Discourse Practices and Historical Discourse Representation ELN MPLA

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War and Peace in Africa explains th e roots of African conflicts and

wars in their historical and global contexts. The contributors present

extraordinary perspectives on diverse aspects of both civil and regionalconflicts in ways that illuminate such key themes as nation building, re

source control, ethnonationalism, external actors, armed conflicts, and

state collapse.

The book contains twenty-six chapters divided into three parts: Part

A focuses on the contexts and causations of wars and conflicts; Part B

dwells on wars and conflicts resulting from Africa's contact with Eu

rope; and Part C highlights contemporary wars and post-war reconstructions.

The emerging themes call for critical reflections on the future of

postcolonial Africa: Is the postcolonial state viable as is? Is there a fun-

damental problem with the exercise of power and the formula fo r re

distribution of national resources that provoke violent responses from

minorities and the powerless? Can civic institutions prevent conflicts?

Toyin Faiola, the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Chair of African History,

Benue State University, Nigeria, teaches at the University of Texas at

Austin where he is the Frances Higginbotham Nalle Centennial Profes

sor in History as well as the University Teaching Distinguished Professor.

He is the author and editor of over a hundred books and the Series Ed-

itor of Carolina Academic Press African World Series.

Raphael Chijioke Njoku, a first class honors graduate of University

of Nigeria Nsukka, received two Ph .Ds.- in African History from Dal

housie University, Canada, and in African Politics from Free University

Brussels. He holds a joint appointment in the Department of History

and Department of Pan African Studies at the University of Louisville,

Kentucky. Njoku is author and coeditor of five books and scores of ar

ticles in scholarly journals and edited volumes. His most recent awards

include: University of Louisville Distinguished Rese a"rch Award, Indiana

University Library Residency Fellowship, Victor.Olurunsola Endowed Re-

search Award, and the Schomburg Center Library Residency Fellowship .

ISBN 978-1-59460-745-5

II IIII 9 0 0 0 0

9 781594 607455 II



Copyright © 20l'O

Toyin Faiola

Raphael Chijioke Njoku

All Rights Reserved

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

War and peace in Africa I edited by Toyin Faiola & Raphael Chijioke Njoku.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-59460-745-5 (alle paper)

1. Africa--History, Military. 2. 'Ethnic conflict--Africa--History. 3.

Social conflict--Africa--History. 4. War and .society--Africa--History. 5.

Africa--Colonial influence. I. Faiola, Toyin. 11. Njoku, I}aphael Chijioke.

DT21.5.w36 2009

355.0096--dc22

2009028659

CAROLINA ACADEMIC PRESS

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Durham, North Carolina 27701

Telephone (919) 489-7486

Fax (919) 493-5668

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Printed in the United States of America



Contents

List of Figures

Contributors

Preface

Part A

Context and Causation

Chapter 1 History, Nationalism and the State

Toyin Faiola and Raphael Chijioke Njoku

Chapter 2 The Causes of Wars and Conflicts in Africa

Ogechi Emmanuel Anyanwu and Raphael Chijioke Njoku

Chapter 3 External Intervention in Ethnic/Secessionist Conflicts

in the Third World

Osaore Aideyan

Part B

The Western Factor: Slavery, Colonialism, and the World Wars

Chapter 4 Firearms and Warfare in Late Seventeenth and Early

xi

xiii

xix

3

19

35

Eighteenth-Century Madagascar 57

Arne Bialuschewski

Chapter 5 Transatlantic Violence: Live Fencing and African Warfare

in the Americas 73

Chris S. Duvall

Chapter 6 Gender Wars: Patriarchy, Matriarchy and Conflicts 101

Marsha R. Robinson

Chapter 7 British Military Justice in the South African War 129

Blake Whitaker

Chapter 8 Historicizing the Moghamo-Bali /bit/Conflict: German Encounters

with "Rebellious Vassals" 143

Bridget A. Teboh

Chapter 9 Farmer-Grazer Conflict in the Southern Cameroon Grasslands

of Bamenda, 1916-1960 193

Emmanuel M. Mbah



viii Contents

Chapter 10 Civil-Military Relations and Colonial Armies in Malawi 219

Timothy]. Lovering

Chapter 11 "Tales from the Crypt": Medical Care of Kenya Mrican Soldiers

during and after the Second World War 241

Meshack Owino

Chapter 12 Letters from Burma: Views of Black Zimbabwean Soldiers during

the Second World War 265

Tim Stapleton

Part C

The Post-Colonial State: Wars and Post-War Reconstructions

Chapter 13 Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two

Guerrilla Groups: The ELN and MPLA, Colombia-Angola,

195&-1986Juan Carlos Sanchez Sierra

Chapter 14 Post-Civil War Reconstruction in West Africa: A Comparative Study

285

of Nigeria and Liberia 325

Okpeh Ochayi Okpeh, Jr.

Chapter 15 Land Factor in Wars and Conflicts in Africa: The Case o( the Nuba

Struggle in Sudan 351

Guma Kunda Komey

Chapter 16 Opportunistic Identities? Discursive Trends of Legitimizationwithin the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) 381

Sarah Lykes Washburne

Chapter 17 The Ethiopia-Eritrea War 401

Saba Tesfayohannes Kidane

Chapter 18 Memories, Myths and Meanings of the Zanzibari Revolution 429

G. Thomas Burgess

Chapter 19 Northern Uganda: Protracted Conflict and Structures of Violence 451

Mathew Kustenbauder

Chapter 20 The Coltan Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo 483

Niles French

Chapter 21 The Anti-Kabila War, 1998-2003 495

Osita G. Afoaku

Chapter 22 Post-Conflict Authority and State Reconstruction in the Eastern

Democratic Republic of the Congo 517

Laura E. Seay

Chapter 23 The Apartheid Myth of an Invincible South African Defence Force:

Operation Askari, 1983-1984 535

G. ]. J. Oosthuizen



Contents

Chapter 24 The Judiciary ,ap.d Conflict Resolution in Southern Africa

Joseph P. Mandala

Chapter.15 Democratizing Civil-Military Relations in South Africa:

A Blueprint for Post-Conflict Reform?

Robert J. Griffiths

Chapter 26 Contemporary Conflicts in Africa

Adoyi Onoja

Index

ix

549

583

599

611



Chapter 13

Discourse, Practices and HistoricalRepresentations in Two GuerrillaGroups: The ELN and MPLA,Colombia-Angola, 1.956-1986

Juan Carlos Sanchez Sierra

"Las herejias que debemos temer son las que pueden confundirse con la ortodoxia."

- J. L. Borges. Los Teologos

Abstract

The purpose of this essay is to present some theoretical elements used in a compara

tive research that studies two guerrilla groups. The contexts of study, Angola and

Colombia, both of which experienced long internal conflicts during the second half of

the twentieth century and witnessed the apparition of two guerrilla groups: the ELN

(Ejercito de Liberacion NacionallNationai Army of Liberation, 1963) and the MPLA

(Movimento Popular de Libertarao de AngolalPopular Movement for the Liberation of

Angola, 1956). The goal is to provide an interpretation of the rise, transformations, and

uses of specific forms of historical representations. In the form of discourses and practices,

the ELN and the MPLA constituted historical representations with the purpose of build

ing new political imaginaries, in whose analysis it is possible to explain features such as

the structures of power, knowledge, and language; how they are constantly changing;

and how guerrillas gain legitimacy within a society by using ideological paradigms. For

instance, the research suggests that internal crises in the MPLA and the ELN promoted

the change from a national liberation discourse towards a more explicit use of Marxist

Leninist ideological principles. In addition, such transformations are associated with

the persistence of social distinctions-ethnolinguistic in Angola; rural/urban inColombia-and their reflection in embryonic institutions that, by the middle of the

1970s, were supposed to constitute a revolutionary "New Society" in both Angola and

Colombia. In a paradox, the embryonic institutions created by revolutionary groups let

infer that they assume the role of a New Establishment because the deployment of power

imp lies mechanism of control; coercion and discipline; rituals; ceremonies; practices;

and discourses that create truth, law, and language.

285



286 13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerril la Groups

Introduction

In Cuba in November of 1963, a small group of students and uniQn leaders swore to

bring a revolution to Colombia in order to transform its structure of power and socialinequity. Less than a year later, they were in the. Colombian mountains walking armed

through the rural are3, of Santander, where the political and social conditions were

favourable for a revolutionary struggle. They named the group Bri'gada PrQliberaci6n

Nacional Jose Antonio Galan, after the leader of a general protest in 1789 against the

Spanish domination in the same area where the ELN started insurgent activities in

1964. The guerrilleros wished to make a historical link to a long chain of former

protests and political effervescence in Colombia. The acronym of the group changed in

1964 to ELN (Ejercito de Liberaci6n Nacional/National Army of Liberation), but the

name of the colonial hero was preserved as part of the regional memory.)

Some,years before, around 1956, in places such as Luanda, Kinshasa, Algiers, Lisbon,

Paris, and London, different progressive sectors of students, intellectuals, and European

citizens promoted through different left-wing and nationalist groups an anti-colonial

struggle in order to achieve the independence ofAngola. It was a rather diverse group of

organizations with different nationalistic conceptions, yet they mobilized around the

purpose of overthrowing Portuguese colonial rule. After a rebellion in the main politi

cal prison in Luanda that promoted a general turmoil in Angola's main towns in 1961,

those groups converged around a radical nationalist political structure: the Movimento

Popular de Libertafiio de Angola MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of An

gola). Its militants operated in clandestine activities in urban areas and villages, and latein the 1960s formed a rural war front. The group endured the pressure of the PIDE

(Policia lnternacional e de Defesa do EstadolInternational and State Defense Police), and

many of its leaders were exiled in Europe or African tountries. As in the ELN, the

MPLA insurgents responded to the call of hi.story, a call for Angolan Emancipation.2

Both the ELN and the MPLA formed guerrilla groups, or political-military organiza

tions engaged in an irregular warfare. 3 At the beginning, these insurgent groups shared

a national liberation political discourse. Both promoted a project of "New Society"4

based on a transformation of the order of things in Colombia and Angola, respectively.

With time, such discourses became more ideologically bound towards a revolutionary

I. Concerning the origins of the ELN see Carlos Medina, Elementos para una Historia de las

Ideas Politicas del ELN (Bogota: Rodriguez Quito Editores, 2001), chaps. 1 and 2; Carlos Medina,ELN: una Historia Contada a Dos Voces (Bogota: Rodrlg\lez Quito Editores, 1997), 24-60; RobertoSancho Larranaga, Violencia Po/{tica, Guerrilla y Terrorismo: una Perspectiva Comparada de Colom-bia y Espana, ELNy ETA, 1959-1982 (Masters Thesis, Universidad Industrial de Santander, Bucaramanga, 2000), chapter I; Alejo Vargas, Magdalena Medio Santandereano. Colonizaci6n y ConflictoArmado (Bogota: CINEP, 1992), 23-45; Alejo, Vargas, "Tres Momentos de la Violencia Polltica enSan Vicente de Chucuri: -de los Bolcheviques del Ano 29 a la Fundaci6n del ELN;' Analisis Politico 8

(1989): 33-47.

2. Concerning the origins of the MPLA: Jean-Michel Mabeko Tali, Disidencias e Poder de Estado,

o MPLA Perante si Proprio (1962-1977) (Luanda: Editorial Nzila, 2001), Chapters 1-3; ChristineMessiant, "Chez nous, Meme Ie Passe est Improvisation. t'Experience d'un Recherche sur Ie Nationalisme Angolais et l'MPLA;' Lusothopie (1998); Carlos Pacheco, MPLA, um Nascimento Polemico (as

Falsficafoes da Historia) (Lisbon: Vega, 1997).3. Carl Schmitt, Teoria del Partisano. Notas Complementarias al Concepto de 10 "Politico"

(Madrid: Folio Ediciones, 1982) .

4. In order to avoid confusion, in both the intro-duction and conclusion of this essay, I presentcentral concepts in Italic . I use also Italic for words and names in Spanish, Portuguese or French.



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 287

struggle as conceived in the Marxist-Leninist ideology. The Cold War was a perfect in

ternational context that fostered that ideological transformation. In the ELN, the goal of

a properly socialist revolution was defined after a deep internal crisis by the middle of

the 1970s, whilst in the case of the MPLA it only became evident around 1976-1977,when the organization already controlled the political structure of independent

Angola. 5

The ELN and the MPLA promoted a New Society. Rejecting the Portuguese colonial

domination in Angola, and the United States' involvement in Colombian affairs, the

guerrillas projected a struggle based on a particular conception of the past and historical

representations expressed as discourses and practices. These guerrillas produced, besides

political doctrine and pamphlets, significant documents in which the histories of

Colombia and Angola were reconsidered.

6

This is what I will term "historical discourse."These documents were written circa 1972 in the ELN ,? and 1975 in the MPLA.8 I suggest

5. Independence was achieved on November 11, 1975 . Portugal decided some months before towithdraw its administrative authorities on that specific date, and the MPLA was since 1961 engagedin guerrilla warfare against both Portuguese colonial army and its Angolan nationalist foe, theFNLA (Frente Nacional de L i b e r t a ~ i i o de Angola INational Front for the .Angolan Liberation).

