That General (Ese General)

Music piece by:
Sergio Vesely
Testimony by:
Sergio Vesely
Experience in:
Cárcel de Valparaíso, 1976

The night of 24 March 1976, the residents of cell 198 hardly slept. We hadn’t slept on account of a long, heated discussion about the prospects of revolution in Latin America’s Southern Cone.

What had ignited our discussion was clear: that day we heard the news about the military coup in neighbouring Argentina.

At the break of dawn, I awoke with my mind still clouded with indignation and I wrote this song in which I clearly state my belief that the continent would be liberated.


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Published on: 23 September 2015

That general, that general
who kills you, who grinds you
who cheats on you, dusky girl.

[Chorus]
Rise up, rise up
the Americas are determined.

That dictator, that dictator
who kills you, who grinds you
who cheats on you, dusky girl.

[Chorus]

It’s not the bread, it’s not the people
these are the gringos
who come to sow war.

[Chorus]





Related testimonies:

  • Lament for the Death of Augusto the Dog (Lamento a la muerte del perro Augusto)  Sergio Vesely, Campamento de Prisioneros Melinka, Puchuncaví, 1975

    Augusto the dog (not to be confused with the journalist Augusto Olivares, affectionately nicknamed 'Augusto the Dog', who was murdered in the Presidential Palace on 11 September 1973), was the mascot of the political prisoners held at the Ritoque concentration camp, and accompanied his master when the military junta decided to close that prison and transfer the inmates to the neighbouring Puchuncaví concentration camp.

  • Ode to Joy (Himno a la alegría)  Luis Madariaga, Cárcel de Valparaíso, 1974 - 1976

    In prison, we would sing the 'Ode to Joy' when a comrade was released or sent to exile.

  • Today Was Visitors’ Day (Hoy fue día de visitas)  Sergio Vesely, Cárcel de Valparaíso, 1976

    Visitors’ day was an exceptional day that broke the monotonous routine of all the other days of the week.

  • Song of a Middle-Class Man (Canción de un hombre medio)  Sergio Vesely, Cárcel de Valparaíso, 1976

    In our political discussions, we always spoke disdainfully of the middle class. In the view of the Marxist ideologues in prison, that sector of society supported the dictatorship and it was necessary to reverse that trend.

  • How Can I Describe This to You? (Cómo hacer para darte una idea)  Sergio Vesely, Cárcel de Valparaíso, 1976

    This is one of two songs I wrote in prison for my beloved Graciela. In the song I tried to draw her closer to me, describing my everyday world and my experience of life as a captive.

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