Vol 14 Núm 2 (2023) by Revista Cambios y Permanencias
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
El paro cívico nacional del 14 de septiembre de 1977 es uno de los acontecimientos más discutidos... more El paro cívico nacional del 14 de septiembre de 1977 es uno de los acontecimientos más discutidos en la historia política contemporánea de Colombia. La mayoría de las lecturas que han circulado sobre este acontecimiento sustentan su importancia en su carácter nacional y generalizado. Sin embargo, hay pocos trabajos que aborden el desarrollo de esa jornada de protesta a través de un prisma regional y local que sitúe el desenvolvimiento de esa coyuntura más allá de la capital del país. Además, son escasos los balances historiográficos que se hayan dado a la tarea de sistematizar la copiosa bibliografía y referencias que existen alrededor de esta temática en los libros y trabajos de diversa naturaleza que se han escrito. El artículo propone precisamente avanzar sobre estos dos elementos: situar el lugar de la región en esa historiografía y proponer unas líneas de problematización y discusión en torno a las cuales se articula el balance historiográfico.
The national civic strike of September 14th, 1977 is one of the most debated events in Colombia’s contemporary political history. Most of the existing readings underline its importance due to the national and generalized character of it. However, there are few works that address the development of that protest through a regional and local prism that places that juncture beyond the capital. Additionally, there are few historiographic balances that have undertaken the task of systematizing the abundant bibliography that exist around this topic in books and works of diverse nature and scope. The article precisely proposes to advance on these two elements: to place the region’s position in that historiography and to propose lines of problematization and discussion around which a historiographic balance is articulated.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
En el siguiente artículo se presentan los hechos más relevantes, en cuanto a la lucha sindical y ... more En el siguiente artículo se presentan los hechos más relevantes, en cuanto a la lucha sindical y popular, acontecidos en la ciudad de Barrancabermeja durante el año 1983. La exposición de las acciones colectivas se elaboró a partir de la revisión del archivo del Semanario Voz —llamado Voz Proletaria hasta la edición 1241 del 7 de julio de 1983—, específicamente del periodo comprendido entre las ediciones 1215 y 1265. Se destaca en el presente trabajo el papel de la Coordinadora Popular de Barrancabermeja y el paro cívico por el derecho al agua; la negociación del pliego de peticiones presentado por la Unión Sindical Obrera (USO); las acciones de unidad y denuncia sindical en el Hospital San Rafael, en Fertilizaciones Colombianos (Ferticol) y en la Empresa de Obras Sanitarias de Santander (Emposan); y las acciones colectivas en rechazo a la represión militar y al criminal accionar del grupo paramilitar Muerte A Secuestradores (MAS). Los hechos expuestos dan cuenta de la convergencia de las luchas políticas, sindicales, cívicas y agrarias en la ciudad, que permitieron la consolidación de un proceso unitario y combativo como lo fue la Coordinadora Popular de Barrancabermeja.
