As the leader of his people, Evo Morales celebrates his 50th birthday on Monday, having become one of the most prestigious leaders in the world. Regarding the date, he said, "That means that I’m a militia member, too"
Luis Báez and Pedro de la Hoz
The first time we talked with Evo Morales, on a cold winter night in La Paz in 2008, after learning the date of his birthday, one of us observed, "On that same day, Fidel in Havana called upon the people to create the National Revolutionary Militias." The Bolivian president nodded his head and after a brief silence commented, "That means that I’m a militia member, too."
Fifty years after having been born on October 26, 1959, Evo will most likely arrive at his birthday involved in one of his usual busy days. He will rise at 4 a.m., see to the first matters one hour later, and immerse himself in a whirlwind of work that will continue until late at night.
He might travel to somewhere in the country to inaugurate a construction project, supervise a program, converse with residents, correct perspectives, right some wrongs, and envision new possibilities for his people.
Since January 2006, Evo has been president of all the Bolivian people. He assumed office with more than 53% of the vote, which was ratified in an August 2008 referendum by an overwhelming majority.
In the upcoming December 6 elections, the first to be held under the country’s new Constitution, no other candidate has appeared that could displace him. What speaks for Evo is unprecedented progress in the country’s history in terms of social justice, productive incentives, education and health. There is the recovered dignity of a people that finally has the benefits of the exploitation of hydrocarbon and mineral resources. And the dignity of the descendants of the indigenous peoples — Aymara, Quechua, Guaraní and another 30 indigenous communities — who, under his government, have gone from being invisible and denied for so long to playing a central role in a heroic collective effort.
Senator Antonio Peredo, who is also a political analyst for the media, commented to us on that:
"At this point I do not see a figure other than Evo who is consistent and serious. Because the only program that the rightists have is to go backwards. There is no other program except to get the United States to accept us; to have the DEA attack the coca farmers again; that nationalization is good in theory but why nationalize if you don’t have capital; to hand over our national resources to the lowest bidder, and other old ideas. The opposition has been left without arguments. They cannot tell people that they are going to continue to bring changes, and the people are convinced that the road forward is change, and that the only one who can do it is Evo Morales."
This does not mean that the road is clear. On the contrary, maneuvers are being plotted and threats are hovering. In an exclusive interview, Juan Ramón Quintana, minister of the presidency, gave us his assessment:
"When considering one’s main enemy, one should be cautious in knowing that such an enemy does not have the virtue of political transparency; rather, he has the shrewdness to not present himself as the main enemy and to use third parties. I would say that our adversaries are digestible, politically speaking, because they are incapable of producing an alternative project to the one we have. They are adversaries ashamed of their reality; they have no identity; they lack their own doctrine. Their proposals are more the result of external lucubration; they have a script to follow. Therefore, they don’t worry us much. What worry us are the main enemies of this revolution: at some point they were the transnational corporations, until we struck a blow at them one day. Later, they dispersed out into pro-secession political projects and dropped anchor there. Today, they act in the shadows, but we know they are putting together their conspiracy. Of course, they are using every imaginable method to undermine this process, and of course, they have gone from the coup-plotting adventure to the separatist terrorist adventure. I would warn that they could end up in a suicidal adventure."
Evo received a magnificent birthday present shortly before the ALBA Summit held last weekend in Cochabamba. Compañero Fidel’s Reflection entitled "A Nobel Prize for Evo" offered readers in Cuba and around the world a very precise profile of the merits of the Bolivian leader.
During another evening of confessions, Evo told us that he sometimes dreamed of Fidel, and as he had learned from his ancestors, these were premonitory dreams. We asked him to recall the first time that he saw the Commander in Chief:
"It was at an event in Havana in 1992," he told us. "With the help of various friends, I managed to get together the money for the one-way ticket to Havana. I only went to Havana to learn about Cuba and Fidel. I made a three minute speech, Fidel was chairing the meeting. I didn’t get to meet him personally but afterwards, I found out that he had noticed me. The return journey was very complicated. They managed to get me a ticket as far as Lima. I got there with just a dollar in my pocket which I changed into soles. Luckily, a Peruvian friend Juan Rojas, lent me $100 so that I could make it back to Bolivia."
