into the bargain.

The Ideological and Historical Roots of "Anti-Stalinism"

"The bourgeoisie and its ideology, its oppression upon the proletariat
and its party, mean that the bourgeoisie's thoughts, its traditions,
its habits ...  this way or that way pass through the sections
connecting the proletariat to the bourgeoisie, and penetrates within
the proletariat and its party."  [Stalin, The Source of the Conflicts
Within the Party]
	The concrete truth which Stalin was trying to explain, is
confirmed particularly today in the efforts to intervene in the
proletariat's revolutionary struggle under the guise of
"anti-Stalinism."
	Anti-Stalinism has existed in the international Communist
movement throughout the period since the mid 1920s, when it first
appeared in the form of a turn-coat faction called Trotskyism. Up
until the mid 1920s, Trotskyism was an anti-Bolshevik and anti-Marxist
opposition. After that, it changed its appearance completely, and went
from being anti-Leninist to being anti-Stalinist.  But Trotskyism has
not been able to play any other role than that of permanent
opposition, and its history is one of broken illusions..
	As a result of the successes in building socialism and in the
struggle against fascism, Trotskyism gained no particular benefits
from its change in form. After WW2, this anti-Marxist-Leninist
opposition dressed up in the form of anti-Stalinism, had effectively
fallen silent, having been reduced to the point where it was not taken
seriously in the international movement.
	Stalin was the target of propaganda, because it was under his
name that socialist politics were becoming concrete, and because his
policy of not making concessions was making further progress all the
time. The world proletariat was progressing rapidly, as was the move
towards socialism among those fighting for national liberation. With
every passing day, the anti-imperialist camp was getting
stronger. Imperialism had to block this advance.
	This is why a sustained anti-socialist campaign was launched
against Stalin personally.
	To be able to stand up against these attacks (which have been
waged world wide on every terrain - militarily, politically,
diplomatically, and ideologically through propaganda), to be able to
successfully win new victories and impose further setbacks on
imperialism, what is required is a leadership which has a consistent
and correct line, along with a strong organisation under the direction
of this leadership. This is particularly the case for the socialist
countries, but holds also for the entire world. Until the death of
Stalin, this fight was being waged successfully, and socialism was
making new gains world-wide.


The Resolutions of the 20th Congress of the CPSU were the Start of the 
Disintegration of the Socialist System