The following article presents the most relevant events, in terms of labor and popular struggle, that took place in the city of Barrancabermeja during 1983. The exposition of collective actions was elaborated from the review of the archive of the weekly Voz -called Voz Proletaria until edition 1241 of July 7, 1983-, specifically from the period between editions 1215 and 1265. This work highlights the role of the Coordinadora Popular of Barrancabermeja and the civic strike for the right to water; the negotiation of the list of demands presented by the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO); the actions of labor unity and denunciation at Hospital San Rafael, at Fertilizantes Colombianos (Ferticol) and at Empresa de Obras Sanitarias de Santander (Emposan). Also, the collective actions in rejection of military repression and the criminal actions of the paramilitary group Muerte A Secuestradores (MAS). These facts showed the convergence of political, labor, civic and agrarian struggles in the city, which allowed the consolidation of a unitary and combative process such as the Coordinadora Popular of Barrancabermeja.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
Los lugares de la memoria como desarrollos del campo de estudio de la memoria colectiva han cobra... more Los lugares de la memoria como desarrollos del campo de estudio de la memoria colectiva han cobrado relevancia para la compresión de los conflictos violentos y la manera como una comunidad elabora o gestiona su pasado. Los acontecimientos del 9 de abril de 1948, en Barrancabermeja, donde una junta revolucionaria creó un tipo de gobierno popular, dan cuenta de una férrea organización que parece cimentada en tradiciones y aprendizajes heredados de las huelgas petroleras. Algunos cañones fabricados por los obreros durante la experiencia revolucionaria fueron conservados por el Ejército nacional, y uno de estos, puesto durante décadas como monumento en la fachada del Batallón Nueva Granada, hasta que fue retirado y reemplazado. Para mantener la memoria del monumento hecho por los obreros, se despliega un ejercicio de búsqueda que acude ante autoridades militares y judiciales, con el objetivo de indagar su paradero y resaltar su valor histórico y cultural, entre la pugna de una versión oficial y otra memoria colectiva, que abre la discusión sobre la convergencia de la historia con los derechos humanos y la defensa de estos lugares, desde la perspectiva del derecho a la verdad y a la memoria histórica que tienen las víctimas y las sociedades que han sufrido daños por experiencias de violencia política.
The places of memory as developments in the field of study of collective memory have gained relevance for understanding violent conflicts and the way in which a community elaborates or manages its past. The events of April 9th, 1948 in Barrancabermeja, where a Revolutionary Junta created a type of popular government, accounting for a strong organization that seemed to be based on traditions and learned from the oil strikes. Some cannons made by the workers during the revolutionary experience were kept by the National Army and one of these, placed for decades as a monument on the fac ade of the Nueva Granada Battalion, until it was removed and replaced. In order to maintain the memory of the monument made by the workers, a search exercise is deployed which goes before military and judicial authorities, with the aim of investigating its whereabouts and highlighting its historical and cultural value, between the struggle of an official version and another memory collective, which opens the discussion around the convergence of History with Human Rights and the defense of these places, from the perspective of the right to the Truth and to the Historical Memory, that victims and societies that have suffered damage due to experiences of political violence have.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
Las empresas bananeras desde los años 1960 se fueron estableciendo en la región del Urabá. Los tr... more Las empresas bananeras desde los años 1960 se fueron estableciendo en la región del Urabá. Los trabajadores debieron luchar para alcanzar unas condiciones laborales dignas. Pasaron de los campamentos deprimentes a viviendas dignas en municipios como Apartadó. Lograron establecer convenciones colectivas con los derechos básicos. No obstante, la fortaleza sindical fue amenazada por la violencia paramilitar, que mediante masacres de trabajadores logró el control de la región, al obligar el repliegue de las guerrillas en la región. Para afrontar esta violencia, los trabajadores debieron desplegar repertorios de resistencia, los cuales incluyeron acciones simbólicas e indirectas, pero principalmente acciones de presión directa, acciones de acompañamiento jurídico y acciones de presión internacional. Así, realizaron paros, huelgas y entierros masivos para manifestar su repudio ante los asesinatos y masacres adelantadas contra los trabajadores. Igualmente, entablaron denuncias y demandas ante las instituciones para exigir justicia. Buscaron solidaridad y apoyo al dar a conocer la problemática ante organizaciones internacionales y ONG. Ante el terror utilizaron el teatro mudo, la pintura y formas que les permitieran poder expresar su dolor y continuar luchando por sus derechos laborales.
