>Louis, > Gosh, I just said I wasn't going to say more on >this, but... > Ummm, but in Guatemala it was a minority of >the population that was suppressing a majority of >the population, just as in Kosovo-Metohija, whereas >in Turkey it is the majority that is suppressing the >minority, as in Nicaragua. >Barkley Rosser No, Barkley, you don't get it. You have shifted the axis of the discussion once again away from political economy and history. Majority/minority is irrelevant to what was happening in Guatemala. The real issue was naked racism toward a marginalized people. In Nicaragua and Yugoslavia, there was a genuine atmosphere of tolerance and good-will, just as there was in Nicaragua. Kosovars were not brutalized in the decade preceding the suspension of autonomy. They received preferential treatment. They enjoyed a higher degree of investment in infrastructure and capital projects; their schools were expanded at an impressive rate; they enjoyed full autonomy. The Turks did not provide such treatment for the Kurds. If they did, it is likely that there would be no "Kurdish question". In fact, the guerrilla leader who was just kidnapped by the Turks demanded autonomy, not secession. All these things are obvious to anybody who has taken even a superficial glance at Kosovo in the period of 1975-1985. Why you want to sweep these facts under the rug is beyond me. Louis Proyect (http://www.panix.com/~lnp3/marxism.html)
