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Nonviolence Speaks: Communicating Against Repression

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Nonviolence Speaks: Communicating Against Repression Nonviolence speaks: communicating against repression by Brian Martin and Wendy Varney (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 2003) This is the text as submitted to the publisher. It differs from the published text due to copyediting changes, different pagination and omission of the index. Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. Nonviolence against Indonesian repression: barriers to action [co-authored by Adrian Vickers] 12 3. Nonviolent resistance to Soviet repression 30 4. Resisting global corporate domination 55 5. Nonviolence theory: insights for communication 79 6. Communication theory: insights for nonviolent action 102 7. Giving voice to nonviolence 136 Acknowledgments We thank Valentin Bazhanov, Stephen Brown, and Anna Salleh for helpful comments on earlier versions of individual chapters, and Ralph Summy and two anonymous referees for comments on the entire text. Brenda Dervin provided essential support. Portions of the text, in different forms, appeared in Wendy Varney and Brian Martin, “Net resistance, net benefits: opposing MAI,” Social Alternatives, Vol. 19, No. 1, January 2000, pp. 47–51; Wendy Varney and Brian Martin, “Lessons from the 1991 Soviet coup,” Peace Research, Vol. 32, No. 1, February 2000, pp. 52–68; Brian Martin, Wendy Varney, and Adrian Vickers, “Political jiu- jitsu against Indonesian repression: studying lower profile nonviolent resistance,” Pacifica Review, Vol. 13, No. 2, June 2001, pp. 143–156. This work was supported by the Australian Research Council. 1 Introduction Rallies, strikes, boycotts, sit-ins, and other vocal protests. This was taken up enthusi- methods of people’s action without violence astically. have a tremendous potential to challenge As popular resistance continued over the aggression, repression, and oppression. How- next several days, a section of the military ever, governments give this approach almost planned an anti-Marcos coup. As forces loyal no resources and the mass media give it little to Marcos were mobilized to crush the attention compared to the vast expenditures uprising, the military rebels called on popular and saturation coverage given to violent support. Leaders of the popular resistance put methods of handling conflict. Therefore, it is out a call and an enormous crowd surrounded vital to learn as much as possible from the the rebel soldiers in Metro Manila. Troops and experiences of nonviolent action that do occur. pilots loyal to Marcos would not attack the Communication plays a crucial role in any unarmed civilians, who thus provided protec- conflict. How can communication be used to tion for the rebels. support popular nonviolent action and to make The mass protest was impromptu but well this a more effective method of struggle? Our organized. Training in techniques of civilian task in this book is to address that question. protest had taken place throughout the country We can learn something about the strength for some years. As the mass rally in Manila of nonviolent action and the role played by continued for days, religious groups coordi- communication by recalling the situation in nated food distribution. Nuns were pressured the Philippines after 1972 when President to go on the front lines; their presence worked Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law and to get oncoming tanks to stop. Influential clamped down on opponents. Opposing forces church leaders discouraged violence by par- included an armed insurgency and various ticipants. Independent radio broadcasts helped civilian social movements and critics. In 1983, to coordinate activities. leading opposition politician Benigno Aquino The mass people’s action caused more and was murdered. This act, attributed to Marcos more troops to defect to the rebels. However, forces, mobilized sections of the Philippine the rebel leaders, having pledged loyalty to elite, including the Catholic Church, busi- Aquino and fearing the power of the people, nesses, and politicians, to oppose the govern- could not easily move to form a military ment. As pressure for change increased, government, so after four days of mass action Marcos called a snap election to be held in Aquino became president and Marcos left the February 1986. Left-wing opposition groups country. This political transition is called the called for a boycott of the election since they “EDSA Revolution” after Epifanio de los anticipated voting fraud by the government. Santos Avenue (EDSA), where the massive Nevertheless, most people voted anyway, and demonstrations occurred on 24–27 February. most of the votes were for Cory Aquino, The amazing display of popular action against widow of Benigno Aquino. a repressive regime is also called “people As predicted, there was extensive