6. It is necessary to mention that sources on guerrilla groups are very scarce, and this limitationobligated me to start a comparative research. Narratives found in interviews obtained by journalistand social researchers were considered as sources and most of my data was collected from them. For

instance, the reconstructed names of the ELN guerrilleros were gathered from at least six differentaccounts about the first ten years of insurgent war. Oral traditions from ELN's militants do notabound, but contemporary studies on the peasant traditions and rural storytelling fostered the useof oral sources from available interviews. This might be a weakness in the research, but most of theinferences are backed by written sources such as the proper historical version of the past written byeach guerrilla.

7. The ELN historical discourse that enabled most of this analysis is constituted by the followingdocuments. (Archivo Carlos Medina Gallego/Carlos Medina Gallego Archives ACMG) Ejercito deLiberaci6n Nacional ELN, Compendio Insurrecci6n 1-38 (Unknown place of publication, mimeographed, circa 1972); ACMG, ELN, Simacota, Peri6dico Politico Interno 12, (Unknown place of pub

lication: mimeographed circa 1981); ACMG, ELN, Conclusiones Asamblea Nacional 'ComandanteCamilo Torres Restrepo' (Unknown place of publication: mimeographed, circa 1986). The Compen-dio Insurrecci6n gathers documents used by the ELN during the first ten years as its ideologicalframework. It is formed by two types of sources written between 1964 and circa 1972. First, thepamphlets written for an specific purpose, such as the Manifiesto de Simacota (1964-1965) writtento announce the existence of the ELN in January 1965; the Proclama al Pueblo Colombiano, writtenby Camilo Torres, where he informed the public in Colombia of his incorporation to the rural war(ront. The Principios Programaticos del ELN was the main ideological document until 1974, whenthe internal crisis touched bedrock and promoted the entire reformulation of the ideological perspective of the group. A second type of document found in Compendio Insurrecci6n are long analy

sesof

the contextof

guerrilla war, explanationof

strategies and tactics, or documents commemorating paradigmatic characters of the guerrilla or the left in Latin America. Another source used is

Simacota, Periodico Politico InterrlO. Published in 1981, it constitutes the first complete documentdedicated to an analysis of Colombian history. In 222 pages, the ELN presents its ideological framework preceded by 75 pages on Colombian history that span at least the last three thousand years.There is very explicit the use of Marxist language and Leninist principles of organization, tactics,and revolutionary strategies of struggle. Finally, the Asamblea Nacional Camilo Torres is a longerdocument dedicated to presenting both the ELN's version of Colombian past, and the explanationof the tactics and strategies necessary for a successful revolutionary process. This last document ap



288 13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups

that the analysis of early oral versions of the historical discourse helps to reconstruct the

transformations of the political representations in guerrilla groups. Oral traditions con

tain the first evidences of such historical discourses . In addition, they can offer explana

tions of changes that occurred during and after the internal crisis of the MPLA and the

ELN, mainly about the ideological shift from a national liberation discourse, to a for

mal Marxist-Leninist one.9

Besides this, based on several published interviews, information gathered in different

libraries and personal archives, internal documents of the ELN and the MPLA, literary

works written by former militants, 10 and the above-mentioned written versions, it is

possible to reconstruct some practices. Practices are the corollary where historical dis

course is reproduced, and include rituals, ceremonies of commemoration of the past,

narratives used in everyday clandestine meetings, as well as poems and songs sang clan

destinely either in the Colombian mountains or the Angolan plateau to celebrate heroes

and revolutionary sacrifice.

do MPLA. (Lisbon: Unknown Publisher, 1977); Mario de Andrade and Marc Ollivier, La Guerre en

Angola . Etude Socio-Economique. (Paris: Maspero, 1971); Don Barnett and Ron Harvey, The Revolution in Angola: MPLA, Life Stories and Documents (Indianapolis and New York: Bobbs-Merrill,1972). Interviews published by European writers where a perception of the past is showed; narratives written by guest journalists or militants; and several compilations edited by social analysts, former MPLA militants, or political followers of the group were considered as well. Historia de Angola,is the main example of MPLA written historical discourse with a heavy Marxist language. This document was initially edited and published by the Centro de Estudios Angolanos. This centre was a producer of ideological documents by militants in Europe and African countries, which gathered finan

cial sources to sponsor left wing publications to support the MPLA. Tracing back its origins, some

sources mention it as used by MPLA's leader as early as 1965 . However, there are not consistentproofs of its existence, and the language used is quite different to the one commonly used in otherdocuments of the 1960s; rather, it suggests that it was a late version. Nevertheless, similar docu

ments were used and distributed among urban militants and leaders. The MPiA's oral version of thepast.is not compiled in a unique set of interviews. Instead, tracking it I looked up every book published by European supporters, because often they transcribe long quotes from militants. The onlydocumentary source available was compiled by Axel Fleisch.

9. See Juan Carlos Sanchez Sierra, "Los Estuilios Sobre el ELN, un Balance Historiografico:' inPensatiempos, ed. Juan Camilo Biermann (Bogota: Editorial Universidad NacionaI de Colombia,2002); "Fallas de Origen. La Discursividad Hist6rica de los Actores del Conflicto, eI ELN," in La

Universidad Piensa la Paz, Obstaculos y Posibilidades, ed. Claudia Mosquera (Bogota: Editorial Universidad Nacional de Colombia, 2002); EI Discurso Historico del ELN, 1963-1986 (Bogota: Under

graduate thesis, 2003); Les Representations Historiques et Ideologiques de I'MPLA, Angola 1957-1990

(Paris: Masters Memoire, EHESS, 2006); Las Practicas Insurgentes en el ELN, 1963-1986 (Paris:

Mimeographed copy, 2003).10. Interviews and literature written by former militants includes: Jaime Arenas, La Guerrilla

por Dentro. Analisis del ELN Colombiano (Bogota: Tercer Mundo Editores, 1971); Carlos Arango, Yo

Vi Morir a Camilo (Bogota: Colombia Nueva, 1982); Medardo Correa, Sueiio Inconcluso. Mi Vivencia en eI ELN (Bogota: Findesarrollo, 1997); Walter Broderick, Camilo Torres Restrepo (Bogota:Planeta, 1996); Walter Broderick, EI Guerrillero Invisible (Bogota: Intermedio Editores, 2000); Medina, ELN; Cristina De la Torre, "Nacimiento del ELN, Revelaciones de Ricardo Lara Parada," RevistaTr6picos 3-7 (1980); Oscar Castano, EI Guerrillero y el Politico. Entrevista con Ricardo Lara Parada

(Bogota: Oveja Negra, 1984); Marta Harnecker, Unidad que Multiplica: Entrevistas a DirigentesMdximos de la UCELN (Quito: Ediciones Quimera, 1988); Maria L6pez Vigil, Camilo Camina en

Colombia (Tafalla: TX;llaparta Editorial, 1990). Interviews and other useful literature from journalistand militants of MPLA in Lemba Winter, Marching with the Fighters of the MPLA (Dar es Salam:Unknown publisher, 1970); Carlos Pacheco, MPLA, urn Nascimento; MPLA, Angola: Docum entos doMPLA; Barnett and Harvey, The revolution; Mario de Andrade, Liberte pour I'Angola (Paris:Maspero, 1962); Roland Chilcote, Emerging Nationalism in Portuguese Africa: Documents (Stanford:

Hoover Institution Press, 1972); Ryszard Kapuscinski, Another day of life (London: Penguin, 1988).



13 . D i s c o u r s ~ , P r a c t i c ~ s and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 289

One of the most important elements found in previous research on historical repre

sentations in the ELN and the MPLA is a pattern evident in the primary sources. I sug

gest that an interpretation of the historical representations in guerrilla groups should ar

ticulate the notions of ideology, legitimacy, language, knowledge, and power, and howthey promote the formation of embryonic institutions. The choice for radical political ac

tion based on the legitimacy that a discourse about the past can provide to a_n insurgent

group is a strategy to reach the revolutionary purpose. The questions to pose might be, if

both discourse and practices foster new perspectives on history within insurgent groups,

what can we understand about a political revolutionary project based on their historical

representations? How do those representations reflect insurgent notions of political power,

the conventions of knowledge and language within a constantly disputed and trans

formed ideological dimension? How were the historical contexts reflected in both dis-

courses and practices in order to shape a revolutionary political imagination?

In this essay, I will analyze the variables that shaped historical representations wjthin

each guerrilla group. I have found in both cases several documents where the concep

tion of the past is expressed. Historical representations appear as written texts, and in

some cases as transcriptions of more individual oral narratives. These historical dis-

courses were transformed between 1956 and 1986, and became more attached to the

ideological precepts of Marxism-Leninism and the need of each group to legitimize its

struggle in its specific socio-historical context. On the other hand, the historical repre-

sentations also appear in empirical sources in the form of practices: ceremonies; ritualsof initiation in the insurgent struggle; forms of education and transmission of ideologi

cal documents; precepts of discipline and routines; forms of integration; commitment

and action; the emergence of a new conception of time and space; internal forms of jus

tice; the emergence of human paradigms and heroes; and the creation of embryonic in

stitutional forms of coercion and justice.

The study of historical representations opens an important perspective for the analysis of

insurgent groups formed under the aegis ofCold War ideologies. If considered as a product

of the convergenceof

discourse and practices-and this is the hypothesis that informs thisresearch-historical representations allow us to understand how, within insurgent groups,

language, knowledge, and strategies ofpolitical action are useful for recognizing the nature of

political power and institutions promoted by revolutionary groups in the twentieth century.

Theoretical Elements for a Comparative Study of

Historical Representations in Guerrilla Groups

This theoretical approach intends to offer tools for broad-range analysis in compara

tive politics. It resulted after an analysis of empirical resources that helped to identify

particular phenomena in the production of discourse and practices within each guerrilla

group, as well as a consideration of contemporary debates on social theory related to

the historical representations. The study of historical representations in guerrilla groups




Discursive practices are cultural processes that contribute to the constitution of the

social world, and in its reproduction explain social change, identities, and social rela

tions based on the structure of power, the operation of ideological systems, some pat

ternS of cultural production and consumption of texts, or the institutionalization of

practices. Discourse is both constituted and constitutive of the social world, and reflects

how structures change; it means that explanations can be found not only in linguistics

but also in history and sociology. Discursive practices are also dependent on the histori

cal sociocultural context where they appear, and can be affected both by structural

changes and more individual aspects of social interaction. In that sense, ideology as a

fundamental element in the functioning of discursive practices can be studied in either

an extended or a narrowed scope because social structures are equally perceivable in

both large scale analyses and small processes of quotidian interaction. I

Historical representations are considered as the structures that shape political imagi

naries within revolutionary movements. Such representations promoted both discourses

on history-historical discourses-and practices that, as ceremonies, helped to consti

tute the group/individual approach to the past and a political imaginary. In that sense,

the category of discursive practices is used in this framework but methodologically I dis

tinguish discourse-production and consumption of texts on history within each guer

rilla movement-and practices-actions that rely largely on the discourse

mentioned-for analytical purposesY Although in the model they appear to be sepa

rated, they are actually merged into the notion of historical representations, and the only

reason to separate them is to discern and organize every stage of my study. The stages of

analysis obey the progression of the discourse and practices towards historical representa-

11. The central notion of discursive practices is used by Norman Fairclough, Critical DiscourseAnalysis: the Critical Study of Language (London & New York: Longman, 1995); Norman Fairclough,Language and Power (London: Longman, 1989); Norman Fa irclough and Lillie Chouliaraki, Discourse in Late Modernity: Rethinking Critical Discourse Analysis (Edinburgh: Edinburgh UniversityPress, 1999). The analysis of theoretical sources done for this research includes: Gabrielle Spiegel,Romancing the past. The Rise of Vernacular Historiography in Thirteenth-century France (Berkeley,University of California Press, 1993); "History, Historicism and the Social Logic of the Text in the

Middle Ages," Speculum 65 (1990): 59-86; Michel Foucault, Genealogia del Racismo. De la Guerra delas Razas al Racismo de Estado. (Madrid: Ediciones La Piqueta, 1992); Friedrich Nietzsche, "De la

Utilidad y de los Inconvenientes de los Estudios Hist6ricos, para la Vida," in Consideraciones lntempestivas 1873-1875 (Madrid: M. Aguilar Editor, 1932). An overview of these theoretical sources inJuan Carlos Sanchez Sierra, "Elements for a Comparative Survey on Guerrilla Representations.Sources, Methodological Problems and Theories (or the Study of the ELN and the MPLA," Paperpresented in the VIII Conference on Political Theory, University of Essex, Colchester, England, June

2007.

12. Concerning the concept of practices and ritualization used in this research see: f:mileDurkheim, The Elementary Forms ofReligious Life (London: The' Free Press, 1965), Chapter I, andBook 3 on ritual activities; Pierre Bourdieu, Outline ofa Theory ofPractice (Cambridge & New York:

Cambridge University Press, 1977), 16-30, 78-96; The field of Cultural Production (New York: Columbia University Press, 1993); Douglas Marshall, "Behavior, Belonging and Belief. A Theory ofRitual Practice," Sociological Theory 20 (2002): 360-80; Catherine Bell, Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice(New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), Chapter 2; Victor Turner, The Ritual Process: Structureand Anti-structure. (Chicago: Aldine, 1969). On the teatralization of practices in revolutionary

groups see: Georges Balandier, Le Pouvoir Sur Scenes (Paris: Ballard, 1980). About strategies of actions see Foucault, Genealogia, Chapter 7-9; Ann Swidler, "Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies:' American Sociological Review 51 (1986): 273-86. Finally, the links among these theoreticalpremises can be found synthesized in: Tim Hallett, "Symbolic Power," Sociological Theory 12 (2003):

128-49; Bourdieu, Outline, 67-71; Spiegel, "History"; Albert Bergersen, "The rise of semiotic Marx



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerri lla Groups 291

hons as institutional formations, or as I named them embryonic institutional formations

which synthesize the notions of power and knowledge within each guerrilla group.