And later on?
"I’ve had several meetings with Fidel. He is a wise older brother, whose basic principal is solidarity and the struggle for dignity and justice. Fidel is the best doctor in the world. You should see how concerned he is over the health of others, but he is also a great teacher. I feel that Fidel is the Commander of the libertarian forces of America."
The day that Evo was elected leader of his trade union in the coca plantations in Chapare – prior to that he was secretary of sports and then, and to date, president of the six trade union federations in the Trópico de Cochabamba – he didn’t even have enough money to reach the meeting in Villa Tunari by bus.
"I went by bicycle," he tells us. "It was several kilometers away. I went pedaling away and thinking at the same time. Ideas spring to mind when you’re out in the open air. I would think about how the world could not continue in this way, just a few ‘haves’ and the vast majority, ‘have-nots.’ It came to me clearly that the fight must be an anti-imperialist one."
In the international arena, Evo has consolidated notable prestige for his unambiguous positions and his ethical stance on defending the dispossessed and Mother Earth. He has even merited the evaluations of politicians who are diametrically opposed to his way of thinking, such as the case of former U.S. President William Clinton. According to a report by EFE dated May 16, 2006, Clinton was asked during a press conference in New York what he thought of the nationalization of the hydrocarbons industry and the situation in the South American country. Clinton likewise responded with a question: "What would you do if you were a Bolivian miner working 60 hours a week, with four children to feed and no prospects for improvement? Who would you have voted for?"
Evo also considers Hugo Chávez as a brother. Chávez feels the same. At the recent bicentennial event commemorating the first cry of liberation in La Paz, Chávez said:
"I see Evo as stronger than ever, clearer than ever, a greater leader than ever. Support him, don’t listen to the voices of the oligarchy, who are trying to demonize him and confuse the people every single day. (…) Come together with love, and design and build together the great Bolivia of the 21st century."
Many things in this world amaze Evo. For him, the most important values are openness, honesty, honor and respect for the elderly. He cannot abide vanity or dishonesty. He likes to hear different people’s opinions before making a decision. He confided to us that he would only make one personal request of Cuba: "That Silvio comes here to sing."
Translated by Granma International
Letter by Evo Morales Ayma to the Bolivian people
Bolivians today we begin to walk down a new path towards the consolidation of the democratic and cultural revolution. When we arrived in government in 2005, history made us face the challenge of pushing forward a process of change to refound the country. We had to undertake important tasks: the nationalization of our hydrocarbons, the Constituent Assembly, autonomy as part of the new constitution, the end of illiteracy, the redistribution of land, an end to discrimination, the redistribution of wealth with the Bono Juancito Pinto, la Renta Dignidad and the Bono Juana Azurduy.
These important tasks have been fulfilled, that is why now we have to propose new measures to give a vital boost to the country. We have developed the Government Program "Bolivia Advances" which incorporates the suggestions and proposals made by social movements, workers, the professional colleges and the organised middle class, all pointing to a common goal: to advance in the process of change to develop Bolivia and so that those who inhabit this land full of history and culture live well.
In the next five years, Autonomous Bolivia will take a Great Industrial Leap and we will leave behind being an exporter country of raw materials, the Great Highway Revolution will definitively integrate and unite our regions, the Tupac Katari satellite will allow us to communicate to all ten million Bolivians; we will be a productive nation, the peasants will have Universal Agricultural Insurance; education, security and social justice will reach each communities and families across the country.
To consolidate this set of plans and programs and projects, the country needs the combined efforts of all. So I invite the citizens to be part of this historical process and today we can build our dreams and the dreams of our children.
We are convinced that all measures we propose in our Government Program "Bolivia Advances" are viable and possible to achieve, we just have to undertake them together because ultimately, change has no party, the change is in the heart of all Bolivians who wants to see a Grand, United and Solidarity-based Homeland.
