Conducting a war of nerves, or psychological warfare, is an aggressive tactic based on the direct or indirect use of mass communications, or by rumors transmitted orally from person to person with the aim of demoralizing the enemy.

The government is always at a disadvantage in psychological warfare since it imposes censorship on the mass media. By its repressive new restrictions, the government is forced into a defensive position.

With each new form of censorship imposed, and with each even greater contradiction, the government becomes more desperate. It loses more and more prestige. Censorship controls require time to institute, a great amount of official effort, and involve a neverending process of monitoring that is subject to failure at any given moment.

The objective of the war of nerves is to misinform, spreading lies among the enemy. Everyone contributes to this propaganda tactic, fomenting a climate of unease, discreditation, insecurity, uncertainty, and fear.

The recommended methods for conducting the war of nerves by the urban guerrilla are.

1. telephoning or mailing false information to the police and government, giving phony tips on scheduled bombings, terrorist acts aimed at government offices, and plans for kidnappings or assassinations so that the authorities will exhaust themselves following one false lead after another;
2. arranging for phony plans to be captured by or fall into the hands of the police;
3. spreading rumors designed to cause the government trouble;
4. exploiting all evidence of government corruption, its mistakes, its failures, so that the enemy is forced to use the mass media under its control to give explanations and justifications; and,
5. providing reports documenting oppression to foreign embassies, the United Nations, the Papal authorities, and all international judicial bodies charged with the responsibility for defending human rights and freedom of the press. We should point out and substantiate each violation, as well as the use of force by the military dictatorship. At the same time we renew our pledge to continue with the revolutionary struggle until our nation is rid of this enemy.