The result will be presented here in two diagrams. Each Diagram must be read from

the bottom up. Diagram I is the base of the Diagram II, but is collapsed for analytical

purposes. Throughout the essay, some paragraphs written in Italic represent a rationale

of the model, where some generalizations are suggested, and other notions are used to

identify processes, concepts, or affirmations that will be useful in the analysis.

Discourses and Practices:

Towards Embryonic Institutions

Ideology and Legitimacy in a Study ofHistorical Representations

Guerrilla movements are military organizations involved in a social transformation

via political struggle and cultural production. 13 Both the cultural and the political will

be analysed as formations of language, knowledge, and power, closely attached to ideo

logical principles (National Liberation and Marxism-Leninism) that promote strategiesof action. Two aspects are fundamental to explain change here: ideology and legitimacy;

they help to articulate insurgent cultural reproduction of discourse and practices as rep-

resentations either individually or organizationally in a complex socio-historical context.

The first, ideology, was a principle of convergence for militants with different back

grounds and preceded the specific definition of a political purpose. Ideology here func

tions in an early or embryonic phase. In the beginning, it was a perspective of the

world, a form to articulate experience in a political context, envisioning national libera

tion as the main goal for each organization. After the 1970s, in both the MPLA and theELN, the ideology transformed from a national liberation towards one with a clearer

revolutionary nature. This ideological change is evident in the acceptance of Marxist

Leninist precepts, or the use of historical materialism as a method of action and

thought. It is present in documents with political purposes, oral sources, or informal

texts dedicated to express the guerrillas' version of history.

13. Guerrillas are mainly organizations; they dispose sources and struggle against other organi

zations for resources such as legitimacy, political support, territory, supplies, etc. Their consistencyalso depends on how they resist the strength of their opponents, and that is both an objective and asubjective factor. For instance, guerrillas depend on the support from communities in the local scenario, and there their ability to create firm links with political leaders not committed with guerrillawarfare, clientelist relations, or international support - for instance, to gain the status of bel ligerency that makes audible their voice in the international community. This can be associated withwhat Pierre Bourdieu and Tim Hallett call "dispositions." Power is negotiated within and outside theorganization, and its balance depends on material and subjective aspects. A symbolic struggle fordevices of power occurs, and legitimacy springs from that internal and external negotiation. These



292 13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrif ia Groups

At the same time, both guerrilla groups also looked for acceptance within their own

societies, so they promoted strategies of action in order to gain social legitimacy. In

other words, legitimacy can be defined as the Justification of guerrilla struggle based on

specific motivations ofa historical natwe, and was framed by ideological principles of ac-

fion and thought. The past was .assumed as a source.of legitimacy, along with a close int e r a c t i O l ~ wIth communities subjugated by the establishment or a colonial power. In

other words, ideology and legitimacy constituted the lens and focus of the guerrillaap

proach to the historicaf experience within each society, This necessarily had to be pre

sented in a formal language, so it emerged as a discourse.

Then, historical discoyrse and practices galvanized in different forms. First as explana

tions of reality-an instance of ideological transformation based on contextual neces

sity-and secondly in the' form of political imaginaries. Finally, discourse and practices

assumed the form oJ' embryonic institutions. The New Society was in gestation. Struc

tural anthropology conceives this process as linguistically formative, and.a necessary instance for the consolidation of a historical thought in traditional societies. However, the

cases studied here show that they were reproduced in practices, and also occurred in

contemporary sodeties. This might suggest that the process is apparently natural in,the

emergence and formation of institutions and social bonds. For instance, among the

guerrillas in Colombia and Angola 'a discourse either written or oral about the past was

necessary, and it was only institutionalized after the acceptance of a unique cohesive

ideol<:>gical framewOl;-k-as it did happened after the 1970s internal. crisis in both

groups.

The historical discourse in the guerrilla movements studied was preserved in docu-,ments or transmitted by quotidian forms of insurgent .interaction. Two conventions of

language clashed 'in the process of creation and transmission of a historical discourse:

the oral .and the written. They were an allegory of the inherent distinctions between

rural or urban militants (in the case of the llLN in CQlombia), or differentiated the S.o-

cial origin of each militant based on ethnolinguistic patterns of identity (in the case of

the MPLA in Angola). The historical representations found in the' .do.cuments allow a

classification of discourse and practices in features that can help to introduce an inter

pretation: historical representations promoted embryonic institutional formations use

ful for linking guerrillas and the social contexts due to its legitimacy and the coherence

they gained for the support of an ideological framework.I4

Historical Discourse

The purpose here is to show how historical discourses emerged and tmnsformed in

both guerrillas as they passed from oral to written forms of textuality.ls This change is

the result of a simple conviction among the leaders in the guerrillas: that, a. scientific

14. It is necessary to explain how historical representations articulate. I will use interpretative

categories in order to build upon the main argument of this essay. The categories to discern the prob-lemqtic will be: ideology and legitimacy, in a scope'of how they 'Structure social experience, in forms of

power, language and knowledge. Although they are closely intertwined, here they are presented in a

list; this Jist should not be considered as an arbitrary typification. Insteaq,. it is an order given for ex

planatory purpoSeS. The classification relies on the patterns found in the empirical sources.15. Fairclough, Critical, 27-9 .



· Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 293

of explanation could increase the legitimacy of the groups, enhancing their politi

cal aspirations to the power. Marxism was considered both a scientific path to reach

knowledge, and the appropriated ideological source of power enabling the creation of

social laws that predicted a desirable communist future.

The transition of the historical discourse from an oral version to a highly sophisti

cated written document depended on changes in the process of internal interaction,

which progressively privileged formal educative strategies instead of traditional forms of

sharing knowledge common among many societies in Africa and rural communities in

Colombia. Although here is difficult to make an extensive analysis of the content of

these versions of the history written by the ELN and the MPLA, it is important to men

tion that they were created during the processes of internal crisis experienced by both

organizations. They reflect internal discussions that defined their ideological lineage

merging both national liberation principles and international Marxist ideas current bythe 1970s throughout the world.16

Some other aspects are of interest. First, authorship faded away and was replac_d by

anonymous texts that aseptically followed dialectics and historical materialism as the

method and philosophical source of knowledge. Secondly, they become the common

textbook for militant's formation in the war fronts, and in its construction were used as

empirical resources dismissed in the official version of the history held by the establish

ment. The case of Angola deserves special attention because some sources are apparently

apocryphal or just were copied from studies written by ideologues in Europe or Northern

African countriesY These sources were constantly rewritten in order to attribute to the

MPLA important facts and dates of the insurrectional upheavals in Angola in the 1960s,

favoring the weak legitimacy of its leadership among communities and other political

groups in Angola. 8 Finally, the historical discourse in the MPLA and ELN took the form

of written texts in order to accelerate the indoctrination of new militants. In that sense,

new formal meetings oriented to teach ideological elements to new militants displaced

the highly ritualized process of night talks. This happened particularly in the early years

of 1970s, when both military actions and recruitment of new militants grew steadily.19

16. Before the creation of ELN and MPLA, the historical discourse of the communities functioned more like what Foucault calls "counter-history." This reference can be found in Nietzsche andFoucault, but methodologically is difficult to analyze. Among its characteristics, counter-history is apolitically biased version of the past used and legitimized in the struggle for power among those so cial sectors historically excluded from the structure of power and segregated to secondary and subordinated roles.

17. It was found that many of the data and figures used by Mario de Andrade in two documentspublished in France were adopted as the official sources for the later written versions of the historical discourse in the MPLA. See De Andrade, Liberte, 23-65; De Andrade and Marc Ollivier, La

G!lerre, Introduction and chapters 1-3. The figures, productive estimates and demogr:}phic datawere used by the MPLA in the book Historia de Angola. Its use continued in official textbooks onhistory when the MPLA became the party state in Angola after 1976. The use ofAndrade's work alsocan be noticed in the organization of the historical process that does not have important differencesto a similar study for the Algerian history. See Frantz Fanon, Soci%gie d'une Revolution. L'an V de la

Revolution Algerienne. (Maspero: Paris, 1975), 5-15. Similarities can be observed in another anticolonialist document written by the leaders of the PIAGC (Partido Africano da Independencia daGuine e Cabo Verde / African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde), Document.L'an VIII de Notre Lutre Armee de Liberation Nationale. Rapport d'Ami/car Cabral, Secretaire Generale




Knowledge

The ELN and the MPLA considered themselves to have privileged perspectives of the

world and the reality they were about to transform. They assumed their analysis of real

ity and history as a truth-like in every political unity, they had a version of history

that was ideologically conceived-that enabled them to impose a new pattern for social

organization. Social change-either national liberation or socialist revolution-was a

stimulus to create the better conditions towards a new stage, a stage where Colombia

and Angola evolved as New Societies. This is proper of teleological ideologies, and is

natural ofWestern political systems of thought based on a particular philosophy of his

tory. A new historical consciousness was about to blossom, bringing a new frameworkto produce truthful knowledge.

The New Society represented a new pathway towards knowledge and the enlighten

ment brought by its shining truth. For instance, the texts where the historical discourse

appeared in the 1970s and 19805 helped the ELN to create several new editions of the

texts both for internal use and to inform the Journalist and social analysts. In the case of

Angola, the written version of the past was published clandestinely in Europe in

1965-1975, distributed in the rural war fronts and urban militant groups in Angola,

and served .as the model for most of the textbooks used for teaching history in schoolsafter 1976. After this date, during the stabilization ofAngola as an independent nation,

the MPLA's historical discourse became institutionalized as the official version of the

past. The ELN did not reach the power of the MPLA, but a similar process happened in

a local/regional scale during the late 19705 and 1980s where small schools, teachers and

peasants discarded the official history20 replacing it with narratives with their own per

ceptions of the past and oral versions of the ELN's historical discourse.

Transmission

Knowledge about society was considered a form of emancipation from traditional

forms of oppression. It was an alternative approach to social experience that also cre

ated meaning and fostered consciousness. In order to transcend the conditions of polit

ical oppression it was necessary to articulate new forms of cognitive interaction. The

ELN and the MPLA adopted forms of education to transmit that ideologically framedknowledgewithin communities and among its militants. The forms of transmission of

the insurgent historical discourse were originally those traditional means used by peas

ants such as oral narratives, songs, myths, collective memories, and the reading of texts

aloud. Progressively-around 1968 in Colombia and 1975 in Angola-the transmis

sion of the historical discourse moved towards a definition of written texts as the privi

leged means for knowledge transmission. This phenomenon is important because it



helps to recognize the existence of social distinctions in Angola and Colombia.


For instance, in Colombia the ELN intended to indoctrinate its militants with a writ

ten version of the historical discourse, but rural militants ignored the meaning of con

cepts such as "historical materialism:' "class struggle:' "class consciousness:' "alien

ation," or "exploitation." The ELN was formed by two main types of guerrilleros. Theurban militants had good educational qualifications and in general constituted the

ELN's "political" leadership, whilst rural guerrilleros, mostly illiterate, became the core

of its "military" structure. The militancy had had a different access to the understand

ing of Colombian history: the rural guerrilleros knew about history after their own ex

perience of suffering, while the urban militants learned history in schools and universi

ties thanks to books written or lectures given by scholars who used sophisticated

concepts and methodologies in their analysis.21

In particular, the ELN 's rural militants preferred narrative forms of historical explanation. In addition, they understood historical facts based on the actions of particular

characters, heroes or foes whose feats were narrated in legends that mixed reality and

fantasy. This was a creative process nurtured by social memory, in opposition to what

western historiography considers "historic." In part, this explains why peasants' knowl

edge is associated in social sciences with myth."22 However, after 1974, the militancy's

access to a certain version of history become homogenized by the use of mimeographed

textbooks where the history of Colombia was presented in simple categories that

formed a basic linguistic infrastructure to understand more abstract texts of ideologicalnature. The ELN's historical discourse is a good example of the change of ideological

principles because of the concepts and classifications of historical periods it used. Ideo

logical adscription was important in the 1960s and 1970s, as it was an identity marker

for political groups in relation to other left or centre-left organizations in Colombia.

In Angola, the use of texts on history within the rural war fronts was interrupted by

the fast progress of the warfare, the early difficulties of the MPLA to educate guer

rilleros with its doctrine, and the impediments to teach the militancy in everyday meet

ings. The educated militants clustered in the top ranks of internal hierarchy as politicalcadres, and there were few rural militants interested in learning whilst fighting. How

ever, in the bush, the militants were trained on politics by the use of oral versions of the

past, and this continued until the moment when the MPLA triumphed in the dispute

for the control ofAngolan independent state in 1976. After this, a text became central in

the production of historical interpretations,23 and the urban pamphlets that circulated

clandestinely in the countryside became small samples of the official version of Angolan

recent past. Oral traditions were the main source for historical reconstruction of

processes that happened since the first contact with Europeans, and the first decades of

twentieth century.24 It is important to note that such an historical version was elabo

rated without undermining the nature of the ethnic divide fermented during the colo

nial period, and most of the sources for its reconstruction were influenced by similar

ideological precepts. To some extent, the history written about Angola reproduced the

21. De la Torre, "Nacimiento;' 14-18, 105,25; Medina, ELN, 43. Lopez Vigil, Camilo, 35, 121;




means of domination that prevailed since the sixteenth century, but were translated to

the ide.ologicallanguage of contemporary politics.

