"... We have our mountains to confront them and if necessary will fight back with stones and sticks." Text and photos: Martha Gonzalez and Paz Marwan
ICR-Who came first the artist or revolutionary? Paul
River "Undoubtedly the revolutionary. I always had a skill for drawing and underground to political cartoons for subversive publications. While imprisoned in the model I proposed an exhibition at the Viva Mexico. I made some 30 drawings and was a critical success and sales. A few months later did a second presentation, which also was successful then and I was hooked. While imprisoned here at the San Carlos made a last and go out and spend my first professional china ink drawing and then I started to color in watercolor. A few years later I got into painting with acrylic on canvas and that was more or less the development of my work.
ICR "But the revolutionary struggle and family you come from ...
PDR-My parents were Republicans English anarchists, who at the end of the war, after the loss of the republic, had to leave exiled to France and then to Cuba where I was born. Then they came to Venezuela.
ICR-And how the fight started ... PDR-
not invent Fighting I. .. I was drawn. In the fall of the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez, the Venezuelan people had a big expectation for democracy, freedoms ... but those dreams were betrayed by Democratic Action and Rómulo Betancourt, who finished handing the country to the U.S. and suppressed demonstrations and demands of the people who felt betrayed. His early years were as repressive government and became so wild that quickly forget the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez. In 59, following the triumph of the Cuban revolution, began to think that somehow we had to respond to the aggressions of the political police and the Betancourt regime and began to organize in illegal armed units. Two groups went underground and weapons, saying the armed insurrection, the Communist Party and the MIR. Thus begins the struggle in the mountains, and urban guerrilla warfare, which was totally unprecedented in Latin America, at least at the level that we did it. The PC came to be 3 or 4 very important detachments MIR and many others. At the end of year 62 I started the task Alberto Rua Inns, in memory of a fellow high school that killed the police. Began operations that caused much more substantial impact on Venezuela and the world ...
ICR-what?
PDR-The first hijacking of an aircraft for political reasons was here in Venezuela. What does the PC. The plane flew over Caracas and handed out flyers in the window against the government. Then he went to Curacao to shelter and there they delivered the Venezuelan government. A few years later did the same MIR: hijack an airplane but in city Bolívar. Flew over the city handing out thousands of fliers and went to Trinidad. They were also caught and returned. The head of the operation was a classmate, Olivia Olivo died years later of cancer. We also had operations as taking the ship Anzoategui, who performed the task of ours and was brought to Brazil ... operations were successful, very clean, where sometimes there was no gunfire. No fighting, no injuries, no deaths, as the operation at the Museum of Fine Arts, where he had a very important exhibition of 100 years of French painting by Picasso, Matisse, etc.. The pictures were taken peers and returned one week then leaving them in the door of Arturo Uslar Pietri, intact, without a scratch. Rescue operations were weapons, making military posts of police stations. They put many bombs, especially in oil and some U.S. companies, but caused no civilian casualties. Fighting with the army, with the National Guard in the streets, neighborhoods ... that was the urban guerrilla.
ICR-One of the most famous was undoubtedly the kidnapping operation of Di Stefano ...
PDR-operation was the FALN and partner Luis Correa who was the commander of Cesar Augusto Rios. From the MIR I took part as second in command of the operation. It was a very simple operation. Just went to look at the hotel at 6 am and we stopped. It was simple but shocking, because Di Stefano at the time was the best football player in the world, was a star. So advertising and nobody has ever went to jail. This operation is called Julian Grimao a tribute to a English Communist party leader Franco had captured 4 or 5 months before and had shot.
ICR-Who was Captain Manuel Rodríguez Ponte?
PDR-Our foundation here at the San Carlos Free bears his name. Captain Manuel Rodriguez was who led Ponte the rise of Puerto Cabello, in the year 62. He was captured and imprisoned here in the San Carlos and in his second heart attack die without medical attention. It was now the supreme commander of all the Venezuelan guerrillas. He was replaced by Commander Juan de Dios Moncada Vidal. There are people outside who sees Chavez as a phenomenon and the union of civil and military in Venezuela, but that for us has always been more or less normal. Those first major operations to seize power were civil-military operations, in which case the Navy, where he opened the barracks and handed him the weapons to the people, students, to fight together. Many officers of the armed forces went to the guerrillas. Many died in combat. It was a fairly normal phenomenon, because our Armed Forces have never been elitist, are not a sect, but the classes have always had the opportunity to enter military schools and move up in rank without depending on their color or social class ...
ICR-In these times does the guerrilla was romantic?
