(Editorial note: very little news has appeared in the British press - even the left-wing - about the terrible massacre of Mexican students, which occurred in October of last year.)
(One of International's correspondents was fortunate to get the following interview with one of the leaders of the Mexican students at an international conference).
(For reasons of security the identity of this student has to remain undisclosed).
QUESTION: Could you describe briefly the events which led up to the massacre of October 2nd last year?
ANSWER: The first obvious sign that the Government was edgy came in July, when large numbers of the leading cadres of both workers and students were arrested, of course, without explanation. In response to this move, the students in Mexico City especially, but also in other university towns, began to agitate for the release of the detained. The unrest in the university had to be quelled and in September the army occupied the area (Mexico University). About 1,000 leaders of the Students' National Council were arrested.
During the second half of September 4 or 5 peaceful demonstrations were held - against the occupation of the university and against the arrests. Another demonstration was held on October 2nd. The difference from the others was only in the outcome: 500 people killed and over 3,000 political cadres arrested.
Q.: What was the effect of the events of October 2nd on the movement in Mexico?
A.: Of course, the first reaction was one of horror. Everyone was shocked and very angry. It had the effect of clarifying issues, consolidating the opinions of the students, who had been politically educated by the previous four months of confrontation; and another obvious result was lull in activity.
Q.: Why?
A.: Let me go back again to July. After the mass arrests of July 26th, the Students' National Council was replaced by a National Strike Body. By October 2nd, most of the leaders of the NSB had been arrested, killed or had gone into hiding. This left the students with a leadership made up from politically less-experienced cadres. The leadership which had been lost was experienced, respected by students and workers, and had started to make very close contacts with worker militants - their replacements were less experienced, often from very small marxist organisations with little experience of leading a movement which demanded a complete absence of factionalism. Also many of the new leadership were CP-trained in the ways of "organising the grand defeat". (In October, VOICE OF MEXICO, the CP paper, was calling for an end to the students strike).
Q.: What has happened since October 2nd?
A.: Because of the Olympics, October was an official holiday for the university. After the games the army occupation ended and it was reopened officially at the end of November. Nobody returned. The Government then threatened the CP leadership and said that if students did not return to the university, the military would be sent back.
Throughout the strike period regular student assemblies had been held, and now the leaders went into the assemblies and urged the students to end the strike and go back to school.
This confused many students as they did not as yet understand the nature of the change in the leadership, which was now adding its voice to that of the Government and university administration. The strike ended.
Q.: Wasn't this new leadership in danger of being isolated?
A.: Yes. But it became conscious of this, so when there were signs that the students were still militant they organised a demonstration. Over 10,000 were to march from the university to the Polytechnic across Mexico City, but the army was called out in force and it encircled the university. Again there were many arrests but most were released after 2 or 3 days.
Q.: What about this term?
A.: Since the university reopened in January there have been more arrests. The police are still looking for the leaders and spend a lot of time investigating students. People disappear for a couple of days and it turns out that they have been with the police.
In the university there has been an important administrative change - not important in itself but an indication of what is happening. Social Relations Department has a new supervisor - a General, a former Director of a prison. The Government is still very jumpy. There was a protest in April in the Polytechnic over the conditions of a Laboratory. Within minutes the army had occupied the building and did not leave for four hours.
Within the student organisations, the most important development has been the establishment of new co-ordinating committee to replace the NSC: the National Struggles Committee. This committee co-ordinates activities and organisations from all establishments of further education and at the moment is engaged in a large programme of political education and discussion of theory.
We are now assessing the effects of the last 10 months and the role that we as students should play in future developments.
Q.: Did the students see the social implications of their struggle?
A.: May be not at first, but by October there was no doubt.
Q.: Is it consciously anti-capitalist?
A.: Yes. And, of course, the more experienced cadres, work consciously to educate and form more cohesive groups of students. Some are interested in the formation of brigades, which will prepare them for future action. There are also attempts again to link the student struggle with the workers' struggle.
Q.: What of the Fidelista tendency?
A.: There are, of course, many students who belong to this tendency, believing that the answer is guerilla warfare. We do not know how advanced their plans are - but they are planning, maybe for the next confrontation. For most of us, especially after last October, the idea of guerilla warfare is in our hands but it is not on the immediate agenda.
Q.: And what of your programme for the future?
A.: Our main task is to continue to politicise and organise the students. The problems that we face are large but not insurmountable. We have to work out how we should protect ourselves against the repression; how we can overcome the strength of the Government. We are forging links with the workers - and this is rooted in the past 10 months; the workers have told us that the experience of the students has been invaluable to them - any illusions that they might have had about the Government have been removed.
(N.B. Very comprehensive material about the student struggle in Mexico appeared in issues of the INTERCONTINENTAL PRESS of October, November, and December of last year; these can be obtained for 2/- each from Pioneer Book Service).