In either the oral or written production of narratives, the historical discourse grew

and developed mainly after 1965, the year of the initial publication of the main version

of the past used by the MPLA militancy. The traditional means of transmission were re

organized to comply with the political needs of the new regime after the independence.

This process was simultaneous with the solidification of educative institutions that ap

peared in an embryonic form during the years of guerrilla warfare, and the silent clan

destine activism due to the oppressive Portuguese administrative authorities in Angola.

Language

During the first ye.ars of political activism, the ELN and the MPLA interacted with

communities and indoctrinated militants by using specific conventions of language.

B.oth national liberation and Marxist-Leninism, as any ideology, rely on the particular

use of language and categories of meaning that explain the world and experience. Such

language evolved hand in hand with the ideological adscription of each group during

the 1960s and 19705. For instance, the early stage of nationalist struggle in both guerril

las was characterized by a national liberation language developed after contributions of

different intellectuals engaged in the collapse of colonial domination in Africa and Latin

Amerka.25 It merged local perspectives for the African context written by Franz Fanon,

Amilcar Cabral, Lucio Lara, and Mario Pinto de Andrade in the case of the MPLA. On

the other hand, the ELN had an indirect liaison with such international movements,

but, as part of the tide of decolonization movements, it created a particular ideological

adscription. In this case, the influences were Ernesto Guevara, Mao Zedong, the Libera

tion Theology, Antonio Larrota, and the Vasquez brothers in Colombia. Everything was

merged in a particular conception of liberation struggle.

Another aspect of the early language in both guerrillas was the clash between a so

phisticated language, ideological and formalized, against traditional forms of historical

explanation of experienc.e/reality used by militants from rural areas-i,e. narratives, oral

tradition, and songs. The crisis in the ELN (1969-1978) was product of the difficult in

teraction between rural and urban militants, featured as the impossibility for an intelligible dialogue. The ea-rly stages were marked by meetings where sharing was the principle

of interaction. 26 However, as the group grew and the military activity increased, a rivalry

emerged between the political and military branches of the organization. The political

branch was led by educated urban militants who controlled part of the hierarchy but in

actual terms had little influence on the accomplishment of everyday tasks. The military

branch promoted the reduction of academic tasks for militancy's qualification, political

formation of cadres, and the discussions of ideological topics in the group. This crisis

oriented the ELN to give more importance to military tasks in detriment of political ini

tiatives. The crisis also promoted excesses in the use of internal power, the almost anni-

25. Several books are good e ~ a m p l e s of this, for instance De Andrade, Libert&, De Andrade and

Marc Ollivier, La Guerre; Ulises Casas, La Rebeli6n Latinoamericana. De Tupac Amaru y Jose AntonioGalan, al "Chen Guevara y Camilo Torres Restrepo (Bogota: Ediciones Bandera Roja, 1976); Ernesto

Guevara, Guerrilla Warfare (New York: Monthly Review Press, 1961), among many others.

26. L6pez Vigil, Camilo, 121.




hilation of the urban leaders in the rural war front after summary trials, or the concomi

tant exposure to death of political cadres in military operations.27

InAngola, the MPLA failed during the 1960s to create a consistent rural war front so

its networks in villages were rather weak. Nevertheless, the group had an urban structure

that controlled the Luanda region. When the rural areas became its rearguard and theleaders could access Angolan territories clandestinely either via Zambia or Congo

(1970---1974), the MPLA rushed to create liaisons with communities. However, several

linguistic differences affected the process. First, many leaders ignored the local languages,

either because they belonged to the ethnic group but never dwelled in their regions, or

because they never learned the nuances of the language-i,e. colloquialisms, idioms, or

oral traditions. Second, their use of Portuguese showed characteristics of a European

background instead of a real African ascendancy.28 This poor attachment to local tradi

tions was due in part to long periods of exile or a Western education. Third, many MPLA

leaders belonged to the upper echelons of the Mbundu elite, and since. the nineteenthcentury the ethnic group had rather scarce contact with rural sectors in the Luanda hin

terland. The corollary of these difficulties was a general misunderstanding: the MPLA

chiefs had a language too sophisticated, so the interaction generally was mediated by a

local elderly person, or fostered by the youth who supported the nationalist struggle al

though in general disregarding the nuances of the political ideology of the organization.29

In both the MPLA and the ELN, the crisis was a transition towards the settlement of

internal disputes, the organization of the hierarchy under new parameters, and the con

struction of legitimacy within rural communities in Angola and Colombia. The crisis

also shaped the embryonic institutional infrastructure that each organization assumed

as the point of departure for the constitution of the New Society, and specially a New

State.30 By the 1970s, in both groups the use of Marxist concepts and a more abstract

language become a rule in internal processes of education, but such homogenization

occurred after a long crisis and internal disputes for power. This can be explained as a

transition .towards more explicit organizational strategies of individual coercion, and the

embryonic institutionalization of a system that envisioned integrating new militants in

urban spaces. The historical discourse of the MPLA and the ELN structured an early

form of internal education that legitimized the existence of the group because it in

cluded its role in the national history as a fundamental stage of transformation.31 This

helped to entice and involve young militants who rapidly identified themselves with the

27. Urban militants were sent to combat with basic training or rudimentary weaponry, a strat egy to get rid of them used by the military cadres especially between 1969 and 1973.

28. Mabeko-Tali, "Tribalisme, 'Regionalisme', et Lutte de Liberation Nationale: la QuestionTribale et e t h n i q u ~ - r e g i o n a l e dans la Dissidence au Sein du MPLA dans l'Est Angolais en1969-1974;' Annee Africaine, Bordeaux (1992-1993): 465-7; Mabeko-Tali, Disidencias, Chapter 7

and 8.29. Inge Brinkman, "Violence, Exile and Ethnicity: Nyemba Refugees in Kaisosi and Kehemu

(Rundu, Namibia)," Journal of Southern African Studies 25 (1999): 417-39; Messiant, "Chez nous ,"

170-1.

30. About the crisis in both groups see Medina, Elementos, Chapter 5; Medina, ELN, Chapters 3and 4; Eduardo Pizarro, [nsurgencia sin Revolucion. La Guerrilla en Colombia en una Perspectiva

Comparada (Bogota: Tercer Mundo-lEPRI, 1996),97-118, 205-17; Mauricio Archila, "iUtopia Ar

mada? Oposici6n Politica y Movimientos Sociales Durante el Frente Nacional" Controversia 168

(1996): 25-53; Fabio L6pez, Tzquierdas y Cultuta Politica, lOposici6n Alternativa? (Bogota: CINEP,1994); Broderick, EI Guerrillero, 79-120; Correa, Suefio, 45-88; Messiant, "Chez nous;' 189;

Mabeko-Tali, "Tribalisme," 480; Mabeko-Tali, Disidencias, Chapter 6.

31. Such an embryonic educational system relied on the ideological principles adopted, andpromoted the legitimization of the group by historical linkages to traditions of social struggle. That




political role of the group" learned part of its codified ideological language, and found a

chance to become part of the transformation of their countries.

In addition, it is important to examine how political groups create a particular logic

that explains history. In this case, it was a teleology that articulated past ahd present

with the insurgent project for a New Society. Ideology is both language and knowledge,and is reflected in political action. It must convince people about the uniqueness of a

perspective in order to explain the world. This is evident in the use of linguistic codes.

For instance, Marxism was largely accepted in societies in transition during the second

half of the twentieth century, in part because it is an entree to a basic understanding of

socio-historical processes. It was possible even for individuals without a deep knowl

edge of the historical materialism, dialectics, or the philosophical pedigree of Marxism.

However, Marxism was not the only one in this trend, and it was rather a characteristic

of totalitarian ideologies throughout the twentieth century. They helped to entice

people-especially young people-thanks to effective framework and a reliable expla

nation of the worldY Besides, such linguistic structures are facilitated by the mnemonicdevices that frame almost every political discourse. Although these are interesting as

pects about the operation of ideologies and historical discomses in the social imaginar

ies and the individual mind, unfortunately there are not scholars studying the process.

Hierarchy and Social Mobility

In the ELN and the MPLA, ideology also operated as a pattern of intern'll organiza

tion based on a hierarchy. If there were two main branches-one political the other

military, and the first urban, the second peasant-it was because they reflected the so

cial context, and how language, knowledge, and power intermingle to shape a guerrilla

organization. As it was mentioned before, ideology changed, and affected the internal

hierarchy in the ELN and the MPLA. In other words, internal hierarchies observed from

an ideological perspective help to explain social mobility of the militancy within each

group (promotion) and change in time for the organization (progression). The internal

distribution of power-the military and political branches-allows one to infer the

nature of social mobility and the role of institutions in case that guerrilla takes the

power. For instance, it is evident that social distinctions and the institutions of social

mobility reproduce themselves on a micro-scale, based on a prevalent typ"e of politythat operates in the society.

The military branch was in charge of the struggle and quotidian activities of subsis

tence. The political branch was mainly committed to the elaboration of documents,

doctrine and the continuous construction of an ideological identity. This was funda

mental in order to create a political identity in the face of the establishment-or the

was also useful in order to entice young people because it was a fast path to a n g u a g e that in gen

eral is identified with high education, intelligence, and sophistication. In other words, the ideologi

cal language wa s a gopd display of fast social climb, and gave abilities to the militants to explain social processes from a general perspective. This generally offers social recognition and distinction and

can empower individuals within a comm\lnity.32 . In addition, political groups direct their discourses to youngsters who normally need to find

their own place in the world. This is quite. common in Western societies and is evident in military

and anti-establishment organizations.



13 . Discourse, Practices ana HisJorical Representations in Two GLJerrill;;l Groups 299

colonial Portuguese rule in the case ofAngola-and other left-wing political groups,33

If considered in an abstract perspective, each branch corresponds to one of the classic

institutions of social mobility-i,e. educational, military. The convergence of both

branches of internal organizational matters is evident in embryonic institutions that legiti-

mated a hierarchy in the group. These wexe embryonic institutional formations of educa"

tive and disciplinary nature.

The ELN and the MPLA used a national liberation discourse until the first half of the

1970s as a strategy to gain attention and support from the public in the national and in

ternational political scenes, and as a tactic to involve militants and gain social support in a

local and regional scope ofanalysis.34 An early Marxist discourse could have discouraged

militants to incorporate to the movement, especially in a moment marked by the rejec

tion to the iron-fist used to placate divergences in the international socialist scene. Instead

of a Marxist jargon, the national liberation ideology was more adaptable to the principlesof social organization proper of rural communities and was reflected in the social support

to its hierarchy, promoting autonomy whilst rejecting alien intervention. Proof of this can

be found in the high contrasts of the historical discourses and other ideological documents

studied, in parallel to the subtle arrangements that the organizations reached in the first

decade in order to gain international support. In this case, Angola had complex interna

tional compromises, and the MPLA-like both the FNLA and the UNITNs-was quite

cautious not to commit with a single ideology in the peJiod before 1975, in order to accu

mulate support, resources, and diplomatic efforts in places ideologically opposed such as

the USA, England, the USSR, China, Cuba, or countries in Southern Africa.A specific Marxist Leninist language and the obedience to its ideological principles

were openly used, accepted, and recognizable only after 1976 in the MPLA and 1978 in

the ELN. In both cases, the precise ideological adscription was previously disguised in

order to have access to a broad public without the prejudice commonly attached to po

litical groups in the context of bipolar divide of the Cold War era. Although the accep

tance of this process of hidden agenda is matter of controversy, in the case of the ELN

the leaders admitted in several interviews that it was necessary, especially since peasants

cQnstantly feared landowners' or National Army's counterattacks on isolated groups of

communist resistance after 1964.36 In the case of the MPLA in Angola, the ideologicaldecisions of the group were generally a c6rtcern of the leadership, and, in such affaires,

lower rank militants had little opportunities to oppose or express im:onformityY An ex

ception was the schism in the east war front, and the Ciboya revolt on the Luanda front,

but it was mainly a dispute for concrete participation within the top ranks of the MPLA

hierarchy, rather than an open ideological division.

33. In many cases, the rivalry between leftist radical groups was harsher than the hatred ex

pressed against the establishment. This promoted division ism and instability among insurgentgroups, as well as the nationalist movements in Angola.

34. See for the ELN's case in Medina, ELN, 176-90. Harnecker, Unidad, 229-31. Lopez Vigil,Camilo, 45,119-20,170.

35. Respectively, the Frente Nacional de L i b e r t a ~ i i o de Angola (National Front for the Liberationof Angola) and the Uniiio Nacional para a lndependencia Total de Angola National Union for the

Total Independence ofAngola.

36 . See Medina, ELN, 90, 94; Correa, Suefio, 145; about the violence promoted by landowners,

and guerrilla fears of political retaliations against the communities see Eduardo Pizarro, Las FARC




Legitimacy

Ideology was a fundamental principle in the construction of a historical representa

tion in both groups because dialectic materialism conceives communism as a thelas. It

presupposes stages to reach it, which can be associated with periods of time. In other

words, historical facts and sociocultural experiences of a community can be explained by

classifying its trajectory of social struggle in different epochs. The classification of time

changes depending on the ideological system of thought involved. Here ideology meets

social action, represented by a group or individuals in a broad social context. In conse

quence, Marxism can be used in an historical discourse, and constructs historical repre

sentations in order to build the very cement of political action. Legitimacy ties up the

unities of meaning in a social context giving them coherence in an ideological struggle. It

is when thought meets action. It is also the bond that unifies an insurgent hierarchyinternal cohesion-and articulates it with the communities-social interaction. What

empowers a guerrilla group is the use of violence to bring about social change and the le-

gitimacy of its struggle evident in social support and a historical tradition. The legacy of

such tradition dwells in the communities and is expressed by historical representations.