Banana companies have been establishing themselves in the Urabá region since the 1960s. The workers had to fight to achieve decent working conditions. They went from depressing camps to decent housing in municipalities like Apartadó. They managed to establish collective agreements with basic rights. However, the strength of the union was threatened by paramilitary violence, which through massacres of workers gained control of the region, forcing the withdrawal of the guerrillas in the region. To confront this violence, the workers had to deploy repertoires of resistance which included symbolic and indirect actions, but mainly direct pressure actions, legal support actions and international pressure actions. Thus, they carried out stoppages, strikes and mass burials to express their repudiation of the murders and massacres carried out against the workers. Likewise, they filed complaints and lawsuits against the institutions to demand justice. Also, they sought solidarity and support by publicizing the problem before international organizations and NGOs. Faced with terror, they used silent drama, painting and forms that allowed them to express their pain and continue fighting for their labor rights.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
En este artículo reconstruimos una parte del devenir histórico de los trabajadores petroleros del... more En este artículo reconstruimos una parte del devenir histórico de los trabajadores petroleros del departamento de Arauca, ubicado en la Orinoquía colombiana, en los límites con el vecino país de Venezuela. Abordamos algunas trayectorias de vida de los miles de obreros que llegaron a la región llanera motivados por el hallazgo del campo petrolero de Caño Limón, en 1983. Analizamos sus condiciones de vida y de trabajo en el enclave que construyó la multinacional Occidental Petroleum Company, más conocida como la OXY. Haremos especial énfasis en las diversas formas de represión que han tenido que soportar los obreros petroleros, en un departamento que se ha convertido en laboratorio de guerra por varias décadas. Los trabajadores han quedado en medio del fuego cruzado de los diferentes actores armados que se disputan la región. Metodología: llevamos a cabo un trabajo de campo en la
ciudad de Arauca, donde entrevistamos a trabajadores petroleros y consultamos los archivos ubicados en la subdirectiva del sindicato. Originalidad: la investigación histórica sobre los trabajadores y la violencia se ha centrado en las regiones Andina y Caribe, por lo que se hace necesario abordar otros territorios. Eso intentamos en esta pesquisa al estudiar a los obreros petroleros de esta zona llanera. Conclusiones: los trabajadores petroleros del departamento de Arauca fueron fundamentales para extraer las riquezas del subsuelo. Sin embargo, han padecido las inclemencias del conflicto armado al quedar inmersos en las dinámicas violentas de los grupos legales e ilegales que actúan en la región.
In this article we reconstructed a part of the historical evolution of the oil workers of the department of Arauca, located in the Colombian Orinoquía, on the border with the neighboring country of Venezuela. We addressed some of the life trajectories of the thousands of workers who arrived in the llanera region motivated by the discovery of the Caño Limón oil field in 1983. We analyzed their living and working conditions in the enclave built by the multinational Occidental Petroleum Company, more known as the OXY. We placed special emphasis on the various forms of repression that the oil workers have had to endure, in a department that has become a war laboratory for several decades. The workers have been left in the middle of the crossfire of the different armed actors that are fighting over the region. Methodology: We carried out field work in the city of Arauca where we interviewed oil workers and consulted the files located in the union sub directorate. Originality: Historical research on workers and violence has focused on the Andean and Caribbean regions, so it is necessary to address other territories. That is what we tried in this research by studying the oil workers of this plains area. Conclusions: The oil workers of the department of Arauca were essential to extract the riches from the subsoil. However, they have suffered the harshness of the armed conflict by being immersed in the violent dynamics of legal and illegal groups that operate in the region.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
Este ensayo examina la historia de los corteros de caña del Valle del Cauca, en el periodo 1959-2... more Este ensayo examina la historia de los corteros de caña del Valle del Cauca, en el periodo 1959-2015. Se consideran cuatro aspectos: 1) caracterización demográfica, 2) condiciones laborales, 3) mecanismos de lucha y 4) respuesta del Estado y los capitalistas del dulce. Cualitativamente, se analizan las acciones organizativas y reivindicativas de los corteros, en el periodo de mayor expansión de la producción azucarera en el Valle del Cauca, así como la respuesta estatal y empresarial a los desafíos de la acción colectiva subalterna. De este modo, comprendidos con mayor precisión los cambios y continuidades en este importante sector del obrerismo colombiano.
