The text by Chairman Mao, in "Interview with the English journalist James Bertram", pg. 51 of the second volume, the title "democracy and the war of resistance"; we already have studied it for the Preparatory Session of the II Plenum, pg. 355 to 357, says:
"For us the problem of how to develop democracy in order to further strengthen our work for the development of the New State is of much interest; here Chairman Mao deals with the problem of democracy and links it to war. Mao upholds that democracy is not contrary to Peoples War; he upholds that in August, 1936, the Communist Party of China launched the order for the Democratic Republic with three characteristics, specifically:
We should maintain centralism and manage it always as a guideline, and the key is the Partys direction. The arming of the people is realized in concrete through the Peoples Guerrilla Army (EGP) in its form as a basic force and as support for the Peoples Committees; then, it is the peasantry itself, specially the poor peasants, who conforms such army and guarantees the New Power. Without forgetting that the Party has absolute direction of the EGP.
3. The government guarantees to the people the strict fulfillment of the rights of the people, which include political liberties, specially freedom to organize and arm itself. Chairman Mao also teaches that there is no insurmountable gap between democracy and centralism, both are necessary. On one side, the government that we want must truly represent the will of the people, counting on the will and support of the broad masses of people; and such masses must enjoy the freedom that will allow them to support and influence its policy, it is part of their participation in exercising Power. This is the meaning of democracy, give great importance to it. At the same time the centralization of the administrative power is necessary; the elected government will carry out policy once the political measures demanded by the people are transmitted with the approval of the representative body. Hereby is the importance of the Assembly and generated organizations, in this way the people will carry out policy. A decisive thing is the leadership of the Party. Mao tells us that only by establishing democratic centralism can a government be truly strong. In our case, if there is a foreign invasion, the establishment of democratic centralism will allow us to have in reality a strong government, which is much more necessary in such circumstances.
Chairman Mao tells us that systems of government in times of war can be divided in two types: democratic centralism and absolute centralization, depending on the nature of the war. Unjust wars generate a government of absolute centralism without any need for democracy. This government, in order to carry out major developments in countersubversive wars, necessarily unfolds a system of absolute centralism and negates democracy, it struggles against democracy, it persecutes democracy, and such positions are increasingly expressed every time, regardless of the loud calls for "democracy". Such is its course, and it cannot get out of it. In a just war democratic centralism is a necessity, it serves the people and has the peoples approval. The more democratic the government the more possible to democratically carry forward the Peoples War, this is why it is fundamental to develop peoples democracy. It is a key factor to develop peoples democracy, it is essential for our course: the conquest of Power.
We need the people as direct participants, so that the masses themselves carry out further and further the Peoples War; in this way the Peoples War will express all its power because it is a war of the masses. We have nothing to fear from the mobilization of the masses in the Peoples War, on the contrary, we need it; what could worry us is the lack of people participating in the Peoples War. On the other hand, imperialism and reactionaries, in their urge to annihilate the Peoples War, employ the masses as cannon fodder, then a struggle emerges and the masses, the people, increasingly become the arena of struggle, so starts a complex and bloody development of the contradiction between reactionaries and imperialism to mobilize the masses in support of their countersubversive war, and us to mobilize the masses for the Peoples War. This is a fact that we must face with clarity and great resolution; especially when today it occurs at a higher level with the arming and increasing numbers of the old vigilante patrols (mesnadas) now reorganized as "peasant patrols", "defense committees", "urban patrols", etc. Once again the masses are the arena of struggle between revolution and counter-revolution in this new stage of strategic equilibrium.
