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The document provides context about the Friends of Durruti group that emerged during the Spanish Civil War and Revolution. It summarizes:
1) The Friends of Durruti criticized the anarchist leaders of the CNT-FAI for capitulating to the Republican government and abandoning the revolution. They argued the revolution could continue while fighting fascism without compromising libertarian ideals.
2) The Friends of Durruti published a short-lived paper called "The People's Friend" in May 1937 after crushing revolutionary uprisings in Barcelona. In it, they refused calls to postpone the revolution until after the war and affirmed the need for revolutionary theory to guide revolutions from below.
3) The
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The revolutionary message of the Friends of Durruti
The document provides context about the Friends of Durruti group that emerged during the Spanish Civil War and Revolution. It summarizes:
1) The Friends of Durruti criticized the anarchist leaders of the CNT-FAI for capitulating to the Republican government and abandoning the revolution. They argued the revolution could continue while fighting fascism without compromising libertarian ideals.
2) The Friends of Durruti published a short-lived paper called "The People's Friend" in May 1937 after crushing revolutionary uprisings in Barcelona. In it, they refused calls to postpone the revolution until after the war and affirmed the need for revolutionary theory to guide revolutions from below.
3) The
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Téléchargez comme PDF, TXT ou lisez en ligne sur Scribd
The document provides context about the Friends of Durruti group that emerged during the Spanish Civil War and Revolution. It summarizes:
1) The Friends of Durruti criticized the anarchist leaders of the CNT-FAI for capitulating to the Republican government and abandoning the revolution. They argued the revolution could continue while fighting fascism without compromising libertarian ideals.
2) The Friends of Durruti published a short-lived paper called "The People's Friend" in May 1937 after crushing revolutionary uprisings in Barcelona. In it, they refused calls to postpone the revolution until after the war and affirmed the need for revolutionary theory to guide revolutions from below.
3) The
Droits d'auteur :
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Formats disponibles
Téléchargez comme PDF, TXT ou lisez en ligne sur Scribd
English translation 1999/2000 by Chekov Feeney from the French text and translations by George Fontenis. This PDF version May 2003
Preface to the 1st edition (1983) by Daniel Guerin
George Fontenis' study seems useful to me, indeed I would go so far as to say it is valuable, not only as it teaches a better understanding of the Spanish Revolution of 1936-7 but it also provides a more extensive interpretation of the notion of libertarian communism itself. When using this phrase 'libertarian communism' it is certainly worthwhile to clearly distinguish it from two other versions which are endowed with the same name. To be specific; firstly the utopia, propagated by Kropotkin and his disciples, of a ter- restrial paradise without money where, thanks to the abundance of resources, each and every person would be able to draw freely from the stockpile. Secondly the infantile idyll of a jumble of 'free communes', at the heart of the Spanish CNT before 1936, which arose from the thinking of Isaac Puente. This soft dream left Spanish anarcho-syndicalism extremely ill-prepared for the harsh realities of revolution and civil war on the eve of Franco's putsch. Fontenis, although he does highlight certain positive aspects of the congress of Saragossa of 1936, seems to me to err on the side of those who appear removed from reality. In the first part of his study, the author gret that Fontenis' traces with precision the degeneration, study is only able to the successive capitulations of the anar- skim the surface of chist leaders of the CNT-FAI. However, this glorious episode perhaps he does not penetrate to the of the Spanish revolu- heart of the problem with sufficient con- tion. He would surely viction. To be precise, was traditional an- be justified in retort- archism, idealistic and prone to splits, not ing that it is no less firming that one couldn't be dissociated destined to fail as soon as it found itself absent from the writings which he analy- from the other. They proclaim that it is confronted by an implacable social strug- ses. possible to battle against the fascist en- gle, for which it was not in the least way emy without in the least renouncing lib- The merit of these texts lies elsewhere, prepared? ertarian ideals. They denounce the as- in the political domain. They reveal an phyxiation engendered by the machinery Because it was not mainly infidelity to unjustifiably obscure aspect of the Ibe- of state. And finally they affirm that with- principles, human weakness, inexperi- rian libertarian avant-garde, the brief out a revolutionnary theory, revolutions ence or naivety among the leaders, which rise of the 'Friends of Durruti', named in cannot come from below, and that the led them astray, but rather it was a con- memory of the legendary Durruti, who revolution of 19 July 1936 failed for want genital incapacity to evade the traps of fell on the front on the 20th of November of a program derived from such a theory. the rulers(which they put up with since 1936. They emerged from the lessons they weren't able to write them off with drawn, a little late, from the cruel defeat Georges Fontenis, in his efforts to real- a stroke of a pen). As a consequence they of May 1937 in Barcelona. Just as in ise such a libertarion communist pro- were destined to get bogged down in France Babouvism was the delayed fruit gram, wrote this in 1954 in France and ministerialism, to take shelter under the of the severe repressions of germinal and updated it in July 1971 at Marseille at treacherous wing of 'antifascist' bourgeois prairial[*1] 1795, the lucidity of these lib- the constituitive congress of the Organi- democracy and finally to let themselves ertarian communists was inspired by the sation Communiste Libertaire (OCL), be dragged along by the stalinist coun- tragedy of May in Catalonia. which I took part in. I will finish by speci- ter-revolution. fying that, today, I find myself at his sides Throughout the few editions of their in the UTCL (Union des Traivailleurs On the other hand, they were damned short-lived paper, 'The friend of the peo- Communistes Liberataires), which sets well prepared for economic self-manage- ple' which Fontenis has passionatly scru- itself in the tradition bequeathed by the ment of agriculture, and to a lesser ex- tinised and translated, we see these mili- first international, that is to say anti-au- tent, industry. These, together with lib- tants refusing, as was advocated by the thoritarian. ertarian collectivisation remain a model reformist anarchists as much as by the for future revolution and saved the hon- stalinists, to wait until the war has been [*1] 7th and 8th months of the Frence revolutionary our of anarchism. One might express re- won to carry out the revolution and af- calender. March 22 - April 20 & April 21 - May 20
A PDF booklet from the Struggle site www.struggle.ws
region which was to be in the forefront of Introduction to the writings of the the revolution, there was a regional power: the government of the
Friends of Durruti Generalidad of Catalonia, a regional par-
liament, and forces of public order: the guards of the Generalidad (Mozos de INTRODUCTION ing the weaknesses and the inconsisten- escuadra). The parties and organisations cies, blurring the responsibility, avoiding often had a singular composition here, as Barcelona, May 1937. The first issue of the fundamental theoretical problems, we shall see. 'The People's Friend', the organ of the avoid discussion or are satisfied with a Friends of Durruti, appeared. The police THE CATALAN PARTIES few reluctant confessions and regrets. repression of the Republican state had But we still await a profound auto-criti- In Catalonia there existed organisations just crashed against the fighters of the cism, a rigorous analysis of the events. without any institutional or historic links barricades who had responded to the Everything has been done to extinguish with the parties and groups which were stalinist provocations by retaking the the most radical critiques, in particular found throughout the rest of Spain. We road of revolution. But while the those of the 'Friends of Durruti', and to mention the most important. combattants of the revolution were tak- try to write them out of history. ing the fight to the forces of repression of -The "Catalan Left" (La Esquarra the Catalan Generalitat and of the cen- However they, the 'Friends of Durruti', catalana) controlled the Generalidad. It tral state, the anarchist 'leaders' of the have supplied more than an outline of was a party of workers, intellectuals, but CNT-FAI, having become ministers of the such a vigorous analysis and they did it mostly elements of the "left-wing" petite bourgeois government, asked the victors in the heart of the battle itself. Bourgeois. It was the party of Companys, of the barricades to lay down their arms, the president of the Generalidad. This is why it seems to us to be indispen- to have faith in their 'leaders' to settle sable to publish their principal writings, -The union of rabassaires (sharecrop- the conflict and to reunite the anti-Franco still unpublished in France. To contrib- pers, agricultural small holders) was of forces. The result wasn't long in coming: ute to the debate which we wish to clarify, a similar leaning. thousands of the barricade fighters found we add here a brief study of the evolu- themselves in prison, and the censorship -The party of the Catalan state (l'Estat tion of the libertarian movement and of of the press became more brutal than Catala) was openly separatist, its nation- the Spanish revolution and also, ever. The first issue of 'Friend of the Peo- alism leaned towards fascism. neccessarily, the commentaries that the ple' was ferociously censored. But at last texts and the facts inspire in the com- THE FEDERALIST REPUBLICANS it appeared and went on to try to be the rades who pursue the struggle for liber- rallying point for all those who, while The federalist spirit appeared in Spain tarian communism today. struggling against Franco, didn't want to during the 19th century, as a strong cur- forget the tasks of the revolution. Pre- Having said that, our work is not a his- rent within Republicanism. A certain cisely those tasks which gave meaning tory of the Spanish revolution which, in number of these Republicans saw them- to the war against the military and their our eyes, remains to be written. We have selves as being very close to the federal- allies. furthermore deliberately left aside the ist ideas of the anti-authoritarian wing immense episode of economic and social of the 1st International. The federalist The 'Friends of Durruti', and more gen- achievements, collectivisations and Republicans recruited mainly from the erally the Spanish libertarian workers, socialisations, except insofar as they im- liberal petite bourgeoisie and in certain were to fail. Why? and what really was pinge upon our study. These are well cov- peasant circles. their battle? ered by the works of Gaston Leval and After almost half a century since these Frank Mintz. We have only attempted to In 1936, in the Madrid parliament (the events, nothing of substance has yet ap- examine, from a revolutionary point of Cortes), there was an astonishing parlia- peared in response to these questions. view, the period from Spring to Summer mentary extreme left. It was made up of The leaders of the 'official' anarchist 1937. A period which we believe was de- federalist republicans. There was among movement, still preoccuppied with hid- cisive. them, notably, lawyers who defended anarchist and anarcho-syndicalist activ- ists in court. The anti-fascist camp in the These liberals didn't at all want to over- turn the basis of bourgeois society but Spanish revolution they had radical rhetoric, reasonably close to the declarations of the revolution- It is absolutely necessary - the Friends the "Spanish Labyrinth". The bibliogra- aries. The CNT treated them delicately of Durruti tried to point out - to find a phy which we give will allow one to find and even supported them, despite it be- path which allows revolutionaries, with- fuller information. ing anti-parliament. out compromising and without falling SPAIN AND CATALONIA THE LEFT AND THE EXTREME into an unprincipled anti-fascist front, to have a practical strategy of struggle The pressure of regional autonomies in LEFT which unifies the proletarian forces Spain, whose unity was imposed by the The socialist party (Socialist Workers against the violent blows of the reaction, central government, goes back far. It car- Party of Spain) was a reformist party, militarism and fascism. One understands ries on today, on the institutional level composed mainly of petite bourgeois in- why the Friends of Durruti, should have (There exists in various regions, admin- tellectuals and bureaucrats. However, it given such importance to the so-called istrations which enjoy limited autonomy), contained a working class base grouped choice 'war or revolution' or as subversive action (which is the case in a union organisation, the General Un- in the Basque country). In the 1930's it ion of Workers (UGT) in so far as the But, before addressing the events and barely existed outside two regions which paths of the party and the unions were their analysis, we must lay out, as briefly were otherwise the most economically interlinked. A good example: the social- as possible, the composition of the forces developed, Catalonia and the Basque ist leader Largo Caballero, who was to present on the "antifascist" side, in order country. The Republic had granted them be, for a long time, a pure reformist and to assist the journey of the non expert their own institutions. In Catalonia, a repressive minister - was secretary gen- reader across what one author has called eral of the UGT. The leaders of the expelled from the Confederation and UGT openly fought the syndicalists constituted the "unions of opposi- of the CNT, however there was, tion". Their influence in some re- among the rank and file, in many gions was far from negligible. So circumstances, a desire for unity of much so that they were re-admitted the working class. into the CNT five years later at the congress of Zaragozza. The communists were divided and few, their Stalinism was excessive. We will soon see ministers whose Their influence grew quickly during origin was "trentiste" and even mili- the revolution. We shall see why. In tants of the FAI or intransigents Catalonia, the Stalinist party took who had battled against "Trentism", the name of PSUC, United Social- like Garcia Oliver and Federical ist Party of Catalonia, born from the Montseny, in the Madrid central fusion of the small communist party government and that of the and a socialist Catalan party. Generalidad of Catalonia, in Barce- lona. Also in September 1937, The Trotskyists made up only a few Pestana joined the CNT.[*2] groups whose activity was primarily in the mission of combating every reform- the field of theory. Their best known mili- ist tendency. The conflict escalated when, If we want to give a brief but relatively tant Andreas Nin, joined the POUM. It in 1927, the anarchist groups, until then complete overview of the currents which is incorrect to see this 'Workers Party of weakly tied together in a very loose fed- were present in the Spanish libertarian Marxist Unity' as being Trotskyist. It eration, formed the famous FAI (Federa- movement, we can distinguish: was, from 1935 on, the guise of the block tion of Iberian anarchists) along with - a small revisionist "fringe" which of communists, essentially Catalan work- some Portuguese groups. We now arrive ended up in the syndicalist party ers and peasants, who had broken with at the problem of relations between the alongside Pestana. Moscow. It was a party which exercised mass organisation and the organisation a certain influence, notably in Barcelona, of the avant-garde. Even though the re- - a "trentist" current, which saw itself but it was ceaselessly buffeted between lations between the FAI and the CNT as revolutionary but realistic which in- support for the Catalan nationalists and weren't relations of straightforward cluded a certain Juan Peiro. It had internationalism, between electoralism domination, you could find militant an- fought for the creation of Federations and the fact that a certain number of its archists who were opposed to the FAI and of industries in the CNT and had de- members were in the CNT, between the who condemned "the FAI dictatorship". nounced the adventurist practices of denunciations of the rulers in Moscow In fact while a certain number of the CNT some groups of the FAI. and its proclaimed admiration for Stalin's officers were members of the FAI, prop- erly speaking this didn't amount to a dic- - a traditionalist component consist- regime. In Trotskyist jargon, it was a tatorship, rather a dominant ideological ing of many union officers who didn't "Centrist" workers party. influence. The conflict reached a head in always see the utility of a specific or- THE LIBERTARIAN MOVEMENT ganisation bringing together anarchist 1931, at the CNT congress held in Ma- drid. It set the activists who proposed a groups (sometimes they even com- Let's pass on now to the National Con- realistic analysis and very considered bated its existence). These militants federation of Labour. Without going into approach against those activists who considered themselves anarchist but the details of its history we have to fur- wanted to launch the revolutionary up- for them anarchist groups should sim- ther elaborate on this CNT of which the risings immediately. The former drew up ply be centres of thought and general "Friends of Durruti" were members. a manifesto, receiving 30 signatures (they propaganda. This point of view is cur- It was founded in 1910, by the workers were called the "Trente" and their ten- rently very popular among anarcho- and libertarian groups which had per- dency was called "Trentisme"). In the syndicalists[3*]. sisted as inheritors of the Spanish fed- manifesto they denounced the superficial Consequently, it was far from being the eration of the 1st international. It was analysis, the simplistic and catastrophic case that the FAI included all the anar- inspired by French revolutionary syndi- conception of revolution, the cult of vio- chists for whom the trade-union wasn't calism, thus at its inception it