----- Original Message ----- From: heikki sipilä <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, May 22, 2000 4:52 AM Subject: Building A New Colombia >Date: Sun, 21 May 2000 13:15:17 -0700 (PDT) > >FARC-EP AND COLOMBIA'S UNFOLDING REVOLUTION > ["FARC-EP: Historical Outline" > >International Commission > of the FARC-EP, 2000. >The United States government is preparing a massive escalation of its >military intervention in Colombia. > >Colombia is already the third-biggest recipient of U.S. military aid >in the world. The Pentagon is pushing a $1.7 billion military-aid >package through Congress right now. This aid is clearly aimed at the >country's two main insurgencies: the Revolutionary Armed Forces of >Colombia- Peoples Army (FARC-EP) and the National Liberation >Army (ELN). > >At the same time, the FARC-EP has been conducting high- level talks >with the government of Colombian President Andres Pastrana in a >demilitarized zone of five municipalities. Pastrana recently >announced plans to demilitarize three more municipalities in order to >hold talks there with the ELN. > >This dynamic situation of revolution and U.S. military intervention >makes the publication of "FARC-EP: Historical Outline" by the >International Commission of the FARC-EP extremely timely. The book is >an essential tool for activists wishing to understand the unfolding >struggle in Colombia.This an oppotunity for you to learn about the situation >and then decide for yor self who the oppressor are,and who is telling the >truth.but cannot control the large media outlets who are beholden to the >power of America we hope that you will reach an honest understanding of what >is about to take place in Colombia,then the conviction and courage to shed >the l;ight on as many people,organizatrions,newspapers,raidp& tv as you can. > >The book, first published in Spanish in 1999 and now translated into >English, contains an historical account of the development of the >FARC-EP as well as political documents relevant to the struggle. It >is an antidote to the campaign of lies and slander against the FARC- >EP emanating from the Pentagon. > >Besides being a fascinating account of the Colombian struggle for a >new social order, the book covers three main points. > >First, it explains how the FARC-EP developed from an organization of >48 fighters for peasant land rights to a national military-political >organization with 60 fronts in seven main blocs. > >Second, it provides a clear view of the group's political orientation >and view of the world--the result of applying communist theory to the >characteristic features of the Colombian history and struggle. > >Third, the book devotes considerable attention to the FARC- EP's >experience in carrying out talks with various Colombian governments >in the past. This experience weighs on the FARC- EP's current round >of talks with the Pastrana regime far more heavily than the recent >experiences in other Latin American countries with "peace talks"-- >processes held up by both Pastrana's government and its Washington >backers as models for "successful" negotiations. > >ORIGINS OF THE FARC-EP > >The book traces the origins of the FARC-EP to the violent struggles >within the Colombian ruling class after the end of World War II. As >part of those struggles, the Liberal Party embraced a program of land >reform to generate popular support against the rival Conservative >Party. > >Liberal supporters organized peasant militias to fight for the land >reform. A state of near civil war gripped the countryside. Among the >leaders of those militias was Pedro Antonio Marin, future leader of >the FARC-EP. > >That sharp phase of ruling-class struggle came to an end in 1952. >Liberal guerrillas demobilized, turning in their weapons. But >peasants who were serious about pursuing the land struggle grouped >around the communists, including Marin and Arenas, and continued the >struggle. > >During this period, Marin changed his name to Manuel Marulanda Velez >to commemorate a communist militant killed by police in Bogota while >protesting sending Colombian troops to Korea. > >After the Liberals and Conservatives closed ranks, >communist guerrillas helped the peasants set up organizations to >defend their land. The ruling class demonized them as >"independent communist republics." > >The Colombian government--by this time completely under the sway of >U.S.-led anti-communist alliances--launched an attack against the >peasants at Marquetalia in 1964. > >Marulanda led the resistance to "Operation Marquetalia." It was in >the wake of this attack that Marulanda and his 47 comrades formed >what would become the FARC-EP. > >The "Historical Outline" describes the evolution of the FARC-EP's >organization and political development. Particular attention is paid >to the group's eight conferences--meetings where overall strategy and >political perspective were evaluated and modified. > >At the 1966 Second Conference, the group formally adopted the name >FARC. This was revised to the FARC-EP at the 1982 Seventh Conference, >based on a change in the conception of the guerrilla organization. > >The 1993 Eighth Conference adopted the "Platform for a Government of >National