Juan Evo Morales Aima
Presidential candidate of the MAS - IPSP (Movement Toward Socialism - Instrument for the Sovereignty of Peoples)
Translated by Kiraz Janicke
These important tasks have been fulfilled, that is why now we have to propose new measures to give a vital boost to the country. We have developed the Government Program "Bolivia Advances" which incorporates the suggestions and proposals made by social movements, workers, the professional colleges and the organised middle class, all pointing to a common goal: to advance in the process of change to develop Bolivia and so that those who inhabit this land full of history and culture live well.
In the next five years, Autonomous Bolivia will take a Great Industrial Leap and we will leave behind being an exporter country of raw materials, the Great Highway Revolution will definitively integrate and unite our regions, the Tupac Katari satellite will allow us to communicate to all ten million Bolivians; we will be a productive nation, the peasants will have Universal Agricultural Insurance; education, security and social justice will reach each communities and families across the country.
To consolidate this set of plans and programs and projects, the country needs the combined efforts of all. So I invite the citizens to be part of this historical process and today we can build our dreams and the dreams of our children.
We are convinced that all measures we propose in our Government Program "Bolivia Advances" are viable and possible to achieve, we just have to undertake them together because ultimately, change has no party, the change is in the heart of all Bolivians who wants to see a Grand, United and Solidarity-based Homeland.
Juan Evo Morales Aima
Presidential candidate of the MAS - IPSP (Movement Toward Socialism - Instrument for the Sovereignty of Peoples)
Translated by Kiraz Janicke
Fidel Castro: A Nobel Prize for Evo Morales
Fidel Castro
If Obama was awarded the Nobel for winning the elections in a racist society despite his being African American, Evo deserves it for winning them in his country despite his being a native and his having delivered on his promises.
If Obama was awarded the Nobel for winning the elections in a racist society despite his being African American, Evo deserves it for winning them in his country despite his being a native and his having delivered on his promises.
For the first time, in both countries a member of their respective ethnic groups has won the presidency.
I had said several times that Obama is a smart and cultivated man in a social and political system he believes in. He wishes to bring healthcare to nearly 50 million Americans, to rescue the economy from its profound crisis and to improve the US image which has deteriorated as a result of genocidal wars and torture. He neither conceives nor wishes to change his country’s political and economic system; nor could he do it.
The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to three American presidents, one former president and one candidate to the presidency.
The first one was Theodore Roosevelt elected in 1901. He was one of the Rough Riders who landed in Cuba with his riders but with no horses in the wake of the US intervention in 1898 aimed at preventing the independence of our homeland.
The second was Thomas Woodrow Wilson who dragged the United States to the first war for the distribution of the world. The extremely severe conditions he imposed on a vanquished Germany, through the Versailles Treaty, set the foundations for the emergence of fascism and the breakout of World War II.
The third has been Barack Obama.
Carter was the ex-president who received the Nobel Prize a few years after leaving office. He was certainly one of the few presidents of that country who would not order the murder of an adversary, as others did. He returned the Panama Canal, opened the US Interests Section in Havana and prevented large budget deficits as well as the squandering of money to the benefit of the military-industrial complex, as Reagan did.
The candidate was Al Gore –when he already was vicepresident. He was the best informed American politician on the dreadful consequences of climate change. As a candidate to the presidency, he was the victim of an electoral fraud and stripped of his victory by W. Bush.
The views have been deeply divided with regards to the choice for this award. Many people question ethical concepts or perceive obvious contradictions in the unexpected decision.
They would have rather seen the Prize given for an accomplished task. The Nobel Peace Prize has not always been presented to people deserving that distinction. On occasions it has been received by resentful and arrogant persons, or even worse. Upon hearing the news, Lech Walesa scornfully said: “Who, Obama? It’s too soon. He has not had time to do anything.”