adopted lence for its own sake, which seemed to the answer to all the problems. Further- the form of organisation and struggle of them to be characteristic of the militants more one must distinguish the working the trade union, but it defined its final of the FAI[*1]. Certainly, it was far from class FAI-ists, primarily anarcho- objective as being anarchist communism. being true that all the members of the syndicalists like Garcia Oliver and It saw the union as the fundamental FAI were hooligans. However, it is true Durruti, from the anarchists from intel- structure towards the realisation of this that adventurist revolutionary attempts lectual backgrounds like Federica goal . It was a mass anarcho-syndicalist had been attempted and were to be at- Montseny. organisation whose membership came tempted in the period that followed, at close to 1 million in 1936. the instigation, or with the support of The Libertarian youth who defended the some groups of the FAI. These attempts purity of the "acrate"[4*] ideal and played Its history is extremely complex, having were doomed to failure and resulted in a large part in the cultural and educa- passed through numerous conflicts. It fierce repression. To cut a long story tional fields especially in Catalonia. On contained two fundamental currents short, the "trentistes" who called them- this point it should be stated that the which were often opposed. One was selves prudent, but not any less revolu- Spanish libertarian movement in its en- purely anarcho-syndicalist and consid- tionary for this, counted in their number tirety was very concerned with spread- ered that the CNT was the only organi- some activists who were incontestably ing literacy and education(from which sation needed and regarded the existence inclined towards reformism. One of their came the creation of numerous modern of organised anarchist groups, outside the leaders, Angel Pestana went on to found schools, inspired by the teachings of CNT, as superfluous or even troubling. the "Syndicalist party" and would become Fracisco Ferrer, and the proliferation of On the other side was the current, in- a deputy in the Cortes. "atheneums" a kind of popular university spired by the activists, which saw them- which were very active). selves as being primarily revolutionary The activists and the unions which ral- anarchists and only then members of a lied to the ‘Manifesto of the Thirty’ were The "Friends of Durruti", all members of syndicalist confederation where they had the CNT, most also members of the FAI, formed a specific current from 1937. The bourgeois republic From July 1936 on the links between the CNT and the FAI became so close that the two emblems appeared together more and the revolutionaries often than not (People spoke of the "CNT- THE REPUBLIC OF 14 APRIL 1931 THE CNT PREPARES FOR FAI"). There was even a "libertarian REVOLUTION The bourgeois republic which came to movement" consisting of the three power in 1931, replacing the monarchy The CNT met on the 1st of May 1936, at branches: CNT, FAI, FIJL (Iberian fed- was very conservative. The support of the the congress of Zaragozza. It tried, de- eration of Libertarian Youth). But in the socialists didn’t affect this character. The spite speeches which were not immune midst of the difficulties of the war we will socialist minister of labour, Largo Cabal- from naivety, to define various aspects of see an opposition emerge between the lero, was even to be seen participating in its programme, libertarian communism. direction of the CNT, sacrificing all to the the repression of the strikes and insur- It set the conditions for the unavoidable ideology of "resistance to the extreme" rections which rose in the face of the in- alliance with the UGT in potentially revo- and submitting to the instructions of the capacity of the new regime to produce lutionary circumstances. It specified its Negrin government, and the FAI commit- even the most basic of changes. The toll position, constructive and critical at the tee for the peninsula which made a late of the first two years of the republican same time, towards the projects of land effort to save its honour by denouncing power was harsh: 400 dead, 3,000 reform. Under the title “defence of the the advance of the counter-revolution. wounded, 9,000 arrested, 160 deported, revolution” the congress addressed the To finish with this rapid overview, it 160 seizures of workers newspapers problem of revolutionary power and would be useful to note that the FAI, ...and 4 seizures of right-wing newspa- armed struggle. Certainly, it was then founded in the beginning by practically pers[*1]. We can understand why the impossible to predict exactly how the po- underground "affinity groups", was at all parliamentary elections of 1933 ended tential revolution would come to pass, stages on the margins of the law and was with the defeat of the left: the workers however the foundations of a politics numerically confined with about 30,000 didn’t vote. The socialists went from hav- which was truly a break with the capi- members in July 1936. From then on it ing 116 deputies in 1931 to having 60. talist and statist order were set out : the was active in public, and in July 1937 it seizure of economic power on every level, The most important working class force, transformed itself into a federation of lo- the role of Spain in terms of the interna- the CNT, had declared an “electoral cal and district groups, considerably more tional revolution, the abolition of the per- strike” in order to bring about the social open to membership than the affinity manent army, the need to arm the peo- revolution. It effectively produced a revo- groups, although the decision making ple and to keep the arms under the con- lutionary movement on the 8th of Decem- powers of the committees increased. Thus trol of the communes, the role of the ber 1933. In various regions, in many vil- the specific organisation, "la specifica" as “Confederal defence forces” and the effi- lages and towns, the masses declared lib- the Spaniards said, became a party in the cient organisation of the military forces ertarian communism. The repression was modern style, aiming to become a "spe- on the national scale, the crucial impor- brutal. The overtly reactionary govern- cific mass organisation". Without doubt tance of propaganda with regard to the ment went on to face a powerful insur- we can consider that the affinity groups proletariat of other countries. Let us not rection, that of Asturias, in October 1934 were no longer the same with the advent forget the general spirit which presided where socialists, communists and anar- of the period which began in July 1936, during these debates : in the resolution chists fought side by side. The quashing but on the other hand how could they not which concerned the alliance with the of the insurrection was a veritable see the poverty and the confusion of their UGT, it was specified that “every kind of bloodbath, accompanied by the severe use theoretic base which consisted of a dec- collaboration, political or parliamentary” of torture and the imprisonment of 30,000 laration of principles of a mere few with the bourgeois regime must be re- workers, of whom a significant propor- lines?[*5] jected. tion were members of the CNT. FOOTNOTES It is worthwhile to recall all this before THE POPULAR FRONT 1 La CNT en la revolucion Espanola, J Peirats, ed. looking at the attitude of the CNT two CNT, tome 1, pages 55 to 58. It is understandable that the abstention- months later, as it was in July that the 2 This was denounced by the Friends of Durruti as a ist campaign was weaker for the elections military uprising occurred. manoeveur of the reformist wing of the CNT (in no. of 1936; in fact the CNT allowed its mem- JULY 1936 8 of their Organ, El Amigo del Pueblo) bers to cast their votes for the parties of 3 You can frequently find this conception among the the left, combined under the banner of In effect events unrolled very quickly. German anarcho-syndicalists of the FAUD, the the “popular front”, with the idea that a From the start of the parliament the Swedes of the SAC, the Argentinians of the FORA victory of the left would empty the pris- deputies of the right in the Cortes issued etc... ons. It was effective; The right was beaten declarations of civil war. On the 11th of 4 "A-cratie", total absence of authority, often seemed and the political prisoners were freed... July, the Phalange[*2] seized the radio to Spanish anarchists as a clearer term than anar- transmitter in Valencia. The president of The agitation within the army was grow- chy, from which comes the use of the adjective the council was warned of the potential ing. It was already evident before the "acrate" in place of anarchist. uprising of the generals but he refused elections, to such an extent that two days 5 La CNT en la revolucion espanola, J. Peirats, tome to take those measures that he could. On before the poll, the national committee 2 p. 328 (ed. CNT, Toulouse 1952) the 17th of July, the army took power in of the CNT had issued a manifesto call- Morocco, the massacre of workers and of ing for mobilisation against a threatened left-wing personalities started... and the military coup d’Etat : “The proletariat on Madrid government declared that it was war footing, against the fascist and mon- in control of the situation. Seville fell into archist conspiracy!” What was the new DIY publishing popular front government to do? It gam- the hands of the military. Finally the gov- ernment of Casares Quiroga ceased issu- bled on passivity, and went as far as to Download and print out deny all danger, it even praised the loy- ing reassuring declarations but only so anarchist publications from that it could pass the baton to a govern- alty of the military chiefs. ment of reconciliation, presided over by http://struggle.ws/pdf.html Martinez Barrio, with the ministry of war offered to General Mola who refused it recognition of a committee of militias that the mass of activists were caught and declared himself in open rebellion. made up of delegates from various organi- napping and accepted the crude assimi- sations, but the CNT was only to have lation of working class power in the On the morning of July 19th, the paper an equal representation as the UGT, streets and factories, in place of a state of the CNT, Solidaridad Obrera, came out, which was in the minority in Catalonia. or party power, or ‘anarchist dictatorship’. severely censured by the republican gov- It also gave a place to the bourgeois We will come back to this. ernment, but the appeal of the Catalan Catalan organisations. Without doubt it regional committee, an call to arms and For a while, the collaboration in state was necessary to take forces outside the for a general strike, escaped the censors. power wasn’t very evident. Without doubt CNT into account. But in what manner The same regional committee and the to save face and to quieten the worries of were they to be taken into account? In local federation of Barcelona Unions de- a certain number of activists, the com- effect this was to put the government of manded that the Generalidad of Catalo- mittee of militias didn’t really take on the the Generalitat back into the saddle by nia and the civil governor should distrib- appearance of a government and re- giving numerical strength to the con- ute arms to the popular forces. In vain. mained autonomous to a certain extent, servative forces. However, the militants of the CNT seized although it had been officially created by the arms stored in the ships in the port. This political line was ratified by the rep- a decree of the government of the The authorities ordered the forces of pub- resentatives at the regional plenum of Generalitat and was merely a congrega- lic order to take them back but only a tiny local and cantonal organisations of the tion of the leaders of the various organi- amount were recovered. In Madrid, the CNT and FAI on the 23rd of July. sations rather than a body emanating national committee of the CNT called for from rank and file committees. A stupefying false dilemma obscured the a revolutionary general strike over the debate from the start: “either libertarian But what is remarkable is the breach radio and requested the activists to guard communism which is equivalent to anar- which, little by little, was to become es- the union offices with arms. chist dictatorship or democracy, that is tablished between the politics of the rank On the 19th and 20th of July the Barce- to say collaboration”. According to José and file organisations and those of the lona barracks were taken by the popular Peirats (who doesn’t cite his sources) committees at the top. Thus the union forces and the CNT and FAI activists, Garcia Oliver was its architect. Oliver sections at the bottom took the measures who constituted the principal element of claims, on the contrary, that he was one of seizing businesses, workers control and these forces, were the uncontested mas- of the only militants who took the side of even collectivisation. At the same time as ters of the social and economic life of the revolution (everything for everyone) these workers’ demands were being car- Catalonia. In Madrid, from the 20th on, and he accuses Federica Montseny and ried out, the committees were publishing the comrades of the CNT, aided by groups Santillan of having carried the majority communiqués insisting on the necessity of assault guards and by the Socialist at the plenum against the dangers of ‘an- of returning to work and increasing pro- youth, made themselves masters of the archist dictatorship’. Nevertheless both duction while refraining from giving any situation. Elsewhere the struggle was G. Oliver and F. Monstseny would soon revolutionary advice with regard to the confused, thus in Valencia, due to the find themselves collaborating within the running of large companies. 2 examples : procrastination of the government it took government. the communiqué of the Barcelona local 15 days for the military to be defeated. Federation of Unions on July 28th and How do we explain that the vast major- the manifesto of the peninsular commit- Wherever it could, the Madrid govern- ity of the CNT and the FAI rallied, it is tee of the FAI on the 26th which were a ment made the situation worse : its civil true more in resignation than with en- collection of romantic, even delirious, governors and the delegate juntas which thusiasm, to the side of collaboration in declarations extolling the heroism of the it created hurried to end the strikes, to the midst of state bodies? We shouldn’t workers, appealing for a “new era”, but suppress the peoples’ executive commit- lose sight of the fact that the Spanish without even the least mention of politi- tees which had risen. Thus it allowed the anarchist movement, while it was pre- cal power or socialisation. enemy time to rally, to reinforce its front dominantly working class, was not im- at Teruel, to consolidate at Zaragozza and mune from some of the weaknesses of the The constructive revolutionary drive in Asturias, to become master of international anarchist movement of the (with the de facto alliance of the CNT and Andalucia. However on the 19th of July, period. Bourgeois idealism, ill-defined UGT) rose from the people, from the un- the military uprising could be considered humanism, the substitution of hollow ions and from their activists, while the to have failed on the most rich, populous philosophical talks for solid political re- committees followed a course of modera- and developed two thirds of the territory. flection, individualism and dilettantism tion.[*3] These committees of “officials” were common especially among the in- were also to find themselves confronted THE MASSES AND THE LEADERS tellectuals who were sometimes closer to with criticism which was aimed at the It was Barcelona which was going to ar- radical liberalism than to revolutionary organisations which they represented. bitrate the future of a revolution for syndicalism. It suffices to read a few of The criticisms were sometimes well- which the military uprising was the trig- their magazines and pamphlets to be con- founded: there were some abusive or un- ger. What were the CNT and the FAI go- vinced of this. The Congress of Zaragozza warranted seizures of goods, arbitrary ing to make of the immense power which was, to a certain extent, a reflection of arrests by groups of individuals without they had just acquired? this situation. It was certainly forced to mandate and even summary executions. give a hearing to libertarian communism, During an initial meeting, Companys, We will go on to see how an attempt was but the problem of political power was president of the Catalan Generalidad, made to sort out the problem of what one never clearly posed. Thus there were ta- gave a carte blanche to the representa- might call “revolutionary security”, but boo subjects in the libertarian organisa- tives of the leading bodies of the CNT. one thing that we can see immediately is tions and the idea of power of the masses What else could he do since his govern- that the committees at the top were go- as opposed to the state power, a vital, ment had lost all credibility? In fact he ing to fall into the trap which the central fundamental question, was still sur- was to manouver : he proposed the crea- government and that of Catalonia were rounded by an embarrassed silence. tion of a committee of antifascist militias setting: blackmail by foreign goods and but published a decree which tried to Too often the phrase “acrate” and the af- by crude terrorism were used, even by the transform the militias into a police force firmation of “anarchist purity” took the committee of militias and the higher under the command of the Generalitat. place of deep consideration. Therefore it’s ranks of the organisations. Certainly it The representatives of the CNT forced the not as surprising as one would imagine, was necessary to guard against any provocations and it is true that war ships but we should note that the initial buzz ers of these organisations, and did not of foreign powers had arrived in the port of opposition arising from the mobilised rise out of popular assemblies and their of Barcelona. The Catalan regional com- youth had tremendous energy: during an delegates. It was a real party power mittee went so far as to give a list of 87 immense rally which was held in Barce- which was put in place. Public power was English firms which were to be respected lona on the 10th of August, the various going to be wielded by Largo Caballero at all costs. But the republican state orators of the CNT and FAI reaffirmed and his ministers who were modestly shamelessly exploited a few isolated acts the importance that the people should not called “councillers”. of excess and the threat of foreign squad- be disarmed under any