Objectively, the reactionaries do not represent the interests of the people; we do; they cannot win the masses to their side, so the masses are oppressed and forced to follow the reactionaries, and this causes resistance. We are able to lead the masses because we represent their interests and, after all, this hard struggle makes the masses to come over to our side, this is why we need to give them more democracy. If we view the period when this struggle occurs, it is not enough that the reactionaries cannot represent the masses nor that we represent the peoples interests. We must strive to be superior over the reactionaries, so we can defeat their sinister campaigns and counter-revolutionary plans, to beat them down in all levels. This requires the development of our politics, in particular the Peoples Front and the Peoples War, to make these more massive. But such tasks are defined according to how we handle ideology and politics; how we carry out the Party program, in special the concrete aspects of it; how we propagate such among the masses through actions complementing propaganda and agitation; how we organize the masses in every way, principally to arm themselves and exercise New Power, so they see the New State as theirs, because it truly benefits them. It must be very clear in the whole country that the masses really exercise Power; this is an unprecedented fact and we should spread it. Our central problem is to extend the New State, develop it; such is our determination in this period being guided by the conquest of Power in the whole country, by the construction of this conquest.
Chairman Mao tells us that the nature of the war determines the relations between the government and the people. This is a law of history. We are part of such law, let us fulfil it with firm resolution and conviction, by following such path we will conquer power in the whole country. This text is extremely important; study it and apply it.
Finally, we insist on two problems: First, the reaction, the Peruvian State in concrete, it needs to apply absolute centralism in order to direct its counter-revolutionary war, if it does not apply such it will not be able to organize, much less develop, the defense of its old order; having reached the strategic equilibrium, this need becomes more urgent, this is the reason for the new measures and decrees given for the State and in particular regarding the role and direction of the armed forces, which now have legal authorization to intervene in all areas and in the whole country. But this process is not over yet, it is only a step in absolute centralization, in the major negation of bourgeois democracy, in the growing reactionary character of the old State, they will take more steps out of necessity; thus, their bourgeois falls to pieces, and each time further; they do it themselves, they cannot escape this; the cries, shouts and democratic poses of the old reactionary parties, their cheap talk in parliament, are nothing more than that, as part of the development of absolute centralization to combat the Peoples War. Nevertheless, once again we must clarify that we are not for a coup detat and let us re-emphasize that the people has never been asked for permission, nor consulted in regard to this matter; the reactionaries do so only when it serves their interests. But, in the actual situation, the most profound question is not the coup detat, the question is the absolute centralization they follow. At present what is unfolding is an absolutism of the executive branch, a presidential absolutism centering around Fujimori; this is the road being followed by the growing reactionary character of the Peruvian State, being supported and served by the armed forces while fulfilling the States repressive and bureaucratic system, extending its military control over the population. This growing reactionary character of the State is proceeding principally as the answer to the strategic equilibrium, to the second stage of the Peoples War that we advance; it is a solid political demonstration of the strategic equilibrium we have reached, it is the best and most simple evidence. At the same time, it is the most effective rejection of the farce "strict respect for human rights" that Fujimori and his government attempt to sell abroad so as to facilitate the growing imperialist intervention, principally Yankee imperialism, against the Peoples War. Moreover, let us remember that the First Session of the Central Committee (February 1990) established that whoever took over the government, he would have three tasks: reinvigorate bureaucratic capitalism, re-adjust the State and annihilate the Peoples War; in this respect then the measures and legislative decrees also aim at reinvigorating and readjustment.
The second problem that we insist on is that the development of the Peoples War is linked to democracy, to democratic centralism; the Peoples War necessarily requires, and at the same time develops, democracy, peoples democracy. Thus, there are two roads: they are for absolute centralism, we are for democratic centralism; they are for a growing reactionary character of the State, we are for a growing democratic character of the State, a peoples democracy, a Peoples Republic of Peru. We need to develop democracy further as part of New Power; all actions with the masses must be carried out unfolding further peoples democracy, this is very necessary, it serves to fortify our work. Just as to us democracy makes us stronger, likewise it makes the reaction weak. Just as in the Peoples War absolute centralism is counter-productive, for the reaction it is the only road, principally in times of war, more so when related to a countersubversive war.
In this introduction we should take into account and study the document "On the rectification campaign with 'Elections, No! Peoples War, Yes!" from August. In its first part it establishes how to study; to pay attention to analysis and synthesis, to the natural relationship of both. To simply analyze without synthesis is metaphysics; analysis is necessary but it must include synthesis because in such the leap occurs and knowledge and comprehension are generated, this is the axis, the central reference for studying; let us pay attention to this problem.
