Prior
to doing the reading for this module and research I was unaware of the
historical differences between guerilla warfare and urban terrorism. In
today's terror filled media outlets, the terms are often used interchangeably
adding to my confusion.
For
the purpose of the post I chose to compare and contrast Fidel Castro and
"Che" Guevara's visions of "guerilla warfare" vs. Raul Sendic and the
Tuparamos commitment to "urban terrorism."
In
an effort to simplify the analysis, I chose to create a table to compare
these revolutionary methods.
Guerilla
Warfare
Urban
Terrorism
Enemy
Imperialism
Oppressive
Regime
Imperialism
Oppressive
Regime
Battlefield
Countryside
City
Mission
Strike Governments
Logistical Network
Demoralize the Government
Incite environment
of violence, causing govt. to react with repression and violence.
Leading to sympathy for terrorist cause.
Three phases
of the Cuban Revolution, according to Burton:
Isolated
groups
Formation
into columns
Creation
of a conventional fighting force
Food
for Thought
"Debray
believes revolution is essentially an affair for poor peasants
an it can only begin in a rural setting with regional guerrilla
forces. Terrorism has no payoff. At best, it is neutral, at
worse, it alienates peasants needed for guerilla support."
(White, 2004)
"Every member of the
struggle should know that his political mission is as important
as, if not more important than, his tactical mission."
Source: http://www.kimsoft.com/guerr-07.htm
In
today's modern era of the Global War on Terrorism(GWOT), urban terrorism
is more effectively utilized as a guerilla warfare tactic. The fact that
urban terrorism is better utilized as a tactic than an insurgent call
to arms, results from the fact that the Tuparamos' brand of terrorism
has not proven to be successful at effecting political change. Tuparamos'
urban terrorism proved to be too indiscriminate and violent to gain wide
acceptance and support from the general population.
I came across an article in my research
that I found relevant to this post, this module and current events at
large. As noted earlier in the post as typical of the modern media, the
author failed to recognize the importance of the political and propaganda
component distinguishing guerilla warfare from urban terrorism. Regardless,
I think this excerpt is worth reading:
The
mujahideen battle plan
Apart
from a maximum of 1,500 "Arab brothers" - as the Iraqis call them
- from Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Jordan, Syria and Tunisia, most of
the remaining mujahideen
in Fallujah are nationalist Iraqis whose tribal code mandates
that they defend at any cost their homes, their families and their
city under foreign attack.
They
have been preparing for this onslaught for months. And they do
have a battle plan - as it was relayed to Asia
Times Online
by sources in Baghdad. Former or retired Iraqi army officials
have always been serious students of Viet
Minh tactics
and Che
Guevara's theory
of the guerrilla foco (center of guerrilla operations). Now they
are applying this to urban warfare. This, in a smaller version,
is what the Battle of Baghdad would have been like in April 2003.
The
Americans are closing in toward the city center, under fire from
mujahideen equipped with only Kalashnikovs
and rocket-propelled
grenades hidden
in clusters of low-roof houses. The Americans are firing back
at the houses and at anything that moves. They have been prevented
- at least for now - by the resistance from storming any buildings.
Their priority is to control the main bombed-out roads.
The
mujahideen are operating with small mobile units of five or six
or a maximum of 20 fighters, changing positions all the time.
As a counter-measure, American snipers are trying to control the
rooftops. The mujahideen are trying to attract as many American
troops to the city center as possible - so they can unleash what
seems to be hundreds of coordinated car bombs and improvised explosive
devices.
People
in Baghdad are also telling of US$3,000 being offered for any
battered old car to be used as part of a counter-offensive coming
in behind the US positions once the house-to-house battle in the
city center is fully engaged.
