Saturday was the anniversary of the 20th of December 2001 rebellion. It was a wonderful action of remembrance for those who were killed. That was a time when people were staving and the banks did not allow people to take money out. This caused the upraising, and the upraising was met with brutal police repression. Eduardo and many other friends of mine were involved in the rebellion. There were hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people in the streets and the police would randomly open fire. The stories that the comrades here have of the time are amazing, such solidarity of the people. It was a time when for older people such as Evo's mother, the country felt again like the time of the military dictatorship in the 1970's. Quick brief overview/snip bit of modern Argentine history starting with the second imperialist war:
In 1939 Argentine president Roberto Ortiz declared the neutrality of Argentina with respect to the war. In 1943 a military coup seized power, broke off relations with Germany and Japan, and brought any image that the Argentine people had of democracy to a halt. Fearing war with Germany and the people of Argentina, another military group took power placing the charismatic Juan Domingo Perón in the presidency. This coup had popular support and was the kindle for a mass movement to be known as the peronista movement. Perón, while not particularly progressive himself, put into place some tangible reforms for the working class such as eight hour work days, paid vacation, etc. It must be noted that much of the later support and much of the progress made were a result of pressure on Perón from two sources, first the leftist sector of the personista movement and second his wife Eva Perón (the most honorable occupant of la Casa Rosada ever). One should not confuse the peronista movement with Perón himself, as the movement was a creature in its own right that is better described as an envelope of political protection created by the people themselves under the implied auspice of its namesake (the genius of the people). In the movement many progressive political theories were culminating (socialism, syndicalism, anarchism, revolutionary syndicalism, libertinism, etc.). During his democratically elected presidency of 1946, which he won by a landslide thanks to his wife Eva, Juan Perón entered Argentina as a charter member into the UN and also put into place a new constitution that allowed successive presidencies. He won elections again in 1952. During this presidency the peronista movement was growing, and with it much trepidation within the military and the Roman Catholic Church. In 1955 a military insurgency brought a civil war and the deaths of thousands. With Perón exiled in Spain, the military took over once again. Later that decade the constitution of 1852 was readopted and so called "general elections" were held. The 60's brought two more military coups, wide spread strikes, repression and the like. In the national elections of 1973 the peronista movement named Perón again as its candidate. However, due to his lack of presence, as Perón was still residing in Spain, Hector Cámpora was elected in his place. Cámpora's presidency was a horrible disaster and after his resignation less than a year later, Perón was elected in his place. Perón died in 1974 and his third wife Isabel Perón, who had been elected vice president, took over the presidency. In 1976 a harsh military group seized state power and set out to put an end to the peronista movement. Conservative estimates put the repression at 2,300 political murders, 10,000 political arrests, and some 30,000 "disappearances" of mostly young political activists. There were death camps all over the country. Activists were often thrown into the Rio Plata with their feet incased in cement blocks. The state used a host of green ford falcons to roll throughout Buenos Aires picking up known political activists. This was all going on as Argentina and the United State continued to declare that there were no human rights violations going on in Argentina. As the military Junta put it "Argentina IS Human Rights!" This was but a part of the United State's plan for all of Latin America.
The culture of Argentine youth of working
class (I really don't know as for the middle class), and older people too
is very much more socialistic in flavor. They have a collective perspective
on life and expect, naturally, others to have this same progressive insight.
The march, being held on an extremely hot day with the temperature racketing
up to 34 degrees Celsius, was the site of freely shared water, without a second
thought, between complete strangers. The obsessive, sterile mindset of the
US is all but absent, as everyone copiously, in a land of restricted resources,
passes the beer, juice, pop, water, bread, ice cream, or whatever other consumable.
Mind you, it is beyond the frequency of just "kind acts", if one
has food or drink it is always divided up among those present. That is how
things are done. It is not uncommon for a complete stranger on the street
to ask for a sip of water, and I have never seen it refused. This entente
of the people is indeed a marvel to behold.
Plaza de Mayo
Eduardo's mother told me stories of the days of the military dictatorship that began in 1976. She, to this day, has many reservations about Evo's political activity as a result. She supports what he is fighting for, but continues to hold great fear for his life. Now is his life in danger? Well yes, every time we get up off our asses and demand a change, an end to the current world hegemony, as any true student of history can tell you, we put ourselves in harm's ways. But for myself and obviously for Eduardo, our lives unhinge if we choose to entertain such derangement as the world is peachy or worse yet that we have no part to play.
As for the rebellion of 2001 the states death
count is 36 I believe, but the people know it to be much more. We marched
from Congresso to Plaza de Mayo. It was in Plaza de Mayo where this resistance
of el pueblo went down on December 19th and 20th, 2001. I talked to many comrades,
and met some new ones. I took a few videos and quite a few pictures. At the
Plaza de Mayo the names of the fallen comrades were read off and balloons
with their names were released. It was good. I would have liked to film the
entire ceremony if I had known the plan. One of the key organizational groups
putting together this march was the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. The courage
of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo was inspirational. The mothers of Plaza de
Mayo are an organization formed in the 1970's of the mothers of the disappeared.
They marched around the Plaza de Mayo with the names of their sons and daughters.
The only press that covered them, I believe were the Kiwi's. As the country
was pacified by the world cup, in which Argentina performed marvelously, the
government continued to silence the politically active. And it was the militant
Madres del Plaza Mayo that stubbornly defied the dictatorship. Many of the
original members were there and spoke. Amazing is all I got to say.
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