PDR-I would not say romantic, but idealistic, but idealism is not necessarily romantic. The sounds corny romance, a rebel without a cause and not that. We were idealistic as we were willing to sacrifice our family, friends, girlfriends, children, our ability to study, work, to a normal life as a function of fulfilling a political responsibility. In this sense it may be idealistic, but not romantic. Of course all these battles took their toll. And the effect we're seeing today, because these are both the continuation of all the Venezuelan people's struggles for liberation from the time of Guaicaipuro. The people who fought against the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez were leaders of ours who taught us that we were boys of 17 or 18 years and we in turn, were able to form new generations of fighters. Those waters of these rivers brought ... The story of the Venezuelan revolution did not begin on 4 February. All are a consequence of the other. But the first generation Venezuelan raises the takeover of national liberation, that is, to throw off the yoke of the United States and considers socialism, it was us. ICR-
"also fights out of Venezuela?
PDR-I volunteer in the war against Somoza in Nicaragua with the Sandinista Front in the southern front. And that is also common in Venezuela. The feeling of internationalism inherited many centuries ago, we were taught the Caribbean and Venezuela who fought and helped liberate South America. For American internationalism that is not unusual and we now filled with idealism, sacrifice and spirit of solidarity ..
ICR-It was a ministry ...
PDR-Yes, and of which we are very proud. We hope that our example as a generation of youth is sown in Venezuela, carrying forward the dreams that we have now with the Bolivarian revolution and our President Chavez in front. Youth must assume its leadership role and leader, and we did.
ICR-Will he return the guerrillas to Venezuela?
PDR-Only if we were invaded and conquered the first lines of defense of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces. Then of course our people would go to the mountains or to cities to make a guerrilla war that would last a century. ICR-
Something similar to what happens in Iraq?
PDR "Could be, although with different characteristics. Because the experience of struggle that is the Iraqi people and the weapons that have accumulated is not the Venezuelan people. But we have our mountains to confront them and if necessary will fight back with stones and sticks.
ICR-Tell a story of the thousands who may have
in 1964 PDR-We had abducted the military attache at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Colonel Smolen only ransom demand as the release of the revolutionary Vietnamese Nguyen Van Troi, who had been taken prisoner in Vietnam these past weeks, trying to make an attack on a bridge where it should go Mac Namara. However, the direction of the PC before the onslaught of government repression Smolen ordered the release of Americans without honor their commitment. The operation stopped for 3 days of the execution of Van Troi, but once Smolen was released, was shot immediately. Read that story elementary school children in their textbooks, but not even know where Vietnam is, however Vietnamese children do know where Venezuela thanks to this operation.
ICR-Who came first the artist or revolutionary? Paul
River "Undoubtedly the revolutionary. I always had a skill for drawing and underground to political cartoons for subversive publications. While imprisoned in the model I proposed an exhibition at the Viva Mexico. I made some 30 drawings and was a critical success and sales. A few months later did a second presentation, which also was successful then and I was hooked. While imprisoned here at the San Carlos made a last and go out and spend my first professional china ink drawing and then I started to color in watercolor. A few years later I got into painting with acrylic on canvas and that was more or less the development of my work.
ICR "But the revolutionary struggle and family you come from ...
PDR-My parents were Republicans English anarchists, who at the end of the war, after the loss of the republic, had to leave exiled to France and then to Cuba where I was born. Then they came to Venezuela.
ICR-And how the fight started ... PDR-
not invent Fighting I. .. I was drawn. In the fall of the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez, the Venezuelan people had a big expectation for democracy, freedoms ... but those dreams were betrayed by Democratic Action and Rómulo Betancourt, who finished handing the country to the U.S. and suppressed demonstrations and demands of the people who felt betrayed. His early years were as repressive government and became so wild that quickly forget the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez. In 59, following the triumph of the Cuban revolution, began to think that somehow we had to respond to the aggressions of the political police and the Betancourt regime and began to organize in illegal armed units. Two groups went underground and weapons, saying the armed insurrection, the Communist Party and the MIR. Thus begins the struggle in the mountains, and urban guerrilla warfare, which was totally unprecedented in Latin America, at least at the level that we did it. The PC came to be 3 or 4 very important detachments MIR and many others. At the end of year 62 I started the task Alberto Rua Inns, in memory of a fellow high school that killed the police. Began operations that caused much more substantial impact on Venezuela and the world ...
ICR-what?
PDR-The first hijacking of an aircraft for political reasons was here in Venezuela. What does the PC. The plane flew over Caracas and handed out flyers in the window against the government. Then he went to Curacao to shelter and there they delivered the Venezuelan government. A few years later did the same MIR: hijack an airplane but in city Bolívar. Flew over the city handing out thousands of fliers and went to Trinidad. They were also caught and returned. The head of the operation was a classmate, Olivia Olivo died years later of cancer. We also had operations as taking the ship Anzoategui, who performed the task of ours and was brought to Brazil ... operations were successful, very clean, where sometimes there was no gunfire. No fighting, no injuries, no deaths, as the operation at the Museum of Fine Arts, where he had a very important exhibition of 100 years of French painting by Picasso, Matisse, etc.. The pictures were taken peers and returned one week then leaving them in the door of Arturo Uslar Pietri, intact, without a scratch. Rescue operations were weapons, making military posts of police stations. They put many bombs, especially in oil and some U.S. companies, but caused no civilian casualties. Fighting with the army, with the National Guard in the streets, neighborhoods ... that was the urban guerrilla.
