From: Luis Quispe <lquispe-AT-blythe.org>
Subject: PERU: The Proletariat in the Revolution (II)
To: marxism-AT-jefferson.village.virginia.edu
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 1996 23:22:21 -0400 (EDT)
Cc: marxism-AT-jefferson.village.virginia.edu


    THE PROLETARIAT AND ITS ROLE IN THE PERUVIAN REVOLUTION
                        Part 2 of 2 
 
       III. THE PRESENT SITUATION OF THE WORKING CLASS

Nearly 11 years have gone by since the current fascist regime [7]
assumed oommand of the state, representing the bureaucratic
bourgeisie through the army.

After many years of entrenching bureaucratic capitalism and
corporativization, the situation for the working class worsened
year by year, and this deterioration has been accelerated since
1975. Comparing real wages today with those of 1968 shows that they
have fallen almost by half. This has caused great misery among the
masses of workers. The old 8 hour working day has practically
disappeared since the workers are compelled to work extra hours in
order to survive. Working conditions get worse every day and the
ability of the working class to recover through this struggle is
severely limited. Women and youth work in extremely difficult
conditions. The rural proletariat finds itself without rights, with
seasonal workers laboring for miserable wages, stripped of all
their rights and social benefits. Special repressive laws against
miners and fishermen have been imposed in the name of labor
stability.

There exists a broad anti-union offensive and negation of political
or trade union rights, resulting in a loss of benefits, rights,
liberties and other hard-won benefits. In addition, the high
unemployment and underemployment that is continually growing; there
is a grave crises which continues to pound down the class.
Contributing to the suppression of the working class into these
wretched conditions are those close allies of the regime,
particularly the social corporationists of the "United Left."

But the proletariat hasn't abandoned the struggle, nor has it
allowed itself to be coopted by its exploiters or by the
reactionary plans of the regime. In the first period of this
regime, the polarization, the contradiction, between the
bureaucratic bourgeoisie on the one hand, leading the
counterrevolution, and the proletariat on the other hand, leading
the revolution, was hidden. In the period of the general
corporative readjustment, the difference began to emerge. In the
period of restructuring the state, the polarization has increased,
and revisionism and opportunism in general, found it increasingly
hard to bind the working class and the people to the tail of the
bureaucratic bourgeosie and reaction. The proletariat had been
developing prior to 1975. A rising movement of strikes and work
stoppages which the regime wanted to stop in order to impose their
economic plans. But far fram being stopped, the proletariat
initiated a series of general strikes and broad popular
mobilizations. Today (Trans. 1979), the regime is looking for a way
to end these strikes and mobilizations, in order to conduct its
elections. But today as in the past, their plans will fail; the
developing trend among the masses is towards growing popular
protest, and greater polarization. The masses, mainly the peasantry
are out of control during the electoral charade, and will carry out
the class struggle to even higher levels.

Marxism teaches us that what is obtained by way of trade union
struggle is lost in capitalism's cyclical crises, forcing the
workers to begin anew, only to lose once more what they won before.
This vicious circle presses onto the workers the necessity to
continue the struggles for economic and political demands since the
lesser the struggle, the greater the losses. But this is what is
principal, it also presents the need to destroy the ruling social
order to escape from the vicious circle. Thus, it can be concluded
that the struggle to defend living standards must develop in the
direction of the conquest of power. Mariategui taught us: "The
defeats and the failures of the European proletariat have their
origin in mediocre positivism. These timid bureaucrats and flabby
parliamentarians have cultivated in the masses a `Sancho Panza' [8]
mentality and an indolent spirit. A proletariat without greater
ideals than the reduction of working hours and an increase in wages
will never be capable of great historic undertakings." For this
reason, placing the trade union struggle as the main center of
action, is revisionism.

            IV. THE ROLE OF THE WORKING CLASS

In Peru, we live in a revolutionary situation. While "those above,"
the exploiting classes and imperialism, are trying to modify their
forms of exploitation and restructure the bureaucratic landlord
state in order to preserve their class rule, "those below," the
proletariat and the rest of the exploited masses, mainly the
peasantry, refuse to continue living in oppression and misery, and
are on the march with decisive steps towards revolution. Already
the symptoms of the future rise of millions of peasants is notable;
the proletariat must prepare to raise the peasantry in arms in the
upheavals of mass struggle that are approaching. In the electoral
strategy, electorialism and the armed struggle are in sharp
contention. The problem facing the people is to initiate the armed
struggle, develop that path, and ward off electoralism. In the
present revolutionary situation, the heart of the proletariat's and
our people's task is the construction of the 3 instruments of the
revolution, Party, United Front and armed struggle. The proletariat
must deal with the cardinal question, the Reconstitution of its
Communist Party in the countryside, and the establishment of
support bases for initiatinq the armed struggle.

Shamelesly, right opportunism, and revisionism are trying by all
means to disorient and confuse the proletariat, to make them lose
their view of the road forward and their goal and to poison them
with electoralism and shackle them to the bureaucratic bourgeosie's
feet. Vain illusions! The Peruvian proletariat will never permit
itself to be led to play such a sad and disgusting role. No, their
role is something quite different: to lead the Peruvian revolution.
The Peruvian proletariat is a part, a segment, of the international
proletariat, whose ultimate destiny is to bury the bourgeoisie
forever.

This May Day, International Workers Day, the day of revolutionary,
proletarian unity, calls upon us to reflect on the course traveled
by our country's working class, and on the role it is being called
upon to play in the Peruvian revolution. On this May 1st the masses
of workers must feel solidly united and sure of their Victory.

LONG LIVE PROLETARIAN INTERNATIONALISM!
LONG LIVE THE PERUVIAN PROLETARIAT!
LONG LIVE THE RECONSTITUTION OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF MARIATEGUI!
LONG LIVE THE WORKER-PEASANT ALLIANCE!
INITIATE THE ARMED STRUGGLE!
May 1st. 1979.

MOVIMIENTO DE TRABAJADORES Y OBREROS CLASISTAS DEL PERU. 

Notes:

1. Jose Carlos Mariategui. Leader of the Peruvian proletariat and
founder of the Communist Party of Peru.
2. APRA. Popular American Revolutionary Alliance whose leader was
Haya de la Torre, an anti-Communist social democratic party that
governed Peru from 1985-1990.
3. Government's control of the economy and generation of parallel
organizations of workers.
4. All bourgeois institutions were abolished many times by the same
reactionaries to protect their interests.
5. The armed struggle was launched on May 17, 1980 (ILA-80)
6. Since the late 60's, social imperialism led by the former Soviet
Union directly or through proxis has armed the Peruvian military.
7. It refers to the military regime of both General Velasco and
General Morales Bermudez (1979).
8. One of the main protagonists in the novel "Don Quixote" by
Cervantes Saavedra.
 
-----------------------------
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