5. Ways to Lead an Uprising at Mass Meetings
It can be carried out by means of a small group of guerrillas
infiltrated within the masses, who will have the mission of agitating,
giving the impression that there are many of them and that they have
popular backing. Using the tactics of a force of 200-300 agitators, a
demonstration can be created in which 10,00-20,00 persons take part.
The agitation of the masses in a demonstration is carried out by means
of sociopolitical objectives. In this action one or several people of our
convert movement should take part, highly trained as mass agitators,
involving innocent persons, in order to bring about an apparent spontaneous
protest demonstration. They will lead all of the concentration to the end
of it.
Outside Commando. This element stays out of all activity, located so
that they can observe from where they are the development of the planned
events. As a point of observation, they should look for the tower of a
church, a high building, a high tree, the highest level of the stadium or
an auditorium, or any other high place.
Inside Commando. This element will remain within the multitude. Great
importance should be given to the protection of the leaders of these
elements. Some placards or large allusive signs should be used to designate
the Commando Posts and to provide signals to the subunits. This element
will avoid placing itself in places where fights or incidents come about
after the beginning of the demonstration.
These key agitators of ours will remain within the multitude. The one
responsible for this mission will assign ahead of time the agitators to
remain near the placard that he will indicate to them, in order to give
protection to the placard from any contrary element. In that way the
commander will know where our agitators are, and will be able to send
orders to change passwords or slogans, or any other unforeseen thing, and
even eventually to incite violence if he desires it.
At this stage, once the key cadres have been dispersed, they should
place themselves in visible places such as by signs, lampposts, and other
places which stand out.
Our key agitators should avoid places of disturbances, once they have
taken care of the beginning of the same.
Defense Posts. These elements will act as bodyguards in movement,
forming a ring of protection for the chief, protecting him from the police
and the army, or helping him to escape if it should be necessary. They
should be highly disciplined and will react only upon a verbal order from
the chief.
In case the chief participates in a religious concentration, a funeral
or any other type of activity in which they have to behave in an organized
fashion, the bodyguards will remain in the ranks very close to the chief or
to the placard or banner carriers in order to give them full protection.
The participants in this mission should be guerrilla combatants in
civilian clothes, or hired recruits who are sympathizers in our struggle
and who are against the oppressive regime.
These members must have a high discipline and will use violence only
on the verbal orders of the one in charge of them.
Messengers. They should remain near the leaders, transmitting orders
between the inside and outside commandos. They will use communication
radios, telephones, bicycles, motorcycles, cars, or move on foot or
horseback, taking paths or trails to shorten distances. Adolescents (male
and female) are ideal for this mission.
Shock Troops. These men should be equipped with weapons (Knives,
razors, chains, clubs, bludgeons) and should march slightly behind the
innocent and gullible participants. They should carry their weapons hidden.
They will enter into action only as "reinforcements" if the guerrilla
agitators are attacked by the police. They will enter the scene quickly,
violently and by surprise, in order to distract the authorities, in this
way making possible the withdrawal or rapid escape of the inside commando.
Carriers of Banners and Placards. The banners and placards used in
demonstrations or concentrations will express the protests of the
population, but when the concentration reaches its highest level of
euphoria or popular discontent, our infiltrated persons will make use of
the placards against the regime, which we manage to infiltrate in a hidden
fashion, an don them slogans or key words will be expressed to the benefit
of our cause. The one responsible for this mission will assign the
agitators ahead of time to keep near the placard of any contrary element.
In that way, the comandante will know where the agitators are, and will be
able to send orders to change slogans and eventually to incite violence if
he wishes.
Agitators of Rallying Cries and Applause. They will be trained with
specific instructions to use tried rallying cries. They will be able to use
phrase such as "WE ARE HUNGRY, WE WAND BREAD," and "WE DON'T WANT
COMMUNISM." There work and their technique for agitating the masses is
quite similar to those of the leaders of applause and slogans at the high
school football or baseball games. The objective is to become more adept
and not just to shout rallying cries.
6. Conclusions
In a revolutionary movement of guerrilla warfare, the mass
concentrations and protest demonstrations are the principle essential for
the destruction of the enemy structures.
MASSIVE IN-DEPTH SUPPORT THROUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL OPERATIONS
1. Generalities
The separate coverage in these sections could leave the student with
some doubts. Therefore, all sections are summarized here, in order to give
a clearer picture of this book.
2. Motivation as Combatant-Propagandist
Every member of the struggle should know that his political mission is
as important as, if not more important than, his tactical mission.
3. Armed Propaganda
Armed propaganda in small towns, rural villages, and city residential
districts should give the impression that our weapons are not for
exercising power over the people, but rather that the weapons are for
protecting the people; that they are the power of the people against the
FSLN government of oppression.
4. Armed Propaganda Teams
Armed Propaganda Teams will combine political awareness building and
the ability to conduct propaganda for ends of personal persuasion, which
will be carried out within the population.
5. Cover ("Facade") Organizations
The fusion of several organizations and associations recognized by the
government, through internal subjective control, occurs in the final stages
of the operation, in close cooperation with mass meetings.
6. Control of Mass Demonstrations
The mixture of elements of the struggle with participants in the
demonstration will give the appearance of a spontaneous demonstration,
lacking direction,which will be used by the agitators of the struggle to
control the behavior of the masses.
7. Conclusion
Too often we see guerrilla warfare only from the point of view of
combat actions. This view is erroneous and extremely dangerous. Combat
actions are not the key to victory in guerrilla warfare but rather form
part of one of the six basic efforts. There is no priority in any of the
efforts, but rather they should progress in a parallel manner. The emphasis
or exclusion of any of these efforts could bring about serious
difficulties, and in the worst of cases, even failure. The history of
revolutionary wars has shown this reality.
APPENDIX
The purpose of this appendix is to complement the guidelines and
recommendations to the propagandist-guerrillas expressed under the topic of
"Techniques of Persuasion in Talks and Speeches," to improve the ability to
organize and express thoughts for those who wish to perfect their
oratorical abilities. After all, oratory is one of the most valuable
resources for exercising leadership. Oratory can be used, then, as an
extraordinary political tool.
2. The Audience
Oratory is simultaneous communication par excellence, i.e., the orator
and his audience share the same time and space. Therefore, every speech
should be a different experience at "that" moment or particular situation
which the audience is experiencing and which influences them. So the
audience must be considered as "a state of mind." Happiness, sadness,
anger, fear, etc., are states of mind that we must consider to exist in our
audience, and it is the atmosphere that affects the target public.
The human being is made up of a mind and soul; he acts in accordance
with his thoughts and sentiments and responds to stimuli of ideas and
emotions. In that way there exist only two possible focuses in any plan,
including speeches: the concrete, based on rational appeals, i.e., to
thinking; and the idealized, with emotional appeals, i.e., to sentiment.
For his part the orator, although he must be sensitive to the existing
mass sentiment, he must at the same time keep his cold judgment to be able
to lead and control effectively the feelings of an audience. When in the
oratorical momentum the antithesis between heart and brain comes about,
judgment should always prevail, characteristic of a leader.
3. Political Oratory
Political oratory is one of the various forms of oratory, and it
usually fulfills one of three objectives: to instruct, persuade, or move;
and its method is reduced to urging (asking), ordering, questioning and
responding.
Oratory is a quality so tied to political leadership that it can be
said that the history of political orators is the political history of
humanity, an affirmation upheld by names such as Cicero, Demosthenes,
Danton, Mirabeau, Robespierre, Clemenceau, Lenin, Trotsky, Mussolini,
Hitler, Roosevelt, etc.