pretext. In fact, the leaders of the CNT wished to rons to move the situation in the direc- The general impression which emerges join the government but had to save face tion of normalisation under governmen- from all this first period is an impression and quieten the worries of their militants tal authority. However, the governments of ambiguity. The revolutionary values found it difficult to accept the open aban- of Madrid and Barcelona weren’t going seemed to have been defended intransi- donment of their sworn principles. to achieve their aim without problems. gently while at the same time concrete On the 30th of September, a meeting of In effect, beside the committee of mili- measures had been taken which went the national plenum of regional organi- tias which kept a revolutionary appear- towards the abandonment of the radical sations of the CNT ratified participation, ance, “popular patrols”, 700 men divided line of social and political transformation. or rather according to its own wording, into 11 units, were created to take care Here is another example of this. At the acceded to the insistent demand for the of revolutionary security. On this occa- same time as the CNT and the FAI were creation of a national council of defence. sion the CNT respected the balance of refusing popular disarmament, they were forces between the organisations. The creating with their partners a commit- In between time, on the 27th of Septem- government of the Generalidad went tee of accord which gave a great position ber, the entrance of the CNT representa- along with it but it knew that this was to the UGT (which was only beginning to tives into the government of the an embryonic armed popular force and it develop in Catalonia) and to the PSUC Generalidad, taking the title “council of would decree the dissolution of the pa- which declared itself to be “the party of defence” was announced, causing the dis- trols as soon as it was able to. revolutionary order, in the sense of respect solution of the committee of militias. for private property” and which was to Thus the situation of dual power had For their part, the rank and file organi- drain the petite-bourgeois forces in the passed. The struggle against sations pursued the work of socialisation course of becoming a significant party. “uncontrollables” was to get more intense, and a Council of the Catalan economy Incontestably the creation of a commit- and the necessity of strong discipline was was created by a decree on August 13th. tee of accord illustrates the politics of the to be reaffirmed. Durruti’s ambiguous THE GOVERNMENTS FIRST leaders and is itself already a sign of an phrase “we renounce all except victory” OFFENSIVE abandonment of real revolutionary poli- was used as cover for the operation, turn- tics. Having said that, in the context of ing it into a warning against the coun- At the beginning of August, the central the chosen direction, it is difficult to un- ter-revolution, while Durruti was at the government decreed the mobilisation of derstand how the CNT and FAI accepted same time declaring to the Madrid press: classes 33, 34 and 35. In Barcelona, the only having as many representatives on “We, on the other hand, carry on the war youth who were in these classes came out the committee of accord as did the UGT and the revolution at the same time”. into the streets and refused to go to bar- and the PSUC. This would come to weigh racks. They held demonstrations crying How had the CNT and FAI been able to heavily in the course of the months to “down with the army, long live the popu- come to this? How were their leading come. lar militias”. A number of these men were committees able to get a mandate for such already members of the militias and were TOWARDS OPEN COLLABORATION a fundamental change? Had the problems preparing themselves to leave for the WITH THE GOVERNMENT posed by the war and by the revolution front. This time the regional committee really been truly addressed? In Madrid, at the start of September, the of the CNT, the groups of the FAI and government of Giral was replaced by the The documents of the epoch are silent. the newspaper Solaridad Obrera were on government of Largo Caballero who be- Nothing was treated in depth, analysis the side of those who refused moaned the non-participation of the CNT. had been replaced by speeches and dec- militarisation. In this a reasonable reac- 2 months later, on the 30th of October, larations. tion of the bottom against the plans ema- Largo Caballero revealed, in an interview nating from governmental spheres can be If in the international anarchist move- with the Daily Express, reproduced in all observed and this was a massive popu- ment, discussion was alive, even the papers, the desire of the CNT to share lar reaction. heated[*4], apparently in Spain there the responsibilities of government. was resignation. However, a compromise solution was to Meanwhile, on the 3rd of September, is- prevail under the aegis of the committee BIRTH OF AN OPPOSITION sue 41 of the CNT-FAI information bul- of militias and the council of defence: the letin had published a violently anti- In reality the situation was more com- youth went to barracks, but under the statist article, but in mid September the plex than it appeared. One must take authority of the council of militias. The national plenum of the regional organi- account of two important objective fac- CNT and the FAI approved. It seemed sations proclaimed the necessity of par- tors: on one hand many militants were that the most important thing had been ticipation in “a national body equipped at the front, they were at war and politi- conserved despite the concessions. While to assume functions of leadership” this cal problems were not at the top of their the career soldiers of various levels would body being a “national council of defence” lists since the were fighting in particu- be utilised in the technical field, the com- composed of 5 delegates of the CNT, 5 larly difficult conditions and with arma- mand would be assumed by councils of from the UGT and 4 “republicans”, un- ments which were often worse than defi- worker-soldiers, composed of elected sol- der the presidency of Largo Caballero. cient. On the other hand many of the com- diers and delegates from the organisa- Certainly, the replacement of the ancient rades in the rear were consciously ad- tions and parties. But lets not forget that institutions by regional councils of de- vancing their affairs: the socialisations a ‘council of defence’ had just been cre- fence, in a way that was called federalist and collectivisation’s were going full ated, at the heart of the government of was declared, but everything, including steam ahead, the popular militias and the the Generalitat, which had military au- the representation of the organisations popular patrols appeared at least par- thority over Catalonia. We will describe in the councils, was decided by the lead- tially like the embryo of a real popular, what this council of defence amounted to, anti-bourgeois power. Both groups were certainly seen but they were improvised ity of the Aragon front, which was mainly to be surprised by the evolution of events. and lacked political content. As in mid held by confederal divisions which didn’t The ever harsher retaking of governmen- October ’36 the CNT-FAI column, “the receive arms, while the well-armed tal power, the elimination of popular bod- Iron column, was to leave the Teruel front stalinist units watched in the rear. Thus, ies or attempts at establishing dual for a brief incursion in the rear. It was little by little, a campaign of slander was power. Nevertheless the forces opposed intended to denounce parasitism and the set in motion, of which the CNT was not to the politics of the officer corp and strug- forces of repression, to demand the dis- the only victim. The POUM was the first gles for the maintenance of the base of a armament and dissolution of the civil target. The conflict between the POUM workers power, could be observed. In the guard, the sending of the armed troops and the PSUC precipitated a crisis of gov- militias at the front resistance to in the service of the state to the front, ernment in Catalonia. A new government militarisation remained alive and the the destruction of institutional files and was installed, hypocritically composed of advances of socialisation and collectivi- archives and the seizure of funds and “social categories” and not of parties. sation were to be maintained despite the precious metals for the purchase of arms, Thus the representatives of the unions decisions of the government. etc. That “cleansing” incursion in the rear (CNT and UGT), of the Catalan left rep- saw much blood spilled during the bat- resenting the petite-bourgeoisie and the And then, on the purely political front, tles with the forces of repression. rabassaires (small peasants) were to be resistance nevertheless showed itself. It found in it, while the POUM was ex- was often shouted down, hidden by the The Iron Column published a manifesto cluded. This didn’t shame the CNT which speeches of the leaders, it was sometimes explaining its concerns that the combat- described the new government as apoliti- alive and clear in meetings, especially ants should not be betrayed in the rear cal! During this period the stalinists had visible in the press: Ruta, the organ of and they expressed their political choice organised demonstrations against the the Catalan libertarian youth, which was clearly: “We fight to make the social revo- lack of vitals until the arrival of Russian to be a paper of opposition right up to the lution a reality”. Whatever may be one’s ships which brought the “gift of the Rus- end of the war, the review Acracia from view on the adventurist or inconsequen- sian workers” to the proletariat of Barce- Lérida, the daily Nosotros from Valencia tial aspect of this affair, one can only be lona, paid for by Spanish gold.[*6] supported by the “Iron Column”. struck by the feeling of the militia mem- bers that they should not be toys of the The number of incidents was to increase: A weakness which was not to be sur- institutions of government and bourgeois assassinated comrades, suspended news- mounted until the spring of 1937 by the parties, to be “refashioned” by the high papers, detentions in the special prisons Friends of Durruti was that the opposi- politics of the rulers, the will of these men of the stalinist agents where prisoners tion remained on the level of “acrate” to fight, on the condition that they do it were tortured. The Cheka was moving in. purism, rather than on the level of the not for any republic whatsoever but for Meanwhile on the 21st of January 1937 necessary analysis of the underlying the revolution. the committee of accord, set up on the problems. 11th of August(see above), appealed once We will soon see more reactions of this Another weakness was the dispersion, again for fraternity, with the signature type. the lack of cohesion, of co-ordination. The of the CNT, FAI, UGT and PSUC. opposition wasn’t made up of a tendency THE REPRESSION INCREASES Otherwise, with much reticence in the which would struggle to be able to express It is precisely from the moment that the confederal columns, militarisation of the themselves in the Confederate press. And CNT-FAI participated in the government, militias went ahead. The higher commit- this isolation was such that most mili- that the repression was given free reign. tees of the CNT went to the front to con- tants, especially those who were at the It is certain that the participation was vince the militia members that this front, didn’t even know that there was experienced as a setback by the militants, militarisation, which tended towards the an opposition. including those who supported it, and as revival of the old military reasoning, was What’s more the opposition was trapped a sign of weakness by their adversaries, well-founded. Some militia members left by the blackmail for antifascist unity, by extremely happy to ensnare the princi- the columns but in the end, even the Iron the necessity to disguise disagreements pal revolutionary force in the web of laws Column accepted the new regulations. in the face of the enemy. and decrees, and within governmental The Stalinist provocations went on and “solidarity”. The committees at the top didn’t hold a crisis was to be provoked in Barcelona back from using underhand manoeuvres The central government left the threat- by a decree of the 4th of March 1937 from like the speedy convocation of a plenum ened city of Madrid and retreated to Va- the councillor of public order ordering the for which the mass assemblies wouldn’t lencia. Madrid was then governed by a disbandment of the popular patrols and have time to prepare, or incomplete agen- delegate junta of defence, of which the of various armed bodies; the disarma- das which allowed them to propose im- president, General Miaja, had as a first ment of the popular forces for the benefit portant points, unannounced, at the last duty to replace the checkpoints and watch of the state force. moment[*5]. Finally the cult of the leader, guards of the militias with security units The confederal and anarchist activists the charismatic power of the decision and assault guards. Clashes occurred, arose against their representatives in the maker was at play in the libertarian or- CNT activists were found assassinated. Catalan government. The federation of ganisations, like in every grouping. The repression also took an insidious anarchist groups of Barcelona, the re- To sum up, under the cover of the magic track. The bank of Spain possessed a vast gional committee of the CNT, the work- phrases, federalism and autonomy, the treasure of gold as well as large cash de- ers and soldiers councils, demanded the leaders hung on to power within the CNT posits in England and in the bank of annulation of the decree. and the FAI. We would have to wait until France. The policy of non-intervention Companys, the president of the the government and the forces which sup- allowed Great Britain and France to Generalidad, tried many legal formulas ported it went violently on the offensive refuse the use of these deposits but Sta- to resolve the crisis. A new government against the revolutionary sectors to see lin’s Russia was to receive the Spanish was formed on the 26th of April with 4 at last the rising of an opposition which gold in exchange for arms and supplies. representatives of the CNT, but nothing attempted to address fundamental prob- The Russian arms only reached the sec- was resolved. lems, “Los Amigos de Durruti”. tors controlled by the communist party. The organ of this party, Mundo Obrero, Up until then reasonable reactions were pretended to be outraged by the inactiv- MAY 1937 confederal committees in a communiqué Berneri, wrongly presented as the circulated on the night of the 5th to 6th leader[*10] of the “Friends of Durruti” by At the end of April and the start of May of May. A manifesto signed by the CNT the communists, was, as he writes him- elements of the police disarmed some and UGT of Barcelona was broadcast on self, in a “centrist” position. However his militants of the CNT and arrested them. the radio. It appealed for a return to calm. denunciations of stalinist crimes and his On the 2nd of May, at 3 in the afternoon, Meanwhile the police forces made at- sharp and cutting criticisms of govern- large contingents of the state forces, un- tempts to improve their positions and ment policy (including the CNT minis- der the command of the general commis- units of the navy entered the port. The ters) were hitting the mark. sioner of public order, launched a surprise central government took public order into attack on the telephone exchange. They The governmental and stalinist repres- its hands and sent a large contingent of could only get as far as the ground floor sion was not to stop with the armistice. assault guards to Catalonia. and the confederal militants in the work- The disbandment of the popular patrols, ing class areas were alerted. Against the The appeals for calm of Garcia Oliver and ordered in the decree of March the 4th state forces (assault guards, national re- Mariano Vasquez[*8] were not heeded. was to be carried out. The campaigns publican guard - ex. civil guard, security Federica Montseny, the envoy from the against the CNT were to continue and service, guard of the Generalitat), the central government, having miraculously there was also to be the monstrous case PSUC and the Catalan separatists, were escaped the enemies gunfire, managed to of the POUM ranged the popular forces CNT-FAI, lib- get to Companys and provisionally re- FOOTNOTES ertarian youth, POUM, popular patrols, moved him from his duties in the name 1 Consult Histoire des républiques espagnoles by benefiting from the technical assistance of the government. It seems that Victor Alba of the confederal committees of defence. Companys had been awaiting the arrival 2 At the core of the forces of the right, the “Phalange” The barricades were raised and the bat- of the British squadron which was in ef- was the fascist party, its links with Italian fascism tle was at least as fierce as that of July fect sailing towards Barcelona. and the Nazis were openly declared. 19th 1936 the mastery of the town was The CNT and the FAI, on the night of 3 It is however in these achievements of self-man- at stake. May 6th made new propositions for an agement that the Spanish libertarian movement was The confederal ministers of the end to the conflict but the fighting went able to show its capacity and its value and thus write Generalitat hoped to obtain the on. However, during the morning of the the most beautiful page of the revolution. annulation of the orders which had been 7th, calm seemed to fall and forces of the 4 For example the paper edited by Prudhommeaux given to the state forces and the sacking government entered central Barcelona, L’Espagne antifasciste had to leave Barcelona for of their colleagues who had abused their forces which guards of confederal origin French territory to avoid cénétiste censorship. Guerra positions. But the other parties didn’t had joined when it was composed, and of di classe the paper of the Italian volunteers, inspired want to give way. The attitude of presi- which the commandant was himself and by Berneri had to suspend its publication dent Companys was equivocal and he old militia man of the “Terra y Libertad” 5 It is edifying to consult the work of José Peirats on opposed any sanctions against the per- column. this matter. La CNT en la revolución espanola, tome petrators. 