ICR-One of the most famous was undoubtedly the kidnapping operation of Di Stefano ...
PDR-operation was the FALN and partner Luis Correa who was the commander of Cesar Augusto Rios. From the MIR I took part as second in command of the operation. It was a very simple operation. Just went to look at the hotel at 6 am and we stopped. It was simple but shocking, because Di Stefano at the time was the best football player in the world, was a star. So advertising and nobody has ever went to jail. This operation is called Julian Grimao a tribute to a English Communist party leader Franco had captured 4 or 5 months before and had shot.
ICR-Who was Captain Manuel Rodríguez Ponte?
PDR-Our foundation here at the San Carlos Free bears his name. Captain Manuel Rodriguez was who led Ponte the rise of Puerto Cabello, in the year 62. He was captured and imprisoned here in the San Carlos and in his second heart attack die without medical attention. It was now the supreme commander of all the Venezuelan guerrillas. He was replaced by Commander Juan de Dios Moncada Vidal. There are people outside who sees Chavez as a phenomenon and the union of civil and military in Venezuela, but that for us has always been more or less normal. Those first major operations to seize power were civil-military operations, in which case the Navy, where he opened the barracks and handed him the weapons to the people, students, to fight together. Many officers of the armed forces went to the guerrillas. Many died in combat. It was a fairly normal phenomenon, because our Armed Forces have never been elitist, are not a sect, but the classes have always had the opportunity to enter military schools and move up in rank without depending on their color or social class ...
ICR-In these times does the guerrilla was romantic?
PDR-I would not say romantic, but idealistic, but idealism is not necessarily romantic. The sounds corny romance, a rebel without a cause and not that. We were idealistic as we were willing to sacrifice our family, friends, girlfriends, children, our ability to study, work, to a normal life as a function of fulfilling a political responsibility. In this sense it may be idealistic, but not romantic. Of course all these battles took their toll. And the effect we're seeing today, because these are both the continuation of all the Venezuelan people's struggles for liberation from the time of Guaicaipuro. The people who fought against the dictatorship of Pérez Jiménez were leaders of ours who taught us that we were boys of 17 or 18 years and we in turn, were able to form new generations of fighters. Those waters of these rivers brought ... The story of the Venezuelan revolution did not begin on 4 February. All are a consequence of the other. But the first generation Venezuelan raises the takeover of national liberation, that is, to throw off the yoke of the United States and considers socialism, it was us. ICR-
"also fights out of Venezuela?
PDR-I volunteer in the war against Somoza in Nicaragua with the Sandinista Front in the southern front. And that is also common in Venezuela. The feeling of internationalism inherited many centuries ago, we were taught the Caribbean and Venezuela who fought and helped liberate South America. For American internationalism that is not unusual and we now filled with idealism, sacrifice and spirit of solidarity ..
ICR-It was a ministry ...
PDR-Yes, and of which we are very proud. We hope that our example as a generation of youth is sown in Venezuela, carrying forward the dreams that we have now with the Bolivarian revolution and our President Chavez in front. Youth must assume its leadership role and leader, and we did.
ICR-Will he return the guerrillas to Venezuela?
PDR-Only if we were invaded and conquered the first lines of defense of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces. Then of course our people would go to the mountains or to cities to make a guerrilla war that would last a century. ICR-
Something similar to what happens in Iraq?
PDR "Could be, although with different characteristics. Because the experience of struggle that is the Iraqi people and the weapons that have accumulated is not the Venezuelan people. But we have our mountains to confront them and if necessary will fight back with stones and sticks.
ICR-Tell a story of the thousands who may have
in 1964 PDR-We had abducted the military attache at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Colonel Smolen only ransom demand as the release of the revolutionary Vietnamese Nguyen Van Troi, who had been taken prisoner in Vietnam these past weeks, trying to make an attack on a bridge where it should go Mac Namara. However, the direction of the PC before the onslaught of government repression Smolen ordered the release of Americans without honor their commitment. The operation stopped for 3 days of the execution of Van Troi, but once Smolen was released, was shot immediately. Read that story elementary school children in their textbooks, but not even know where Vietnam is, however Vietnamese children do know where Venezuela thanks to this operation.
0 comments:
Post a Comment