In terms of this question, the death of Stalin created a huge
vacuum. The weakening of the country and the party structure, the
damage caused by the war, the great loss of cadres whose places were
not filled for a long time - these and other reasons resulted in
Stalin's gap remaining unfilled. This was part of the price that the
Soviet Union had to pay on behalf of the people of the world for its
struggle against Hitler fascism, which had aimed to enslave the people
of the world.
	As for the collective leadership which replaced Stalin, its
capacity and understanding were very far from being up to the
task. The political line which was followed was not clear, and against
the backdrop of the confusion which stemmed from the attacks of
imperialism, self-doubt emerged. Through exaggerating the situation of
the CPSU, they were unable to see the level of revolutionary struggle
on a global scale. For those who are unable to perceive the true level
of revolutionary struggle through the bombardments of imperialism, the
situation was genuinely fearful. Not being able to see how the world
had changed from the days when the task was to defend the only
socialist country in existence, the revisionists begun to take control
of the leadership through expulsions.
	Modern revisionism, having put forward its defeatist views,
incriminated Stalin and rejected armed revolution, then began to
follow policies which benefited imperialism. The fact is that
socialist liberation struggles were left without support, and the path
they were following condemned through the mouths of "socialists". But
this is not the most important thing. This revisionism created an
opportunity for the revival of many tendencies which were waiting to
pounce. Trotskyism, which had never laid down the flag of
anti-socialism, became even more excited by this development. To this
chorus were added the voices of the defeated Communist Parties of
Europe, including the Communist Party of Italy and the Communist Party
of France, who in one way or another had held power in their hands
only to surrender it to the bourgeoisie.
	It became a matter of prestige to defend Stalin, who was at
the centre of the propaganda war between revolution and
counter-revolution. Imperialism made this leader the target. As if it
was not enough that these [revisionists] had given up, they wanted to
erase him from the ranks of socialists, through attacks from within
the party he had led for years. They wanted to erase him from history.
	What Stalin had achieved and his understanding were swept away in one blow. 
He was then portrayed as a "dictator". Revisionism took strength from the 
attacks of imperialism, and in turn objectively these imperialist attacks were 
strengthened as a result of the revisionists.
	The first thing that the founders of Eurocommunism did was to
condemn Stalin, to cut of all ties to him, and in order to "disprove"
the imperialist propaganda they changed everything, even their
names. By rejecting the dictatorship of the proletariat (very
important for the bourgeoisie), armed uprising and other similar
terms, they acted in the interests of the bourgeoisie. The ideology of
the 2nd International and nationalism grew in strength.
	As a result of the reformist-pacifist left taking on board the
"anti-Stalinist" campaign, which had been started by the bourgeoisie
in order to destroy the massive development of socialist, not only was
Eurocommunism brought into the open, not only did it foster the
revival of currents which had been buried by history like Trotskyism
and anarchism, and the emergence of numerous anti-Stalin writers, but
in addition secured the conditions for many bourgeois and petit
bourgeois sections to enter "left" platforms.
	A further result which has emerged is that anti-Stalinist
writers have served to strengthen class collaboration by the left. The
tradition of revolutionary politics, free of concessions, which came
to the fore after WW2 when the politics of the 2nd International were
thrown into the rubbish bin of history, suddenly disappeared.
	The bluff and exaggeration of the bourgeoisie have once again
became an effective method. The bourgeoisie is once again sure that
when it raises its voice a little, when it steps up the threats, when
it intensifies the demagogy, it will be able to divide a few left
currents which were ready to retreat. To give an example of this, take
a look at the situation of the PDS in Germany. Today every current can
be found within the ranks of the PDS. The leadership of this party
launched a campaign to remove the last "Stalinist" elements from their
ranks. By making it a principle to sever all ties with Stalinism, they
then moved to cut off all ties to organisations they knew were
Stalinist.
	There is no need to look very far to see what the ideological
roots of "Anti-Stalinism" are. The essence of "Anti-Stalinism" is
anti-Marxism and anti-Leninism. When Lenin summed up the history of
Marxism in Marxism and Revisionism, he wrote that "In the first half
century of its existence, Marxism was engaged in combating theories
fundamentally hostile to it. ... But after Marxism had ousted all the
more or less integral doctrines hostile to it, the tendencies
expressed in those doctrines began to seek other channels.  The forms
and motives of the struggle changed, but the struggle continued. and
the second half century of the existence of Marxism began with the
struggle of a trend hostile to Marxism within Marxism."
"Anti-Stalinism" is precisely such a trend hostile to Marxism within
Marxism.

Gorbachovism is an Attack on Leninism under the Guise of an Attack of Stalin.

	The Soviet Union's policy of collaboration with imperialism
evolved over a period of time and arrived at the final stage which was
counter-revolutionary Gorbachovism. This line did not emerge
suddenly. It began with the resolutions of the 20th Congress of the
CPSU, and was formulated in the term, "peaceful co-existence,"
peaceful competition, and peaceful transition and reform of
capitalism, which found its final development with Gorbachov and which
culminated in counter-revolution. The policies which were given
Gorbachov's name were only a continuation of the earlier developments
- the split in the socialist camp and the move to the right.
	Gorbachov traced his ideological roots to Khrushchov and
Bukharin. Gorbachov rehabilitated the counter-revolutionaries, which
even Khrushchov had not been able to achieve, and made his views of
both Khrushchov and Stalin known. It is clear today that Gorbachov,
who very soon recognised as a traitor, was from the start an enemy of
Stalin.
	