1, page 275 forward. In the 1955, Buenos Aires edi- The regional committee of the CNT con- tion. A general strike was launched. The popu- sidered the “tragic incident” to be over. 6 See the bottom of page 164 of la CNT en la lar forces made themselves masters of the But there were 500 dead and 1000 peo- revolucion espanola by José Peirats, tome 2, ed. outlying areas and the majority of the ple wounded. The intervening armistice CNT. centre. The barracks were taken and the was accompanied by the promise of the 7 This is true in general for Barcelona, It is impossi- government’s resistance weakened de- release of prisoners on both sides. The ble to predict what would have happened on an over- spite the superior arms of the PSUC and confederals carried out this promise while all scale if the “ceasefire” had not taken place. Catalan state. the government and the chekists kept 8 Garcia Oliver and Federica Montseny, ministers of their prisoners and even carried out new On the 4th of May, the popular forces the central government, members of the CNT and arrests. In fact, in the Chekist prisons, were already, to a large extent, victori- the FAI, Mariano Vasquez, first regional, then na- many prisoners were executed and up till ous[*7]. But the upper committees ap- tional secretary of the CNT. the 11th of May many mutilated bodies pealed for the weapons to be laid down 9 There are solid theories according to which the were found. whether they be held by the command- assassins were far right Catalan seperatists, linked ers of the provoking forces or by the re- The events of May 1937 had repercus- to Italian fascists. The archives of Mussolini’s secret gional committees of the CNT weapons. sions in the whole region, so much so that police, the OVRA, seized after the fall of fascism, Garcia Oliver, a minister in the central confederal columns and those of the led Berneri’s family and friends to draw this conclu- government, was sent by that committee POUM remained to prevent the stalinist sion. Elsewhere, in his book Los Ecos de los Pasos, to find a solution, by appealing to anti- elements of the 21st division from head- on page 431 and 432, Garcia Oliver, the minister of fascist unity. It certainly seems that the ing towards Barcelona. justice at the time of the killing, questions the anar- Catalanists, the communists of the chist “obsession” with blaming the communists for We wouldn’t be able to conclude this brief Generalitat and the president himself every crime, and is inclined to see the hand of the outline of events without entering into wouldn’t have been disposed to take heed OVRA in the murder of Beneri. evidence the assassination, on the 5th of of the doings of Garcia Oliver and his 10 In Grido del Popolo, the official organ of the Ital- May, of the Italian anarchist militants, friends, but the anti-aircraft guns of ian communist party, the secretary of which was Cammillo Berneri and Barbieri[*9]. Montjuch were in the hands of the CNT- Togliatti. FAI and the cannons were ready to fire Note from the translator tive work of Alternative Libertaire. No date is at the presidential palace. given for this edition. The introduction is not credited and the pub- On the 5th of May, the Catalan govern- lishing details are a little bit difficult to dis- The title in French is (as it appears on the ment resigned en masse. The confederal cern since there are Alternative Libertaire cover) le message revolutionnaire des "Amis forces didn’t dare to carry the matter to stickers on top of the original publishing in- de Durruti" (Espagne 1937) Texte et its conclusion owing to the calls for a truce formation. What I can say is that it is the sec- traductions de Georges Fontenis Avant-Propos and a cease-fire. But the malcontent to- ond edition, published editions "L" and/or de Daniel Guerin.THE REVOLUTIONARY AGORA 2000, po box 177, 75267 Paris Cedex MESSAGE OF THE "FRIENDS OF wards the committees grew. It was thus 20 and/or Le Fil Du Temps. DURRUTI" -text and translations by George that the “Friends of Durruti” appeared, Fontenis, preface by Daniel Guerin. whose pamphlet condemning the attitude There is a note on the inside cover that says of conciliation was disowned by the that the present edition is part of the collec- Translated 1999/2000 by Chekov Feeney The ‘Friends of Durruti’ and the ‘People’s friend’ WHO WERE THE FRIENDS OF We salute our comrades of the POUM DURRUTI (Workers party of Marxist unity) who have been at our sides in the streets. We saw, in part one, that opposition be- Long live the social revolution!” gan to show itself against the lawyers who were, to a greater or lesser extent, But who made up the “Friends of accustomed to ministerial collaboration. Durruti”? They called themselves an Notably the Catalan Libertarian youth ‘agrupacion’, that is to say, not a group, had declared their refusal to “become ac- but more a grouping, a rallying. They complices by staying silent” and they had were all CNT activists, many were also even added “we are ready to return to il- members of the militias who had not legal existence if necessary....” agreed with militarisation, some had even left the militias when militarisation In the spring [*1] of 1937 a grouping of had been put in place. Others were mem- opposition militants began to come out bers of the popular patrols. A good in public under the name of the “Amigos number of them were still at the front in de Durruti” and before the May days, the predominantly confederal units they wrote in a leaflet[*2]: which had emerged from the ‘Iron Col- “The revolutionary and anarchist spirit umn’, the ‘Durruti Column’ and others. of the 19th of July has lost its focus... The But after the May days they were slan- CNT and FAI who, during the early July dered, treated as ‘uncontrollables’, as days, best embodied the revolutionary ‘provocateurs’, even as Stalinist agents FAI, the Stalinists blocked every alliance direction and potential energy of the by the leadership of the CNT and FAI, or which was independent of them (for ex- streets, today find themselves in a weak- as fascist agents by the Stalinists and ample the collaboration between the lib- ened position since they failed to trust in their allies. ertarian youth and the POUM’s youth themselves during the days evoked above. It should be added that the officials of the wing). We have seen that the leaders of We accepted collaboration, as minor part- libertarian movement were to voluntar- the CNT-FAI accepted the expulsion of ners, while we were by far the major force ily classify them as Trotskyists, due to the POUM from the government but that on the streets. We reinforced the repre- their courageous defence of the POUM in May 1937, the libertarian workers sentatives of the decrepit, counter-revolu- and its activists. The Trotskyists, ex- fought side-by-side with those of the tionary petit-bourgeois. tremely happy with this godsend, tried POUM. In no way can we tolerate the adjourn- to give some credence to the rumour. Re- Having said this, it should be pointed out ment of the revolution until the end of the cently, issue 10 of ‘cahiers Leon Trotski’ that the politics of the POUM leadership military conflict. (published by the institution of the same was as disastrous as that of the CNT-FAI. name which is made up of various groups The glorious workers’ militias.... are fac- of the Trotskyist persuasion) published In fact, the myth of the Trotskyism of the ing the danger of being transformed into a study by F.M. Aranda on the “Friends Friends of Durruti came from the liber- a regular army which doesn’t offer the of Durruti”. The author laboriously at- tarian movement and the Trotskyists least safeguard to the working class.” tempts to demonstrate the collaboration tried to give the myth a significance In this leaflet, the Friends of Durruti between these militants and the which it never had. They took advantage draw attention to the threat that the ‘pub- Trotskyists of the period. What is the of the fact that the anarchist leaders, re- lic order’ project for Catalonia was pos- truth of the matter? jecting all rigorous analysis coming from ing. The project was postponed but was their own ranks, were trying to discredit The sole established fact, out of all the to raise its head again. It aimed to re- the “Friends of Durruti” and were assist- alleged secret agreements, is the rela- place the revolutionary forces in the rear ing in their repression. In a milieu where tions between a few of the Friends of with a repressive body, “neutral, amor- the worst insult was to be labelled a Durruti and one, yes one single Trotskyist phous, capitulating in the face of the coun- ‘Marxist’, this also allowed them to avoid activist, as it happens the German Hans ter revolution”. Prophetically, the Friends dealing with their urgent problems and Davis Freund, known by the pseudonym of Durruti added that “if such plans come their proper responsibilities. Moulin. Nothing is said about the nature to hold sway, it will not be long before we of these relations, none of the names of In any case, the “Friends of Durruti”, who once again fill the prisons.” the members of the “Friends of Durruti” went on to publish a newspaper instead During the May days they published a in question is specified.... But this seems of leaflets as their mouthpiece, were to leaflet and a manifesto which were sufficient to this ‘historian’ to speak of a stridently stand their ground, proclaim- warmly received by the workers. Here are “close association”! On page 83 of the ing their adherence to revolutionary an- the contents of the leaflet (written in the same issue of the same publication, archism despite the disavowals and slan- midst of the action, the style is sober). Pierre Brouff recalls, more honestly, that ders that the highest circles of the offi- the “Friends of Durruti” “rejected a meet- cial libertarian movement never failed to “CNT-FAI, ‘Friends of Durruti’ grouping: ing to plan common activities”....the file hurl at them. This paper EL Amigo del Workers, let us not abandon the streets. is thus extremely thin. Pueblo, the people’s friend, was published A revolutionary junta. from July to September 1937, in eight As for the defence of the POUM, this Execution of the guilty. issues. In the first issue, on page 4, two would appear logical. The Stalinists Disarming of the armed bodies. long articles throw light on the attach- wanted to destroy the POUM, which op- Socialisation of the economy. ment of the Friends of Durruti to the lib- posed their hegemony and defended the Dissolution of the political parties who ertarian movement. We read, in an arti- victims of the Moscow show-trials. Not have attacked the working class. cle entitled being able to directly take on the CNT- “Introducing ourselves. Why we are pub- the promises, the syndical assemblies had issues of this paper, which appeared be- lishing, what do we want, where are we not been convoked to discuss the issues tween July and the end of September going?. and how the committees had taken the 1937. Without doubt, everything is found decision to expel the members of the here, but since we are materially obliged We have appeared publicly without in the Friends of Durruti, despite the fact that to make a selection, we have concentrated least wanting to engage in personal the Libertarian youth and many activ- on the more profound articles and been squabbles. Our aims are loftier. The suc- ists were opposed to the measure. The more restrained with regard to the po- cess of our aspirations is measured in expulsions, having been confirmed by a lemic and apologetic articles. However days of triumph and passion for our ideas national plenum bringing together the something must be said about the latter and desires. regional organisations (the Andalusian due to their frequency and repetitively. We feel a pure love for the National Con- regional organisation opposed the deci- This doggedness is significant, as is the federation of Labour and for the Anar- sion), were in fact rarely carried out in style employed which is likely to surprise chist Federation of Iberia. But this very the unions. today’s readers. attachment which we profess for these The appeal to the workers which finished It should be stated, even if this is less organisations which is of the same sub- with cries of “long live the social revolu- and less true, that anarchist literature stance as our worries, incites us to con- tion, long live libertarian communism” (with reference to the press more than front certain insinuations which we judge and pointed out the sympathetic mood theoretical texts) makes intensive use of as wicked and unwarranted”. encountered by the Friends of Durruti, romantic-revolutionary lyricism. One can The following issue included on page 3, was to be scarcely heard. find long incantory passages, appealing in large type: as much to the memory of ancient Rome, However, the various issues of “Amigo del as to the French revolution. What’s more, “The association of the Friends of Durruti Pueblo” contained news of significant Spain has a penchant for excessively epic is made up of CNT and FAI activists. Only subscriptions, of new members, of the concoctions[*6] and the language lends syndical assemblies can expel us from the formation of new branches, either in itself to soaring, passionate. But it cer- Confederal organisation. Meetings of lo- confederal units or in localities in Cata- tainly wouldn’t be sufficient to see this cal and cantonal delegates do not have lonia (Sans, Tarrassa or Sabadell for ex- as merely the desire of the activists to the power to expel comrades. We challenge ample). But in a short on page 2 of issue express their exalted sentiments. It rep- the committees to put the question of the 3, and in a large banner on the bottom of resents the last flames of an epoch. Spain ‘Friends of Durruti’ to the assemblies, page 3 of the same issue, we learn that of 1936 was one of the last homes of the where the sovereignty of the organisation the Barcelona local federation of the Lib- insurrectional storm which Europe had resides.” ertarian Youth and the Youth defence experienced during the previous century. committees had informed the regional The attachment of the Friends of Durruti committees of the CNT and FAI of their To get back to essential matters, the fun- to the organisations of the libertarian agreement with the Friends of Durruti’s damental problems, we have therefore movement went as far as an attempted interpretation of the May days. But the selected articles and grouped them to- reconciliation as we can read in the grouping’s influence was to remain al- gether under a certain number of topics. communiqué in large type on the bottom most exclusively limited to Catalonia and Each topic is indicated by a sub heading of the front page of the third issue: most of the combatants in the predomi- and makes reference to published arti- “Respecting the agreement reached dur- nantly libertarian units never even knew cles. ing the plenum of groups of the FAI, and of their existence[*3]. They lacked the WHY DURRUTI? hoping that the committees of the CNT means of publicising themselves; Repres- and FAI will do the same, we are making sion both overt and hidden, exercised by Before addressing the substantial ques- a correction to the suggestion of treason the government and CNT committees tions, there is a question which our read- which appeared in the manifesto that was to triumph quickly. ers certainly have the right to ask and came out during the May days. which should certainly be answered: why Issue 4 of Amigo del Pueblo contained the reference to Durruti? We repeat what we declared during the news of the arrest of Jaime Balius [*4], plenum, that we didn’t attribute a sense the chief editor of the publication, and the Along with Francisco Ascaso, who was of bad faith and negligence to the word closure by the police of their office on No. equally venerated by El Amigo del ‘treason’. It is with that interpretation in 1 Ramblas de la Flores. Pueblo, Buenaventura Durruti was the mind that we reconsider the use of the most popular revolutionary in 1936 The following issues were partly given word ‘treason’ in the hope that the com- Spain. Ascaso fell on the 19th of July 1936 over to the denouncing the escalating mittees will also rectify the suggestion of at the head of the CNT-FAI combatants repression and the difficulties of publish- ‘agents-provocateurs’ which they have during the assault of the Atarazanas bar- ing the paper. On September 21st 1937, hurled at us. racks. Durruti left Barcelona for the the last issue, number 8, left the presses. Aragon front with a column of militia- We have been the first to set the record Thus the Friends of Durruti were unable men. He then made for Madrid which was straight. We are waiting for the commit- to be the rallying point for the anarchist under imminent threat from the fascists. tees to follow the example shown here, in opposition, spread thinly in the On the 20th of November he was fatally the very near future.” Confederal masses and at the front. But wounded in circumstances which remain The story of this attempted compromise at least they were able to leave a legacy obscure. His life was a series of adven- is again taken up in detail in issue 5, to the proletariat, a collection of analy- tures and his death on the Madrid front published on the 20th of July, of which ses and programmatic proposals which turned him into a legend. most of page 3 is taken up with a solemn must be taken into account. To learn about the episodes of his life as appeal. We see, in this text entitled “The EL AMIGO DEL PUEBLO much as about the circumstances of his grouping of Friends of Durruti to the death, Abel Paz’ book must be consulted workers”, how the conflict between the It is in this publication [*5], which has (see the bibliography). Equally, to com- Friends of Durruti and the official organs already been cited that we find the core plement and correct it, Garcia Oliver’s of the CNT and FAI had been played out. of the programme and analysis of the book, cited above, reveals the less laud- How, after positions had been taken in Friends of Durruti. able aspects of Durruti’s personality. One the aftermath of the May days, despite We possess copies (photo-copied) of the 8 point deserves clarification; Durruti, Ascaso and the whole ‘Solidarios’ affin- The bottom of the page declares, in very ism, there are other people among the ity group would have been thought of as large type: anonymous masses who are not consid- ‘anarcho-bolsheviks’ by certain Spanish ered to be symbols and who could perhaps “Are we provocateurs? Are we the same anarchists in the ’20s. They were parti- surpass our hero” old thing? Durruti is our guide! His flag sans of a revolutionary alliance with is ours! Long live the FAI! Long live the The following issue (no 6, 12 August other forces of the left, since strictly an- CNT!” 1937), comes back to the question under archist insurrections would have been the heading “Los Caudillos”[*7]. But the doomed to failure. They talked of a con- The determination to attach