The second part of such document is titled "The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, Celebration of the 25th Anniversary" establishes that it is 25 years since the start of the Great Cultural Revolution (it started in May 1966) and that it is necessary to study it as humanitys greatest political process, not only because of its immense scale in relation to the masses, but also because of the political level that it reached, and because it expresses the highest development of the World Proletarian Revolution; it is the greatest struggle directed by the Communist Party of China and Chairman Mao himself, the decisive struggle for the continuation of the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat, one of the great high points in the struggle of the proletariat for Power; an epic that resolved the problem until then remaining, that of the continuation of the revolution, and establishes the essential tasks to change the human spirit, the problem of ideology, making us see that it is no simple task, rather, it is complex and tough. Maos great teachings are invaluable, but besides this we should remember that with the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution our ideology, Marxism-Leninism evolved into Marxism- Leninism-Maoism, in synthesis Maoism; and such, for the World Proletarian Revolution, for the revolution in Peru and the Peoples War, is obviously of greatest importance. Because of all this, let us celebrate the 25 Anniversary of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution!
The third point deals with the political situation. The document teaches how to study a text, in this case "Elections, No! Peoples War, Yes!" applying it to a concrete situation, because if we study, we do so in order to understand reality and transform it, this can be clearly seen in this part. Thus, when dealing with the international situation and Peruvian politics, in relation to the first it presents the general counter-revolutionary offensive against Marxism and the revolution; and in dealing with the second, it establishes that the Fujimori government has failed to achieve what it wants, instead it increasingly looses legitimate credibility through its own actions, and today, with the latest decrees and laws, it is destroying its so called legitimacy, today more than ever. It is important how the document analyses bureaucratic capitalism; it is outstanding that when referring to its three moments, in each of them it establishes a preparation, development, and fall. I believe this is what stands out regarding this point. When treating "the boycott develops the peoples tendency against elections and serves the Peoples War" it stands out the great conquest of 1991: the strategic equilibrium, reached with the completion of the II Campaign; the document says: "It was enough to say a simple phrase, to salute the strategic equilibrium, for the reactionaries and revisionists to start trembling their teeth; they all started to scream and pull out their hairs, and executed bloody and ridiculous military operations, as always appeasing their rage and impotence by attacking the unarmed masses, to 'show that there is no such equilibrium, Why? they are in panic because the old is dying and will be buried. The word of the Party has never been negated by reality, everything we have predicted we have applied; we said initiate and we carried out ILA 80 [Initiation of the Armed Struggle in 1980], today we are entering the conquest of Power in the whole country, we say strategic equilibrium and we specify it, standing out more than ever: "The strategic equilibrium and preparation for the counter-offensive: for the enemy it is to recover positions and maintain its system; for us, prepare the strategic offensive through the construction of the conquest of power" In this we must insist very much, in how the equilibrium is realized in concrete, "for the enemy it is to recover positions and maintain its system", and this is what the enemy unfolds today as part of its task to annihilate us, obeying the orders of the imperialist master and the needs of the Peruvian reaction; and "for us, prepare the strategic offensive through the construction of the conquest of Power", this must stand out. When dealing with the III Campaign it says: "In synthesis, the completion of the III Campaign in May, June and July is grandiose, until today it has not penetrated so deep nor elevated so high the Peoples War, principally in the countryside, and in the city as complement; we all should feel great happiness for serving with all our heart to such great tasks, whichever may be the level of our participation, a few stones next to others make a wall; let the traitors and others negate it, if they do it for their class interests, to fill up their pockets, although they are badly paid by the Peruvian reaction and the imperialists. We are conscious of the truth that we live, and because of this we construct it, in the Party, in the Peoples Army, in the New Power and the masses, we can see how the great achievements of the heroic Peoples War materialize".
