New Document from the Communist Party of Peru
Developing the People's War in Peru
Revolutionary Worker #988, December 27, 1998
This document, dated February 1998, is from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Peru (PCP). It analyzes the international situation and the situation in Peru, and sums up the carrying out of the Party's plan for the People's War. This plan is discussed in the 1995 report from the PCP Central Committee, "Overcome the Bend in the Road by Developing the People's War." (Available from RW/OR Online at www.mcs.net/~rwor) The PCP has kept certain parts of this new document secret, as indicated by ellipses.
1. Unite the People Against the Fascist, Genocidal and Country-Selling Dictatorship by Further Developing the People's War--A New Plan within the Great Plan "Build the Seizure of Power"
POLITICAL BASIS
The International Situation
Imperialism is a colossus with feet of clay that will irremediably collapse; thus Yankee imperialism, which acts like the gendarme of the world, is a paper tiger trying to prolong its death agony by raising the rotten and washed-out banners of "economic neo-liberalism," "human rights" and "bourgeois democracy," the peace of bayonets and eclectic, idealist pragmatism because it has nothing new to offer. These paper tigers try to lull and intimidate the masses with a deceitful policy, "human rights." This flag they are waving today refers to the rights of imperialism, the bourgeoisie and world reaction. The puny, fake peace they proffer is an attempt to put the masses' consciousness to sleep in order to impose their hegemony as the world's leading superpower, no matter what it takes. It is the peace of bayonets, of grave diggers, of slavery. Yankee imperialism is the world's leading arms merchant; it is a paper tiger, an arrogant blackmailer, ceaselessly promoting the reactionary and failed theory that arms decide everything.
The economic, commercial and financial crises that constantly shake the imperialist system fully confirm the thesis of Marx and Engels, 150 years after the publication of The Communist Manifesto. They are trying to cover up their contention to redivide the world.
The so-called "war against drugs" is another deceitful imperialist policy and a pretext for their counter-revolutionary strategy of "low intensity warfare" on a world level to smother the revolution, especially in the countries of the third world. It is also an instrument for the suppression of the oppressed nations. General Barry McCaffrey [U.S. President Clinton's "Anti-Drug Czar"--translator] is no "victorious general," but simply an invader who was defeated and kicked out of Vietnam.
Thus they pursue their counter-revolutionary offensive, seeking to sweep away all that may imply revolution, but revolution is and will be the historical and political trend, and principally now more than ever we should struggle to make Maoism the commander and guide of the world proletarian revolution, generating militarized Marxist-Leninist-Maoist communist parties, and for them to go over to carrying out People's War throughout the world. These are the requirements for the advance and triumph of the revolution.
National Political Situation
Bureaucrat capitalism, faced with the law that the old state must evolve, has only achieved transitory and partial gains that go to the exclusive benefit of a handful of Peruvian and foreign exploiters. The general crisis that is gnawing away at them has only been palliated and its critical essence has in no way been resolved. It is impossible to overcome this crisis. In the interests of this handful of bloodsuckers they have had to go down on their knees before imperialism, principally Yankee imperialism, and throw the entire Peruvian people into deeper ruin. The government of Fujimori and Hermoza Ríos [Armed Forces head--trans.] is the most unrestrained pro-imperialist government the country has ever seen, the most genocidal and the most country-selling. They have contained inflation and covered it with makeup so that they can have some successes. Regarding the "recession," the recovery has been minimal, with unemployment growing daily, wages and salaries tumbling, and taxes and fees on the public soaring sky-high. Poverty has grown and the response of the government is to give out alms and carry out demagogic civic action schemes.
Poverty has not been reduced. We should keep in mind that we are in the second half of the decade, and a worsening of the crisis of bureaucrat capitalism is foreseeable. Some forces among the bourgeoisie are saying, "This year and the next will be hard," "Our problem is the repercussions of the Asian crisis," "foreign debt payments," "falling metal prices," and "El Niño." The people are told to make sacrifices "for a better tomorrow," but it has been seven years now and that tomorrow has never come. It never will under this system, under this landlord-bureaucrat state. The government is carrying out a mass sterilization campaign, which means even greater genocide, promoted by Yankee imperialism through the Agency for International Development (AID). The puppet Fujimori is trying to use the masses' problems for his own demagogic and electoral ends; all this should be condemned. As for the "El Niño" weather phenomenon, he wanted to take a few measures to win points in the North but the scope of these problems exploded in his face. This government is responsible because it did not take the necessary precautions, even though it knew in advance that the situation would become critical.
As for the restructuring of the state, they have not been able to advance as they have wanted to since April 5, 1992 [date of Fujimori's "self-coup"--trans.]. Under the aegis of Yankee imperialism and with a long-range plan they went over to a fascist dictatorship as part of the overall process of absolute centralization, in order to better carry out "low intensity warfare." This is a fascist dictatorship under the signboard of "democracy." It is fascist because in a disguised form parliament has been negated: on the one hand they discredit parliament and undermine it, while on the other they use it as a sewer pipe to spit out the laws they need, although the most important laws are decreed by the executive. It is fascist because it negates the whole liberal-democratic legal order, stomping on their constitution and all their laws whenever they feel like it. Some opposition factions and even members of the reaction itself are saying, "This is a permanent coup d'etat," "This is not a state of law," etc.