themselves ‘caudillism’ which is denounced is that of quest of ‘power’, after ‘the old machinery to the memory of Durruti (and at the the parties which reigns in the highest of state had been destroyed’. Such a point same time to reply to the accusation of spheres of the CNT and FAI. It is the of view has nothing in common with ‘gov- being ‘provocateurs’ or ‘irresponsibles’) is caudillism of those who have been built ernmental participation’, contrary to evident in all of the following issues. up by the press and orators. It is a differ- Cesar M. Lorenzo’s claims in his book Can we talk of a cult of personality here? ent matter when it concerns the “hero”. ‘Spanish anarchists and government’. Furthermore, between that old period And does Amigo del Pueblo answer this “have we not said a thousand times that and 1936 Durruti had evolved. question? it is up to the people to choose their men and that if the people wish to give supe- Who can say what orientation he would The second issue of the paper is more rior consideration to one than to others, have had if death hadn’t come so soon? given over to Francicso Ascano and in- that it is they who must decide? What is All we know is that he wanted to mobi- deed the two men are inseparable with not acceptable is that ‘caudillos’ should lise all energy to defeat fascism and that regards to the esteem in which they are be fabricated with ink and quill. he had expressed his indignation and con- held by our Spanish comrades, as they tempt for the indifference and negligence were inseparable in the events which A caudillo fell in front of Madrid. in the rear. A declaration made just be- marked out their lives. But issue 3, un- Buenaventura Durruti obtained the es- fore his death (and reproduced on page 4 der the heading “let us imitate the peo- teem of the popular will because he acted of issue 3 of Amigo del Pueblo) condemns ple’s heroes”, declares on page 2: as the people wished him to. “the plots the internal struggles” and de- “....we are mindful of our position as (....)Buenaventura Durruti was a mands that the leaders be “sincere and iconoclasts. However, Buenaventura caudillo. But he didn’t become one construct an efficient economy to allow the Durruti would have been outraged by through petty flattery. He attained that running of a modern war”. He asks for those who audaciously falsify his posi- state through the course of his life, on the the “effective mobilisation of all the work- tions and ideas. Without lyricism or op- street and battlefield, while those others ers in the rear”. He expresses reservations portunism he would have unamhuously who aspire to be caudillos were hanging about the need for militarisation and af- fought against the expanding schemes out in the halls of grand hotels alongside firms the efficiency of discipline at the which are letting us lose the July revolu- elegant tourists” front. tion. This is all that we can discover in the It is not certain that he would have fol- It must be understood that to imitate guise of a self-critique! Otherwise, this lowed, to a full extent, the decisions of Durruti means neither to hesitate nor to matter was not addressed again in the the activists who were to find themselves weaken. It means that we ponder the ex- last issues of Amigo del Pueblo. in radical opposition to the leadership of the CNT and FAI in 1937. However, one perience of the July movement and, after DENUNCIATION OF can still understand why those activists analysing it, we decide that the counter- MINISTERIALISM should have chosen him as a symbol of a revolution will not carry the day when stern struggle without concessions. faced with our conception of responsibil- We have seen, in the first part of our ity.” study, that a significant number of anar- The first page of issue 1 of Amigo del chist and confederal activists protested Pueblo reveals a lot. It is in colour and Issue 5 takes up the issue again, in a against the spirit of concession which contains only a proclamation and slogans more general sense. But this article, guided the committees at the summit of around a portrait of Durruti holding the printed on page 4 in the ‘ideas’ section the organisations. flag of the CNT, the “bandera roji-negra”. and entitled “no idols, no arbitrary deci- Here is the essential parts of that proc- sions” is clearly an opinion piece, address- However the advocates of governmental lamation, the tone of which is fully in the ing those outside the Friends of Durruti. collaboration weren’t always cursory[*8]. spirit of that revolutionary lyricism, Thus Diego Abad de Santillan stated sub- One part of this article takes up the de- which was inseparable from Spanish an- tly that the necessary revolution would fence of the Friends of Durruti (the group- archism. be carried out by the masses and that the ing is described as an “anarchist institu- government was merely a good instru- “Envelloped in the folds of the red and tion, created in the lingering glory which ment for waging the war. He added that, black flag, our proletariat rose to the sur- a dead leader[*7] left beyond his grave”. moreover, the presence of revolutionar- face with an ardent desire for absolute It supports the righteousness of their ies in the government would ‘perhaps’ liberation. fight against “the traditional centralism allow them to prevent the state from of every government and variety of state” putting ‘excessive obstacles’ in the way One man bestrode those sublime days. and against the “incongruous” centralism of the people’s aspirations. D.A. de Buenaventura Durruti rooted himself in of the supposed anarchists who had de- Santillan argued this line in Soli (the the heart of the multitudes. He fought for creed the expulsion of the Friends of popular abbreviation for Solaridad the workers, he died for them. His immor- Durruti from the workers’ movement. Obrera) on April the 16th, a few days tal past is inextricably linked to that red The other part of the article deals with before the events of May. He forgot to say and black flag which gallantly floated in “the hero” and declares: “we are opposed that the CNT-FAI officers were collabo- the majestic July dawn. On his coffin we to all types of idolatry or personal cult....”. rating in a bourgeois government which have discharged him of his burden, in Further on, with reference to Durruti, it was constantly striving to limit the work- taking it upon our shoulders. With this says: ers’ conquests[*9] and which had ousted flag held aloft, we will fall or we will over- “he obtained the hero’s glory by virtue of the POUM without the Garcia Olivers or come. There is no middle ground: to van- his character and sentiments, not for his the Montsenys having raised their voices quish or to die”. ideas. And, as regards his perfect ideal- in protest. He also forgot to specify that the central government had in no way publicly supported the position that the vocateurs during the May days have to supported the armament production ef- essence of those memorable July days re- recognise that it is necessary to adopt fort which was carried out in Catalonia sides in the proletariat’s desire for abso- harsh and decisive positions in favour of and that the libertarian columns of the lute emancipation. our revolutionary conquests. Aragon front weren’t receiving any arms The regional committee of the CNT dis- However, in the above mentioned mani- and that consequently the government, owns us festo, we observe an extraordinary obsta- while excelling in reinforcing the secu- cle. We continue to believe that the real rity forces of the ear, didn’t have a clue This disavowal on the part of the sup- spirit of the May days can’t be explained, how to wage the war. How could D.A. de posed executive committees does not sur- but we applaud the fact that the events Santillan not see that defence of the bour- prise us. We know in advance that these themselves had the effect of showing the geois was being reinforced every day committees are capable of doing nothing committees that their behaviour has been against the steps taken by the masses of except to paralyse the advance of the pro- seriously regrettable and wrong.” workers and peasants, while the letariat. We know only too well the Stalinists were extending their power by trentistes who are members of the regional It is in this same first issue that Eleuterio their control of the forces of repression committee. Roig, one of the principal editors, com- as well as by their parallel police force. pares the “two dates” of July 1936 and We are the Friends of Durruti who have May 1937, in an article on page 3. He But ministerialism was to culminate in enough moral authority to denounce these emphasises that while the opportunity of the May days. It was the main task of individuals who have betrayed the revo- the days of July ’36 had been lost, the issue 1 of Amigo del Pueblo to throw light lution and the working class, through May days would have allowed a return on this and to take an intransigent posi- their incompetence and negligence. When to revolution. But while July ’36 was tion on it. The first issue, which is un- we had no more enemies in our way, they wasted due to incapacity and the absence dated, appeared visibly rushed, some ar- handed power back to Companys and the of a practical vision, while this amounted ticles being almost entirely suppressed y petit-bourgeois and whats more, gave con- to an “error”, on the contrary in May ’37 the censor. We can reasonably suppose trol of public order back to the Valencia we must talk of “treason” and the article that it was published on May 15th as it government and general Pozas’ defence concludes that “the heads of the guilty reproduces a text from Barcelona, dated service. must roll in the dust” 11th May 1937. The treason is enormous, the two essen- But the condemnation of ministerialism In appearance this issue is consecrated tial safeguards of the working class, se- wouldn’t be complete without recalling to magnifying the memory of Durruti. In curity and defence, handed to our enemies that the leaders had entered the reality it is largely focused on the May on a plate. Generalidad government and central gov- days. The second page, at least half of What to do? ernment while the plenum of the regional which was chopped out by the implacable organisations of the CNT had envisaged censorship, opens the debate without Despite the arranged truce, the spirit of proletarian unity in terms of revolution- hesitation, by comparing 2 manifestos; the days which we have just gone through ary bodies, regional and national juntas That of the regional committees (CNT, still exists. We have committed the enor- of defence. This bureaucratic deviation is FAI and Libertarian Youth) and that of mous error of giving time to our adver- denounced in the article from page 4 of the Friends of Durruti. The regional com- saries to reinforce their positions. We have issue 1 that has already been cited in con- mittees’ manifesto is an appeal for work- granted the Valencia government the nection with the introduction of the ers’ unity in order to face up to the provo- chance to send reinforcements to the coun- Friends of Durruti. Finally the article cations, an appeal for political honesty ter revolution. emphasises the fact that the pages of the in the rear. It welcomes the “popular de- We didn’t know how to strike at the heart CNT press are closed to opposition and cision” which caused the enemy’s plan to and there was no co-ordination on the for this reason a publication which can be halted. But this enemy is not identi- field of insurrection. reaffirm revolutionary positions is fied and after trying to justify the CNT needed. and FAI’s line in the aftermath of July We are observing events to come. We are 19th 1936 and presenting the moderation not discouraged. Our revolutionary mo- THE STEPS OF THE COUNTER- of their present demands as a sign of “no- rale remains solid. We recognise that this REVOLUTION bleness and loyalty”, it finishes with the is a crucial stage for us. We will not let One of the tasks that the Friends of following catch-cries “Long live the pro- ourselves be duped by the supposed dan- Durruti gave themselves was the denun- letariat’s revolutionary alliance! Down ger of an attack by the ships of the Eng- ciation of counter-revolutionary schemes. with the counter-revolution! Long live the lish squadron when in reality the demo- We have seen that the first issue of Amigo CNT-UGT unity, the guarantee of triumph cratic powers are assisting fascism with del Pueblo had already addressed this in the war and revolution”. This mani- impunity. topic with respect to the May days. The festo contains no reminder of the revolu- (....)comrades no weakness popular patrols, whose existence was tionary objectives, it helps to perpetuate threatened, are praised and the pages of illusions (especially when one knows Long live the social revolution! Down with the paper are offered to them. The sup- what the UGT leaders in Catalonia were the counter-revolution! pression of the popular tribunals and the up to), it contains no criticism of the gov- On the same page, a little article enti- return of the old judiciary is denounced. ernment and doesn’t say a word about the tled, “Commentaries” is worth quoting: A short announces the murder of Berneri CNT ministers. It is the very epitome of and Barbieri. What is most notable is the ambiguity and political weakness. “We are reproducing the manifesto which announcement of the toll of the May days: As for the Friends of Durruti’s manifesto, the regional committee has just launched 500 dead, 200 wounded, and numerous it is much more radically censored, it de- and we are juxtaposing the manifesto revolutionaries imprisoned. nounces the illusions in anti-fascist unity which our grouping published a few days beforehand and a leaflet”(we don’t pos- The second issue, which came out on the and the treason’s of the leaders. Here are sess the full text of these writings - trans- 26th of May has a reproduction of a very the outstanding passages. lators note). fine engraving on the front page. It rep- It has been stated that the days of July resents, in red and black, the taking of (1936) were a response to fascist provoca- “We are pointing out to workers that the the Atarazanas barracks on July 19th tion, but we, the Friends of Durruti, have same committees which treated us as pro- 1936, alongside a portrait of Francisco Ascaso who died during the fighting. ernment must have the consistency of cot- condition of antifascist prisoners in the Under the engraving, surmounted by a ton wool. model prison in Barcelona and in the banner castigating the censor’s meas- Madrid prison, especially reserved for The Spanish communist party was in the ures, there is a notice in black letters on workers. All the lower half of the first forefront of this profound change which a red background whose content is as fol- page is given over to this issue, as well Spanish politics has gone through. The lows: as a short on page 2 and a long article on Marxists, who are Marxist in name alone, page 3 , entitled: “After the events, the “We are opposed to any armistice[*10]. have directed all the counter-revolution- repression of last May”. It is specified, in The blood expended by Spanish workers ary machinations which for a while now one of the shorts on page 2, that “in the is an insurmountable obstacle on which have been threatening to rise to the sur- model prison the fascists largely control the schemes of the politicians of this coun- face and leave their indelible marks. the criminal records bureau, the infir- try and of world-wide capitalist diplo- (....)The most crucial aspect of the new mary.... and almost all the postings. In macy will fail. situation is the training of a new army the prison mass is said, the fascist hymn To conquer or die, no other outcome is which, from now on, will have nothing in is sung, the fascist salute is made, fascist possible.” common with the men who went out into propaganda is spread with the complic- the during the first days of our revolu- ity of the PSUC which recruits its mem- The notice is flanked on either side by tion, ragged and with a sublime faith in bers from fascist elements and many of two short articles which clearly outline the cause of the proletariat.... these have been freed and enrolled in the the danger of an armistice allowing the party of Comorera and Ovseenko. And to re-imposition of “caste-priveleges against Another question which was debated with relate that the director of the prison was which the Iberian proletariat arose dur- much vigour in the course of the crisis was proposed by the CNT!” ing the memorable days of July”. There the question of disarmament of the rear would be something in it for the Euro- which clearly equals disarmament of the In the same issue, the question of the pean powers, particularly France and working class. assassination of the POUM leader, Andre Britain, while Hitler would obtain zones Nin, is posed on page 4. The trial of the The CNT’s exit from the governmental of influence and Italy’s conquest of Abys- POUM for espionage is denounced as be- sphere doesn’t displease us, anarchist and sinia would be recognised. These powers ing the work of Komintern. The Friends revolutionary workers. But the CNT rep- see the of Durruti predict that the sordid ma- resentatives didn’t abandon the govern- noeuvre against the POUM will be soon “clear danger that our desires will infect ment out of conviction, they were pushed repeated against the CNT and FAI activ- the pariahs of neighbouring countries and out of it by circumstances.” ists. the slaves of overseas. The other articles on this page denounce At the end of page 4, the system in the For these reasons the fascist states and the “resurrection of parliament” which infirmary of the model prison is reviewed democratic powers have a special inter- had been disinterred by Negrin, Stalinist and the page ends with the following est in quenching the war that we are fight- abuses, the sympathies shown by the highlighted piece: ing, more properly called an armed revo- entire press - subservient to the new gov- lution. We will not retreat in the battle” ernment and finally the meeting in Lon- “one year after the days of July, it is easier don between the Socialist minister Julian to fascist free than a worker. For one com- Under the heading “The May days”, page Besteiro and the British foreign affairs rade freed, 50 fascists get out”. 