In our press and in CubaDebate, honest revolutionary comrades have expressed their criticism. One of them wrote: “The same week in which Obama was granted the Nobel Peace Prize, the US Senate passed the largest military budget in its history: 626 billion dollars.” Another journalist commented during the TV News: “What has Obama done to deserve that award?” And still another asked: “And what about the Afghan war and the increased number of bombings?” These views are based on reality.
In Rome, film maker Michael Moore made a scathing comment: “Congratulations, President Obama, for the Nobel Peace Prize; now, please, earn it.”
I am sure that Obama agrees with Moore’s phrase. He is clever enough to understand the circumstances around this case. He knows he has not earned that award yet. That day in the morning he said that he was under the impression that he did not deserve to be in the company of so many inspiring personalities who have been honored with that prize.
It is said that the celebrated committee that assigns the Nobel Peace Prize is made up of five persons who are all members of the Swedish Parliament. A spokesman said it was a unanimous vote. One wonders whether or not the prizewinner was consulted and if such a decision can be made without giving him previous notice.
The moral judgment would be different depending on whether or not he had previous knowledge of the Prize’s allocation. The same could be said of those who decided to present it to him.
Perhaps it would be worthwhile creating the Nobel Transparency Prize.
Bolivia is a country with large oil and gas depots as well as the largest known reserves of lithium, a mineral currently in great demand for the storage and use of energy.
Before his sixth birthday, Evo Morales, a very poor native peasant, walked through The Andes with his father tending the llama of his native community. He walked with them for 15 days to the market where they were sold in order to purchase food for the community. In response to a question I asked him about that peculiar experience Evo told me that “he took shelter under the one-thousand stars hotel,” a beautiful way of describing the clear skies on the mountains where telescopes are sometimes placed.
In those difficult days of his childhood, the only alternative of the peasants in his community was to cut sugarcane in the Argentinean province of Jujuy, where part of the Aymara community went to work during the harvesting season.
Not far from La Higuera, where after being wounded and disarmed Che [Guevara] was murdered on October 9, 1967, Evo –who had been born on the 26th of that same month in the year 1959—was not yet 8 years old. He learned how to read and write in Spanish in a small public school he had to walk to, which was located 3.2 miles away from the one-room shack he shared with his parents and siblings.
During his hazardous childhood, Evo would go wherever there was a teacher. It was from his race that he learned three ethical principles: don’t lie, don’t steal and don’t be weak.
At the age of 13, his father allowed him to move to San Pedro de Oruro to study his senior high school. One of his biographers has related that he did better in Geography, History and Philosophy than in Physics and Mathematics. The most important thing is that, in order to pay for school, Evo woke up a two in the morning to work as a baker, a construction worker or any other physical job. He attended school in the afternoon. His classmates admired him and helped him. From his early childhood he learned how to play wind instruments and even was a trumpet player in a prestigious band in Oruro.
As a teenager he organized and was the captain of his community’s soccer team.
But, access to the University was beyond reach for a poor Aymara native.
After completing his senior high school, he did military service and then returned to his community on the mountain tops. Later, poverty and natural disasters forced the family to migrate to the subtropical area known as El Chapare, where they managed to have a plot of ground. His father passed away in 1983, when he was 23 years old. He worked hard on the ground but he was a born fighter; he organized the workers and created trade unions thus filling up a space unattended by the government.
The conditions for a social revolution in Bolivia had been maturing in the past 50 years. The revolution broke out in that country with Victor Paz Estensoro’s Nationalist Revolutionary Movement (MNR, by its Spanish acronym) on April 9, 1952, that is, before the start of our armed struggle. The revolutionary miners defeated the repressive forces and the MNR seized power.
The revolutionary objectives in Bolivia were not attained and in 1956, according to some well-informed people, the process started to decline. On January 1st, 1959, the Revolution triumphed in Cuba, and three years later, in January 1962, our homeland was expelled from the OAS. Bolivia abstained from voting. Later, every other government, except Mexico’s, severed relations with Cuba.
