So Argratina in 1969 there was an unprecedeni eruprion of the working class onto the Ical scene. The workers vigorously demon i both in the workplace and on the ts their opposition to the anti working and anti popular policies of the military tatonhip, which expresses the interests of imperialist monopolies. In Cordoba, then pecially in Rosario, the mass mobilisations ery quickly developed into confrontation with he forces of repression.
This experience faced the Argentinian workers on a really massive scale, with the peation of armed struggle.
During 1970 the intervention of che sanpard at all levels, and in particular on the level of armed actions, grew considerably. The vanpard organisations sought to find through such actions the beginning of a solution to the blems posed by the intensification of che al occasions international reverberations;
hations such as the Rebel Armed Forces AR), the Argentinian Revolutionary Move:
* (MRA), the Montoneros, etc. became By and arms were combined with acts of id propaganda which went as far as the impation for a few hours of certain towns in be interiot of the country.
One of the most active organisations in the a fire months has without doubt been che evolutionary People's Army (ERP, Ejercito alacionario del paeblo), a mass organisation at up by the Workers" Revolutionary Party PRT. Partido revolucionario de los trabajaThe actions with ERP's name attached to m date from the last monchs of 1970: "che EAP was created as the result of a political decision taken by the most recent congress of the PRT, which was held in June of this samne ycar..., the congrens decided to organise the ERP. an army which must be proletarian in its social composition. revolusionary in its practice, with the objective of assuming the functions of a mass organisation, since it is destined to act in the framework of a popular civil war. " In addicion, the cumrades of the PRT reaffirmed in this Filth Congress the thesis which it regards as central: "the consolidation of a revolutionary party, ofa class party of socialist ideology which takes an active part in the proletarian internationalism of che Fourth International led by Ernest Mandel, Pierre Frank and Alain Since the mouth of September, there has been at least one ERP action a day. Their com mando groups are active especially in Rosario, Cordoba, Tueuman and Buenos Aires, The ERP combines its political work with setions desigried either to accumulate resources or to make armed propaganda. Thus. in addition to several big expropriations, the ERP has made interven cions in student assemblies, and has distributed food in working class areas and dams. This arises from the conception of the ERP according to which "we are ut the beginning of the revolutionary civil war, at the stage of armed propaganda, of the accumulation of forces, of the undermining of the enemy. Obviously we think that the war will be long, but we are convinced that it has already hegun, even if it is for the moment sections of the vanguard which are In order to get an idea of the response which action, of armed propaganda can arouse, of the progress which is being made by the idea of organised revolutionary violence and dieil war, it is enough to give a repore of the agitation carried on at the FlAT factory ac Fetteyra near Cordubs during the last week of December.
The factory is in an importans industrial arca: the 3,000 workers of the FIAT factory played a primary role in the struggles in this arca recently. Several workers delegates were under trial foe trade union activities and for resistance to police brutalities, and the managemenc of the company wanced to sack them on various pretexts.
On December 22nd, a commando of the ERP disarms the guard of the factory. goes into che factury and calls the workers togetber for a meeting. The local press gives a deciled account: * warket said to the PRT speaker: Put down your machine gun, mate, we're all in agreement here. The apeaker amiled and put down his machine gun ... " The comrade explained the position of the Party in relacion to the general situation in the country and the repressve incentions of the management. "He had such a success that long after he had lefs, protected by the workers, rounds of applause could srill be heard." A few days later, after the sacking of the delegates, the FIAT workers retaliated with a strike and an organised occupation. They abo held in the factory, as hostager, more than 200 thing was prepared for resistance against police attack: barrels of petrol at strategic points, stocks of Molotov cocktails, etc... On the second day of the occupation the Presideat of the Republic, General Levingatone, issued a decree ordering the ending of the occupation, together with a two-hour urinatem to obey the decree or the forces of order would be sent in. The FIAT workers rejected the decree, the ultimatum and the threass, and the governor of Cordoba province, faced with the prospect of a murderous confrontation, treatened che President of che Repablic that he would resiga if the decree was not withdrawa. On the expiry of che time limir, about me o'clock in the morning, the sittation remained unchanged. at midday the factory was still occupied and all the factories in the area had stopped work in solidarity. At three o'clock in the afternoon. on the order of President Levingstone, the Miniscer of Labour expressly ascod the management to reemploy the sacked workers' delegates, which it finally agreed to do. The hostages were released, the factory was evacuated in the evening. without the authorities having dared to This victory of the workers illustrates che new forts of struggle which are necessary for even elementary demands by the workers to be satis fied. In a country where the bourgeoisie hasn't much to give away, only the threat of a partia! show of force, with a dysamic which is uncontrollable by the bourgeoisie. can drag from i: the respect of the workers' rights and the sarisfaccion of new demands This is the direction in which the contrades of the PRT and the ERP are working. They are accumulating the neces sary resoarces for spreading the revolutionary war: they are training in action the embryos of the revolutionary army: and chey are scimalating through propaganda and action the maturing of the mass movemeng of Argentinian workers.
Armied actions bave already become an important factor in the undermining of the domi nant classes and of cheir military dictatorship. These accions are abo polarising the radicalisaA new and declive stage of the rerolutionary process will be reached if the organisscions of the extreme left show themselves capable of integraring significant sectors of the masses in