I suggest two types of legitimacy for the analysis of guerrilla warfare in the Angolan

and Colombian contexts. The first, legitimacy as a form of power, was operated within

the guerrilla groups as the principle that affirmed the construction of power in a rigid

hierarchy that included forms of social mobility on a micro-level. They were evident in

the embryonic institutional formations of military and education-social mobilitymarkers-and to some extent they allow one to predict their evolution in a enlarged

social scale in the case of a successful revolutionary process, as it happened in Angola.

The second, legitimacy as a product of knowledge, was evident during the re-organiza

tion of each group after the internal crisis of the 1970s, and operated outside the guer

rUla's boundaries. Legitimacy as a product of knowledge enables each group to create,

maintain, and transform the interpretations of social experience, by the use of language

and its transmission/democratization through institutions or social practices. In that

order of ideas, an ideology is shaped as a form of knowledge useful to explain big social

processes by using a particular and scientific terminology (a version that deserves trust),

laws, and predictable results in social and economic aspects.

Eventually, the very structure of a New Society becomes the warranty of both social

mobility and stability. It resembles the guerrilla hierarchy because social climbing, indi

vidual control, security, and trust are enshrined in the embryonic institutions pro

moted. They contribute to the formation ofwhat would become the New Establishment

thanks to the existence of legitimacy. This supports the cliche that whoever controls the

past controls the present and determines what can be expected in the future.

The Practices

Discursive practices are actions that structure historical representations and political

imaginaries in contexts of ideological disputes of power and knowledge. Although dis

course and practices should not be distinguished, by separating them it is possible to

understand h6w they are reproduced as cultural objects-Leo texts, rituals, and cus-




toms. In the guerrilla groups studied here, such practices are articulated to embryonic

institutional formations. In addition, individual aspects related to guerrilla warfare are

noticeable, such as commitment, group attachment, and a particular political identity.

Here the analytical scope is narrowed to consider the group as a social unity or political

entity that separated from society-clandestinely-reflects and reproduces socialimaginaries. Practices are routines and ceremonies constantly enacted, where values

such as heroism, sacrifice, and martyrdom promote a particular moral conviction

among guerrilla militants. Whilst discourse exists as a result of its necessary use and

transformations to reflect a socio-historicaL context, it is in the practices that such ab

stract linguistic inflections, patterns of ideological attachment and social legitimacy be

come meaningful. In other words, practices are useful to explain the liaison between ac

tion and thought in contemporary revolutionary struggles.

Creating Belief for the New Men

Every social group necessarily implements identity boundaries. They shape belong

ing and distinctions based on proximity to the group. The insurgent group is located in

a complex social context, a social universe. In both the ELN and the MPLA, the process

to get into clandestine insurgency depended on the militant's engagement and convic

tion with ideological precepts, the acceptance of guerrilla parameters of life, the truth ofits ideology, and, finally, the submission to its organizational hierarchy. These parame

ters are similar to a religious creed and the pattern of attachment is based on belief.38

Almost every action within the ELN and the MPLA was associated or underlined by

a remembrance of the past. This was also a form of ritualization of insurgent engage

ment and appears in the documents as ceremonies, commemorations, or subtle allu

sions to the past. Every action framed by such reminiscences is evidence of the specific

moment when historical discourse becomes enacted, when its existence is completed,

and when its goal is achieved. Every practice laden with a historical meaning can be

traced back to uproot the origin of insurgent political imaginaries. These practices as

enactment of a historical conception of the world legitimize political struggle, whilst

promoting a reformulation of cultural patterns of identity by attaching individuals to

the insurgent political project. In that way, the patterns of civilian inclusion are innova

tive ceremonials that involve members-New Men-as New Citizens in the new polity.

These principles for integration to a guerrilla war front operated from the early

stages of insurgent activity, but progressively lost continuity, especially during the 1980s

in the ELN. In both cases, either military activities changed decisively or the functional

ity of such practices became much more than simple enactment. In the case of theMPLA, the frantic speed of nationalist struggle made less important its continuous en

actment compared with the highly ritualized process in the ELN, so a link with the past

was sometimes relegated to a secondary position. This is a fundamental phenomenon

that can help to explain the MPLA's schisms and leadership crisis that occurr..ed during

the 1970s. Moreover, the MPLA took political power in 1976, and after that moment

became the party-state, so every ritual was then converted to a ceremony that legit




the official military forces, the leader a president, and the rituals became institutional-

ized as civic or military acts. In other words, their practices and discourse as insurgent

representatIons b e c a ~ e traditions, so its political nature transformed significantly.

Every ceremony became the official reproduction of the MPLA's power as it emerged as

the New Establishment.The interest in the research is now on the embryonic institutions that can be detected

in quotidian activities, and how they shaped belief, behaviour, and discipline within the

guerrilla. The information found in interviews, literary works, pamphlets, and histori-

cal discourse help to create a classification of the main practices within the MPLA and

the ELN. They constituted routines and customs, and integrated informal examples of

coercion within the group. If the historical discourse became the infrastructure of the

ideological principles integrated in a type of legitimized knowledge, the 'practices pre-

sented here were the effective deployment of mechanisms of control, coercion, and dis-

cipline that articulated power in terms of force and ideological conviction. 39

New Identity, Heroes and Pantheon

The construction of historical representations ends up in a number of personages

that legitimize insurgent struggle. Human paradigms of action and engagement formed

around significant names used to baptize militants, commemorate their struggle in rit-

uals, and record their existence in<!n

historical discourse.As

it happens in the forma-tion of a modern nation, within the MPLA and the ELN heroes become immortalized

in a pantheon. A pantheon creates a place for the group in history, but in an attempt to

build up the bases for a New Society. In the case of the ELN, those heroes reflected

local, regional, and national historical preferences, and situated guerrilleros who died in

combat as martyrs. Their actions became new "raradigms" for the militants. In the case

of the MPLA, leaders in local areas. used to identify themselves with old traditions of

struggle against Portuguese rule, and even familiar lineages were invented or supernat-

ural powers attributed to modern guerrilla militants and political leaders.

Individual engagement was established by precepts based on paradigmatic person-

ages who stimulated an imaginary of correctness.and proper behaviour. In general, theELN and the. MPLA p r o m o t ~ d paradigmatic characters oflhe past. Their acts were con-

stantly remembered in quotidian activities in clandestine life. They were part of the

doctrine taught, and their life was ritually enacted in order to shape individual actions.

For instance, in clandestine insurgency the change of personal identities was common,

and iii doing so many guerrilleros assumed their new names as a form of reverence to a

paradigmatic hero of the past. The characters were selected from the national pantheon

or from regional history. The characters were constantly mentioned in meetings, in n<!r-

ratives that merged real facts with legends. In the narratives-like in the myths-facts

were changed to comply with the community's imagination of heroic feats.

39. Michael Foucault, Vigilar y Castigar. Nacimiento de la Prisi6n (Mexico: Siglo XXI Editores,1985). The mechanisms of discipline and coercion are mentioned by Foucault in the analysis of his-

torical discourses in contemporary totalitarian systems, see: Michael Foucault, Microfisica del Poder(Madrid: Ediciones la Piqueta, 1992); Genealogia.




The first element that must be considered is the radical change represented by the in

corporation in the war front. In that moment, the individual separates from its social

context, and is grafted into a new milieu where his/her individuality changes radically.

The identity is changed with a new name and the loss of aspects that delineated individ

uality as a pattern of social recognition. In guerrilla warfare, homogeneity matters. The

spirit of corps grows as individualityfades away, and the sense of communality and in

terdependence overtakes independence and free will. The change of identity by the

adoption of a new name represents the aspirations of the individual and the influence

of former experiences.'o The new name is the first display of agency within the new in

surgent world, and also implies a reference oJ interaction with the group's hierarchy and

other guerrilleros, so it is a first display of commitment to the political group.

In the ELN, that choice was important. The baptism was a type of ritual ceremony

where the new member was incorporated into the military body, to the activities and intimacies of the group. By adopting a new personhood, the militant established a close de

pendency to the other members. The adoption of a name depended on different possibili

ties and generally happened in a festive and highly ritualized environment, like in a

religious baptism. Choosing the name was a last chance for individual imagination. Mili

tants opted for pseudonyms.based on historic personages, a character in a book, or an in

tellectual or ideological alter ego. Others chose their name to pay homage to a family

member, generally a dominant figure who initiated the militant in the political world.

Some others chose a name based on a physical particularity, a form of m o c k i ~ g themselves

for gaining a closer relation to the others, .or simply for the use of a traditional pseudonym.

Finally, many guerrilleros allowed the leaders to choose a name on their behalf. It was a

display of high deference, or simply resulted because clandestine activities determined the

use of a particular name in an ordinary or informal change of the individual identity.

Some examples can help in understanding name and identity change as a process

laden with meaning for the guerrilleros. Fabio Vasquez Castano choose several pseudo

nyms randomly, like "Carlos;' "Helio;' and "Alejandro;' this last based on the feats of the

Greek antiquity personage whose feats he used to read and influenced his own profile as a

leader. Medardo Correa, a guerrillero from Valle del Cauca, described common names

guerrilleros chose, such as: "Geronimo" (the native American leader); "Antonio" (afterAntonio Larrota,. a MRL instigator in the 1950s and inspirational personage for radical

students); "Emiliano" (after Emiliano Zapata, a Mexican guerrillero during the revolu

tion); "Guadalupe" (after Guadalupe Salcedo, a peasant guerrillero in the 1940s civil war

in Colombia); "Jose Antonio" (after Jose Antonio Galan, instigator of a revolt in San

tander in the late colonial epoch); "Alejandro" (after Alexander the Great, the Macedon

ian general); or "Ernesto" (after the iconic hero of Cuban Revolution, Ernesto "el Che"

Guevara) . His choice, in an attempt at being original and to celebrate something different

and relevant for himself, was "Anibal" (after Hannibal, military leader of the Carthage

civilization), was based not only on his feats fighting the Roman Empire in the antiquity,but also as a tribute to his hometown named Cartago, .after that city in North Africa.'!

There was an urban militant who chose as pseudonym "Clemente" after the name of

a heroic cowboy mentioned in the book La Voragine. This choice could be in order to

highlight abilities that he wanted to contribute to the o.rganization. This was quite com-



304 13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrill<! Groups

mon in tne case of the MPLA in Angola, where urban militants were inspired by a rich

political literature. In 'the ELN, the use of.a, n i c k n a m ~ or the selection of a pseudonym

that started with the first letter ofthe real name was quite common. For instance, Pedro

Gordillo' was called "Parmenio" (a common peasant name) and Nicolas RodriguezBautista, today's military kader of the group, received in 1964 the name " C o m e j ~ n " (a:bug that slowly eats the toughest timber}.42 Nicolas Rodriguez used to be called "Nor

berto;' "Daria." (probably after the Persian emperor Darius' I), or "Gabino." Hernan

Moreno went by "Chiquitin" (young boy) OJ: "Pedro David;" Paula Gonzalez was called

"La mona Mariela" (Mariela the blond); and Manuel Perez, a Spanish priest eng,aged in

the E[N, was known as "EI cura" (the priest) or "Poliarco;' this last to honQr a peasant

who helped him to find its way back to the guerrilla war front after he get lost in the

jungle escaping a military skirmish. Ricardo Lara" a unionist from B a r r a n ~ a b e t m e j a , used the name "Marcolino" (a common peasant name) besides some others for urbanclandestine actiyities . Finally" Camilo Torres used the name "Alfredo" (a common urban

name) in his correspondence.o

In Angola, the examples are' quite similar. The guerrilIeros changed their names· as

soon as they were integrated into the rural war front, and in clandestine activities in

cities or·villages they used pseudonyms as well. Many names belonged to long familiar

traditions, and were a subtle reminder of a genealogy, a place of origin, a,nd/or a social

status that was meaningful only a{l1ong Africans. In some cases" those names could not

be undeJ:stood by the 'Portuguese authoritIes, so it was a good form oflocal reference and

an identity marker difficult to uncOver or trace by the Portuguese Army or the PIDE44.SeCl'ecy was a fundamental part of quotidian guerrilla life, and the generic word cama

rada (comrade) or hermano (brother) was used to avoid identification. In that sense, the

case of MPLA in Ango1a, as the above-mentioned of the ELN are similar to the homoge

nized categories used in armies, schools, religious congregations, and compartmental

ized political parties. The spirit of corps had primacy. However, s o m ~ cases suggest that

individual choice played an important role in naming practices in the MPLA.