One Cannot Defend Socialism Without Defending Stalin

We oppose the criticisms that have been made against Stalin which do
not take into consideration the internal and external historical and
objective conditions, the imperialist blockade, the threat of
intensified attacks from fascism which was on the rise, the moves
towards imperialist war, the peasants' resistance against socialist
co-operatives and the attempts by petit bourgeois currents to destroy
the unity of the party. Contrary to the accusations - that Stalin
abused his power, infringed socialist legality, concentrated the
leadership of the party and the state into his own hands, and
oppressed the masses - the period in question was one when the party's
ties with the masses was at its height. This was the most progressive
level that the party reached in the entire 70 years of socialism. It
was a time when the Stakhanov movement created extraordinary work
rates and levels of self-sacrifice, a time when the people had become
socialist.
	To take a period which is full of successes and achievements,
a time when political methods were used to realise these gains, and to
evaluate this in a way which puts these methods in opposition to and
separate from the party's historical leadership is not consistent with
the materialist conception of history.
	In conclusion, the criteria of political success for
Marxist-Leninists is to raise the level of the struggles of the
world's proletariat, and to strengthen them with the successes of
socialist and internationalist politics. It is to develop the national
liberation movements and to strike new blows against imperialism.
	Those who have not learnt the lesson from the practical
developments of the CPSU and the Soviet Union have been thrown from
left to right, and have experienced confusion, above all in political
and ideological terms.
	The period has clearly shown that socialism cannot be built on
the basis of dogmatic, economistic, nationalist or pragmatic
analysis. Such analysis turns Marxism-Leninism into revisionism,
internationalism into nationalism, practical revolution into
opportunism, and as a whole socialism moves towards the restoration of
capitalism.
	Marxist-Leninists who have understood this for over 20 years
have for this reason been justified in their struggles. It is because
of the consistency and the faith shown in defending the purity of
Marxism-Leninism that Turkey today has a revolutionary mission.
	To not rely on external forces, but to think, to learn, to
make revolution and develop how to defend that revolution by totally
depending upon and relying upon one's own strength will secure the
development of a far healthier socialism, one which will not collapse.
	We have now entered a period where all over the world the
struggle of organisations who refuse to surrender to imperialism and
who have confidence in the strength of the people, is on the rise.

General Strike in South Korea

Faced with a new anti-labour law, trade unions in South Korea have
gone on an all-out offensive, staging a general strike which is
enterring its third week as we go to press.

The Korean bosses want more 'flexibility' from the workforce, and are
looking to introduce greater casual labour while making it easier to
lay workers off.  The same fight that the Liverpool Dockers, the
Hillingdon Hospital workers and many others here are facing.

It will have come as a shock to many workers in Britain to see the
degree of militancy of their South Korean brothers and sisters. But
the biggest shock will have been to find out that South Korean
workers, prior to the introduction of the new law, enjoyed better
legal protection than their counterparts here.

Indeed, it is a feature of the New World Order that certain monopolies
have been looking to set up production inSouth Wales and Scotland in
preference to Korea. Weaker unions and a strong anti-union legal
framework (which the Labour Party is to keep intact should they get
into office) have led to a situation where labour costs here can
undercut those in Korea.

This edited report is from the KCTU, the Korean TUC, in Seoul. The
KCTU is outlawed, but unbowed. The articles reflect their political
line, not necessarily that of The Communist.

The full textx of all KCTU reports to dat eare available from
Communist Action.


FIRST day of the General Strike in THE THIRD WAVE 

The Greatest Demonstration All Over The Country!

Yesterday, January 15, over 200,000 people including laborers,
students, and citizens poured out and filled the streets in 15 cities,
including Seoul, Pusan, Kwangju, Daeku and others, crying out the
slogan "retraction or the detrimental revisions of the Labor Law and
National Security Planning Agency Act". They held rallies by regions
and marched through the streets with flags and banners to demonstrate
against the evil laws. In some regions like Seoul, as riot police
fired tear gas on demonstrators, ordinary citizens who kept watched
over the sights booed the violent police. The nationwide rallies of
this day are the largest since the 'June-struggle' in 1987.

The KCTU, however, said on the same day that the overall and
indefinite strikes of public sectors including subway, hospital, and
cargo workers would go on until the 15th and 16th, and be converted
into partial strikes after that. They decided to control the level of
strikes with the consideration of public opinion, the confrontation of
the government, and others. They also warned that "in case that the
government authorities commit police forces to the Myongdong
Cathedral, we'll again launch overall general strikes".

The Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) held a great rally of
laborers at Yoido Plaza in Seoul. At that rally, Park In-Sang,
president of the FKTU, said "the FKTU will fight to the day that the
evil laws are nullified", insisting that "we will go on struggling
until the Presidential election".  The FKTU finished the general
strike of the second phase and plans to start political struggles that
can be aided by popular support.

Government To Try All Means To End Strikes

The government yesterday held a special cabinet meeting of
labor-related ministers and decided to seek "every possible means" for
an early settlement of labor unrest.

During the meeting presided over by Prime Minister Lee Soo-Sung in the
morning, the ministers agreed that the situation has now reached an
intolerable level. As the collective actions of union members have
been prolonged and are spreading to the public sector, they are
inconveniencing the public and damaging the national economy, they
said.

The ministers also shared the view that "stern and swift legal actions
are necessary to bring the current labor unrest to an end," said the
Prime Minister's Office after the meeting. The office added that the
ministers said the ongoing labor strikes have been turning from
political struggles to ideological ones and have decided to seek
measures to cope with the situation. The participants reaffirmed the
government's position that the arrest of union leaders who are leading
the illegal strikes should not be delayed further, even considering
the repercussions.