2 describes how the PSUC had organised minister, Eden, at precisely the time of provocations with the agreement of the Issue 7 of Amigo del Pueblo is mostly de- the change of government in Valencia. Catalan parties. On page 4 under the voted to casting light on the escalation of headline, “The counter-revolution contin- It is almost superfluous to point out that the counter-revolution. On the first page ues to advance”, there are several arti- all of the issues of Amigo del Pueblo, un- there is a long article on the repression cles focusing on the replacement of Largo til the very end, continued to trace the in Aragon. The article gives the details Caballero by Negrin at the head of the deeds which marked the steps of the of the attacks on the collectives by Lister’s government. It is the editorial on this counter-revolution. We recall the most division[*12]. These attacks were accom- page which particularly grabs one’s at- notable examples. panied by the closing of the offices of the tention because events have since shown Libertarian organisations and the arrest On the first page of issue 3, it is shown that the Friends of Durruti were right. of the activists who were members of the how, 24 hours before the order for the Here are the principal passages of this council of Aragon, which was dissolved dissolution of the popular patrols, groups editorial: by Negrin’s government. On page 2, the of assault guards had attacked comrades figure of 800 workers imprisoned in Bar- “The crisis which occurred in the Valen- from the patrols. The names of the killed celona is given and a very large high- cia government is the logical consequence comrades is given and the circumstances lighted piece recaps the various stages of the premeditated plan which we have of their deaths is specified. With regards reached by the counter-revolution in lit- seen in action, all across Catalonia. to this, it should be noted that the names tle over a year. Here is the translation. of assassinated activists are given in sev- The press which applauded the ‘cease-fire’ eral issues. “Just 13 months” has declared in loud voices that the au- thority of the Valencia government The dissolution of the popular patrols was 1. Triumph of the proletariat in the July emerged reinforced from the May days. to be maintained whether or not the CNT days. But it wouldn’t have made sense if a gov- representatives should resign from the 2. Collaboration with the petite-bourgeois. ernment composed of trade-unions[*11] Generalidad government, as the Friends 3. Dissolution of the antifascist commit- should be allowed to profit from the in- of Durruti demanded. Their paper also tees. tervention of uniformed units. protested against the continued impris- 4. Political intervention of the USSR in onment of anti-fascist activists while de- the Generalidad government. Largo Caballero is in disgrace.... tained fascists had every amenity, some 5. Death of Buenaventura Durruti. ....The democratic powers who are inter- of whom were even released upon accept- 6. Advance of the counter-revolution. ested in an end to the Spanish conflict ing the communist party (more precisely 7. Boycott of the confederal columns. want to prepare the ground for a difficult the PSUC). These almost unbelievable 8. Handing over of the town of Malaga. manoeuvre. The CNT is an obstacle to any facts are related particularly in issue 6 9. May days, cease fire! compromise. Therefore the Valencia gov- of 12th August 1937, which describes the 10. Negrin’s government in Valencia. 11. Presidential government in Catalonia. 12. Disappearance of the popular patrols and defence committees. Anarchism and the Spanish Revolution On June 19th 1936 Franco’s coup was defeated in most of Spain by 13. Public order and defence taken in workers who seized arms and stormed the barracks. Most of them hand by the counter-revolution. were anarchists and they went on to collectivise industry and 14. Abandonment of Bilbao’s metallurgy agriculture in large areas of republican Spain as well as forming factory to fascism. militias to fight the fascists. The web page below has 100’s of 15. Assassination of activists from revo- documents and photos produced at the time and afterwards about lutionary organisations. this experience, its successes and failures and why it was defeated. 16. Violent repression against the prole- tariat. 17. Prisons stuffed with workers. http://struggle.ws/spaindx.html 18. Government prisons. sidered as constituting dereliction of duty WAR AND REVOLUTION 19. Disappearance and death of Andre and will mean the “demotion” of he who In the first issue, there is an article on Nin. commits such a dereliction without affect- page 4 with the very title “war and revo- 20. Attacks on collectives, unions and cul- ing the corresponding penal sentence. lution”. Here are the main passages. tural centres. (....)The only class incapable of learning 21. The revolutionary press enchained. “....From the first moment of clashes with from the bloody lessons of history is the 22. Dissolution of the council of Aragon. the soldiers, it was already impossible to bourgeois. Even after great experiences, 23. Thousands of guards, furnished with disentangle the war and the revolution. including the French revolution with abundant arms and supplies, remain in We would be unjust if we believed that our Carnot’s example, they opted out of con- the rear receiving war pay. Francisco Ascaso fell valiantly out of a structing an “apolitical” army. 24. Alarming rise in the price of basic simple desire for combat. Francisco goods. We are not deceived by the myth of im- Ascaso gave his life because he knew that 25. Azana, Companys and all the great partiality which is attempted to be en- the blood expended by him and by his bureaucrats continue to be treated in the throned by this decree. We know all about comrades who fell in the July days would manner which they were accustomed to. the execution shows put on by Lister and give a boost to the flight of revolutionary 26. Scarcity of essentials. In the luxury El Campesino in the central region, conquests. restaurants the profiteers of the revolu- against elements belonging to our organi- (....)As the weeks and months passed, it tion continue to gorge themselves. sations. Due to this apoliticism, clandes- was specified that the war which we sup- 27. Searching for cushy jobs is the order tine propaganda is again being produced port against the facists has nothing in of the day. in the military, like before the 19th of July. common with the wars which states de- 28. The militias eat badly and are paid It is the bourgeois launching, in an accel- clare. very irregularly. erated way, the process of the counter- 29. Recognition of religious prerogatives. revolution. This is a brutal threat by the (....)The petit-bourgeois parties and the 30. In Valencia, the first celebration of an pseudo-democratic dictatorship which is official marxists were the ones who vented official mass. turning against the revolutionary prole- the most steam in disassociating the revo- tariat and is forbidding the free expres- lution from the war. They say to us, us But it is not possible to wrap-up this ques- sion of our ideas.... anarchists, that we have to wait until the tion of the counter-revolution without war is won, to carry out the revolution. having a particular look at the problem And our movement, (the CNT-FAI. trans- They tell us not to be impatient, that there of the army. Along the way it has been lator’s note) does not oppose such decrees, will be time enough for everything. But shown that the government was doing worthy of social democratic reformism! during this time, those who defend the everything possible to insidiously replace And our fighters are blocked by these in- position that the revolution must be de- the militias with an army of the tradi- truders who in July retreated meekly in ferred until after the war, strive to mo- tional type; a tool specially cut off from the face of fascist provocation and who nopolise the positions of command and the the popular forces. A long article pub- today, without any dignity nor collective levers of power in order to strangle the lished on page 4 of issue 5 (dated 20 July feeling, openly throw themselves against revolution. 1937), allows us to measure how far this the revolutionary fighters. process had gone one year after July the We, anarchists, cannot play the game of Our military leaders know it well. They 19th 1936. The article is incisively titled those who pretend that our war is only a can be demoted. And equally the elements “towards the creation of the army of the war of independance with a few purely which accepted militarisation as a means counter-revolution”. Here are the impor- democratic aspirations. of co-ordinating energies for running the tant pieces: war, but not as an acceptance of whatever To these pretences we, the Friends of “Indalecio Prieto (socialist) minister of laws the bourgeois edicts in this domain. Durruti, respond that our war is a social national defence decrees: war. (....)A revolutionary army in the service Firstly: it remains rigorously forbidden of the liberation of the proletariat!! That The armed war which the Spanish work- for individuals of the army, navy or is our counsel. And also to work without ers are waging is identical to the epic saga airforce to spread propaganda with a view letup and prevent the rebirth of milita- of the Parisian workers who in the 18th to getting soldiers, line officers, chiefs or rism through our hesitations and lack of century gave their lives fighting against officers to enrol in a particular political revolutionary vision. What happened to the oligarchy of crowned heads. Our war party or workers organisation. In main- fascism must happen to social democratic is comparable to the Paris commune. Our taining the most scrupulous respect for the centralism. It will not pass. We will wipe war possesses the same social sense as the freedom of thought of the fighters, to dis- it out. struggle waged by the Russian workers play one’s loyalty it should be sufficient against the whole world. We here broach another fundamental to be a member of any antifascist group question, the relationship between war It is impossible to talk of the war without or trade-union whatsoever. and revolution, and the question of the at the same time talking of the cause Secondly: Propositions or mere sugges- armed defence of the revolutionary ter- which engenedered it. Some present-day tions of a superior to an inferior, to change ritory. This problem is evoked in every critics are trying to present the war as a political or union orientation will be con- issue of Amigo del Pueblo. consequence of the military uprising. This is certainly materially the case, it was a tracted by the bourgeois government to militarisation”, the text is an appeal “to case of legitimate defence which embraced English financiers.” companions, to confederal columns”. For the whole of Spain in a few hours. starters, it declares that to lay stress on The article thus shows, in a practical the form of organisation of the centuries, But we must reflect. The Spanish illness manner, that it was neccassary to social- when the fundamental need is for war goes back many centuries. We have to go ise the wealth of the country, putting eve- materials, is to misplace the problem. But back to far-off dates to see that a conflict rything in common ownership in service the question of organisation is by no exists in Spain which the petit-bourgeois to the struggle, and it thus concludes that means brushed aside, notably concern- wasn’t able to resolve and now concerns the war can’t be dissociated from the revo- ing the “single collective command” of the the proletariat in its turn, due to the in- lution. Aragon front: ability of the mesocracy. (Translators note In every issue of Amigo del Pueblo, this - power of the middle classes) “We, as activists, propose the present topic is raised, in its plain form, or re- scheme to the organisation and to the Starting from the Cortes of Cadiz, garding other problems, as we have al- confederal columns, which we believe is through the leap in time, we arrive inevi- ready seen in examining the escalation suited to our anarchist beliefs: tably at the 19th of July which weighs so of the counter-revolution. We will only heavily. But it is impossible to say that if mention the long article on page 2 of is- Companies will constitute the following: the soldiers hadn’t come out on the streets, sue 6, again entitled “The war and the - 4 squads of 12 men = 48 which will make whether we, the arnarchists, wouldn’t revolution”. It goes over the evidence up a section. - 4 sections of 48 men = 192 have taken up arms. I am absolutely cer- which has already been put forward, but which will make up a company. - A tain that if the assasin generals hadn’t we will merely extract a few expressions batallion will be made up of 3 companies provoked this bloody war, a conflict would which seem significant to us. The article of infantry and one of specialists. - A com- have come about in any case....Political opposes the call for “war” with which “the pany of specialists (machine guns, reasons abound to show that the working marxist leaders, who are in no way morters, heavy guns) will be composed of class is currently struggling to destroy its marxist, deceive the people” and the call 84 men and added to the three infantry age-old enemies who are the latifundists, for “war and revolution”, alone capable companies will give a total of 660 men in the church, soldiers, financial capital, the of mobilising the working masses which a batallion. - A regiment will consist of 3 speculators. The workers are also fight- implies, “revolution in the economy, revo- batallions giving a total of 1980 men. - A ing for the dissappearance of statist bod- lution in politics, revolution in the army”. brigade will be composed of 2 regiments ies whose powers are exploited by the petit- Therefore what is in question here is the of infantry, cavalry, artillery and special bourgeois so they can entrench their few entire revolutionary programme and also services. - A division will be made up of 2 priveleges. And to these enemies of the the perilous problem of the defence of the brigades. proletariat must be added international revolution, the revolutionary army, the All these units will be commanded by capital which lends its unconditional sup- people in arms. technicians who have graduated special port to Spanish facism. MILITARISATION war schools. We will take care so that these Can we tolerate that, after 9 months of a specialists on the Aragon front should, The armed struggle of the militias dur- bestial war which is sadistically killing wherever possible, come from the special ing the first few weeks didn’t pose any our women and children, that it should war schools of the Libertarian Youth. theoretic problems as it was an expres- be said that we will talk of the revolution sion of revolutionary self-defence. The In each of these units a political delegate later? combat in revolutionary detachments will be named, elected by the members of (....)No. The fighters, the workers who sac- was a form of action of the people in arms. these units, having power over the admin- rifice themselves in the trenches do not It was with the neccessity of a tight coor- istrative and morale upkeep, leaving the share this counter-revolutionary point of dination of large bodies, that the prob- technicians their particular activity. view lem of militarisation came up. No distinctive signs indicating the differ- The war-revolution dillema is taken up It must be said that this term, laden with ent positions of everyone will be accepted. again in issue 2 but with a different slant. bourgeois conotations, was imposed by The technician will be able to be sacked This article, still entitled “The war and sectors which wished for the re-establish- at the request of the unit who will place the revolution”, on page 3, denounces the ment of the type of functionning of the their request in front of a tribunal of the profits and abuses which have free-rein classic army. The Friends of Durruti company, batallion etc.... in the rear while the militia men lack didn’t run from the difficulties of finding The commitees of the batallion will con- everything at the front. It denounces the a solution which would take account of sist of delegates from the companies, those enormous wages and perks awarded to the necessity for a modern armed conflict of the division, of delegates from the regi- the president of the republic, Manuel of great scope and at the same time safe- ments, and the commitee of the single Azana, to Companys, to the judiciary, to guard the revolutionary character of the command of the Aragon front will be the deputies of the central and Catalan combat. made up of delegates from the divisions. parliaments which meet once a month. The hostility of the Friends of Durruti to It denounces the upper bourgeois who Taking into account this guarantee of rep- the militarisation measures of the gov- send representatives to lead comfortable resentation, right up to the single com- ernment has already been cited but it is lives in Paris, the profits of the war-shirk- mand of the Aragon front, orders for im- in issue 5 of Amigo del Pueblo that the ers, the newly rich. It denounces plementing operations will not be allowed question is discussed in detail. We find to be discussed. Tribunals will be made “the increase in traffic of taxis used by precise propositions made by militiamen up to pronounce sentences for disciplinary bureaucrats, the villains, the prostitutes, of the Durruti column on 16th January breaches, in the company itself if the all those who frequent luxury establish- 1937, activists who made up a large charges are light, at the divisional level ments, cabarets and dancing-shows while number of the Friends of Durruti. These if they are serious. These tribunals will the workers are hard pressed with the militants held the Gelsa sector of the be made up of the political delegates. The difficulties of everyday life, and the mili- Aragon front and belonged to various degree of guilt to the charge will be estab- tias lack petrol and supplies. To top it all, units, centuries, machine-gun sections, lished according to the highest standards the Valencia government which organises artillery batteries, etc.... of justice, the accused will always be given street-collections to pay for the war effort, Under the title “The problem of the benefit of any doubt when sanctions is all the while paying the debts con- are applied.” fire, one needs to have an ideal, felt with perogatives. deep passion, a deep revolutionary con- The preceding text, despite some lack of That is to say, concretely, that the petit- viction. precision, can be considered as a serious bourgeois is closer to Franco than to the effort to reconcile the needs of a coordi- We, CNT comrades who have spilt our Republic, never mind the revolution. nated armed fight and a refusal to have blood in the Aragon campaigns have to (....)The petit-bourgeois is a danger in faith in military formalism and pretended keep our sacred propositions of social re- every domain for the