On December 1, the presidential candidate of the PN –National Party- carried out a coup attempt. We want to dialogue with all activists that, like us, are part of this process of struggle. We think that, once defeated this reactionary turn of the regime, to take JOH down is a strategic goal of the mass movement.
By Ovett Córdova.
The Socialist Workers’ Party – PST defends that, after carrying out a coup attempt, JOH should not stay in power for one more day. All opposition parties believe unanimously that he should hand over the presidential sash on January 27. We believe the Alliance and the PL –Liberal Party- support a government that, as the police officers in strike said, “ordered to kill” just to stay in power.
The state of siege is nothing else than a coup attempt led by JOH, the corporations, and the Armed Forces. The goal was to impose the electoral fraud and so ensure his crowning as president of the Republic. This authoritarian maneuver was defeated by the heroic resistance of the masses, which went from cacerolazos to the organization of barricades by neighborhood, picket lines, massive demonstrations, and confrontations with the police and the army.
The crisis grew so deeply that a fraction of the Special Battalion COBRAS went on strike refusing to repress the people, and captivating the solidarity of almost all the rank and file of the preventive and transit police.
JOH was tactically defeated, but he still has control over the situation.
Before the imminent danger of being defeated by a massive anti-JOH vote, and before the possibility that the SEC [Superior Electoral Court] might declare Salvador Nasralla as the winner – given the pressure of the insurrectional process, the president decided to carry out a self-coup.
JOH broke the governability pact of the different bourgeois sectors represented in the PN, the Alliance, and the PL. The agreement was to solve the power issue on N26, through the mechanisms of the bourgeois democracy. However, as the results would not be favorable to him, JOH took the decision of relying on the military sector to ensure his reelection. He did not count with the unwavering will to struggle of the people or the rebellion of the rank and file police.
The Alliance leads to a dead alley
The self-coup failure occurred because JOH did not count with the boldness of the masses that did not accept the conciliatory and demobilizing line of the Alliance leadership.
Days before, the Alliance was calling to celebrate, not to struggle. It did not acknowledge the protests called by the demonstrators, and even got to say that if JOH accepted the defeat they were willing to defend him in Justice through Presidential pardon (to Matamoros Batson as well).
The insurrected masses, however, had the last word: they defeated the state of siege and the coup. The key of such triumph was the disobedience by the struggling people to the conciliatory and collaborationist stand by Mel Zelaya and Nasralla, who got to the limit of saying that “the barricades need to be eliminated,” and that “the cars with money, fuel pipes, and containers should be allowed to pass.” In fact, they were telling the people in the picket lines, blocking bridges and tolls, to let JOH rule; to take the rope off his neck and let all the army’s trucks pass to move freely and massacre the people.
Where are Nasralla and Zelaya leading the fight? They want to use the protests and demonstrations to negotiate with JOH. This is why they call to struggle when they are in a bad situation and to demobilize when they feel confortable enough to negotiate. Their strategy is to push to review the acts and so declare Nasralla president. They say nothing about the coup attempt, or that JOH needs to be taken down through the mobilization. Like JOH, their concern is to protect the “order” and not lose control of the struggle.
It is evident that the resisting people do not care at all about this. The massive insurrectional demonstrations of N29 and N30, and the D3 demonstration, showed that the slogan “Nasralla for President!” is not relevant for the mass movement. The essential is the immediate resignation of JOH.
Insurrectional National Strike to take JOH down!
JOH’s permanence in power and his failed self-coup contrast the workers’ desire of transformation of their living conditions and political and democratic rights. The coup-attempt defeat was only partial. To fully defeat it, we need to take JOH out of the presidency. He will not allow a democratic transition to another government, or a corruption trial to his administration and the protagonists of the electoral fraud.
An Insurrectional National Strike can defeat this corrupt, exploiter regime. The only ones capable of taking this political task ahead are the masses, which are in permanent mobilization since N26. They should organize the CBLs –Neighborhood Collectives in Struggle- immediately and independently, in every neighborhood, district, village, and workplace.
The rank and file police and the militaries that are with the people and for JOH’s fall have to break the order and disobey the high and middle commands, loyal to the pro-coup rulers. They have to go on strike again, this time of indefinite duration, and join the fight with their guns. They have to organize unions and fight with the people for a democratic election of their commands and the end of military courts.
The working class has an important role in the organization of strikes and stoppages, as they already did in the occupation of the maquila in Villanueva, Cortés. These stoppages have to expand to all industrial regions, and to services, banks, and commerce. We need to close all the companies and factories, organize meetings, and prepare our defense from our workplaces.
It is urgent for each CBL to call meetings and assemblies to democratically debate and pass the necessary actions to join the Insurrectional National Strike. We have to grow from local to regional, to national organization. We need to organize district assemblies of the CBLs and prepare a CBL National Encounter. The working class organizations, labor unions and revolutionary parties, peasants, blacks, indigenous, women, LGBTI, and students’ organizations should participate, in every neighborhood and district, nationally. Their assemblies should help construct the political and strategic lines of the Insurrection National Strike and define the goals of their actions by blocking the main roads, bridges, tolls, as well as to defend their neighborhoods and workplaces.
All of this will only be possible if the mass movement keeps its independence from the opportunist leadership of the Alliance, which wants to use them to push JOH and so negotiate in better conditions the quote of power they pursue so badly. Nasralla and Mel Zelaya defend that they can take down “the gorilla trainee”[1] just by counting 5 thousand more acts or the acts of other departments – now they are saying “all SEC acts,” carrying out a second turn, or repeating the election. Their betrayal cannot be more shameless!
The ones in the neighborhood barricades or picket lines already said it loud and clear: OUT WITH JOH! The execution of this can only take place through an Insurrectional National Strike organized by the CBLs, to take this government down and carry out a trial and punishment to JOH, the SEC, and all corrupt officers of the National Party.
Out with JOH now!
Trial and punishment to JOH and his gang!
Insurrectional National Strike to take JOH down!
Workers’ assemblies to prepare the National Strike!
For police officers’ and soldiers’ unions!
No sanctions to police officers and soldiers for refusing to repress the people!
Let the police officers and soldiers democratically choose their commands!
End of military courts!
For a national meeting of CBLs’, unions’ and popular organizations, with representatives of police officers and soldiers that support the people.
Socialist Workers’ Party – IWL-FI.
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[1] In some Latin American countries, “gorilla” means ‘of reactionary right wing, pro-coup, or anti-communist.’