This essay examines history about sugarcane workers of Valle del Cauca in the period of 1959-2015, considering four aspects: 1) Demographic characterization, 2) Work conditions, 3) Struggle mechanisms, 4) Government’s response and sweet capitalists. Through qualitative methods, the sugarcane workers’ organizational skills were analyzed, during the higher expansion term of sugar production in Valle del Cauca, as well as the Government and Entrepreneurial response to subaltern challenges.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
Hablar de los cien años de luchas de la organización Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) implica contextu... more Hablar de los cien años de luchas de la organización Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) implica contextualizar sus orígenes, su historia y el entorno regional y nacional en el cual inició su desarrollo y adelantó las principales gestas: el Magdalena Medio Santandereano. Para ello se apelarán a diversas fuentes orales y escritas que son testimonio de la región. Este artículo pretende ser un homenaje a la USO en sus cien años de luchas sindicales y sociales, poniendo el énfasis en las luchas sindicales del siglo XX.
Discussing the hundred years of struggles in the USO organization implies contextualizing its origins, history, the regional and national context where its development began. To do this, various oral and written sources will be used that are testimony of the region. This article pretends to give tribute to the USO in its centennial of labor and social struggles, emphasizing the labor fights of the 20th Century.
Cambios y Permanencias, 2023
En febrero de 2023, la Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) cumplió cien años de fundación. A propósito de... more En febrero de 2023, la Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) cumplió cien años de fundación. A propósito de este acontecimiento, el artículo reflexiona sobre la historia del trabajo y de los trabajadores, analizando diferentes perspectivas de la relación entre conocimiento histórico, presente y desafíos del movimiento obrero actual. El texto está estructurado en dos apartados: en el primero se esbozan algunas reflexiones sobre la importancia del conocimiento histórico para develar asuntos de nuestro tiempo, afirmando la relación entre historia y presente. En el segundo, se identifica y analiza una serie de aspectos clave de la historia particular de la USO, pero cuya influencia va más allá de esta organización sindical, y se proyectan simultáneamente como legados y retos para el movimiento sindical actual.
In February, 2023, the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) made a hundred years in service. Despite this, the article reflects about the history of work and their workers, analyzing the different perspectives of the relation between historical knowledge, present and challenges of the current labor movement. This text is structured in two parts: first one to discuss some reflections about the importance of historical knowledge in our time, stating the relation between history and present. The second one, to identify and analyze a series of aspects of USO, whose influence goes beyond this labor organization and at the same time transmits legacy to the current labor movement.
Cambios y Permanencias Vol. 14 N°2, 2023
En este artículo buscamos revindicar a Ignacio Torres Giraldo (en adelante ITG) como historiador,... more En este artículo buscamos revindicar a Ignacio Torres Giraldo (en adelante ITG) como historiador, para lo cual nos proponemos responder las siguientes preguntas: ¿cómo se conjuga memoria e historia en los escritos de movimiento obrero de ITG? y ¿qué teoría y metodología media en su ejercicio de historiador? En este propósito nos hemos contrapuesto a los que lo han pretendido reducir a escritura subjetivista, militante y testimonial. Para cumplir con este propósito nos acogimos a la metodología de la descripción articulada, que consistió en una revisión documental primaria y secundaria referida a la biografía de ITG, la historia del movimiento obrero de las décadas de 1920 y 1940, así como la selección de una bibliografía relevante para los temas abordados por La cuestión sindical en Colombia y los tres últimos tomos de Los inconformes, de donde identificamos conceptos, acontecimientos y tesis relevantes del autor, y los fuimos entretejiendo hasta constituir la configuración de un historiador. Concluimos que la memoria entrecruzada con una teoría y metodología, por más discutidas que estas sean, conjugadas con disciplina de análisis y escritura, pueden producir una obra de valor para la historia de un país y en especial de un movimiento social.
In this article we seeked to vindicate Ignacio Torres Giraldo (hereinafter ITG) as a historian, for which we proposed to answer the following questions: how does memory and history come together in ITG’s writings on the workers’ movement, and what theory and methodology does he use in his work as a historian? With this purpose we have opposed those who have tried to reduce it to subjectivist, militant and testimonial writing. To fulfill this purpose we used the methodology of articulated description, which consisted of a primary and secondary documentary review of ITG’s biography, the history of the labor movement of the 1920s and 1940s, as well as the selection of a bibliography relevant to the topics addressed by La cuestión sindical en Colombia and the last three volumes of Los inconformes, from which we identified concepts, events and relevant theses of the author, and we interweaved them to constitute the configuration of a historian. We concluded that memory intertwined with a theory and methodology, though disputed, combined with the discipline of analysis and writing, can produce a work of value for the history of a country and especially for a social movement.