advance of the revo- apoliticism. demption untainted. And for this, the lution and if we don’t manage to neutral- ranks of the confederal columns must be In fact it takes up the theses of Camillo ise their offensive and defensive weapons, tightened. Berneri on militarisation [*13], and in then we run the risk that, thanks to their number 8, the last issue to come out on In July we would have been able to create reactionary activities, the revolution could September 21st 1937, a large bordered a confederal army, in May as well. Today be extinguished in its infancy, after hav- article on page 4 entitled “A confederal let us do what we can so that the CNT ing started with so many sacrifices. army”, inisists on the necessity of a po- divisions are the army of the revolution (....)The petit-bourgeois, as was evinced litically orientated army. and its guarantee.” above, is closer to facism than those who “The revolutionary army is the revolution The texts which we have just translated support the worker-revolutionary stance. in arms. Its members are the revolution- are to be found, summed-up, in the propo- In consequence, the petit-bourgeois is aries themselves who fight for it, tooth and sitions of a programme presented by the sabotaging the economy - as it will con- nail, from the first instant. Friends of Durruti, as we shall see later tinue to do as long as we accord it respect on. But before broaching the fundamen- - which is the same as to sabotage the revo- To be the most combatitive abode of the tal question of the programme, we still lution. revolution, it must remain faithful to its have to examine a major aspect of the essential revolutionary character. When Small industry and business, in the theoretical effort accomplished by the the revolutionary spirit dissappears from hands of the bourgeois, are arms bran- Friends of Durruti: the relations between the army, it is transformed into a war in- dished by facism against the revolution. revolutionaries and the petit-bourgeois. strument of professional character which We are tolerating - the economy is also a betrays the revolution itself in the end. THE PETIT-BOURGEOIS AND THE weapon of war - an enemy blessed with REVOLUTION offensive weaponry, in our own house. History gives us the case of the French Franco is fighting us to our faces and army, created by the convention. The The reader could remark on many occa- shooting us in the back. Tell us who is part amalgamation of volunteers and line- sions in all the preceding that the prob- of the famous fifth column in the rear, of troops didn’t throttle the revolution, so lem of relations with the petit-bourgeois which the departed Mola talked on a cer- widespread was the spirit of the sans-cu- and its political representatives was con- tain occasion, if not the petit-bourgeois? lottes. But once a professional spirit was stantly present in the preoccupations of The aristocracy? The large capitalists? imposed, with hierarchies and ambitious the FOD. However, it is indispensable, The former have disappeared, the latter leaders, the army that had been fighting in our opinion, to give the main passages have been suppressed. They can’t form the to extend the rights of man beyond its bor- of an article on the question, published fifth column. Thus who are its members? ders, became a toy of a war-mongering on page 3 of issue 4 (June 22nd 1937) and We repeat, there is no doubt, the petit- adventurer-general. entitled “The petit-bourgeois and the revo- bourgeois. lution”. In the USSR, exactly the same thing hap- (....)We do not adopt ambiguous and con- pened. The seasoned soldiers who made After indicating that the supposedly fusing positions. Our strength is rooted the whole world hold its breath, in their marxist parties (“which are marxist in in the authentic proletariat. The petit- St Petersburg ghettos, are no more than name only”) like the PSUC, were in fact bourgeois is against us which is to be a memory. The revolutionary spirit of the the defenders of the petit-bourgeois while against the revolution. We shouldn’t be first few days has changed into a clinical they claimed to be representatives of the thanking the petit-bourgeois, we must professionalism which serves only the proletariat, the author deplores the fact fight it and eliminate it. That certain anti- designs of Stalin. that clearly proletarian organisations, of facist sectors give themselves over to sing- which the revolutionary past is well The duration and intensity of the war re- ing its praises and set themselves up as known, are also adopting ambiguous po- quire large mobilisations of manpower. its inconditional defenders should not sitions with regard to the petit-bourgeois. But we should keep in mind that this was surprise us. This is the position which best not the origin of our army. It was born in He goes on: characterises them and proves them to be July, at the Atarazanas, on the Parallel, enemies of the working class. But the CNT “The petit-bourgeois....must be radically and on San Pablo road, there where open- and the FAI must neither directly nor in- suppressed, not only its political leader- shirted men, emaciated and trembling directly respect their position, worse still ship, but also the autonomous manage- with rage fought and became true soldiers maintain a state of passivity and indif- ment which it maintains in the economic of the revolution. ference in the face of this problem. domain thanks to the benevolence of our Publically and privately this class must The CNT should have had an army. That organisations. be fought until its complete elimination. enthusiasm of the first few minutes would This class, whose egotism is the direct It is it which is increasing the prices of have allowed us to create our own army cause of all the outrages of the social or- essential items, which will stop at noth- and thus we would have avoided the cor- der, knows perfectly well that if the revo- ing to increase its wealth. It is it, at the ruption of the essential character of July. lution was to triumph (which could only sides of its political representatives, which The instruction which has been issued be proletarian in this case), their privi- propagates incomprehensible and tenden- from Valencia forbidding propaganda in leges and other advantages would be au- tious arguments. It hates the revolution the ranks of the army is a myth. Soldiers tomatically suppressed. And in the actual and is toiling with all available means to of the revolution must speak of the revo- situation which concerns us at the mo- prevent the triumph of the revolution. It lution, of ideas. To put up with the harsh- ment, they are not blind to the fact that is sabotaging the revolutionary economy, ness of the campaigns, and to jump out of our homegrown facism, like that from speculating on the most indispensable the trenches in pursuit of the enemy, abroad, gives them all sorts of guaran- goods. It nourishes the 5th column. It will splashing across terrain flooded with gun- tees of keeping their positions and serve as the denouncing finger if unfortu- nately facism wins one day. It was the most ferociously /s’acharnerait/, if that In issue 4, the first page is partially given the following issues were to supply more is possible, on the proletariat. Therefore over to a concise presentation of a series details. it must be fought and eliminated....” of concrete propositions. Here is the com- Issue 5 of 20th July elevates itself to the plete translation, under the headline In this same issue 4, the editorial on the level of theoretic thought and brings us bottom of the last page, under the title “we agents-provocateurs and an unambiguous response to the ques- “A new phase of the revolution”, de- irresponsibles propose: tions asked. The editorial on the front nounces not only the petit-bourgeois, but page is without doubt the most elaborate -management of economic and social also the confusionism of the CNT and thing the FOD produced. Here are the life by the unions; FAI. most edifying passages. -free comunes; “....We have not been wise enough to wipe “The turn which events have taken since out the petit-bourgeois parties who, -The army and public order must be the May days is full of lessons. In the bal- dressed up in scarlet, are getting ready to controlled by the working class. Disso- ance of forces which was demonstrated bar the road of the insurgent workers. lution of armed forces. Maintenance of during those days, a visible transforma- defence commitees and councils of de- tion happened. That gigantic mass which The handling of the petit-bourgeois has fence; revolved around the CNT and FAI a year weighed heavily against the workers’ de- ago, has suffered a notable relapse. It is sires. The politically and militarily organ- -Arms must be under the power of the not an inherent quality of the confederal ised mesocracy is fighting to make us re- proletariat. Rifles are the ultimate organisation or the specific organisation turn to a situation similar to that which guarantee of revolutionary conquests. [*15] that the working masses should be existed before the July days. And as we Nobody other than the working class distanced from the revolutionary spirit.... progress in the analysis of the regression should have access to them; which followed the initial days of the ris- The downward spiral has to be entirely -Abolition of hierarchies. The proletari- ing of the proletariat, we will discover the attributed to the absence of a concrete pro- at’s enemies should be thrown into for- series of contradictions which were fatally gramme, the lack of a few immediate tification batallions; destined to occur by the simple fact that gains and the fact that we fell into the we are hitched to the cart of the petit-bour- -Forced unionisation. A worker’s bank. nets of the counter-revolutionary sectors, geois. Suppression of the need for references at the precise moment when circum- to obtain work; stances were unfolding favourably for the The May struggle displayed the same crowning of the proletariat’s aspirations. characteristics as the July explosion. We -Socialisation of all the means of pro- As a consequence of not having given free didn’t know where we were going! We only duction and exchange. Fight to the rein to July’s élan, in a clear, class-based knew that the enemy was proposing to death against facism and its propagan- orientation, we have rendered a petit- snatch the conquests of July from us and dists. Purging of the rear. Creation of bourgeois dominance possible. This would that we were going to defend them. But a residents’ commitees; not have come about at all if, in the guiding idea was missing which could -Immediate introduction of the family confederal and anarchist circles, a unani- have been decisive in those supreme mo- salary without bureaucratic excep- mous decision had been taken to install ments. tions. The war and the revolution must the proletariat in charge of the country. May’s echo is starting to fade. Soon it will affect everybody equally. Suppression But there was no vision of /incidence be a memory.... of the bourgeois parliament, suspen- vécues/. In July we didn’t understand sion of passports; what a momentous time it was. We were There are two undeniable realities. One of them is economic, the other social. With -Mobilisation in the face of the coun- afraid. The cannons of the foreign squad- regards to the economic question in Spain, ter-revolution; rons were inspiring pusillanimity in a we have unions which have a high con- growing percentage of activists. We gave structive capacity which can’t be denied, -Total disobedience to the coercive ground to the sectors which later opposed nor even questioned. As to the social and mechanisms of the state like the appli- the typically revolutionary organisations local functions, the commune is the most cation of censorship, the disarming of with pretences of a coming reactionary suitable for freeing the exercise of activi- the working class, the state confisca- turn. ties within both rural and urban areas. tion of radio transmitters; We don’t think that failures have to be What’s more, something fundamental -Determined opposition to the munici- exclusively imputed to individuals. We must be agreed. The constitution of a revo- palities taking over the means of pro- have sufficient evidence which shows that lutionary junta is indispensable. This duction insofar as this would mean immorality certainly contributed to the junta should not interfere in the functions that the working class would not be discreditting of other events. But what of the unions and the communes. This absolute masters of the country; really contributed, in our view, that which revolutionary junta should be democrati- -Return to the largely revolutionary clinched the obvious loss of a revolution cally elected by the working class. spirit of our organisations; which should have been able to escape from the tutelage of a few incompetents, This last article is important since it sig- -Total opposition to governmental col- is the absence of a guiding vision which nals the start of the attempt at an analy- laboration which is, as events have would have clearly marked out the road sis to which the FOD were going to apply shown, contrary to the emancipation to follow. themselves from this issue 4 of AdP on, of the proletariat; since the events of the May days no longer Improvisation has always yielded pitiful held all of their attention. -War to the death against speculators, results. Our assumption, according to bureaucrats, those who cause the price which social realities would be forged REVOLUTIONARY THEORY AND of basic goods to be increased; without the existence of a directing force PROGRAMME -Readiness to go to war against any ar- to jealously safeguard the premises of the The positions taken by the FOD on the mistice;” revolution, is completely debunked. In problems that we have reviewed so far July, what was decisive was that the CNT are not only thought out positions, they It is obvious that this list brings together and FAI acted so stupidly as to believe were also responses to the questions programmatic points which don’t belong that a revolution of the social type could posed by events as they happened. in the same level of discussion[*14]. But share its economic and social aspects with enemy elements. This was the greatest should not fall victim again to the fears an inevitable necessity. This junta will be error since it gave strength to the petit- and weaknesses which have brought formed by authentic representation of the bourgeois which turned furiously against about our current position beset by major workers who came out into the streets with the working class as soon as it had ob- difficulties. arms in their hands. The men of the bar- tained firm support from the supposed ricades are those who defend the revolu- Without a theory, revolutions can’t come democratic powers through the effect of / tion and are the ony ones who will nei- from below. We, the FOD have formulated dÈtours de guerre/. In May, once again ther sell nor betray the results of the tri- our ideas, which may be the object of re- the same conflict was on. Again su- umph. visions arising from great social upheav- premacy in the leadership of the revolu- als, but which are rooted in two essential (....)The duration of the tutelage which the tion was in question. But the same indi- points which can’t be avoided: a pro- revolutionary workers have to exercise viduals, who in July were fretting at the gramme and rifles. will depend on the time it takes for the danger of a foreign intervention, commit- new order to become consolidated. ted the error of vision during the May days We have to maintain keen judgement in which culminated in the fateful ‘ceasefire’. the unions and workplaces. We have to try (....)In July an anti-facist commitee was An error which, despite the agreed truce, to make our proposals prevail. Without / formed which didn’t correspond to the translated into the instant disarming and nervosismes steriles/, without / scope of that sublime hour. How could it pitiless repression of the working class. precipitations contre-indiquee/, we are have nourished the spirit which arose preparing the working class to have the from the barricades, when friends and We have indicated the reason. We have a wisdom next time to seize, from the out- enemies of the revolution sat at each oth- lot of evidence. During the July days cer- set, the position which has been lamenta- ers sides in it? The anti-facist commitee tain activists, who participated in hybrid bly lost for want of a revolutionary theory.” was not, in its composition, the repre- formations publically announced that lib- sentative of the July struggle. ertarian communism had to be re- The editorials of the following issues, the nounced. last three, again take up the theme of the It is necessary to grasp the most lively necessity for a revolutionary theory and desires which appear in the streets. If they But what can’t be understood is that af- programme. There was one such article are allowed to be corrupted in the first ter this disavowal, a clear and categori- in issue 7 of 31st September, under the moments, it is certain that the cal reaffirmation was not put forward. headline “A hard experience” and in is- degenerance shown in the initial forms Something along the lines of saying that, sue 8, “To triumph a programme is will continue through following times. in doing away with our programme, that needed”. But these articles don’t give us There is no doubt that if, at the beginning, is to say libertarian communism, we anything new. On the other hand, issue a clear and wise direction is kept, the revo- wholly gave ourselves up to our adversar- 6 of 12th August 1937 goes into detail lution will reach the objective for which ies who were and are putting forward a about one of the fundamental points of so many lives are lost. programme and instructions. From that the programme, and its editorial is enti- Furthermore, there is a certain section of moment, our marginalisation was laid tled “Necessity of a revolutionary junta”. the population which , while coming to out, as we handed victory to the parties On this crucial point we are given fur- accept the new state of affairs, goes along which we had fought so furiously. We ther enlightenment and it is indispensa- through simple instinct for preservation. meekly surrendered to these parties our ble to translate the essence: These individuals are found in the unions, resolve to be masters of the situation. The “One of the aspects which we consider to in the workplaces. We can’t concede rep- lack of class spirit contributed to the stage be the most transcendent of that concep- resentation in the new bodies to this sec- of decline which we are witnessing. In the tion .... regards the defence of the revolu- tor which must