HBDH supports campaign to defend life of Peruvian captive leader Gonzalo

The People’s United Revolutionary Movement (HBDH) has endorses campaign for revolutionary leader Dr. Abimeal Guzman Reynaso (Gonzalo) held in an underground prison in Peru.

In a written statement, the HBDH said that “Dr. Abimeal Guzman Reynoso (Gonzalo), a revolutionary leader who devoted his life to the Peruvian revolution, has been kept captive in an underground prison in Peru for years.”

“In the face of his deteriorating health, the Peruvian state remains silent and waits for Gonzalo’s death. Like the revolutionary-democratic and communist forces all over the world, we declare that we will not remain silent, and that we will support the ‘Let’s defend the life of Chairman Gonzalo!’ campaign,” the HBDH said.

“The Peruvian Communist Party/Shining Path had a significant impact on the revolutionary struggle in Peru and Latin America for a while and carried out a remarkable guerrilla struggle against imperialism and its local collaborators. It is a party that has adapted the People’s War Strategy for Peruvian conditions and has done great service to the development of the revolutionary struggle across the continent. As the leader of the Shining Path, Gonzalo was captured in 1992 and has been kept in a solitary prison under the sea since then.

When he was captured, he showed the whole world that he would not bow to imperialism and its local collaborators. As a revolutionary who devoted his life to the revolution and the freedom of Latin America, specifically the Peruvian people, Gonzalo has been diagnosed with skin cancer. Peru’s fascist state is mainly responsible for not treating his disease on time. The Peruvian state intimidates all revolutionary communist forces in the person of Gonzalo and thinks that it can suppress the freedom struggle of the oppressed using these methods. However, the anger of the oppressed peoples of Latin America is increasing, and the rulers are becoming incapable of suppressing peasants who are removed from their lands, natives whose forests and living spaces are devastated, workers whose labour are exploited, and revolutionary-democratic forces who fall victim to paramilitary forces. Their incapacity can be seen in their approach to Gonzalo. Gonzalo’s treatment is blocked, and his health is deteriorating. Like all revolutionary-democratic forces around the world, we also call for the Peruvian state’s attack against him to be frustrated.

As the HBDH, we know the attacks of sovereign and fascist states from our country. The fascist Turkish state, like the Peruvian state, is imposing an aggravated isolation on Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan and is attacking the hunger strike resistance of all revolutionary-patriotic prisoners in Turkey’s prisons. Fascism exists in different countries, yet its methods remain the same. This situation burdens us with the task of further strengthening international solidarity.

The leader of the PKP, Gonzalo, is a revolutionary leader who tries those who try him, and has become a symbol by singing the Internationale in their courts. Defending Gonzalo’s life against the attacks of imperialism and its native collaborators means further expanding internationalist solidarity in the revolutionary struggle. Defending Gonzalo’s life means that the revolutionary struggle from Peru to Turkey and Kurdistan, the anti-imperialist, anti-fascist struggle against occupation cannot be silenced.

We salute the campaign to defend Gonzalo’s life and declare that we will support it.”