Inge BJ:inkman offers a classification that links the importance of languages and political aspirations in the nationalist context of war in Angola. To summarize, she men

tiens how some names came frem the need of anonymity, former artistic pseudonyms

used by the many writers involved in the MPLA, or the aspiration to regional or inter

national recognition.45 This was quite common among the leaders, who wanted their

names widely known, and additionally promoted the cult .of their personalities among

militants and civilian follewers. Naming practices Involved many other activities of ritu

alistic character, such as praise songs, speeches, narratives, and honorific ceremonies,

sO' the aspect of memory and cult js integrated to the political aspirations to fame or

42 . It was a pseudonym uSJ!d by his' father, a well-known activist regionally associated with a

substantial political work among peasants in San Vicente de Chucuri, a former PCC leader since the

19305. About his father, see Vargas, "Tres momentos:' 42; Medina, ELN, 47-9.

43. In general, a good formula was the adoption of the first l e t t ~ r of the pame to create an alias

as in these examples: Silverio Afanador used the hame "Silverio;" Domingo Leal" another Sp,a,nish

priest who turned guerrillerQ, waS baptized "Delio" 'by Fabio Vasquez Castano; Salvador Leal was

"Saul'''; lorge Gonzalez was "Jose;" Luis Jose S,olano Sepu!vedil was "Leonardo;" Salomon Amado

Rojas was "Segundo;" Manuel Munoz '''Miguel;'' tiro Silva "Conrado;" Avelino Bauti.sta was



13 ' D i s c o u r s ~ , Prgctict:5 &Jne;! Historical Representations, i'n Two Guerrilla Groups 105.

wide national recognition. ,Heroism {tIKi h9nor WeI!: alSQ p . r e ~ e n t in names that praised

historic figures."; They could be expressed in the local languages, or in EurQPe.an lan

guages, especially in Portuglles.e. AnQfi1e.r pattt rIi In the naming found by,Brinkman inthe MPLA was the use ot pseudonyms 10 underline either negative or PQsitive a : s I ? e c ~ of

a militant personality, rok models as part of soldiering life! 6r simply the reproductionof-youth culture.

The names also wen; !;:Msen to e ~ p r e s s , personality traits! such as temper, temerity!:

capabilities useful in tne war context> or aspects of the peJsonal histQty. The guerrilleros wanted -to attract attention by the uSe of fearful similes, mocking associations,

or .a pun useful to create a fluid interaction within the grQup. Finally, some ilafile,s

were ;chosen to 'create fear in the ,ene,my, a practice that merged Western 'political ritll,aiS wjth traditions in African societies. AlthOl-1gh those n,ames were n,Elt selected. in

proper African rituals, they were intended to th"i-eat or intimidate the 'enemy, to' dis,

Icourage (hem in the battle .field, or were based 011 the comiiction that its mentlOh or

'simpit: Uie was an bmen or warrart'ty of protection. African names were used also to

foster morale amQng militants, and were utilized i'Ii many: cas,e,s by experienced people

revered by Other militants, youngsters who received their "baptism of fire"4 7in the war

front, 'or as part oJ the linkage promoted,by some leaders to. connect the ,MPLA with

local eommunitles:48

Practices of naming in &uerrilla groJ,fps is probably the clearest evidenc.e of historicalrepresentations" and it was generally .accompanied by commemoration oJ feats, t h ~ as

sumption of heroic Pllradigms as.mot]l and ethical g,uidelines, and the constitution :of

customs that in its reproduction reached the form of norms, t r a d i t i o n s , and embryonic

institutions of l'aw aj)d justice. In the evenruality of a revolutionary triumph, the guerrilla groups ,had lhese historical -represeI'\tations, ~ v i d ~ n c e of emergent fQrms of pb.liticalcoercign, and d ig institutioflalj'tation 'Of the monopoly ;of v:iolence in the hands :o f agroup that progressively becomes theNfW Establishme'nt.

Disdpline, Morale and Individual Behavior

Th\: 'base of guerrilla susrainibility depended on the harmony between its hietareDYand its ideology: It was generally reflected in stron$ bonds bt:twe,en militants ,and.lead

ers, px:omoting stability and a steady growth. The value of ideological principles was

also represenleq in a, set of values that appeared soon after the group's: consolidation,

afid gave profile to the guerrillero as a wil1ul fighter. 49 Such fnsJlrgent values " t ~ u I t e d from the combination of moral pripciples that govern each society-culturally deter

mined - and the, contextual features that elevated the guerrill;is struggk as historkally

necess'Jry. The leaders Were supPQsed to em i).odyvenerable vaiues and have a straight

forward behavjor brewing the necessary legitimacy of its hierarchy. 'There were' cofiveti-

46 . lWnkmart, "Langua,ge; Names and War."47. The practice of l! baptisru of fire was also present in .the ELN. .About the ritualistic t ompo_

nent of this process of initiation 'some theotetical aspects. ifave b een fou,nd in Turner, The Ritual, Introd\!ction.

48. Brinkrn<fn, "ta,nguag-e, Names;' 150,42, Schmitt, Teoria,del Partisano, 5 L




tions for leaders' behaviour, and when that morality was broken, the organization's stability or it.$ hierarchical structure was shaken.

A good proof of the phenomena is the crisis occurred within both the ELN and the

MPLA in the early 1970s. These crises help in understanding internal splits and ideo log"ical reformulations. Although the guerrillas never had a single-head hierarchy, a leader'smisbehavior was regarded as a harmful betrayal to traditional deities or revolutionary

heroes, a rejection to a legacy of struggle that affected the enthusiasm of the militancy.There are not unique military principles of morality adopted by left-wing groups in theworld, and internal discipline depended on specifit;.: contextual conditions. However,

some general treatises were assumed almost as rules of thumb in the ELN and theMPLA. A good example was the wide reception of guerrilla handbooks written by

Ernesto "el Che" Guevara and Regis Debrays.In its first ten years, the ELN suffered from scarcity, desertions, military attacks, cli

matic difficulties, and the constant dismantling of its urban structure. The urban ELN

structure was both clandestine and compartmentalized, but the intelligence services ofthe establishment were able to block their work, imprison, or kill many students andunion sympathizers by intercepJing their documents and correspondence with the rural

leaders. The government launched organized military operations that decimated theELN's morale and resources. In the mountains, the guerrilleros accumulated muchstress thanks to lack of activity, boredom, and the constant hide-and-move in order to

escape from the National Army. This happened whilst food supplies waned and internaldivisions increased. The lack of re$ources· promoted disputes and vengeances, andsometimes the communities suffered the consequences I>ecause the guerrilla assumed

the lack of food as a form of low commitment and cooperation from peasants.

The guerrilla leaders then became judgmental of outsiders, urban militants, and specially developed strict methods to keep control on every militant within the rural fronts

of war. Along with it, punishment grew harsher as the leaders intended to show politicalor military achievements to other leaders. It was at expense of the militancy's discipline.For instance, if a militant had eaten more than what actually corresponded to its regularmeal, punishment could reach excesses suc.h as summary trials or capital punishmentdepending on the situation of scatcity suffered at the war front. The stiff application of

a vague code of behavior promoted fear and disrespect from the low ranks to the cadre.sduring the early ye.ars of revolutionary struggle.

For example, in 1969 an ELN guerrillero stole a panela (a concentrated sugar energybar) and ate it alone. After having heen judged by the entire group, the leaders found

that such mistake could only be mended and discouraged for future situations by an extreme application of justice. He was condemned to capital punishment and executed bya fidng squad formed by his own companions. It was a Titualized act that included theguerrillero's recognition that the punishment was appropriate for his mistake. In other

cases, starving guerrilleros who complained for a small ration of food, or ate a bit morethan the others, were sent to guard a position overnight-fa posta-, given burdensome physical exercise, or kept unarmed for a considerable period of time. This was a

risky situation to be in, and one of the worst humiliations to receive in a war front. Be·



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historic;l l Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 307

otherwi.se reserved for womgn or beginners. Second, due to the cOnstant mobility of

guerrillas, the transportation of pans, supplies, and foodstuff was burdensome and

loud, which obliged slow movements through the foxest. It was thus rather

dangemus-a cook was an easy target in case of an attack. In the ELN, this punishJl1ent

was mocked with t h ~ name bf blindados (armored) because. of the heavy and noisy

movements they made whilst walking through the thick jungle.

The abuse of power by leaders psychologically affected men and women as well . At the

war front the commoh guerrillero endllfed solitude and affective deprivation whilst the

cadres disputed sexual contact with women promoting promiscuity. In some cases, the

militants engaged in sentime.ntal relationships within the guerrjlJa were separated force

fully. If the leaders wanted to start all affair with the woman, by imposing their authority

they could profit from a militant's absence in order to obtain sexual favors from his partner.

This enhanced hatred and degraded confidence from the bottom-up, promoting disputesand intrigues among leaders and eroding the trust that kept the internal hierarchy tied.

Such behavior destroyed many affective relationships increasing distress and depres

sion in the militancy. The subordinated militants, full of pain aDd wrath, kept s.ilent to

avoid retaliations from the leaders. Obedience and privileges for the leaders were com

mon forms to overwrite norms and custO)11S despite ihe neeqs .and respectability of sub

ordinates. On the other hand! gu.errilleras disputed the company of a leader because

they could gain a special status and privileges within a war front. For instance, leader's

companions had fewer duties;. a flexible discipline and schedule; treated the leaders with

small parties; and enjoyed more food and other So c!!lIed "utban pleasures;' such as theuse of condiments, soap, consumption of alcohol, and better sleeping conditions.

These are rather psychological explanations, but they were fundamental factors that

determined dram(ltic changes in the quotidian insurgent life, especially in the period

1969-1973 whilst both the MPLA and the ELN experienced deep crises. The picture was

complicated when ideological distinctions served as reason to maintain subordination

and disrespect. For instance, urban militants were more affected by the strict norms of

insurgent life in cQmparison to rural guerrilleros. The epoch of an open camaraderie and

communality faded away quickly, and the ideological differences that framed we, binaries

TI!ral/urban, m i l i t a t y / p o l i t i i U , and intellectual/peasant were an excellent excuse to legitimize subordination and individual interests. A paradox was 'evident, because when the

group created and applied its harshest methods of discipline and punishment, the unity

'and integrity of the war fronts weakened. Authority did nQt grow along with a mutual re

spect or fraternity among militants, but just the opposite: it decreased and eroded the

group's stability. These situations worsened thanks to facts Such as the progressive restric

tion of discussions and the uS.e oJ urban/rural distinctions to marginalize sectors within

the militancy and to jU'stity privileges Or stereotypes. Finally, the ELN leaders recognized

that the failure to maintain guerrilla activity in warfare meant that guerrilleros could re

\ease pressure in tbe battlefjeld against the enemy instead of pitting against each other.

The MPLA also had a system of discipline and Justice, but its implementation was

rather different. First,. the late creation of rural war fronts delayed the imposition of

§trict rules of behavIQr. Although in the urban clandestine groups the compartmental

ized structure was a tacit form of hierarchy, and internal behavior followed conventions

that nobody could have overlooked, the MPLA's disciplinary codes were used expressly

as a security measure to preserve .clandestinity. Although discipline and respect for the



308 13 ' Discourse, Practices and Historiql Representations in Two' (juerrill<i Groups

those captuted by tbe Portuglfese authorities had a natural rejection for strict systems of

justice, and this prevented or delayed the deployment of m e ~ n ~ for individual repres

sion. This explanation rn_y be supported by-the fact that a large majority of the MPLA

leaders were writers, journalis.t, students, or poets, s6 they had I f link witn group's thatstruggled for i n d i v i ~ u a l selhletermination.

When the group formed rural. war fronts by the end of 1960s; forms,of discipline

emerged to preserve. its political and military hierarchies, but they were less strict than

those of the EIN. Seyeral factors explain this. First, the MPLA <!ppeared in a moment

when m6st of the Angolan population was involved in political activities, which implies.

that the militancy-at .least in urban areas, where the group had regul'IJ 'pre.sence

was aware of the rules with which they s.hould comply. A second reason was the com

plex politicalenvironment marked by a high mobility among groups.,This provoked hi-erarchical volatility. Not only low rank militants but also leaders changed from one or

ganization to the other at will, even though the ideolog}cal differences appeax to h,aVe

been clearly marked and irr.econdlab1e. Altho'Ugh a sudden change to the FLNA or the

UNITA was considered a serious concern, the MPLA was probahly les.s strict 'prosec,ut

ing its detractors compared to the ELN in Colombia.

Two motjvatiops can help to illuminate this tendency in the MPLA before 1975"The

MPIA was led by a Mbundu ellte, but ·some of its militants came' from other regions or

had different ethnic backgrounds. The vast majority of Angolan population belongs to

the Ovimbundu ethnic group, but the MPLA's leadership W ( f ~ nof prepared to sharepower in it& op ranks'. The option was to enlarge the number of leaders to reduce ten

sions, or allow the withdrawal of cadres separated from the group's mainstream. 50 For

instance, in the EasJet n front cIeated in late 1960s, the hierarchy was affected several

'times by power disputes between militants and leaders. The ihotiyation was the poor

repres.entativity of the 'Organization in terms of .ethnic identities, However, when mili

tants escaped the MPLA, the ambiguous borders hetween ethnk groups blurred be.

cause they generally found a place either ill the FNLA or UNITA, and for leaders there

were noJ ,ethnic restrictions in any group. This shows how clear-cut distinctions wen:

not necessarily a patteTn that shaped every war front and in particular its cadres. fn that

sense, the ethnolinguistic divide created during the colonial domination is not a good

measure to understand the complex proceS$es uf power dispute Within the upper ranks

of the nationalist groUp& in Angola. In manY' cases, cadres changed from the MPLA .l0

either the'FNLA or the UNlTA in a -dispute for personal p.ower instead of concret€'iden

tity or ideological motivations. 51

The MPLA also raced sedom complications in creating a hktarchy or rules of be

havior legitimized by <I consistent suppO'rt in villages and isolated areas. this pro

moted continuous demission otleaders, and massive erosion pf the patterns of beliefin its lower ranks'. In general, those who separated from the group became harsh d e ~ tractors of it, but the MPLA did not system-atically punish the'm. Phenome,!1a. such as

divisi6ilism and splits Were a permanent threat for the stability in each guerrilla's waf

front, but their promoters were not punished by strict practices of discipline and jus

tice. The fluidity and dualism crf the political and ethnic categories that shaped the

nationalist movements impeded the operation of such systems, especially in the



310 13 . Discoursel

Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups

Ephemeredes

The historical discourse shaped a thoroughly new perception of time. Ephemerede$ is

a:c o n ~ e p t

used here to refer to specific ritual practices related to notions of time, and itsconstant enactment/reactivJltibn through ceremonies where r e m i n i s ~ e n c e s of the 'past

marked the present. ina historis;al persp-eclive. Both the ELN and the MP1A continu

ously celebrated events of the 'colonial past when the precedents of rebellion and eman

cipation served as examples for the present The time was continuously re-signified

through the enactment or reverence to the past,. its personages, and their heroic actiOns.

