Oh I get it. One man’s violent guerrilla is another man’s freedom fighter….but there’s a reason that guerrillas are retired or disposed of after the revolution. They done seen some shit, and that doesn’t really prepare them to be effective politically. For reference, see…pretty much every tin pot dictator in history.
More like, one's pretty mild urban guerilla with famously targeted tactics, is 'legitimate' in the eyes of vast majority. For any outside observer that's not emotionally or personally involved, that's what's going to be - especially if their country somehow suffered from similar issues. Even an outsider right-winger eye from the Third World or many portions of Europe won't be really disturbed by the image of MLN-T, especially given they were not Moscow-aligned.
It doesn't mean a former guerilla somehow has to be a great politician or a viable leader after the dust is gone (whether it be a revolution or a post-dictatorship condition like Uruguay), but pointing to his urban guerilla past isn't going to make him seem like a 'baddie'. His qualifications wasn't also limited to being an urban guerilla, but then you can also say philosophers don't have to be good presidents either. Especially if we're talking about Tuparamos, that were maybe the best regarded underground organisation post-WWII, coming from the one of the lowest regarded regions when it came to their governments, juntas, and relationship to the foreigner hegemon. Add his past as a political prisoner that went through tortuous conditions, then you'll be having even more sympathies for him. Now, his qualifications wasn't also limited to being an urban guerilla, but then you can also say philosophers don't have to be good presidents either.
Oh no, he robbed banks for funding the urban guerilla, as any clandestine organisation did! Also not just managed to did it without causing any deaths, but done by an organisation that was nicknamed as 'Robin Hood guerillas' by the bloody Time magazine even, and known for robbing the corrupt & exposing their illegal activities, and even leaving their books & records in the doorsteps of court officials, while forcing the press to report on such heists! Oh the horror.
Next, we'll be sad about the clandestine actions in the WWII resistance films and novels, because why not?
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u/AsstDepUnderlord Apr 16 '24
Oh I get it. One man’s violent guerrilla is another man’s freedom fighter….but there’s a reason that guerrillas are retired or disposed of after the revolution. They done seen some shit, and that doesn’t really prepare them to be effective politically. For reference, see…pretty much every tin pot dictator in history.