voting power.”1 fraud and Marcos declared himself the winner. However, the fraud was so blatant that it was easily exposed by poll observers and the 1 Anne Mackenzie, “People power or palace coup: international media. The Catholic Bishops’ the fall of Marcos,” in Mark Turner (ed.), Regime Conference condemned the poll fraud, as did Change in the Philippines: The Legitimation of the Aquino Government (Canberra: Department of many foreign governments. On 16 February, a Political and Social Change, Research School of million people turned out on the streets of the Pacific Studies, Australian National University, capital, Manila, to protest. Aquino called for a 1987), pp. 1–57; Sterling Seagrave, The Marcos civil disobedience campaign involving strikes, Dynasty (New York: Harper & Row, 1988); Mark boycotts, delayed payment of bills, and regular R. Thompson, The Anti-Marcos Struggle: Person- 3 4 Nonviolence Speaks The events in the Philippines are far from • the Chinese pro-democracy movement, the only example of large-scale nonviolent crushed in the 1989 Beijing massacre;7 action. Some others — including both suc- • the Palestinian intifada, 1987–1993, a cesses and failures — are: popular resistance to the Israeli occupation;8 • the toppling of Serbian ruler Slobodan • direct action against nuclear power, espe- Milosevic in 2000; cially in the 1970s and 1980s, in many • the East Timorese urban resistance to countries;9 Indonesian occupation, culminating in inde- • Czechoslovak resistance to the 1968 pendence in 1999;2 Soviet invasion;10 • the removal of the racist and oppressive • the collapse of the Algerian Generals’ apartheid system in South Africa in the revolt in 1961 due to noncooperation in 1990s;3 Algeria and France;11 • civil resistance to Serbian rule in Kosovo • the US civil rights movement in the 1950s in the 1990s;4 and 1960s;12 • resistance to the repressive regime in Burma, 1980s and 1990s;5 • collapse in 1989 of repressive Eastern 6 European regimes; 6 Michael Randle, People Power: The Building of a New European Home (Stroud: Hawthorn, 1991). alistic Rule and Democratic Transition in the 7 Scott Simmie and Bob Nixon, Tiananmen Philippines (New Haven, CT: Yale University Square: An Eyewitness Account of the Chinese Press, 1995); Stephen Zunes, “The origins of People's Passionate Quest for Democracy (Seattle: people power in the Philippines,” in Stephen University of Washington Press, 1989). Zunes, Lester R. Kurtz, and Sarah Beth Asher (eds.), Nonviolent Social Movements: A Geo- 8 Souad R. Dajani, Eyes Without Country: Search- graphical Perspective (Oxford: Blackwell, 1999), ing for a Palestinian Strategy of Liberation pp. 129–157. For events outside Manila, see (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1994); Benedict J. Kerkvliet and Resil B. Mojares (eds.), Andrew Rigby, Living the Intifada (London: Zed From Marcos to Aquino: Local Perspectives on Books, 1991). Political Transition in the Philippines (Manila: 9 Barbara Epstein, Political Protest and Cultural Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1991; Revolution: Nonviolent Direct Action in the 1970s Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1992). and 1980s (Berkeley: University of California While people power was impressive in ending the Press, 1991); Wolfgang Rüdig, Anti-Nuclear Marcos dictatorship, subsequent developments did Movements: A World Survey of Opposition to not live up to this promising start. The Aquino Nuclear Energy (Harlow, Essex: Longman, 1990). government continued many of the same policies, and the crucial problems of gross inequality, 10 H. Gordon Skilling, Czechoslovakia’s Inter- corruption, and exploitation continued. rupted Revolution (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1976); Philip Windsor and Adam 2 Chisako M. Fukuda, “Peace through nonviolent Roberts, Czechoslovakia 1968: Reform, Repres- action: the East Timorese resistance movement’s sion and Resistance (London: Chatto and Windus, strategy for engagement,” Pacifica Review, Vol. 1969). 12, No. 1, 2000, pp. 16–31. 11 Adam Roberts, “Civil resistance to military 3 Stephen Zunes, “The role of non-violent action coups,” Journal of Peace Research, Vol. 12, No. 1, in the downfall of apartheid,” Journal of Modern 1975, pp. 19–36. African Studies, Vol. 37, No. 1, 1999, pp. 137– 169. 12 Taylor Branch, Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954–1963 (New York: Simon and 4 Howard Clark, Civil Resistance in Kosovo Schuster, 1988); Taylor Branch, Pillar of Fire: (London: Pluto, 2000). America in the King Years, 1963–65 (New York: 5 Aung San Suu Kyi (conversations with Alan Simon and Schuster, 1998); David Halberstam, Clements), The Voice of Hope (London: Penguin, The Children (New York: Random House, 1998); 1997). Coretta Scott King, My Life with Martin Luther Introduction 5 • refusal by Norwegian teachers in 1942 to regimes maintained their full repressive
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