For instance; both guerrilla grgups celebrated their dates of foundation with military

attacks or cultural festivals in small towns. Within the war fronts, the ceremQnies ac-

quired a military nature., solemnity, and refined ritualism, "In. 'generll(, the names

adopted by guerrilleros constituted a link to the past! the vast quarty for legitima_y in

political struggles, and, in the case of fhe EIN, the region of Santander was a richsource of historical references. 55 A matter of controversy'among guerrilla militants was

the reverence of certain figures and historical processes. Whilst questioning the tradi

tions that constituted the 'essence of power for the,status quo, the ,ELNeroded the'legit

,imacy of: the establlshment's heroes and feats. 56,The intention was' to create a: .new tem

poral framework to be used as reference; in it, the ELN and the changje it was bringing

about- its new feats, dales to commemorate, and heroes to <;elebrate'- having a: cen

ttal role.

H o w e v e r ~ this new notion of time was not as radical as in other revolutionary gxperi

ences. For inst<;lnce, in France and post"czarist Russia, the revolutionaries either instituted a new calendar with new names for th.e days, months, and s e a s o n ~ , or the Julian

pattern was removed or considerably changed. The ELN never took power, but impor

tant dates of its calendar were changed. An example IS what happened with the national

civic rituals, whicb were ignQred or transformed for the purposes .of the insurgent

struggleY Ecclesiastic feasts, including Easter or Christmasl were,rejected eVery year. In

some cases, even the mentiQn Qf sud) events was harshly punished because it was con

sidered a petit-bourgeoIs tradition that reiued the Colombian so.ciety from its real prob

lems, cultural ro_ots, and deterred the respect of its own traditions.58

However it was not only important when to celebrate, but how: Most of the dateS

consecrated had.a sad nrotiva.tion,. so the leaders tried to' inspire the militants by the eleyation of their lives and' teats to the level of paradIgms. This fostered their morale to

55. About such references and regional traditions oCstorytelling and historical rituals of revival,see Vargas, "Tres momentos," Magdalena , 44-56.

56. Castano, El guerrillero, 46.57'. Th.e dafeS 'to keep and celebT,ate with new rituals grew stead.ily during the first decade ,of. in

surgent action. The meaning of several.civil feasts' was changed pres.erviI1g only 'the dates marking

.the emancipation from the ~ p a n i s h rille (2.0 JUly 1810 and 7 August 18-17), and the independence of

Cartagena (11 Noyember 1811) a date that coincided with the oath that in Cuba founded the embry

onic ELN in 1963. The ELN adopted llieregional :tradition ot struggle ,as part of its historical continuity, and celebrated the uprising of the Com(4neros (It lasted several y ' e a r s ~ between 1780-1790, but

was celebrated by the ELN on 16 March), the movement of the Bolcheviques 'del Llbano" an.early

communist rebellion set in 1929- in San Vicente de Chucurj, (Santander; ,elebrated aroun(\, Septem

ber), and .the mobihzation of students and imi9fiS instigated by Antonio Larrota (4 January 1959).

Other new date'S celebrated the incorporation and death of Camilo Torces (15 Februar¥ 1966) and

the death of Emesto "el che" Guevara (October 8, 1967).

58. Ibiderj1 ; t : also Hamecker, Unidad, 52.



13 . Distourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 311

keep them fighting under conditions of deprivation. The ephemeredes were in general

an opportunity for display <ind reverence. For instance, several military actions were

planned to coincide with the date of it particular event in the past, so the moral of mili

tants increased by the stimuli of their imagination in favor of the guerrilla success ineach attack., Otherwise, a public feast with the community was used as an opportunity

for propaganda, distribution of pamphlets; educativ:e meetings; a necessary haircut;

dancing and sharing with peasants; a short rejoining with parents and relatives; and

other activities that released the accumulated rension within the groupS.59 Always ~ festivity was presented as a form of reverence to former fighters, death guerrilleros, po

litical mentors, or paradigmatic figures brQught from a past that the ELN started to nar

rate, celebrate, and engrave in the rural mentality of Santander's communities.

There are numerous' examples which highlight this phenomenon. The first militaryaction, a siege of a small town called Simacota in January 1965, was prepared carefully

to coincide with the anniversary of a mobilization organized by Antonio Larrota on 7

January 1959. Asa c o i n c i d e n c e ~ o r maybe careful strategic planning-it W<lS a Sunday

in the morning right aiter a long Saturday of celebration of Dia de los Reyes-a reli

gious tradition kept in rural areas-and the day of rest for the privates in a nearby

command of the National Army. That day of glory for the ELN was a nightmare for the

soldiers and local authorities who found the central square without a policeman, under

control of young armed peasants singing anthems, cursing the establishment, or crying

the name of Antonio Larrota. Tbat Sunday the local farmer's market opened surrounded by streets paved by thousands of pamphlets announcing the awakening of

Colombian society froJII a millenary lethargy represented in the traditional gathering

after Sunday's mass.

With this action several commemorations started. First, it included the public an

nouncement of ELN's existence, the first tragic death of a guerrillero in action ("Parme

nio;' since that date elevated to the military rank of Captain), the public announcement

of the ELN Manifesto de Simacota, and the influence of Antonio Larrota as a paradigm

for the group. A year later, in January 1966, Fabio Vasquez made a public announcement about the incorporation of Camilo Torres Restrepo, who died five we,eks later on

15 February in a disastroQs attack in Patio Cemento. Vasquez planned the combat as

part of the ritQal bautismo de fuego for the former priest.

Every year, the 15 February became another date to commemorate Camilo Torres

participation in the ELN. A year after the ELN's urban militants published the political

journal Frente Unido, created and directed by Camilo Torres, and in 1970, the ELN cel

ebrated the anniversary of his death announcing the incorporation of a new priest

this time from Spain-to the rural war front. His name, Domingo Lain, was used forq

rural front inaugurated a few years later in Arauca, as an homage to his memory be

cause Lain died in the same conditions as Camilo Torres on t h ~ 20 February 1974, com

pleting a tragic fate of horfO'r, martyrdom, and heroic sacrifice: his ritual bautismo de

fuego. Camilo Torres after few years received the posthumous military rank of "Com

mander;' and his name was used for the first ELN National Assembly in 1984. The death

of Ernesto "el Che" Guevara in Bolivia also inspired some actions. The most renowned

happe'ned in Bogota in 1971, when Alvaro Valencia Tovar, a General of the National



312 13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in TWQ Guerrilla Groups

on his way to work in an action planned by the urban structures of the ELN.60 Every

year the p u b l i ~ universities in Bogota celebrate 7 October with riots against the public

f@rce, inspired iIT Guevara, as part oJ a ritual.that has nOj: extinguished ·after several

decades.

The Angolan case was very different. There are not enough sources to reconstruct a

complete group of ephemeredes, mainly be.cause the interviews given by the militancy

do not present as many examples as the ELN. It also can be explained because its period

of proper guerrilla fighting was comparatively shorter-around ten intermittent years.

However, the case is also pmvocative because of its nuances. In the MPLA, the rever-

ence, of past facts followed a different framework, based on ideological principles and

the rejection of Portuguese commemorations. Moreover, the new dates to celebrate

were ,not as many for the MPLA as for the ELN. The MPLA instituted progressively the

moments of victory of its struggle as ritual dates for the nation, and they were kept dur-

ing .the fifteen years of its clandestine 'existence under a lower profile. On the otherhand, a disrupted activity in the rural war fronts inhibited these processes that are gen-

erally activities that contribute to the group's cohesion. The fast development of the warf

the impossibility to hide or concentrate a large num'ber of militants in the bush, and the

efficient counterinsurgent acti6n of the Portuguese army reduced the chances of ritual

guerrilla meetings and commemorative enactments.

However, the creation of civilian and military rituals after 1976 gives significant clues

about the rple of celebration .of ephemeredes, and. historic Characters-or the

pantheon-based on 'the MPLA's vers.ion of the past. Whilst the case ,of the ELN is rich

in specific allusions to a significant number of historIc figures and heroes, in Angola na-tional independence was celebrated by reminiscence of historical African feats and the

cr.e,ation of public, holidays: to mark the MPLA struggle. Both types of dates were rather

ambiguous, First, the MPLA had difficulties fixing the date' of its own creation thanks to

the niverse groups that claimed the USe of its acronym, the diverse ideological sources

that inspired autonomy from Portuguese domin,ation, and the disputed responsibility

for ,the urban radical nationalist protests. For instance, the predse dates ,of its initial

documents are vague and their authorship imprecise; the engagement of exiled leaders

accessing Angolan territory from Zambia and Congo, or the clash with Portuguese mil-

itary iv the rural areas are not clearly announced facts,and were for a long time a matter

of controversy:

Secondly, the date that marks the beginning of the nationalist sttuggle-4 . F ~ b r u a r y 1961-has been claimed by different nationalist groups, and its sponsorship disputed.

by diverse parties in the ideological spectrum. Today the date is celebr.ated by every po-

litical group and has lost most of its meaning. This represented an unnecessary ambigu-

ity for an emergent political group thirsty f o ~ identity'features and singularity in a com-

plex political context. In 1976, the MPLA had few elements to claim responsibility for

lighting the sp<!rk that ignited the prisons' uproars and the nationalist struggle since

1961 in Luanda, so the date was dismissed as patt of its ephemeredes.

60. Alvaro' Valencia Tovar 'also was involved in a sabotage organized by tbe ELN in Bucara-

manga-capital of Santander-on March 16, \966, when a big slogan appeared announcing a

bomb threat in the main public place of the -city, right before .the regular civic ~ e l e b r a t i o n , oflhe Co-

muneros struggle', Valencia was the commander of the 5th Nationlll Army- battalion in Bucaramanga

called by coincidence "Los ComuperQs," Finally, a small dissidence of the ELN adopted the name'16

de Marzo; and in 1982 kidnapped Jaime Betancur, brother of then President of the Repuolic ,Belis-

ario Betancur. The dissidence was rejected and ,dismissed by ~ h e ELN's t o m m a n d e r ~ , and the .Ilresi-

denes b r o t h ~ r released aft.er international mediation. See Medina, ELN, 77.



13 . Discourse" Practices ,and Historical Rep resentations in Two Guerrilla Groups 313

In terms of its insurgent struggle, the nature of the gu,errilla warfare in Angola also

affel=ted .the use of dates as a reminder of commemorative feats. It happened too fast,

and "the victories and .setbacks lin-ed-up in such short periods.of time that dates became

less <lnd less representatives of military achievement. Besides, victories were r a t h ~ r small, dates were quickly forgotten, and the meagre achievements were not enough forinspirational purposes even though the humber of ""asualties and the heroism of some

cadres were estimated far beyond reality. In addition, the fact that there was not afihal

decisive moment of Portuguese defeat, and instead its withdrawal was scheduled s e v ~ r a l months in advance, ~ p o i l e d the moment of a long awaited feat. Instead of this, tbe in

~ t a n t chosen (or evacuation of the lasJ representatives ,of colonial ruie emptied the mo

ment of its symbolic signifiqnce. As an alternative for celebration, each group was en

gaged in a fast occupatioh of territories to get the lion's. share in the moment of power

void. The symbolic titual of power succession was p o ~ t p o n e d , or rather replaced, by the

furious rush oJ the nationalist groups to get into Luanda and occupy the place of the

Portuguese. This "invasion" of the city of power in Angola was an ominous prophesy of

the civil war that was about to begin. At least for the purposes of institutionalization of

civil symbols, the push fOT power was,obvious and o.Jllnipresent, and instead of c e r ~ monies of indusion, freedom and peace, the pursuit of pOFer demonstrated the vora

cious interest of the distinctive elites leading their respective guerrilla groups.

If the symbolic power of a uniqIJe bloody victory over the oppressor was missing, the

aspiration of a revolutionary New Society came to fulfil it by the imposition of innova

tive momenJS lo' celebrate. FOT instance, carnivals came to 'replace traditional religiouscelebrations, and were laqen with traditional African meanings. It was not an easy

process, because the party-state had to .create a ,political religion by carefully manipulat

ing both the religious legacy of Portuguese rule and the .African traditions.6J The

Catholic principles that were so hidden and rejected during the struggle for 'emancipa

tion fr.om Portuguese domination emerged from the hidden memories of a vast popula

tion that was not rgpresented by the Protestanl churches that influenced the MPLA, the

fNLA, and the UNITA.62 However, the past was celebrated in a profuse"number of cat-

nivals and. ephemeredes that were filled with meaningful elements to institutionalize

and legitimize the MPLA's power after 1976.

