From: Zeynep Tufekcioglu <zeynept-AT-turk.net>
Subject: M-I: Case Study in Sectarianism
Date: Wed, 5 Mar 1997 16:42:28 +0200


Here is an example from M-G. 

The first article is from Weekly Worker. I don't know of their current
position, but obviously they are not Maoist.

What happens, Fujimori comes to London. I guess there is widespread
agreement that he is foremost among those responsible for the suffering of
the Peruvian people, a true enemy of the people.

>Alberto Fujimori, the President of Peru, was in London between Sunday, 9
>February, and Tuesday, 11 Feb. He came to Britain to attract foreign
>investments and to receive support for his hard policy towards the MRTA
>guerrilla forces still holding 72 VIP hostages at the Japanese Embassy in
>Lima.
>
>He decided to make only one public appearance. He choose to do it at the
>London School of Economics. However, the LSE's authorities didn't want to
>give information about it until some minutes before. Nearly all the people
>who attended the LSE's Old Theatre were diplomats and businessmen. Most LSE
>students were not allowed to enter in the place in which they normally hold
>their Union General Meetings.

A picket is organised at the last moment. Of course, Weekly Worker goes to
pains to point out;

>Most of them [picketers ] were LSE students and Latin American exiles such as
>members of the Colombian Refugee Association (CORAS), Poder Obrero
>supporters and friends, as well as many Peruvian activists. However
>supporters of the Peruvian armed groups didn't come.
>
>It is quite remarkable that the PCP-Sendero Luminoso supporters didn't do
>any single protest against Fujimori and neither did they come to the LSE
>picket. ...

Lists the names of the good guys; (it is very important, takes 1/3 or more
the article is about who did and who didn't come.

>The most active British groups were the Workers Internationalist
>League and LCMRCI supported by the Spartacists, Socialist Workers Student
>Society and the LSE Labour Club, who sent sizeable delegations while members
>of Socialist Outlook, Revolutionary Internationalist League, Socialist
>Labour Party, Revolutionary Communist Group and Workers Power also attended
>the picket. There were some clashes with the police and they tried to arrest
>one comrade for possession of a drumstick.

We get a smaller paragraph about the demands:

>The main demands were against the terrible conditions of the 5,000 political
>prisoners (who could be imprisoned until the end of their lives in "living
>tombs" without access to the Radio, TV or literature and with only one half
>an hour visit per month) and for their unconditional release; for the
>cancellation of the foreign debt and the re-nationalisation of the
>privatised companies; etc.

In the end, if we didn't get it, the message is repeated.

>Ps.- No PCP-SL supporter or Mr. Olaechea come to the demo or made any single
>protest action against Fujimori visit. They were informed about the picket.

Does this look like good politics? I'm sure readers of Weekly Worker are now
really concerned with the plight of the Peruvian people.

I get the feeling that the foremost concern is to advertise the "correct"
groups and "denounce" the wrong ones.


Of course, another voice from the other sides comes out in protest to say
what? Well the following;


>It is a very good thing that honest people didn't come to this picket line
>that was not organized to support the revolution in Peru-that is currently
>going on-but to support the false solutions proposed by the old and rotten
>"official left" in this country (cancellation of the foreign debt,
>re-nationalisation of the privatised companies, and so on).

>So, it took at least 10 Trotskyist sects (or apparently) to mobilize some
>70 people? What about splitting again, folks? Maybe 20 of these
>organizations will be able to gather one or two more persons?

>Jacques Beaudoin

Apparently, he is happy that only some 70 people were there to picket
Fujimori. Protesting Fujimori is the sole privilige of the "real
revolution", and if they are not doing the protest, rather than Fujimori get
protested from the "wrong people" it is good that..

..that Fujimori, the real enemy, comes to London to leave, largely unprotested.

Nice. I'm sure Messrs. Mayor and Fujimori were rather pleased.


Zeynep



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