The divisions in the international revolutionary movement had an impact on Bolivia. Time would have to pass with over 40 years of blockade on Cuba; neoliberalism and its devastating consequences; the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela and the ALBA; and above all, Evo and his MAS in Bolivia.
It would be hard to try summing up his rich history in a few pages.
I shall only say that Evo has prevailed over the wicked and slanderous imperialist campaigns, its coups and interference in the internal affairs of that country and defended Bolivia’s sovereignty and the right of its thousand-year-old people to have their traditions respected. “Coca is not cocaine,” he blurted out to the largest marihuana producer and drug consumer in the world, whose market has sustained the organized crime that is taking thousands of lives in Mexico every year. Two of the countries where the Yankee troops and their military bases are stationed are the largest drug producers on the planet.
The deadly trap of drug-trafficking has failed to catch Bolivia, Venezuela and Ecuador, revolutionary countries members of ALBA like Cuba which are aware of what they can and should do to bring healthcare, education and wellbeing to their peoples. They do not need foreign troops to combat drug-trafficking.
Bolivia is fostering a wonderful program under the leadership of an Aymara president with the support of his people.
Illiteracy was eradicated in less than three years: 824,101 Bolivian learned how to read and write; 24,699 did so also in Aymara and 13,599 in Quechua. Bolivia is the third country free of illiteracy, following Cuba and Venezuela.
It provides free healthcare to millions of people who had never had it before. It is one of the seven countries in the world with the largest reduction of infant mortality rate in the last five years and with a real possibility to meet the Millennium Goals before the year 2015, with a similar accomplishment regarding maternal deaths. It has conducted eye surgery on 454,161 persons, 75,974 of them Brazilians, Argentineans, Peruvians and Paraguayans.
Bolivia has set forth an ambitious social program: every child attending school from first to eighth grade is receiving an annual grant to pay for the school material. This benefits nearly two million students.
More than 700,000 persons over 60 years of age are receiving a bonus equivalent to some 342 dollars annually.
Every pregnant woman and child under two years of age is receiving an additional benefit of approximately 257 dollars.
Bolivia, one of the three poorest nations in the hemisphere, has brought under state control the country’s most important energy and mineral resources while respecting and compensating every single affected interest. It is advancing carefully because it does not want to take a step backward. Its hard currency reserves have been growing, and now they are no less than three times higher than they were at the beginning of Evo’s mandate. It is one of the countries making a better use of external cooperation and it is a strong advocate of the environment.
In a very short time, Bolivia has been able to establish the Biometric Electoral Register and approximately 4.7 million voters have registered, that is, nearly a million more than in the last electoral roll that in January 2009 included 3.8 million.
There will be elections on December 6. Surely, the people’s support for their President will increase. Nothing has stopped his growing prestige and popularity.
Why is he not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize?
I understand his great disadvantage: he is not the President of the United States of America.
Fidel Castro Ruz
October 15, 2009
Russia, Bolivia to launch gas joint venture
F. William Engdahl
The latest news report that Russia will sign an agreement with the Bolivian government to explore and produce natural gas is a significant setback for US domination of its traditional Latin American sphere of influence. Since it was declared in 1823 as the Monroe Doctrine, the United States, especially its banking elites have regarded South America as a de facto 'American plantation.' The move by Russia's state-owned Gazprom into Bolivia must be seen as Moscow's asymmetric geopolitical response to US expansion of NATO to the doorstep of Moscow in recent years. The US is ill-prepared to counter with any economic incentive.
Gazprom Deputy CEO, Alexander Medvedev, announced at a recent energy conference in Argentina that they would sign a final agreement in the coming weeks with the Bolivian state oil and gas company, YFBP, for a major joint venture to develop Bolivia's huge natural gas reserves. Bolivia has the second largest gas reserves (1.5 trillion cubic meters) in South America after Venezuela. Its key gas reserves are concentrated in the country's southeast in Santa Cruz.
The Russian gas deal follows talks with Moscow on increased Russian military aid to the Bolivian armed forces following a US cut-off of all aid.
