Ernesto Guevara's book "Guerrilla Warfare". Jay

Dearest Nana,

I have finally finished reading Ernesto Guevara's book "Guerrilla Warfare". Getting to know the experience of the Cuban revolution from first hand of one of its leaders is very interesting, inspiring and full of knowledge.

Apart from specifics of the Cuban experience, there are some issues that you can relate to how things are happening, for example, in Irak, Afghanistan, Siria, etc. as well as some of the moments from the past such as the Vietnam War. You can understand more in depth how the local people are trying to, and in some cases, managed to, defeat the army of the first superpower of the world, what tactics do they use, what mentality they keep and all the sacrifices they have to make in order to fight oppression.

There are also many things that relate to Sun Tzu's sayings in "The Art of War", that apply to the guerrilla lifestyle. The thing is, that Guevara, in this book, makes special emphasis on the revolution starting in the countryside, with the villagers, but the basics can apply to any situation, taking into account its specific conditions.

That is all for the moment. More on the next one.

Yours loving,

In reply to his Grandson Jay

Jay Dearest,

I have not read anything by Guevara in my past but knew about him and the Cuban revolution led by Fidel Castro. I am plucking bits from my long lost memory. I have not checked on any of these in the web as well. It is too bothersome to go thru those webs. I also think that rather than Guevara it was Mao who instilled and inspired communists here. Possibly it is the result of successful revolution in that vast country an Asian one.

In those days we were demonstrating against US attack on Cuba. We also demonstrated in support of China.

I came to know much from the book Red star over China by Edgar Snow a well known American writer. Another was a book on the long march undertaken by the Chinese Communists by Agnes Smedly. The Japanese war on China helped the party to form armed resistance from hilly rural areas towards urban. But Chiang with active support of US gained much. However it did not help and Chiang fled the main land to remote Taiwan.

In India communists here and there formed armed struggles after India attained independence. One of the earliest was in Punnapra-Vayalar in then Travancore in Kerala. Another was in Naxalbari in West Bengal. The second lasted for more time under the leadership of Charu Mujumdar and Kanu Sanyal. Finally this resistance collapsed. Mujumdar lived longer frustrated and alone. Communist party/parties changed their ideas at times and fragmented except for the CP Marxist. The once united party turned first pro Moscow and the other split being pro Chinese. They termed Chinese revolution led by peasants as the guide to third world countries where industrialization is little and therefore no dominant working class. Marxism was re-interpreted.

Take today’s situation. The rural in developed countries is too negligible to lead any movement. The middle class is not interested in changing the system. All the occupy Wall Street movement never got the momentum to achieve the results. So many protest rallies in Europe like in Greece or in Spain and many others cannot help due to apathy of the others. This is a background where extremists are trying to embark on armed revolution.

After the 2^nd world war it was time for all kinds of movements to claim legitimacy claiming that they are for socialism and democracy. None f those countries like Egypt, Algeria etc in Africa. The so styled people’s democracies in Europe failed abjectly in both counts. You must have heard about Patrice Lumumba of Congo in West Africa. By the way there was/is a university named after Lumumba in Moscow catering to students of third world countries.  Belgium supported armed forces finished him off. The military dictatorship ruled for decades. I have not checked its present status.      

In India the Maoist movement is spread along the tribal belt from Naxalbari in North to Western Maharashtra chasing from Bihar, UP, Odissa, Andhra and so on. They seem to be very active in confronting the authorities in the states, abducting and killing officials. In my view they are keeping the tribal isolated from mainstream developments at the same time demanding developments to their satisfaction. There are a well knit group of sympathetic intellectuals like Ms Arundhati Roy who argue the case for Maoists. They have no answers to questions posed by others not so sympathetic or adversaries. The middle class is moving towards a better life for them under the circumstances. The peasants are not interested in anything but their lands. The poor is looking to all to help them survive. I need not say anything about the rich. So what is the future? Conflict, civil and armed? I don’t know. I am unable to envisage any future. Might be there will come people better equipped to meet the problems and find practical solutions.

One problem that may not resolve is the conflict between resources including land as against the unlimited increase in world population. China went thru a face of one child in family and today reports are coming about the aging population versus younger. So long!! 

Yours own Nana.