Chile 1973: The other 9/11

by me Thu Sep 04, 2003 15:06

Didn't you mean to say lets forget the rules of parlimentary democracy and start a dictatorsip of Kieran allen and his minions.

by FdCA Thu Sep 04, 2003 15:07

29 years ago, following the coup in Chile, Italian anarchist
communists wrote the following which we now present in order to
remember the thousands of women and men who over the decades
have fought and tried to resist against the Chilean
dictatorship, paying for it with their lives and their freedom.
"On the 11th September 1973 the Allende government was
overthrown and a fascist dictatorship was installed!!!
The united left in Chile, Unidad Popular, was carrying out a
reformist project, a first experiment on the nation's road to
socialism; the historical importance of this experience is
immense as it allows us to make an analysis from which valuable
lessons can be learnt regarding revolutionary strategy.

For some time now, Chile has become an epicentre of imperialist
contradictions in Latin America, and over recent years the clash
between the two basic classes, the bourgoisie and the
proletariat, has become more and more radical.

Unidad Popular's project foresaw a change in the living
conditions of the workers through reformist, civilizing,
democratic action from within the framework of the bourgeois
institutions. To help them in this work they sought and obtained
an alliance with progressive bourgeois elements and with the
national bourgeoisie who approved of a process of economic and
political independence for Chile. It was with the support of
these elements that Unidad Popular were able to take power in
government. The electoral victory and the first nationalizations
set in motion a movement which was to depart from the path of
reformism - land and factory occupations created new power
relations in the class struggle which was to become more and
more marked.

The process could no longer restrain itself within the bounds of
reformism and would have had to continue until such times as the
bourgeois State would be destroyed and the proletariat would
take over all the vital points of the country's economy.

The inability of reformism to manage and push forward such a
process to the final clash marked the defeat of the Chilean
proletariat.

The progressive bourgeoisie, having understood that the workers
were a threat to their class interests, soon returned to that
instrument which they have always used to defend themselves from
the proletariat's attacks - a coup d'etat on the part of the
fascists or the military. This same bourgeoisie which had at
first supported Allende, was now siding with the other half of
its own class and, united with them, would prepare the bloody
defeat of the proletariat. While the workers went on pushing
forward their interests, occupying factories and creating organs
of direct democracy, the bourgeoisie was working towards
stopping this whole process. Unidad Popular was unable to do
anything - intent as they were on trying to conquer the
progressive bourgeoisie and on observing the boundaries of
constitutionality, restricted by their theoretical and strategic
limitations, they could not understand the clash that was taking
place by reasons of its very nature. The interests of the
classes had emerged clearly with no mystification, so any
indecision would mean sending the exploited classes to certain
defeat, which then of course happened. The attempt to reconcile
with the bourgeoisie instead of attacking it and engaging in an
armed battle leading to the proletariat's victory was a grave
error which will weigh hard on the entire South American
continent for a long time to come.

The coup d'etat on the part of the national bourgeoisie with the
support of American imperialism took the defenceless movement of
the exploited by surprise. The heoic resistance of the Chilean
comrades was not enough to defeat the bourgeoisie and the
criminals who were the executors of the restoration which saw
the unity of the national bourgeoisie and the imperialists, who
have unleashed their anti-communism, killing and torturing and
highlighting once again the real face of the bourgeoisie and the
fact that there can be no compromise or conciliation between the
classes of the exploiters and the exploited ." (1974)

And it was Pinochet's Chile which, flayed by one of the
bloodiest counter-revolutions in memory, was used by the United
States as an experimental laboratory for the capitalist
strategies which we know so well today: social control, the
security syndrome, privatization of the economy, dismantlement
of state pensions and the temporarization of labour. That is why
the heritage of mass struggle, self-organization and
anti-fascism must still today feed our historical memory which
is indispensable for the anti-capitalist struggles of today and
tomorrow.

Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici

http://www.fdca.it

by iosaf (not trolling) Thu Sep 04, 2003 17:27

To protest against and highlight continuing breaches of human rights and the impunity of many military officers, former politicians and beurocrats.
Concentrations were called for embassies and consulates in spanish language indymedia's yesterday.
=well timed SWM.

by Son Of Risible Thu Sep 04, 2003 18:02

Cut & Paste job. Why has the mighty Risible not cut it down?

by ec Thu Sep 04, 2003 18:50

.

by >>>>>Seáinín Thu Sep 04, 2003 22:19

When you consider how many people Communist governments have killed it suggest that the people of Chile were saved from a far worse disaster. The other benefit of course was that the Soviet Union had one less ally in the Cold War.

A good job well done.

by ??? Fri Sep 05, 2003 00:17

Here's a link to a book review about another US supported coup:
http://www.buzzflash.com/premiums/kinzer-shah.html#top

by berniebird Fri Sep 05, 2003 01:41

the son of one of its co-creators (along with Alan Dulles) happens to be president of the United States! Incidentally, Pinochets bloody coup was a particular first for the CIA asking corporate sponsorship for it's shortfalls in the project- AT&T received the Chilean telecommunications monopoly in return for a comparitively small investment.
I could go on forever about the Bush-Walker connection (William Walker invaded Nicaragua in 1857 and claimed the country as a slave state for the confederate states- he is today hailed as the greatest pioneer of manifest destiny, eh, think about it, a famous US president who is currently in office is named after him)- but suddenly i notice a post from seanin-
... what the f-.........?

by Righteous Pragmatist Fri Sep 05, 2003 18:22

Allende was a communist and when he came to power that meant of course that the U.S.S.R was in control of Chile.
Had he continued to be in power he would have made a deal with the Russkies to plant nukes in Chile to aim at the U.S.A. just like Castro did in Cuba in 1962.
As in all communist countries the property of all the people would be stolen by the state and used to inrich the Communist Party fatcats and fund their military spending. To keep the populace in line they would have given sweeping powers to the police and army to put down internal dissent. All other voices of protest save those sponsored by the Communists would be crushed.
They'd probably have put up a wall to keep the people in just like in Berlin.
The U.S. decided to eliminate the threat of nukes positioned in Chile and supported Gen. Pinochet because he wanted to do the job. it was his own business what he did after that
Chile became a dictatorship anyway? Too bad.
World War 3 and communist domination of South America was averted. Which made cancelled out the mistake of supporting Pincochet.
Allende rot in hell!

by berniebird Sat Sep 06, 2003 01:53

1) Allende was not communist, though indeed was planning to nationalize all foreign owned enterprises in Chile- such as Cardenas did in the thirties or Chavez is doing now
2)read the news- there were never nukes in Cuba- the satelite photo's were a scam (much like todays Hubble telescope photo's)... USSR had ideas of arming Cuba as the US were placing nukes right at their back door- the Aleuts... also, there was the whole Bay of Pigs fiasco to justify (another Bush family venture...)
3)No matter what the argument against Allende, the actions of Pinochet did not justify the means to his end- ...the favoured method of disposing of lefty dissidents was chucking them out of airplanes over the ocean, or sometimes over the Andes for the condors to pick clean... within the first few months of Pinochets rule, an estimated 14000 died...
aaahhhhh...

by Sean Dowling Sat Sep 06, 2003 10:42

Allende was an idiot. His failure to make preparations for the inevitable military coup against him left thousands of Chilean workers fodder for murder and torture. How come the left was so disorganized that it made no decent effort to defend itself when the coup happened ? Allende should be condemned by the left, not eulogized.

by Ramón Mercader - Trotwatch Sat Sep 06, 2003 22:40 Avenida de la Icepick, 15, Mexico DF

Lacks all charisma and so is in no danger of becoming the greatdictator of the Leninist vainglorious revolution. Thank fuck. Unless of course Boyd-Barrett fronts the affair. Blrrluecghch..! the thought of it!

by Lone Gunman Sun Sep 07, 2003 01:39

No nukes in cuba?Thats got to be a scam?Funny why is there a deactivated nuke missile in the grounds of the Cuban war museum?Have you any checkable proof of this intresting bit of revisionism?