be seen as being divorced course of guiding speeches, expressions tion. from the revolution. Much less should we with counter-revolutionary implications give responsibilities to those who are de- were thrown out. And in our interventions We, CNT and FAI activists, who are clared enemies. we have been trailing behind the grouped together in “the FOD” strongly mesocracy, when it should have been the believe that the purity of the essence of the For the preceding reasons we are parti- organisation with the majority of involve- revolution must be watched over during sans of the view that the only ones to par- ment in July which disposed, in an abso- the feverish days of the insurrectional ticipate in the revolutionary junta should lute sense, of public affairs. As to the petit- frenzy, and we are completely convinced be the urban workers, rural workers and bourgeois parties. They ought to have been that during a certain period, guidance the fighters who in the decisive moments wiped-out in July and May. We think that must be exercised in order to orientate the of the conflict show themselves to be / any other group, in a situation enjoying rhythm of the revolution on the path paladins/ of the social revolution.” an absolute majority like we did, would which always appears in the firt mo- On the two other fundamental points of have made itself arbitrator of the situa- ments. the programme, which refer to the role tion. ....Accepting this thesis, we have to con- of the unions and the communes, we will In the last issue of our paper we detailed cretely seek to work out the way to struc- look at two articles. In issue 4, of June a programme. We advocate teh necessity ture this body, the guide and defender of 22nd, we read on page 3, under the of a revolutionary junta, of union pre- the revolution. headline “municipalisation and dominance in economic matters and a free militarisation”, that the tenants of power The state-centred forms, with their com- organisation of communes. Our grouping in Catalonia were demanding the munici- plicated wheels and cogs, have completely wanted to create an example, lest we palisation of provisionning and of trans- failed. The state machine suffocates. It should proceed in the same way given cir- port, but this meant the elimination of finishes by creating new advantages for cumstances similar to those of July and union management for the benefit of the the privileged and defenders of a few im- May. Triumph resides in the existance of counter-revolutionary municipalities, provements which only concern a small a programme which must be backed up, whereas the FOD were aiming for free number of people. The nascent society without hesitation, by rifles. communes in the hands of the workers. must function properly using a formula In issue 7, in the last article on page 4, Despite the accumulation of errors, it is which allows us to honorably accomplish under the title “Concerning our pro- to be assumed that, sooner or later, the the social functions in a manner consist- gramme: all economic power to the un- proletariat will show itself anew. But ent with the dawning new era. ions”, we read: what we must labour to do, is that in the The formation of a revolutionary junta is case of an immediate oppurtunity, we “The Spanish revolution is characterised by the fact that the unions are its most solid representatives. And thus, as the soviets were undisputed as the supreme organs of the Russian revolution, in our narchism.ws revolution it is the unions which have to Hundreds of pages of links, images and exercise all the economic power in the subject lists. Links to local organisations country’s life.” and to regional and global discussion Therefore, on these points, the FOD lists. merely repeat, without adding any de- http://www.anarchism.ws tails, the programme of the CNT from the congress of Zaragossa in May 1936. With- They were activists of a movement, the the reins of the organisation firmly in out doubt, there is something that may Spanish libertarian movement, which hand. They were themselves carried be considered an over-simplification of had very particular characteristics. It along by events, dispersed on various anarcho-syndicalist ideas in this view. must be stated once again that Spanish fronts, pinned down by militarisation, But it seems to us that the discussion anarchism existed in the context of an they dissappeared very quickly. should open, especially on the small acute class struggle driven by a powerful It is certainly true that it isn’t easy to number of fundamental question for mass movement with a union structure. create a constructive and critical force in which the contribution of the FOD is in- But on the level of theory, it remained a the middle of civil war, coming from a valuable: loose collection of very general anti-au- completely insufficient doctrinal basis. thoritarian declarations, sometimes -Class analysis, condemnation of bour- They knew practically nothing of the quasi-individualist, sprinkled with a con- geois democracy, and the opposition of theoretical efforts carried out in the spiratorial and sometimes very violent the proletariat to the petit-bourgeois; course of the previous decade in the in- practice, with a ‘specific’ organisation ternational movement, efforts which no- -Defence of the revolution and the which makes one think sometimes of the body else had capitalised on in a coher- problems posed by armed struggle; Carbonarism of the preceding century. ent whole at that time, and which still This is the reason that a non-negligible -The nature and structure of the power haven’t gone beyond the level of ambigu- part of the CNT kept its distance from that the revolutionary proletariat ity.[*16] the FAI and even leaned towards must wield; ‘trentism’. The insufficiencies of the contribution of the Friends of Durruti are therefore eas- Friends of Durruti - The Spanish libertarian movement, faith- ily explained. We will rapidly sum them ful to certain aspects of Bakuninism, was a balance sheet infiltrated by moral and cultural notions up. which were closer to petit-bourgeois hu- The Friends of Durruti didn’t know how WHAT WE THINK manism than to revolutionary rigour. It to break with a revolutionary romanti- To the activist who strives to contribute didn’t completely ignore what happened cism sometimes tinged with a hint of hero to the birth of an authentic memory of beyond the Pyrenees and its persecuted worship. These failings, apparently mi- the anti-authoritarian current of the activists knew their French and Belgian nor, have without doubt contributed to workers’ movement, the question is posed comrades very well but, fixed on its tra- obscuring their analyses and forbade thus: what is the contribution of the his- ditional anarchist hymn-book, it hardly them from attaining a view which re- toric episode that was the acts and ideas paid attention to what came from outside. mains clear today. of the Friends of Durruti? Therefore to Drowned in this confusionism and com- To this romanticism is sometimes added complete this study, we must draw up a plexity, plunged from the first day in the a pronounced taste for simplification: the balance-sheet, to assess in some way their cauldron of battle, the Friends of Durruti pure and simple suppression, with the achievements and failures. were too little, too late, at a time when stroke of a pen one might say, of the petit- WHY THE WEAKNESSES? the bureaucratisation of the movement bourgeois. was already irreversible and when If one refers to the ensemble of the his- As for their conception of syndicalism as ministerialism was accepted, albeit re- tory of the international anarchist move- a basis for the construction of libertar- signedly, by a large number of activists. ment, the contribution of the Friends of ian communism, it remained, as we have They only emerged in response to the Durruti must be likened to that of the seen, simplistic and repetitive. Even re- counter-revolutionary schemes which Russian anarchists of the platform, the garding the structure of the specific or- developed in 1937, they didn’t constitute analyses of the Italian activists after the ganisation, they were content to be the an opposition grounded on a solid analy- adventure of the workers’ councils, the faithful guardians of a debatable tradi- sis which might have saved the revolu- theories of the council communists in the tion: they were for the maintenance, pure tion in July 1936. European countries, especially Germany and simple, of the conspiratorial and ro- after 1920, and for this last country, the Caught up in the violence of the battles mantic old-style anarchism of the FAI achievements of the entire anarcho- of May 1937, they believed without doubt from 1927 and if they did reject the new syndicalist and councilist left, the efforts in a possible victory. They quickly under- structures of the FAI (put forward in July of the Bulgarian anarchists to construct stood their struggle could only constitute 1937), it was with a great poverty of ar- an organisation inspired by the platform, a practical contribution if it could extend guments. Their anti-platformism was a the experiences in France which created to all the territory not yet conquered by hindrance[*17]. It is necessary to distin- the Revolutionary Anarchist Communist Franco. Their texts quickly took on the guish the bureaucratic turns the new Union of 1927, then in 1934 the first Lib- appearance of a message to the revolu- structure could have favoured in the con- ertarian Communist Federation. How- tionaries of the world, not as the expres- text of a major dearth of theoretical ever the Friends of Durruti never alluded sion of a possibility to redress the situa- analysis, from the basic soundness of the to this past which was still recent in 1936. tion. calling into question of the small affinity Did they not know of it? This is, at least groups. They left late and they never arrived: the for many of them, very likely. bureaucracy of ministerialism did every- On the problem of workers’ unity like on thing to extinguish their voices, holding that of the formation of a revolutionary junta, we have certainly perceived an propositions, the most thought out, were tween July and December 1961, a few ‘survivors’ of evolution, going from the calls for tested in action in the confederal units. the FOD published 4 issues of AdP but these issues, commitees representing the organisation, The necassary military organisation was adressing matters of the day, are fairly confused and to demands for bodies chosen by rank and laid out by specifying measures which without interest to our study. file structures. An indisputably positive would guarantee democracy in the units 6. Jose Peirats expresses this disposition extremely evolution but one which, despite all, and render the old military formalism well (book cited above, tome 1, bottom of page 47 leaves the taste of ambiguity in the useless. and top of page 48) with regard to the polemics which mouth. raged in the CNT in the 30’s. Finally, the Friends of Durruti rediscov- 7. The word ‘caudillo’ is used many times in this ar- THE ACHIEVEMENTS ered the achievements of that what can ticle, it is difficult to find an English equivalent. It be called the libertarian communist pole, However, we can’t remain indifferent to means inspired guide rather than leader. insofar as it concerns the need for a spe- the difficult battle which the Friends of 8. Refer to the paragraph entitled ‘the masses and cific revolutionary organisation, which Durruti fought. And we don’t feel that the chiefs’ in part one. works out a theory and considers a pro- they simply amounted to a rediscovery 9. The dissolution of the commitee of militias in Sep- gramme indispensable. But if one con- of the debates that were going on in the tember 1936 in Catalonia and the public order de- tests the idea of a ‘tutelage’ to be exer- international libertarian movement. It is cree, issused by the Madrid government on Sep- cised during the first period of the revo- because their experience is comparable tember 1936, should be recalled. They put all of the lutionary processus, which the Friends to no other, because they rose in the full forces in the rear under state control. of Durruti put forward, they must be flight of revolution and had the insight 10. This refers to an eventual armistice between the credited for having posed this serious to react, on the field, to a series of events Republican government and Franco which the sup- problem. which they were cruelly living. posed ‘democratic powers’ were making a lot of noise The balance sheet is largely positive. The about. Evidently any such armistice would have re- Their merit is essentially to have known history of the Friends of Durruti, tragic quired that the Republican government could con- how to define themselves, however clum- and brief, will remain an important epi- trol the revolutionaries. sily or imperfectly, in the middle of bat- sode in the construction of libertarian 11. Juan Negrin, a member of the moderate wing of tle despite the weight of insufficiencies communism. the Socialist party, had been the minister for finance. and the confusionism of the complex He became an ally of the stalinists with an aim of Spanish libertarian movement. FOOTNOTES reestablishing the authority of the bourgeois repub- 1. The grouping formed in February according to lican state. It is surprising that they here talk of a And then beside the shadows there are James Balius who was at one stage in charge of government made up of unions. The author clearly many lights. editing Amigo del Pueblo (according to a report writ- wishes to contrast Caballero’s government, contain- Fundamentally they were willing to call ten in May 1978 by the Arles group of the OCL, ex- ing CNT and UGT representatives, with the new taboos into question and it is known that ORA, who were able to meet Jaime Balius for the government which only included representatives of these weighed heavy in the traditional paper Front Libertaire). According to a letter from the political parties, thus excluding the CNT. anarchist movement. The Friends of Jaime Balius dated June 24th 1946 to Burnett 12. Lister commanded a stalinist division Durruti took up the defence of the POUM, Bolloten (see his book la Révolution espagnole ed. 13. In the course of the interview of C. Berneri with without hesitating, while the leaders of Ruedo Iberico p. 346), the grouping was created by Spain and the World, he had declared: “for my part I the CNT hesitated and vacillated. They militia men of the Aragon front who had come to am a partisan of a just mean. We mustn’t fall into refused to vilify the “marxists” but fought Barcelona to protest against the militarisation de- military formalism or antimilitarist superstition....In those who were marxist in name only crees. It was to count between 4 and 5 thousand total therefore, I think the necassary reforms of the (and such a distinction was truly hereti- members by the start of May. Solidaridad Obrera, militias would be the following: clear distinction be- cal in the context of the Spanish anar- the CNT’s paper in Catalonia published a statement tween military command and political control; in the chist movement). They stigmatised the on March 5th announcing the creation of “Friends of domain of the preparation and execution of war op- cowardice of the officers who gave them- Durruti”. erations: rigorous fulfilling of received orders but con- selves up to arithmetic democracy - to 2. The following passages were taken from a leaflet servation of certain basic rights: that of electing and justify their abdication - which gave an quoted by a witness, L. Nicolas, in an article in the removing officers” (p 29-30 archives of Terre Libre unjustified weight to the petit-bourgeois review La Révolution prolÈtarienne no. 246, May April-May 1938), reproduced by Èditions Spartacus. groups. They debunked the pitiable ar- 1937. 14. The Friends of Durruti had published a pamphlet gument which equated libertarian com- 3. However, well-known CNT activists gave personal called “Towards a new revolution”, trying to bring to- munism with ‘anarchist dictatorship’. support to the FOD. One finds the name Miguel gether their historical interpretations and their theo- They denounced the counter-revolution- Chueca, a member of the council of Aragon, among retical and practical views. But these 27 pages are ary schemes which continued to grow. the published list of subscribers. Chueca, an generally on the level of propaganda and it is more anarcho-syndicalist activist who was very wary of worthwhile to refer to the pages of Amigo del Pueblo. But what will remain their fundamental the FAI, thus expressed his opposition to the CNT’s 15. In the traditional parlance of the Spanish liber- contribution is the resolution of the war- bureaucratisation and the capitulations of its leader- tarian movement, the organisation of revolutionary revolution dillema, their adoption of an ship. anarchists is called ‘specific’ (la especifica) to differ- authentically revolutionary position, the 4. Jaime Balius’ arrest was cloaked in silence, even entiate it from the mass union organisation which is affirmation of the need for a workers’ in the confederal press. only tangentially libertarian. power as against ministerial collabora- 5. El Amigo del Pueblo, ‘the people’s friend’ was a 16. However, we must point out the programmatic tion, the pre-eminence of class-based name chosen in memory of Marat’s paper during the efforts recalled by Daniel Guerin at the end of his analysis, the denunciation of theoretical French revolution. The texts published by the Friends preface and pursued today by Alternative Libertaire. flux and improvisation. The need for a of Durruti (leaflets, theoretical pamphlets, papers) 17. We are referring to the organisational platform revolutionary junta was refined little by were reproduced in 1977 by ‘Etc’tera y colectivo de of the Russian anarchists. This ‘platform’, sometimes little, this junta being conceived as documentacion historico-social’ in Barcelona. This known as Archinov’s platform (from the name of one emenating from rank and file bodies and collective specifies that two issues of the paper were of the editors) advocates a rigorous organisation of not from among the officers of the vari- edited in prison and printed clandestinely by CNT anarchist activists and their co-ordinated interven- ous organisations. activists on the paper and machines of that organi- tion among the masses. The difficult question of the arming of the sation. Issues 5 to 8 were printed in Perpignan. Be- proletariat and especially the need for an armed struggle in the conditions of a More pamphlets and poster can be downloaded from modern war was broached in the midst of a battle situation and the most precise http://struggle.ws/pdf.html