Bolivia's President, Evo Morales, the country's first fully indigenous head of state in the 470 years since the Spanish Conquest, has been on the target list of Washington since his popular election in 2005. In September 2008 Morales expelled the US Ambassador, accusing him of fomenting opposition riots and protests against Morales. One week later, the Bush Administration responded by putting Bolivia on the "counter-narcotics" blacklist, cutting all US foreign aid. Curiously, the list is small, including only three countries, all firm opponents of US policies-Bolivia, Venezuela and Burma (Myanmar). Countries such as Mexico, Afghanistan, Colombia are not cited by Washington suggesting there might be another agenda there.
In January 2009 Morales again won a decisive national referendum allowing him to run for re-election and to take steps to control large landholdings. With a 60 per cent "Yes" vote, Morales can seek re-election in December 2009. As well, under the new powers, rich landowners may be targeted for dispossession as the state now only allows private ownership of large estates, Latifundistas, if the land is put to 'social use.' If not, the land may be seized by the state and redistributed. As well the referendum gave the state more power over its energy resources.
War over water and energy
The US interest in Bolivia is little other than crass exploitation of that country's huge resources. Washington sent Harvard "shock therapy" economist Jeffrey Sachs to Bolivia in the 1980's to impose his radical therapy which killed inflation and did nothing to alleviate the severe poverty. It did open up the resources of the country to cheap exploitation by foreign multinationals like BP and ExxonMobil as well as British and American water companies.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney's old firm Halliburton had plans to exploit Bolivia's natural gas for export. In 2002 popular outrage over the generous terms given by an earlier pro-US government to Halliburton led to nationwide protests, dubbed the "Bolivian Gas War" by media.
With growing popular protests and national strikes against foreign exploitation of the country's resources, the Bolivian Congress passed a new Hydrocarbons Law in 2005 that partially re-nationalized the energy resources, while allowing foreign companies to lease, albeit on less generous terms. YPFB had been privatized in 1996 and British firms BP and BG along with Halliburton and ExxonMobil immediately came in then to build a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline to export LNG to California. Cheney's Halliburton was the main construction contractor.
Morales won a landslide election victory in December 2005 on a pledge to use the country's resources to develop the country's economy, one of the poorest in South America. Since that time Washington has covertly been supporting various opposition groups in Santa Cruz province in the region of the gas and huge fresh water resources.
On May 1, 2006, President Morales signed a decree stating that all gas reserves were to be nationalized: "the state recovers ownership, possession and total and absolute control" of hydrocarbons. Since then the government's energy-related revenue doubled and has increased six-fold from 2002. Foreign companies were either compensated for their holdings as with Shell, or continued to work but as minority partners with the state.
Bush finds a 'retirement' ranch
Shortly before leaving office, according to South American media reports, then President George W. Bush drew considerable attention in Bolivia with reports he had arranged to buy a huge tract of land on the Triple Frontier border of Paraguay, Brazil and Bolivia "to retire." Bush reportedly bought some 40000 hectares of land in Chaco, Paraguay, near a US military base. Significantly, the land is reportedly located in Paso de Patria, near Bolivian gas reserves and the Guarani indigenous water region, within the Triple Border. The Guarani Aquifer is one of the largest underground water reserves in South America, running beneath Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, and larger than Texas and California together.
South America is now all but lost to US influence, with only Colombia, a stalwart ally, and Peru considered still in Washington's geopolitical orbit. The rest of the region has now swung against US influence, led by Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, who has cultivated anti-US allies like Iran and Cuba, and has now invited the Russian air force and navy to exercise in the Caribbean. Bolivia's Morales has strong ties to the governments of Venezuela, Ecuador and recently of Paraguay, where former Bishop Fernando Lugo won an upset victory in April 2008 breaking the 61 year domination of the right-wing military Colorado Party.