Reconciliation and Reconstruction," the main programmatic >document guiding the FARC-EP's current talks with the Pastrana >government. > >"BUILDING A NEW COLOMBIA" > >What is the FARC-EP fighting for? > >The Pentagon and its paid pundits slander the group as "narco- >guerrillas" without an ideology or vision of the future. The >documents presented in "FARC-EP: Historical Outline" show that this >is hardly the case.Remember the "Sandanista" were dipicted as agent of >Castro who had exported the communist doctrine to Nicuargua and then when >that did not hold the Sandanista were label as Drug traffic,ers Every >attempt to improve the lives of peasants in Latin America for the past forty >years has labeled as plot by the Communist,Marxist interfering in the >"democracy" of Latin American >without fail the US attributed all the problems to Cuba and charge Castro >with continious exporting of >revolutions.apparently these outrages charge worked until now' > >FARC political perspective is outlined in the form of six >anniversary greetings, written from 1994 to 1999. All the documents >were written by Marulanda, the FARC-EP's commander- in-chief. > >What emerges from these documents is a clear political vision of the >"New Colombia" that the FARC-EP is fighting for. In particular, in >the revolutionary struggle that it is carrying out, "massive and >conscious popular participation is indispensable." > >"This is not a confrontation of military machines, but rather of >classes contending over the political leadership of the country," >Marulanda writes. "War has been the consequence of the implacable >aggression by the oligarchy against the people rising up in struggle >for its liberty." (May 1996) > >The FARC-EP openly expresses its goal as a socialist society "without >exploiters or exploited." > >The immediate aims expressed in the 1993 "Platform" (and in the 1964 >"Agrarian Program of the Guerrillas of the FARC-EP") are concrete >steps toward that goal: reorient the economy toward national social >needs; genuine and thorough land reform; completely restructure the >Armed Forces; a sovereign foreign policy independent of the demands >of U.S. imperialism. > >This policy is described as "Bolivarian"--in the spirit of Simon >Bolivar, the great Latin American national-liberation leader of the >19th century. The FARC-EP uses the term in the sense of national >unity in the face of imperialism. > >ARMED STRUGGLE AND DIALOG > >Another important feature of the "Historical Outline" is a detailed >account of the FARC-EP's experience in dialogs with various national >governments. From the very first years, when Liberal guerrilla >leaders who negotiated an end to their armed struggle faced >assassination, a "historical doubt as to the government's offers of >peace and possible truces" emerged. > >This experience was enriched by the Uribe Accords of 1984. After >these agreements, the FARC declared a truce and launched the >Patriotic Union (UP) to participate in legal political activity. >Three years later, the government openly broke the truce. > >Over 4,000 UP leaders and activists, including many people who had >been elected to local office, were murdered. > >Similar events unfolded after a round of talks in 1991-92. Several >other guerrilla groups adopted the government's offer for amnesty in >exchange for laying down arms. Many in these groups have since been >assassinated or given up their political struggle. > >The FARC-EP and the ELN, at that time united in the Sim¢n Bol¡var >Guerrilla Coordination, retained the armed struggle after it was >clear that the government refused to discuss fundamental changes in >the armed forces. > >The book presents documents to show that in each case, it has been >the government's duplicity that has caused the collapse of >agreements. It presents several exchanges of letters showing the >government's intransigence on key points during past talks. > >Documents directly addressing the current talks include a speech by >Secretariat member Raul Reyes at the opening of the talks in San >Vicente de Caguan in January 1999, along with news releases on >matters of importance. > >The FARC-EP says that in the current talks: "Disarmament >and demobilization are not matters being discussed. Our arms will be >the only worthwhile guarantees for the carrying out of the accords >and, in the case they are carried out, these arms will lose their >importance and be kept in the hands of the Colombian people." > >The U.S. government has shown that it is preparing a massive military >campaign against the FARC-EP and the ELN. The unfolding revolutionary >struggle in Colombia against the backdrop of U.S. intervention makes >"FARC-EP: Historical Outline" necessary reading for anti-imperialist >activists, especially in the United States. > > > >(Copy-left Workers World >Patria o muerte! Venceremos! >Utopiaunarmed.com/the modern left in Latin America &Cuba >VERCERIMOS > > > > > >_______________________________________________________ >Get 100% FREE Internet Access powered by Excite >Visit http://freelane.excite.com/freeisp > > __________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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