Commitment, Conviction and Utopia:

Rituals of Heroism and Martyrdom in the ELN

Death was a constant risk in a guerrilla's life. The revolutionary project required tQtal

,commitment: a change of name, deprivation from mundane pleasures, and the distance

from beloved people. A guerrilla's life-style was a challenge to the basic bonds created by

irtdivid\lal in society. Sacrifice was the price for building a New Society, and its point of

beginning was the New Man. The ELN started developing this notion of New Man-;,ls

well as notions such as Popular Power, and. New Society-after the crisis in 1974-1978,

but the seeds were present in the influence of liberation theology, the stiff standards of




Figure 13.1 Camilo Torr,es.

motal behaviQr, and. the fundamental role of an internal system of revolutionary jqstice

as early as 1966. These elements will be considered as practices, and its analysis will help

to introduce an interpretation of the emergence of embryonic institutions in the ELN . Its

analysis will be based mainly on the experiencesot

Camilo Torres and Victor Medina.The baptism into the rural militancy was both nominal and real. The first, as was

mentioned, was the change of identity, the !1doption of an alias. and after that the inte

gration in guerrilla's quotidian activities. However; a more important step was the COfi

frontation with guerrilla's real goal, the use of violence to bring about change. Urban

militants continuously mention in the sources the. dilemma of going to the rural war

front. The danger of death was the image of absolute commitment, and those guer

rilleros who chose the rural front were constantly confronted to that reality. Many gu:er-

dllerQs escaped, others that did not endured the hardship of rmallife, but the gre<j.test

fear for each was the moment of the bautismo de fuego or bautismo de sangre (baptism

of fire or baptism of blood), when they had to confront the enemy, be able to kill, and

obtained a gun. In general. this baptism was done a few months after incorporation,.

with previous training and military exercises. That tJ:aining itself was a form of J:itual. a

process of liminality and initiation.

La Escuela PaJito (Wooden-Stick School) was a training required by every militant

before going into an attack. It was a difficult period that resembled the first three



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representations in Two Guerrill a Groups 315

months of military training in any military academy in the world. It was a period of

liminality because the militant lacked the distinctive mark of a guerrilla's belonging-a

gun-but was not longer part of civilian society either.63 The Escueta Palito intermin

gled mocker.y and respect, and experienced militants helped the new ones in an envi

ronment of camaraderie and reciprocity. The distinctive mark of the new militants was

a machine gun made of wood, a palito. They exercised, trained, and studied military

tactics, always with the palito hanging from a strap on their shoulders . They received

some explanations about how to clean and take apart a real weapon, but the palito was

always there, until the long awaited day of the appointed attack. Then the opportunity

Was unique: to take a weapon, to own it, and take care of it. This training was very com

mon, and is full of meaning. For the militant, endurance of the difficulties of guerrilla

life-s tyle was a first step to becoming a part of the revolutionary project. It represented

commitment and strength, will and endurance. For the leader, it was a necessary assess

ment to measure the psychological stress that every militant was able to withstand, the

display of submission and respect to the organization's hierarchy, anda Kood formula tomaintain a good stock of arms and militants able to resist an attack. Wh)f did every

guerrillero run, work out, cook, sleep, read the doctrine, and suffer in silence whilst

carrying a humble wooden-stick representing a deadly gun? The reason is that the

process was a warranty of subsequent belonging to the group. Some elements help in

understanding this process as a practice.

The first reason is commitment. Camilo Torres, a well-documented example of an

urban, fine-mannered guerrillero who died trying to replace the palito for a real ma

chine gun, was in the.process of training always thinking about how he could improve

his abilities to be more helpful and less bothersome, more independent and less whiny

in the war front. He saw the poverty and inequity; the wealth in the middle of muddy

towns; the displacement of peasants to the cities; and the luxuries of institutions that

neglected access to the common people. His interest was to learn from scratch how

people manage their lives without the comfort he enjoyed whilst was blind and ignorant

of real conditions of life.among poor people in Colombia. In his commitment were pre

sent aspects of the Catholic Church's ideal of sacrifice necessary to gain access to a spiri

tual elevation in the afterlife, to gain the heaven after death.

The second reason is conviction. Guerrilleros assumed the process of changing $oci

ety as a deep commitment, and their actions were intended to accomplish that .goal.

Peasants .and urban militants thought about the necessary transformation of the present, and their first sacrifice was to refuse other forms of bringing about change. Insur

gency depends on violence as a means and the rejection of everything that is embraced

by the political structure they want to replace. Confidence within a guerrilla rests on the

ability to create something good enough to justify the sacrifice and the blood ·spilled bY'

the martyrs. In other words, conviction springs. from the hatred to the establishment

and the trust and hopes invested in the project of New Society.

The final answer is the promise of making real a utopia, and the role that being part

of it can represent in the life of common people, not as community but as individuals.

The possibility of creating a revolution rests on the imaginary of change and a NewOrder. However, that imaginary is not the same as the specific political structure or pro

ject of New Society. It is the individual illusion of being part of that change in a dy

namic, participative, and perhaps heroic form. In political processes the individual

matters, and .choice and desire are part of the influence that human condition plays in a

63. Turner, Th e Ritual, 22-35.




Figure 13.2 ELN Troops on Patrol.

revolution. The conviction and commitment cannot operate if there is not an expecta

tion of future for the individual. Fame and glory are for the survivors. However, those

who die in an attack might deserve a place in the political pantheon of the New Society,

a role in the history and its unstoppable change. It is commonplace to hear that guer

rill eros had nothing to lose. It might be more interesting to find an answer if what is at

stake is actually the possibility to overcome anonymity, and the sacrifice of being part of

a revolution is the promise of a better life in the future or the price for a place in his

tory - the new version of the history.64

The sacrifice and martyrdom of Camilo Torres were part of his choice after his in

corporation to the ELN. This is a good example of how guerrilla practices sublimed

individuals by giving a meaning to every quotidian act. Before his death, Camilo Tor

res was conscious of the danger he was about to face, the consequences of his possible

death, and the difficulties of the skirmish they had planned in Patio Cemento. His in

tellectual qualities represented an invaluable asset for the ELN in political more than

in military terms. However, such intellectual qualities were not enough to dissuade

him from merging commitment, conviction, and heroism in a perfect assemblage of

ritualized action. He died trying, and gave us a great example of how some elements

of heroism operate in highly ideological contexts of revolutionary struggle . The path

of revolutionary struggle is paved with such examples, and explains why Camilo Tor

res and Ernesto "el Che" Guevara are paradigms for the rebel youth in Colombia and

the world.

Another form of heroism useful to consider is guerrilla internal affairs. Victor Med

ina was subject of the revolutionary justice deployed by the commanders of ELN in re

sponse to his mistakes and supposed links with U.S. intelligence services. Victor Medina

was introduced in 1964 to the rural front as the second commander, responsible for po

litical tasks, but he skipped the bautismo de fuego when he received a machine-gun

without fighting for it. He had problems interacting with peasant militants because of

his jargon and urban background, besides a rather shy personality. The peasant mili

tants soon compared his abilities with those of Fabio Vasquez, the military leader and

64 . Balandier, Le Pouvoir, 78-97.



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historical Representatjons in Two Guerrilla Groups ~ 1 7

head of the group. Victor Medina became involved with Heliodoro Ochoa and Julio

Cesar Cortes in a supposed complot against Fabio Vasquez. The details of this com plot

are not clear, but the ELN assumed that Medina wanted to. escape abroad or create a

disJiidence. A revolutionary trial started. The three guerrilleros were biamed of hightreason to the ELN, and condemned to capital punishmertt.

Two elements ate itnetesting here. First, the early eillergence of it form of justice

within the group, and the clear homologies it has with o t l i ~ r revolutionary contexts,

paradoxically with the Establishment. Secondly, the fact that these three guerrilleros

were convinced that their mistakes Were serious enough to deserve death as a fair pun-

ishment. Even though they claimed to be innocent, and afterwards was revealed that

they-as urban militants-awakened envy among peasant guerrilleros and other

leaders eager to occupy the high position of second commander in the ELN, theirdeath was considered for years as an example of commitment. Commitment, convic-

tion, and heroic spirit appear here in a form that leads to death arid altruism. This is

the example of sacrifice a.s a way to show the militancy the high price of a mistake.

Whilst Camilo Torres represented a positive paradigm, Medina and his companions

were.identified as a negative example, althQugh after the clarifications uncovered dur-

ing the ELN's crisis,· they became heroes ,and their death an example of 'the limits of

blind power ambitions.

Towards a Form of Justice

The moral patterns that ~ h a p e d belonging to a guerrilla group became conventions

of action, but they needed to somehow be institutionalized. The ELN and the MPLA as

military political organizations promoted internal rules; dictated by 'a strict discipline.

Individual drives and .group behavior was framed by specific principles of discipline,and with normal processes of qu.oddjan interacti.on they 'promoted eml>ryonic systems

of justice. This was a kind of embryonic institution operating within each group, creat-

ing. channels for discussion and resolution of internal conflicts amOrig militants. The

correction of misbehavior depended on mechanisms of coercion and a conscious sub-

ordination to a hierarchy. These pre.cepts were redefined in the crisis endured by the

groups in the 1 9 7 0 ~ i and became patterns for militancy's engagement, belonging and

belief.

If guerrillas were about to constitute a New Society formed by a New Man, the sys-

tems of coercion, discipline. and punishment were an embryonic mechanism to deploy

the.power that in political terms legitimiz.ed the use of its force as a New Establishment.

Mutatis mutandis, the revolution became the epiphany of a. once contested oppressor

power.




have been divided into institutions of power and knowledge. The first, power, identi-

fies practices that constitute the civility of a po\jtical formation. In the case of revolu-

tionary groups, it is the aspiration to build.a New Society, and to ritualize its exis-

tence. The same p.rocess contributes to the ~ o n s t r u c t i o n of a national identity but on

a micro scale. It can become real only i f the revolutionary struggle is successful, and

from the clandestine group can result in a structured state. An important elementthat emerged was the legal infrastructure at1ached to moral values played during the

period of clandestine existence: power WaS atta,hed to law and its imposition oyer a

society.

Second, knowledge constructs the embryonic institutions that allow power to endure

and change whilst reproducing itself. Power is preserved in the form of knowledge-for

instance laws and codes of conduct-and reaches all the members of the New Society in

the acceptance and repetition of ceremonies of civilian and/or military life. Knowledge

establishes also the idiom of such power, making public the principles of the social con-

tract, limiting the access of common people to its negotiation, reform, or discussion.

Power is also evident in the coercion and sustainability of the social forces directed

towards social reproduction. In education and the military, we can find the patterns of

social mobility that were once structured around. the legitimacy disputed in the guerrilla

and among communities. The institutiOllsthat control social mobility are also places

where ideology becomes power and knowledge legitimized by symbolic practices or

Figure 13.3 MPLA soldiers.



13 . Discourse, Practices and Historica l Representations in Two Guerrilla Groups 319

norms, deeds, and written rules that renovate the principles of hierarchy and social in

teraction. Here the law is both distributed to constrain the social forces and written to

be perennial and constantly legitimize the nature of a revolutionary power.

The elements for this essay on historical representations converge in the different lev

els where power operates within an insurgent group. I have discussed patterns of inter

nal structuration that involve language, ideology, and knowledge. It does not mean that

power is an abstract notion present in the model in order to articulate explanatory cate

gories. Instead, I have presented how power operates in subjective and objective spaces

of interaction, based on a pattern present in the empirical sources.

The model presented is preliminary. It is evident that it must be completed with the

more detailed empirical sources and elements 'that enable the reader to better judge. It is

also necessary to articulate large sociocultural processes with the forms how in guerrilla

groups the patterns of organizational production led towards the creation of discourses

and reproduction of socialpractices, and to what extent they are differentiated from the

common rituals of civility of a nation or colony. Although the premise of this research

was not to present every specific aspect of the guerrilla cultural production, the value of

the diagrams and the theoretical elements is to make more systematic the organization

of data, and especially articulate tools of Critical Discourse Analysis to implement in

forthcoming stages of the research.

The object was to understand how in the twentieth century revolutions promoted

thought and action, and how revolution was as well. the object of reflection and pro-

moted action, rituals and the production of historical knowledge under the aegis of ide

ological paradigms. This research intends to erode the notion .of revolution by ap

proaching its political nature, and is useful for understanding the contemporary

imagination that inhabits every political system, especially those that constitute the

Western polity of our societies, and that can be integrated into the category of totalitar

ian political machines, besides fascism and democracy.

Diagram 13.1. (Read from the bottom-up)

DiscourseI

Practices

Ideology / legitimacy

(Categories of change)

Historical RepresentationsHypothetically it should inform about contempora ry revolutionary imaginaries,

and the notion of power in insurgent groups.

/// ~ ~ ~ ElN MPlA



320 J3 ' Discourse, Practices ,and Historical Representations in Two, G uerrilla 'Groups

Diagram 13.2. (Read from 'the !:tottom-up)

Institutional Fprmations:- Language

- Education, paradigms 01'

knowledge

- Written norms

'- Specific activities which

control soclaJ mobility.

(Military/Schools)

Archives,

(Embryonic Institutions)

New Society I New Marl

Revolutional);

'Struggle'&:Transformation of

Ideological Framewotk.

Iransition/Cris;S'

Late 1970s

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• Rituals around law and' ifs

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