Subject: M-G: Support the People's War in Peru!
Date: 	Mon, 17 Mar 1997 21:10:24 -0500


This article appeared in the most recent edition of EL DIARIO
INTERNACIONAL, a newspaper published in Brussels that support the people's
war in Peru (BP 705, 1000 Bruxelles 1, Belgium). Spanish and French
versions are also available, you just have to send me an E-Mail at
<grabuge-AT-odyssee.net>.

Jacques Beaudoin

*******************************************

The People's War in Peru: An example for all the oppressed people
FOR A SOLIDARITY MOVEMENT OF A NEW TYPE

By Jacques Beaudoin, from Action Socialiste group (Canada)

By the end of the seventies, the International Communist Movement was at
the eve of an important crisis. Most of the M-L organizations that
developed themselves in the precedent years were to collapse, even the most
important ones, under the pressure of some liquidationists currents and the
raise of revisionism (following the death of Chairman Mao Tsetung and the
seizure of power by Teng Hsiao-ping in China).

It is in this awkward situation that the Communist Party of Peru (PCP) took
the historical decision to initiate the People's War. Instead of sinking
into moroseness like many others did, the PCP, under the correct leadership
of Chairman Gonzalo, analyzed the situation in a materialistic way. The
Peruvian revolutionaries saw that the exploited masses in their country
suffered more and more from misery; and that at the international level,
the basic contradictions of imperialism, as Lenin established them, were
always sharpening. That, in short, the revolution was more than ever the
main current in the world affairs.

It took a certain time before this decision had an impact outside Peru. But
as the People's War progressed and won more and more victories, many
organizations and individuals began to look at what was going on in this
country. Imperialists' leading circles also analyzed carefully the
situation, some of them stating openly that the People's War in Peru was
the most important threat to their "New World Order".

At the beginning of the nineties, after 10 years of People's War and at a
time when it was going to reach the strategic equilibrium, there was
finally a wide solidarity movement deployed all around the world. Dozens of
political organizations and solidarity committees, thousands of individuals
on all continents began to popularize the Peruvian revolution and develop
the solidarity with it.

Despite the fact that this movement was relatively dissipated (or maybe for
that reason?), its leadership was quickly assumed by an organization
already existing, the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM)-a
regroupement of approximately 15 Marxist-Leninist parties and organizations
including the PCP.

Contrary to the other solidarity movements like the ones that developed
around the liberation struggles in countries like Nicaragua and Salvador a
few years ago, the movement to support the People's War in Peru was in
essence different. It was not centered on giving material and humanitarian
support to the organization that lead the struggle.

Even if there were certainly some democratic and humanitarian concerns
within it, the movement in solidarity with the PCP reflected mainly the
revolutionary aspirations of the exploited masses. Contrary to the
forecasts of the so-called "expert analysts" of the bourgeoisie, the
bankruptcy of the social-democrat experiences and especially the
spectacular collapse of the Soviet revisionism have not killed the
revolutionary aspirations of the people.

The accentuation of the crisis at the international level, including the
rise of reactionary nationalism, the unjust wars, the generalization of
poverty, etc., raised at a new level the interest of the masses for
revolutionary politics. And the People's War in Peru represents precisely
such a policy.

We, from Action Socialiste, have been widely influenced by this
revolutionary process. The solidarity work we developed since 1992 with the
People's War in Peru has certainly been the main factor that helped us to
crush the economist and workerist tendencies that were present within our
ranks, and possibly to adopt a solid ideological and political line at our
Fifth Congress. Today, the PCP's example is still inspiring us in the
elaboration of our line on the revolutionary strategy in an imperialist
country like Canada-a strategy based on the People's War as an universal
truth.

We must note that the Peruvian revolutionaries, even if they don't reject
in principle humanitarian solidarity, already insisted that the support
movement to the People's War in Peru serve the development of the world
revolution.

In the famous interview he gave to the El Diario newspaper in 1988,
Chairman Gonzalo stated how the PCP sees the tasks at the international
level: "The question poses itself: what is the key point? It is
Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, because it is a question of having a correct
ideological and political line, and you can't have a correct political line
unless you have the correct ideology. For that reason, we think that the
key to everything is ideology: Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, principally Maoism.
Secondly, the development of Communist Parties. Why? Because the masses
thirst for revolution, the masses are ready and crying out for revolution.
So the problem does not lie with them. The proletariat cries out for
revolution, the oppressed nations, the peoples of the world cry out for
revolution. So we need to develop Communist Parties. The rest, I repeat,
will be done by the masses, they are the makers of history and they will
sweep imperialism and world reaction away with People's War."


