Film Screening: The Battle of Chile (Parts 1 & 2)

[Hands off Venezuela presents the first and second part of the legendary documentary film "The battle of Chile" by Patricio Guzman. On Friday, October 19, at 17:30 at the Bolivar Hall, 54 Grafton Way W1T 5DL (Nearest Tube: Warren Street ). Free entry on a first come first served basis.]

34 years ago, on September 11, 1973, the Chilean army led by its recently appointed chief of staff, Augusto Pinochet, overthrew, with the active support of its national bourgeoisie and the government of the United States, the democratic government of Salvador Allende.

The bombing of the Presidential Palace, La Casa de la Moneda, ended the Chilean experiment to socialism, where "for first time in the history of the revolutionary processes, the path towards social change had been opened via elections, through a pacific via. An event unique in history, the first of its type", as Fidel Castro remarked in his speech at the National Stadium in Santiago during his three week visit to Chile in 1971.

However, the final coup was only a last resort solution to smash the mass movement that was threatening the foundations of capitalism and bourgeois society in Chile and beyond; private property over the means of production.

Prior to this final assault on Allende's government, the United States and the Chilean bourgeoisie had made used of every possible means at their disposal, especially their control over some very important parts of the State apparatus - like the judiciary - and the economy, to block any progressive measure and stifle the live of the country.

The legendary documentary film "The battle of Chile", by Patricio Guzmán, captures and analyses with surgeon's precision the dynamics of the revolutionary process that brought Allende to the presidency, his relationship with the Chilean masses of workers and poor peasants and the counter-revolutionary forces that finally overthrew him and smashed the revolution.

In a period of revolutionary awakening of the masses of Latin America as the one we are going through, the screening of the first and second parts of the "The insurrection of the bourgeoisie" and "the coup d'état" is a unique opportunity to remember the deaths and disappeared by the military dictatorship of Augusto PinochetIt and for those of us supporting the around the world the Venezuelan revolution learn from this dramatic experience.

"The battle of Chile: the insurrection of the bourgeoisie" (89'); Allende starts to carry out a programme to deeply transform society. From the beginning the right wing organises against him with the support of the White House, using all its political, economic and social leverage. Despite this, in the elections of March 1973, the parties that support Allende obtained 43.4% of the vote. The right wing understands that the legal mechanisms are not useful to them anymore. From then on they will start to lay down their strategy for a coup d'état. "The battle of Chile" is a fresco which shows step by step these events that shook the world.

"The battle of Chile: the coup d'état" (100'); between March and September 1973 the left and the right fight on the streets, factories, courts of justice, universities, parliament and media; the situation is unsustainable The United States fund the truck drivers general strike and promotes social chaos. Allende tries to reach an agreement with the forces of the Christian Democracy; the military start to conspire in Valparaiso; an ample sector of the middle class is decided to overthrow Allende by any means necessary; on September 11, 1973, Pinochet bombs the presidential palace.

After the coup, Patricio Guzmán was arrested and taken to the National Stadium. After his release he left Chile and went into exile. The films that would later make "The battle of Chile" were clandestinely sneaked out of the country. Jorge Muller Rojas (the film's cameraman) was arrested by Pinochet's military police in November 1974, becoming thus one of the thousands of disappeared and killed by the regime "The battle of Chile" has been censored in Chile and never shown in public television.

"I would declare "The battle of Chile" a film of "democratic interest"; its screening should be compulsory in schools". Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Mundo Obrero.

"Great films rarely arrive as unheralded as The Battle of Chile." – Pauline Kael, The New Yorker

"The major political film of our times - a magnificent achievement." – Tom Allen, Village Voice

Comments

[Tanvir]

This seems like a great documentary. This revolution reminded me of a similar event. It’s about Estonia’s Singing Revolution, there is a great documentary coming out about it - http://singingrevolution.com; Both of the documentaries should inspire people. I commend the filmmakers.

[Jonathan Miller]

i am interested to know if this is subtitled in English and what format is it on, film or DVD etc, and where are you getting the copy from? Thanks alot!
JM

[Pablo Roldan]

The battle of Chile is practically impossible to get anywhere in the world. I that editions montparnasse in france haved recently edited the full trilogy in DVD, which is accompanied by "The case Pinochet", also by the same author.

The copy we are screening is in Spanish with English subtitles and it is in VHS format, which is the only format in which you can get a decent quality copy with English subtitles.

I believe that you can buy through amazon and some other websites the American edition, also in VHS. However, this is rather a vintage item it you could end up paying over $150.00 for it.

[Henry]

Great film. Now, what does Chávez's comedy have to do with a serious process like the Chilean? Oh, right, nothing, nothing at all.

[VirginiaB]

I am not sure what Henry means by "Chávez's comedy", nor why the Chilean experiment, which was marred, and ultimately failed, by not mobilising the Chilean population sufficiently in support of that revolution, should be seen as more "serious".

While the socialist revolution in Venezuela is still in its early stages, with some parts of the state still in the hands of the capitalists, and economic transformation at an early (although progressing and inspiring) stage, the indications thus far are that the revolutionists in Venezuela, including Chavez, are indeed taking steps to avoid making some of the same mistakes made in Chile. The moves towards more democratic forms of decision-making, for example (such as the Communal Councils, and away from the bourgeois institution of representative/parliamentary "democracy"), the moves to reform/abolish those sectors of the police which had been particularly counter-revolutionary.

While the process is uneven, as all such processes must be, and consciousness is likewise uneven, it's important that we familiarise ourselves as much as possible with that process in order to provide as much solidarity to the Bolivarian Revolution as possible. If that process fails and the capitalists take back the ground that they have lost, we can be sure that that will be a huge step back, not just for Venezuelans, but for the growing hopes created by the radicalisations in that country, Bolivia and Ecuador, and their collaboration with Cuba. It will be a blow not only to all those in Latin America who were heartened by the collaboration between that radical bloc, but to those of us outside that region who can point to those socialist and radicalising projects as an example of workers' power through collective struggle.

I think Henry would be interested in "Venezuela and Chile: A contrast in strategies", by Direct Action's Jorge Jorquera, at http://www.directaction.org.au/issue5/venezuela_and_chile_a_contrast_in_strategies

[bath mate]

good posting.i like it. thank u. :)-

bathmate