The Paraguayan People’s Army (EPP) is a Marxist-Leninist guerrilla group active since March 2008 in Paraguay. Nonetheless, the EPP’s political struggle traces back to the 1990s, where its members served as the armed wing of the leftist political party Patria Libre. The EPP is active in northeastern Paraguay and its members are trained by other regional guerrilla groups, one of which is the FARC.
The EPP’s ideology is very far-left oriented. The group seeks to overthrow the Paraguayan government and establish a de facto socialist state. The overall revolutionary socialist motives of the EPP are guided by Guevarist principles and Foco theory. In essence, the EPP considers the past Paraguayan governments (those or Fernando Lugo and Nicanor Frutos) to have implemented an oligarchical system which led to social alienation and harmed the agrarian sector.
These objectives and core motivations have made the Paraguayan government classify the group as a terrorist organisation. However, numerous Paraguayan analysts claim that the EPP is widely popular amongst the country’s poorer social classes as their respective populations feel that they’ve been abandoned by their state. In fact and as Galeani Perrone (former Paraguayan minister) states, the EPP’s members are often seen as the Paraguayan “Robin Hoods” as they redistribute wealth.
The EPP’s approach to resistance is almost identical to that of other South American guerrilla groups. Essentially, the EPP targets businessmen, bankers, and even ranchers and has conducted numerous kidnappings and expropriations thereof. The EPP has also orchestrated armed attacks where they conducted arson attacks, bombings, and shootings.
NOTE: This article will be updated soon.
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