And the document continues: "are there any indications of the impact caused by this process of the Peoples War? Yes, for example, for the first time the US Senate had a debate regarding the Peoples War in Peru, so it has repercussions in the very nest of the world reaction, it is not the main signal, but it is important. There are "modern milk suckers" making castles in the air; such as Fujimori, this genocidal criminal conducting a countrywide sell out, or hangmen such as the minister of interior, general Malca, the minister of defense, General Torres Aciego, or recalcitrant pro-Yankees such as the mercenary minister of economy C. Boloni Behr, and boot-lickers such as the senderologists Bernales, Tapia, Gonzales, etc. These are obedient lackeys of imperialism serving the exploiting classes, begging imperialist "aid", principally from Yankee imperialists; they dream on annihilating the Peoples War, and traffick with its great advances in order to conduct their so called reinsertion, defending the arch-reactionary Peruvian State". In these ways, the repercussions of the Peoples War are expressed, the III Campaign in particular, inside and outside Peru. In another part it says: "In the US the first steps are being taken for the elections next year, and Bush seeks reelection. He has achieved a phony and empty success in the Middle East, it is plenty for the imperialists, although it is clear to all that Bush failed to achieve his aim; we say so because a vile and arrogant trampling of a civilian population can never be a success, in special today when the peoples struggles for their liberation is part of the world revolution (we know the class limitations of Sadam Hussein) This is the "success" of Yankee imperialism. Besides, the Gulf War was started to invigorate the US economy, but it has not generated the reinvigoration they hoped for; their economy continues--and will continue--having serious problems in relation to other imperialist powers, but it does not mean that the US is no longer an imperialist super-power. In addition, Bush started a war against drugs and confronts the population in the US; just as in managing their economic problems, taxes are collected and social spending is reduced, causing confrontations with the people in the US; in the same way, the war on drugs confronts the poorest and most exploited sectors, in particular the oppressed minorities, but even then they get no results. Moreover, such war against drugs is closely linked to attacks against the Peoples War in Peru and the class struggle in the Andean region; thus, it impacts US politics. So, we should understand that this affair does not end in September, we refer to the suspension of the so called "aid"; for the Peruvian government to receive it, first it must fulfil the "Anti-drugs" treaty which includes respect for human rights in one of its parts, but these "rights" are systematically violated. The Peoples War, then, is an instrument for their race in the US elections, and has impacts in their own Congress, this is of interest for us.
Analyzing the last part of "Elections, No! Peoples War, Yes!" it is clear that such is the principal part since it establishes how to judge Marxism today, and calls to reaffirm ourself on Maoism, this is decisive. Finally, this fourth part of the document we just analyzed indicates how we can apply it to study the proletarian world revolution in the first place, to study the revolution in Peru in the second place, and how to apply it to each of us who studies them; and so, we can apply it on three levels. The document is useful for the rectification campaign; we should take it into account and study it.
INTERNATIONAL COMMENTS ON NEWS SUMMARIES
We only want to stand out a few things. In the document of the II Plenum [of the PCP] a number of comments on news summaries were introduced; in the international part there were the following. Because of the change in the name of the Communist Party of Italy, the comment says the following: "The field clears up! The "one hundred Marxist-Leninist Parties" are totally unmasked and shamelessly declare themselves bourgeois, they renegade."
Chairman Mao said that there are one hundred Marxist-Leninist parties in name only; today we see they renegade in full and submerge themselves in total decomposition, that is why the field is clearing up. In February it was agreed to end the Warsaw Pact, the comment is: "An achievement for the U.S. and NATO; it opens major disagreements in NATO and a general rearrangement in both sides, specially in the Soviet side." They only said the Warsaw Pact disappears, thus it is a triumph for NATO, but besides this, contradictions among NATO members are developing, and we are seeing them. This is what the first part indicates, "opens up major disagreements in NATO and rearrangement", both sides have to reformulate their situation and, what is most important: "specially on the Soviet side"; and we already know where the formerly glorious USSR ended up, in a simple Commonwealth of Independent States. And such is also good, because it is not called "Soviet" nor "socialist" anymore; it will not carry the label anymore, and this is also good, it clears up the field.
When in February the news on the Gulf War were hot, the comment establishes how to analyze the problem: "To analyze the Gulf War take into account the assessment of the October session and consider:
This makes us see the certain and correct leadership of the Party [PCP]. [to be continued]