Cambios y Permanencias Vol.14 N°2, 2023
oy, el mundo del emprendimiento, de los empresarios sin empresa y del marketing de los mercaderes... more oy, el mundo del emprendimiento, de los empresarios sin empresa y del marketing de los mercaderes de ilusiones, conocidos como influencers, pone en cuestión las formas tradicionales en las que funcionaba hasta hace unas décadas el mundo del trabajo. Una parte importante de
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Vol 14 Núm 2 (2023) by Revista Cambios y Permanencias
The national civic strike of September 14th, 1977 is one of the most debated events in Colombia’s contemporary political history. Most of the existing readings underline its importance due to the national and generalized character of it. However, there are few works that address the development of that protest through a regional and local prism that places that juncture beyond the capital. Additionally, there are few historiographic balances that have undertaken the task of systematizing the abundant bibliography that exist around this topic in books and works of diverse nature and scope. The article precisely proposes to advance on these two elements: to place the region’s position in that historiography and to propose lines of problematization and discussion around which a historiographic balance is articulated.
The following article presents the most relevant events, in terms of labor and popular struggle, that took place in the city of Barrancabermeja during 1983. The exposition of collective actions was elaborated from the review of the archive of the weekly Voz -called Voz Proletaria until edition 1241 of July 7, 1983-, specifically from the period between editions 1215 and 1265. This work highlights the role of the Coordinadora Popular of Barrancabermeja and the civic strike for the right to water; the negotiation of the list of demands presented by the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO); the actions of labor unity and denunciation at Hospital San Rafael, at Fertilizantes Colombianos (Ferticol) and at Empresa de Obras Sanitarias de Santander (Emposan). Also, the collective actions in rejection of military repression and the criminal actions of the paramilitary group Muerte A Secuestradores (MAS). These facts showed the convergence of political, labor, civic and agrarian struggles in the city, which allowed the consolidation of a unitary and combative process such as the Coordinadora Popular of Barrancabermeja.
The places of memory as developments in the field of study of collective memory have gained relevance for understanding violent conflicts and the way in which a community elaborates or manages its past. The events of April 9th, 1948 in Barrancabermeja, where a Revolutionary Junta created a type of popular government, accounting for a strong organization that seemed to be based on traditions and learned from the oil strikes. Some cannons made by the workers during the revolutionary experience were kept by the National Army and one of these, placed for decades as a monument on the fac ade of the Nueva Granada Battalion, until it was removed and replaced. In order to maintain the memory of the monument made by the workers, a search exercise is deployed which goes before military and judicial authorities, with the aim of investigating its whereabouts and highlighting its historical and cultural value, between the struggle of an official version and another memory collective, which opens the discussion around the convergence of History with Human Rights and the defense of these places, from the perspective of the right to the Truth and to the Historical Memory, that victims and societies that have suffered damage due to experiences of political violence have.
Banana companies have been establishing themselves in the Urabá region since the 1960s. The workers had to fight to achieve decent working conditions. They went from depressing camps to decent housing in municipalities like Apartadó. They managed to establish collective agreements with basic rights. However, the strength of the union was threatened by paramilitary violence, which through massacres of workers gained control of the region, forcing the withdrawal of the guerrillas in the region. To confront this violence, the workers had to deploy repertoires of resistance which included symbolic and indirect actions, but mainly direct pressure actions, legal support actions and international pressure actions. Thus, they carried out stoppages, strikes and mass burials to express their repudiation of the murders and massacres carried out against the workers. Likewise, they filed complaints and lawsuits against the institutions to demand justice. Also, they sought solidarity and support by publicizing the problem before international organizations and NGOs. Faced with terror, they used silent drama, painting and forms that allowed them to express their pain and continue fighting for their labor rights.