After the cabinet meeting, the prosecution sent a tough warning to
unions that the use of police force is imminent to arrest leaders of
the labor strikes. Prosecutor Choi Byong-Kuk, head of the Public
Security Department warned unless union leaders stop the "illegal"
strikes immediately, they will be dealt with in a "stern and resolute"
manner. Though he didn't detail when and how legal actions will be
taken, the senior prosecutor strongly implied that his warning was the
ultimatum before the use of force.

In the statement read in a press conference, senior prosecutor Choi
said the strike has become a "serious threat" to the nation's
security. "In recent days, North Korea has increasingly made an ill
use of the labor crisis by instigating workers to enter even longer
strikes," he said.


Strike Urgent Report #16 
Edited On January 18, 1997
SECOND Day Of The General Strike In THE THIRD WAVE 

Court Doubts Constitutionality Of Labor Law Under Hot Debate 

A district court yesterday decided to ask the Constitutional Court to
review the constitutionality of the majority party's railroading of
new labor bills early in the morning at the end of last year. Civil
Department No. 1 of the Chang-Won District Court made the decision in
connection with a request by the Hyundai Precision Co. that the court
order unionized workers on strike to return to work because their
strike is illegal.

The trial will be delayed until the Constitutional Court delivers a
final judgement on whether or not the Assembly action violated the
Constitution.

The Supreme Court will convey the district court's request to the
Constitutional Court, which is expected to act on it early next month
at the earliest.

The civil panel, led by Senior Judge Mun Hung-Su, raised questions
about the legality of opening the plenary session during which the
labor bills were passed at 6 a.m. instead of the legally set 2 p.m. An
amendment to the Law on the Establishment of the Agency for National
Security Planning was also passed by the New Korea Party (NKP) during
the session.

It suspected it might violate Paragraph Two, Article 7 of the National
Assembly Law, which stipulates that plenary sessions shall open at 2
p.m.

The panel said that the starting time may be changed through
agreements by floor negotiating groups, but that there was no prior
consultation for that time. The National Assembly Speaker notified the
changed opening time only to ruling party lawmakers.

The civil panel said, "Since the country is in crisis with national
opinion split and the economy heading toward catastrophe due to the
workers' waves of strikes, the Constitutionaly Court has the grave
duty to make a decision as soon as possible. If the Constitutional
Court rules that the passage of the laws is unconstitutional,
unionized workers will end their strikes for they will have attained
their goal. If it is judged constitutional, the workers will have to
seek change of the laws through legal means such as elections, not by
means of strikes." (From The Korea Times, January 17, 1997)

The Violent Gale Of Timeworn McCarthyism Blows Hard Again! 

The government plots to link the struggles of laborers with "impure"
left-wing powers. Prosecutor Choi Byong-Kuk, head of the Public
Security Departement said, on the 15th, "The general strikes are
degenerating to class struggle", insisting that "the evidence is that
North Korean propaganda broadcasts are instigating the working class
to destroy the government and that "communist" fliers were found at
the scene of labor rallies".

Kim Chul, spokeman of New Korea Party (NKP), in reference to the
subversive printed materials, said that prosecution, police and the
National Security Planning Agency must ferret out the entity and
wirepullers of the impure factors", denouncing that "the powers that
are distributing the fliers carrying slogans such as 'Down with
capitalist government!' tries to overturn the nation by switching the
strikes from a struggle against labor laws to one against the system".

Those signs that the government intends to connect the strikes with a
left-wing force, seem to be followed by the designs of separating ordinary
citizens from laborers.

An official said "burdens imposed with the authorities are the
resistances of people in general, rather than the strikes of labors'
side. So, if ordinary citizens and laborers are separated, it will not
be so difficult to suppress the strikes." He hinted that the in-secret
damage of McCarthyism was one of the strategies for putting down
strikes, adding that "it is important to disjoin the middle classes
from the workers', political authority from labor powers, the FKTU
from the KCTU, and the KCTU's leader groups from workplaces."

This kind of maneuvering is the same timeworn trick that the past
military dictatorship regimes took advantage of. Those governments had
oppressed anti-government activities by imputing them with the
accusation of being pro-communist.

The main opposition party dismissed the NKP's statement as a throwback to
Cold War rhetoric. 

"These practices of the government are in an chain of dirty political
maneuverings and too, the evidences that Kim's government loses the
ability to cope with the existing situations rationally", a response
from the National Congress for New Politics (NCNP) says.

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