A fascist reorganization of the judicial branch is being undertaken by an obscure naval officer who was a security official for Velasco [general who ruled in the early 1970s--trans.]. It is no coincidence that other followers of the fascist Velasco regime are working in the shadows under the present government. Rigged and fraudulent elections are an instrument for perpetuating themselves in government, and the so-called "opposition" is a chorus that "legitimizes" the ridiculous concoction of "direct democracy." We see corporatism being organized in a militarized form, linked to "low intensity warfare" and carried out mercilessly under the protection of bayonets and genocide, pressuring and compelling the masses through the so-called "Self Defense Committees" and urban and peasant rondas [paramilitary organizations--trans.], a corporatism pushed by the office of the president through organizations like COFOPRI, FONCODES, INADE, development committees, etc. As for their ideological basis, it is vulguar pragmatism and bastard eclecticism; they systematically apply Hitler's Big Lie policy. This fascism is principally driven by the fascist, genocidal and country-selling Armed Forces. The backbone of the old state, today they are acting like a militarized political party, aided by the National Intelligence Service (SIN) and peasant rondas. The Armed Forces are run by a clique headed by Hermoza Ríos and Montesinos, a vulgar CIA agent expelled from the reactionary army for treason to the motherland. These Armed Forces are carrying out a campaign to reelect their puppet.
On the question of the border with Ecuador: Both governments and their armed forces are using this problem to tighten their grip on political power, calling for "national unity" to silence all questioning of their odious plans. We warn the whole people that the fascist, genocidal and country-selling dictatorship, for its own ends and in the face of imperialist pressure, is scheming to once more surrender a part of the territory of our motherland. On the question of "resettlement," first they devastated the countryside applying the three alls ("steal all, burn all, kill all") and genocide to form mesnada paramilitary bands and strategic hamlets, seeking to separate the guerrillas from the masses. Now, as part of their "low intensity warfare," they are carrying out a militarized and fascist "resettlement" headed up by mesnadas to control the masses. On the so-called "people's defender": this "defender" stabs the people in the back. He is an agent of the fascist dictatorship who must be unmasked, along with his pal Lansier, a foreign priest who is an imperialist agent. He hands out pardons to people who never should have been imprisoned in the first place. If they are freeing some people today, it is an attempt to hide their genocidal essence--when it came to military men, they gave amnesty to abdominable butchers and torturers. Their dream was and still is to annihilate the People's War, but despite difficulties and setbacks the People's War is being maintained and advanced, routing reactionary military campaigns and counter-subversive operations, fighting against this so-called "low intensity" warfare and destroying hoaxes of "strategic defeat." The democratic road, the revolutionary situation which is becoming reactivated, is producing an increasing rejection and opposition to the fascist regime. The People's War is the people's road to emancipation and the winning of a new society, the People's New Democratic Republic (PNDR). The masses are an arena of contention--the reaction crowed about defeat and then had to eat its words. As for their so-called "Operation Aries" [a counter-revolutionary offensive in 1994--trans.], they said the People's War was coming to an end, but their operation failed, just like so many others--"Taurus," "Walker," "Hunter," "Sweep One," "Sweep Two," "Sweep Three," "Sweep Four," "Ene One," "Ene Two," "Ene Three," "Ene Four," "Ene Five," "Hurricane," "Razhuilca," "Vizcatan One," "Vizcatan Two," "Kuruinze," "Exterminator," "Gimp One," "Gimp Two," etc., etc., all beaten back by the People's War. Although the road is difficult and full of twists and turns, we will triumph because we have a superior ideology, Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, Gonzalo Thought, and a Communist Party to guide us, and because there are People's Committees and base areas that are being heroically maintained--they are the forward fighting trenches of the new state that is flourishing in our motherland. Today the People's War is fully serving the overcoming of the bend and the bright future, drawing lessons from the errors committed in the past. It should be further developed to seize power countrywide.
II. Summation Of The Application Of The Plan "overcome The Bend In The Road By Developing The People's War"
The Plan "Overcome the Bend in the Road by Developing the People's War" successfully achieved the objectives set for it. We have begun to emerge from the bend. The masses are gradually becoming active once again. Some reactionary spokespeople are talking about a "fresh outbreak," saying "They have reorganized," "They have expanded their area of operations," "They have put an end to the period of withdrawal." What should be emphasized is that the enemy's "low intensity warfare" has been systematically fought against and their operations and campaigns and counter-campaigns have been defeated both successively and simultaneously. The advance is taking place amidst a hard-fought and determined struggle. Our center is combat. The People's Committees and the base areas have been defended with blood. The grand finale of the plan was successful and resounding. Let us draw the positive and negative lessons, raise the level of selective annihilations and sabotage and step up work in the cities.
Under Construction
The Party is fulfilling its role. There is partial advance...a purging...revisionism is fought as the main danger.
The People's Liberation Army is the backbone of the front/new state.
We have advanced in developing our front policy and correcting various errors committed in the past, and in breaking up the mesnadas, selecting targets, avoiding excesses, and making advances in the new economy.
III. OBJECTIVES (RESERVED)
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