Carta de Armindo Fortes

Armindo A. Fortes Room 1531 Y.M.C.A 356 West 34th Street New York, New York - 10001 March 5, 1966 Dear Friend: I am writing to you from New York City where I am talking Architectural Drafting at Manhattan Institute of Technology. This letter is primarily related to our mutual affiliation with the M.P.L.A and what we are expected to do as members. I have also in it my ideas and least one program of action. The success of our mission depends greatly on togetherness of ideas and work. Needless to mention, until now we have not done anything for various technical and political conditions in the United States. From now on we will be able to prove to ourselves and others that we are not merely members of the M.P.L.A seeking political security; but rather active militants who believe and have faith in what our political party is trying to accomplish. The positions of spectators is incompatible with our affiliation to the M.P.L.A and the principles, both of which we defend. If we we have no intention to put them into effect, then each one of us ought to reveal it to our party and give his own reasons for so doing. This came to my mind because I have sensed that most of our comrades seem to be reluctant to commit themselves openly to the M.P.L.A’s potential line. I think this is wrong and will not help anybody. It is only going to hurt everyone involved. One has to choose between being in our out. For, in is a struggle such as ours there is no space in-between. Unless, of course, one is expecting to cut in on the right occasion. But I am sure that you and I do not want to do this. Opportunism should not be tolerated in our struggle. In fact, one could speculate that the reasons for some people’s dismissal from the M.P.L.A’s ranks might have had implications in their political opportunism. I have done a great deal of thinking on the belligerent attitude of most of our country fellowmen vis-a-vis M.P.L.A., and it appears to me that the most of them do not know or even understand what it is all about. First of all, their knowledge of the M.P.L.A. philosophical and political concepts is often limited or null. Therefore, their arguments in most cases lack the weight and dept even to be considered. In most instances people are against M.P.L.A because they have always resented the Angolan intellectual community. These people are disliked not for what they have done or are doing, but more perhaps for what they know. And if that is the case, it is one person or one group resenting another simply because one has something that the other does not have. It happens everywhere and only intellectual maturity can understand it. There are also some who fear competition within our organization because they aspire to be important personalities and erroneously think that there is a clique in the M.P.L.A. who will do anything to prevent them from materializing their political ambitions. Others are just against M.P.L.A. because they do not know any better... As a result of this resentment, we have a group of individuals who decided to form regional groupings to satisfy their egocentric lust for power. What worries me, however, is not what they are doing to themselves and to us; but more specifically to the Angolan community at large. One of the various evil things which they did was to make everyone aware of his lost identification with a given ethnic group. So, what we have today is a kind of tribal conscience rebirth rather than national conscience or sentiment. This, among other things, is dangerous to our Nation’s present and future political struggle for social stability that is imperative in order for any nation to function properly. If social, economic and political unrest prevails, the stage will be set for a civil war and its chaotic consequences. If this will be the price that we might have to pay. I prefer to take some measures now to prevent it from occurring. At any rate, tribal, regional, religious or any other type of division does not strengthen but rather weakens our country and the revolution. Consequently, since we are not fighting for a group of individuals who want to be and feel important, but rather for all Angolans, present and future generations, it is our duty to put a halt to it. The price at stake is to high for anyone involved not to do anything about it. By what I just said, I am not advocating that an individual within our revolution does not have the right to be in disagreement with another or even to struggle for a position or prestige and still be right. In our revolution, as in almost any type of philosophical dispute, anyone can be right providing that he knows what he is talking about. Unfortunately, however, in our revolution that is not the case as one can easily see from the “Manifestos” and other documents of a political or non-political nature put into circulation by those who wrote them. Of course, there have been unbelievable errors committed by some of those while they were involved with political parties. With this background in mind I come to the conclusion that, in general, those who are against the M.P.LA. Also against the Angolan people because by taking the stand they took they are not in any way doing a service to our cause but a disservice that they will have to answer for. Consequently, anyone who claims to represent a given ethnic, social, intellectual or religious group is irresponsible and deserves no compassion. I am proposing, therefore, that we ought to start without delay a campaign to demask those so-called leaders and, at the same time, try to give material to enable every Angolan in the United States to have the facts. It is also important to give all literature available from our party so that everyone can see for themselves what is is and what it is doing. Our duty is to cooperate with our party because we believe that it is through it that our country must be liberated. Our cause is idealistic, political, military, and social revolution; and we ought to comprehend it as such. Comrades, these are some ideas that I wanted to share with you. Nonetheless, it is only with your efforts and mine that we can do a concerted and efficient and effective job. Thus, I will be waiting for your suggestions, criticisms and, above all, your own conception of what and how we should implement some of the ideas put forth by our political party. Yours in struggle Victory or death Armindo A.Fortes