By Gustavo Espinoza M., Latin American Summary, April 17, 2022.
In recent days, two historical events have been commemorated in Our America, a concept defined by Simón Bolívar, adopted by José Martí and confirmed by José Carlos Mariátegui.
Our America today is the Great Homeland that our elders dreamed of and will become a reality through the unity and strength of peoples. We refer to the defeat of the mercenary invasion of Playa Girón recorded in Cuba in April 1961; and the victory of the Venezuelan people who, on April 13, 2002, ruined the attempted fascist coup by the Caracas oligarchy determined to overthrow the government of Commander Hugo Chávez.
Two episodes of undeniable importance that have marked the consciences of millions of Latin Americans. They also showed the fighting power of the peoples, who usually emerge victorious from the aggression of the reactionary forces determined to block the paths to liberation.
It is clear that under these two circumstances the peoples fought for a just cause, an essential basis for every victory; but they affirmed the idea that a just cause is not enough to succeed; that it is necessary, in addition to the indispensable force, to break down the enemy’s resistance and push through this cause.
Both episodes were the culmination of class confrontation in processes that have shaped the history of our continent. And this should be taken into account especially by those who believe that social changes can be made on the basis of “dialogue tables” and “agreements”.
In Cuba, Playa Girón was instrumental in defining the socialist character of the revolution and exposing the perverse meaning of North American politics. John F. Kennedy – the “Great Democrat” – was hired by the Pentagon and his country’s Central Intelligence Agency and had no qualms about reporting an operation that brought death across America; and that was answered and defeated by an armed people
In Venezuela, business cliques and traditional parties are being ousted from power by the will of the people; They sought to regain their privileges and restore a social order that was collapsing, buried by the will of millions of rural and urban workers. Caracas was the scene of a decisive battle.
In it, the mobilization of citizens determined the fate of the social process. These two experiences – Cuba and Venezuela, to which Nicaragua must be added – are the mirror of our times.
Cuba has undaunted its flag thanks to the courage and dignity of its people, but also to the presence of a wise and consistent leadership at the top of power.
After more than 60 years under the blockade of the United States, today Cuba has the approval of millions of men and women around the world; but also the hatred of cliques that are beating the war drums again and are using National Socialism as an ideology and constant practice.
In our country, this hatred is fueled by the coup mafia, which targets the Cuban diplomatic mission. In fact, they have already registered against the Cuban embassy in Lima, reprehensible “seeds” fueled by a press campaign spearheaded by spokespeople from the most reactionary right, determined to attack the Caribbean homeland’s ambassador, whom they wish to discredit with impunity .
It should be noted that this attack “does not prevail” because it is based on lies and goes against the will of the population.
The situation is similar in Venezuela. In Andrés Bello’s homeland, a process of normalization is taking place in various areas of bourgeois life. The “media” can no longer speak of a “deep crisis” or show signs of backwardness or misery. By overcoming the blockade and sanctions imposed by the Yankee government, Venezuela is reborn.
Even the White House today has ties to the Miraflores Palace to obtain oil that cannot be requested from Guaidó and must be transacted with the national government and President Maduro.
It is good that we are learning these lessons in our country. We live in a phase in which the class struggle is intensifying considerably. A coup offensive aimed at destroying the popular government elected last June is gaining momentum in the media – and not only in them.
The effects of the crisis are being reaped, some of which have to do with the neoliberal “burden” imposed on the country by Fujimorism and meekly applied by subsequent governments; and others are a consequence of the “sanctions” promoted by the United States government against the Russian Federation in connection with the military conflict on Ukrainian soil, greatly affecting fuel, wheat and fertilizer prices; but they also exploit the shortcomings of the people’s movement and the weaknesses and mistakes of the government.
Today, in one way or another, the president’s resignation or dismissal is an immediate target of the reaction. She doesn’t care about the country or the people. He has devoted the past eight months to seeking the overthrow of the President or the censorship of his ministers, amid a rampant campaign of attacks, aggression or insults; and today she sings victory, emboldened by a constitutional indictment she has pending.
Objectively speaking, it has not given the President a truce, nor has it allowed him to implement his governance.
Now more than ever, people need to unite against the coup in any of its forms; and the government, the duty to correct mistakes and overcome restrictions of all kinds.
Here, too, the fate of the Great Home is at stake.