The imperialism counterattacks

After the capture of Chairman Gonzalo in September 1992, the reactionary
regime in Peru backed by U.S. imperialism decided it was time to launch its
counteroffensive, not only on the military field but also at the
ideological and political levels. The so-called "peace letters" dishonestly
attributed to Chairman Gonzalo appeared at this time. The aim of this move
was to discredit the leader of the Peruvian revolution, especially its
ideology, and also to divide the revolutionary ranks.

It was certainly not a coincidence if Alberto Fujimori choose to present
publicly the "Guzmán's letter" in New York, in front of the United Nations'
General Assembly. The Peruvian dictator knew that it was going to have a
great impact outside Peru. In fact, the affair finally caused more damages
outside than in Peru itself, where the PCP answered the frame-up very
quickly with more People's War.

Shortly after the announcement of "Gonzalo's capitulation", some groups and
individuals, like the Sol-Peru Committee in Paris and a guy named Javier
Esparza (a Peruvian national living in Sweden known as a close collaborator
of RIM's leadership), launched a campaign to support this "new great
decision". Some of them even offered their services to the Peruvian
authorities. These groups and individuals took advantage of the knowing
silence of the RIM, who refuse to take a side on this affair for more than
18 months.

RIM's leading Committee (Co-RIM) finally called in an hypocritical manner
in March 1995 for the continuation of the People's War; but it is still
presenting the PCP as a Party divided into two rival factions. Co-RIM is
saying now that there is an "increased possibility" that Chairman Gonzalo
is indeed a vulgar capitulator. The RIM has in fact ceased to develop the
solidarity movement with the PCP and the People's War; it continues by the
way to remain silent about the real situation that prevails in Peru. RIM's
leadership has also practically liquidated the International Emergency
Committee to Defend the Life of Abimael Guzmán, an organization created
mainly by the RIM after the capture of Chairman Gonzalo. One must ask, from
RIM's allegations, why to support such a "traitor"?


A very revealing affair

In the end, the "peace letters" frame-up clearly revealed the weaknesses of
the solidarity movement with the People's War in Peru. This movement was
controlled in part by a bunch of open counterrevolutionaries who unmasked
themselves at the first time they had the opportunity to do so; and a
movement that was also weakened by opportunism, especially within its
leading body (the Co-RIM).

But in the same time, the affair also revealed some of its forces,
especially the lasting influence and the profound respect that the PCP
gained since it launched the People's War. Dozens of groups and
organizations didn't wait after the RIM to fight against Fujimori's plot.
Within these groups, we must emphasized the very important role played by
the El Diario Internacional newspaper, which fought the frame-up not only
in theory but also in practice and also raised at a new level the struggle
against the opportunist tendencies that appeared within the International
Communist Movement.

Last March, Action Socialiste quickly added its name to the Call for a
World Mobilization in support to the People's War in Peru, issued by
Sol-Peru Committees from London and Bruxelles along with the MPP-Belgium
and El Diario Internacional.

In a solidarity meeting held in Boston, U.S.A. and organized by the Peru
Support Committee/Rhode Island, we suggested the groups and individuals who
were there to support this Call and build the World Mobilization Commission
to Support the Peruvian Revolution that was to be make up. In response to
our suggestion, an individual using the name of "Carlos", who was acting as
the spokesperson of the "Peru People's Movement (MPP)" from New York, said
that he had "no problem with that", implying that his group would support
the Call.

But only a few weeks later, the same "MPP" launched an unbridled, vicious
and unprincipled campaign (using the imperialist Internet network in a
manner typically petite-bourgeoise) against EDI, the Sol-Peru Committee
(London) and the World Mobilization Commission. We won't analyze here why
this so-called "MPP" has turned its positions upside down: others have
already began this work (see the article entitled "Los hijos bastardos del
MRI" in EDI No. 35).

But we must ask: in a context where opportunists and counterrevolutionaries
are continuing their offensive against the Peruvian revolution and its main
leader Chairman Gonzalo, did the recent campaign from the New York "MPP"
help to develop the solidarity movement with this revolution, or did it
contribute to weaken it? Regarding the use the imperialist agents
(especially the Trotskyists) made of this campaign on the Internet, the
answer is obvious: the "MPP" clearly positioned itself in the ranks of the
counterrevolution, isolating itself form the other solidarity committees
and groups active on the East Coast of the U.S.A. which for all of them
supported the World Mobilization Commission. But what could we expect from
an organization that wrote, commenting the hypocritical Co-RIM's Call from
March 28, 1995, that it was "a step in the right direction" (The New Flag,
Vol. 2, No. 2)?

We want to take here the opportunity to reaffirm our support to the World
Mobilization Commission, especially to the Call it made to defend the life
and the revolutionary legacy of Chairman Gonzalo, the People's War, the PCP
and its leadership; and most of all to fight against imperialism,
revisionism and opportunism, and uphold Marxism-Leninism-Maoism.





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