On Sat, 07 Nov 1998 18:12:48 -0400 Thomas Kruse <tkruse at albatros.cnb.net>
writes:
>Regarding:
>
>>Actually, Allende committed suicide, right?
>
>He pulled the trigger, one supposes. But I've read over the various
>versions of this, and I'll give Tomas Moulian, Chilean sociologist,
>the
>final word, from his book Chile Actual: Anamotia de un Mito (Chile
>Today:
>Anatomy of a Myth). He writes (my translation):
>
>The suicide was the formalization of an execution already consummated.
> This
>was so both in real and symbolic terms.
>
>In the real sense, because the militarily unnecessary bombing of the
>Moneda
>[presidential palace] represented the will to finish off Allende or
>revealed
>how little importance his life represented for the conspirators.
>Aerial
>bombardment of the Palace of Government expressed a desire for a
>tabula
>rasa, to create a new State over the ruins of the old....
>
>[And] in the symbolic sense because when Allende killed himself in
>fact he
>was already dead. Dead by the bombs hurled at him. Dead because he
>knew he
>had reason on his side, but was unable to impose it.... Dead, because
>of
>the pain of betrayal by the one in whose hands he had placed the life
>of the
>State and his own.
>
>Note: "because of the pain of betrayal..." because Allende gave
>Pinochet his
>job as head of the armed forces, convinced he'd be loyal.
>
I suppose at some point it might be worthwile here to do analysis
of the last year or so of Allende's regime in which he tried to
coopt rightist opposition by bringing military officers into the
government. The problem with his government was IMO that
it was perceived by its enemies including both the Chilean
bourgeoisie and the Nixon Administration to be a revolutionary
or potentially revolutionary regime when in fact Allende was a
reformist who attempted to deal with the mounting political
crisis with reformist methods. A revolutionary regime would
have armed its working class and peasant supporters but
Allende's regime was not reformist.
Jim F.
>And thanks for the citation in the NYT. To the rest of you all: I
>don't
>have time to puruse the US press just now, but if you all see or grab
>good
>articles on the Pinochet stuff, please send it my way off list.
>
>Thanks!
>
>Tom
>
>Tom Kruse / Casilla 5812 / Cochabamba, Bolivia
>Tel/Fax: (591-4) 248242
>Email: tkruse at albatros.cnb.net
>
>
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