ciudad de Arauca, donde entrevistamos a trabajadores petroleros y consultamos los archivos ubicados en la subdirectiva del sindicato. Originalidad: la investigación histórica sobre los trabajadores y la violencia se ha centrado en las regiones Andina y Caribe, por lo que se hace necesario abordar otros territorios. Eso intentamos en esta pesquisa al estudiar a los obreros petroleros de esta zona llanera. Conclusiones: los trabajadores petroleros del departamento de Arauca fueron fundamentales para extraer las riquezas del subsuelo. Sin embargo, han padecido las inclemencias del conflicto armado al quedar inmersos en las dinámicas violentas de los grupos legales e ilegales que actúan en la región.
In this article we reconstructed a part of the historical evolution of the oil workers of the department of Arauca, located in the Colombian Orinoquía, on the border with the neighboring country of Venezuela. We addressed some of the life trajectories of the thousands of workers who arrived in the llanera region motivated by the discovery of the Caño Limón oil field in 1983. We analyzed their living and working conditions in the enclave built by the multinational Occidental Petroleum Company, more known as the OXY. We placed special emphasis on the various forms of repression that the oil workers have had to endure, in a department that has become a war laboratory for several decades. The workers have been left in the middle of the crossfire of the different armed actors that are fighting over the region. Methodology: We carried out field work in the city of Arauca where we interviewed oil workers and consulted the files located in the union sub directorate. Originality: Historical research on workers and violence has focused on the Andean and Caribbean regions, so it is necessary to address other territories. That is what we tried in this research by studying the oil workers of this plains area. Conclusions: The oil workers of the department of Arauca were essential to extract the riches from the subsoil. However, they have suffered the harshness of the armed conflict by being immersed in the violent dynamics of legal and illegal groups that operate in the region.
This essay examines history about sugarcane workers of Valle del Cauca in the period of 1959-2015, considering four aspects: 1) Demographic characterization, 2) Work conditions, 3) Struggle mechanisms, 4) Government’s response and sweet capitalists. Through qualitative methods, the sugarcane workers’ organizational skills were analyzed, during the higher expansion term of sugar production in Valle del Cauca, as well as the Government and Entrepreneurial response to subaltern challenges.
Discussing the hundred years of struggles in the USO organization implies contextualizing its origins, history, the regional and national context where its development began. To do this, various oral and written sources will be used that are testimony of the region. This article pretends to give tribute to the USO in its centennial of labor and social struggles, emphasizing the labor fights of the 20th Century.
In February, 2023, the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) made a hundred years in service. Despite this, the article reflects about the history of work and their workers, analyzing the different perspectives of the relation between historical knowledge, present and challenges of the current labor movement. This text is structured in two parts: first one to discuss some reflections about the importance of historical knowledge in our time, stating the relation between history and present. The second one, to identify and analyze a series of aspects of USO, whose influence goes beyond this labor organization and at the same time transmits legacy to the current labor movement.
In this article we seeked to vindicate Ignacio Torres Giraldo (hereinafter ITG) as a historian, for which we proposed to answer the following questions: how does memory and history come together in ITG’s writings on the workers’ movement, and what theory and methodology does he use in his work as a historian? With this purpose we have opposed those who have tried to reduce it to subjectivist, militant and testimonial writing. To fulfill this purpose we used the methodology of articulated description, which consisted of a primary and secondary documentary review of ITG’s biography, the history of the labor movement of the 1920s and 1940s, as well as the selection of a bibliography relevant to the topics addressed by La cuestión sindical en Colombia and the last three volumes of Los inconformes, from which we identified concepts, events and relevant theses of the author, and we interweaved them to constitute the configuration of a historian. We concluded that memory intertwined with a theory and methodology, though disputed, combined with the discipline of analysis and writing, can produce a work of value for the history of a country and especially for a social movement.
Book Reviews by Revista Cambios y Permanencias