The Bolivia-Russia Gazprom deal further secures a degree of economic independence for Bolivia from the historical US economic domination. For Russia, it offers an excellent chance to up pressure on the United States in its backyard, its traditional "sphere of influence" in the Americas, long considered a Rockefeller family plantation. Given its deepening domestic economic crisis, the Obama Administration has few cards to play beyond trying to create chaos in the region. It has little positive to offer Bolivia or any of its neighbors. The process is like a 'Grade B' rerun of the collapse of the British Empire in Africa and the Indian Subcontinent after the Second World War.
F. William Engdahl is the author of Full Spectrum Dominance: Totalitarian Democracy in the New World Order
Republished from Global Research
Evo Morales proposes world youth summit against capitalism
EFE, October 11 - Bolivian president, Evo Morales, proposed his country as host for an international summit of “revolutionary youth” who defend the environment with the aim of “putting an end to capitalism.”
The head of state, who is seeking reelection in the December 6 poll, raised the proposal during an event in which youth groups aligned with his government announced their support for his candidature in the eastern region of Santa Cruz.
The event also counted with the participation of youth from Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay, followers of the guerrilla, Ernesto “Che” Guevara, who arrived in the country this week to participate on Thursday [October] 8 in the event to mark 42 years since the death of the Argentine-Cuban revolutionary.
In the midst of songs and chants, Morales announced that he would “urgently” convoke a meeting of youth of America that “are with the people and not with the empire”, referring to the US government.
He added that they would also organize another event to bring together the “youth of the world” who supported “revolutionary processes to put an end to capitalism.”
“To advance in the defense of humanity, to save mother earth, we will convoke a meeting of the revolutionary youth of all the world in Bolivia,” he said.
Moreover, the head of state ratified his government’s rejection of foreign military presence in South America and reiterated “if any president or government allows US bases, they are the worst traitor of Latin America and the world.”
Morales was alluding to the agreements between Bogota and Washington, which include the use of Colombian military bases by US troops and which has been discussed by the member countries of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).
The head of state, who is seeking reelection in the December 6 poll, raised the proposal during an event in which youth groups aligned with his government announced their support for his candidature in the eastern region of Santa Cruz.
The event also counted with the participation of youth from Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay, followers of the guerrilla, Ernesto “Che” Guevara, who arrived in the country this week to participate on Thursday [October] 8 in the event to mark 42 years since the death of the Argentine-Cuban revolutionary.
In the midst of songs and chants, Morales announced that he would “urgently” convoke a meeting of youth of America that “are with the people and not with the empire”, referring to the US government.
He added that they would also organize another event to bring together the “youth of the world” who supported “revolutionary processes to put an end to capitalism.”
“To advance in the defense of humanity, to save mother earth, we will convoke a meeting of the revolutionary youth of all the world in Bolivia,” he said.
Moreover, the head of state ratified his government’s rejection of foreign military presence in South America and reiterated “if any president or government allows US bases, they are the worst traitor of Latin America and the world.”
Morales was alluding to the agreements between Bogota and Washington, which include the use of Colombian military bases by US troops and which has been discussed by the member countries of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).
Bolivia to publish Che Guevara diaries before ALBA summit
MOSCOW, October 5 (RIA Novosti) - Bolivia's Culture Ministry will publish over 1,000 copies of legendary Argentinean revolutionary Che Guevara's diaries dating back to his 1966-1967 Bolivian campaign, Latin American media reported Monday.
Culture Minister Pablo Groux said the diaries were written by Guevara from November 7, 1966 to October 6, 1967. They were digitized in 2008 and will form the basis for the book, to include illustrations and material of political interest.
"We are publishing a facsimile copy of Comandante Che Guevara's diaries. The document has had the status of a state secret in the archives of Bolivia's Central Bank since 1985 and now people can have a look at them," Groux said.
Ernesto Che Guevara spent the last years of his life in Bolivia. He flew there in November 1966 to organize a guerilla movement, was taken captive in October 1967 and shot dead in the La Higuera village.
The diaries will be published ahead of an October 16-17 summit of the leaders of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), to be held in the Bolivian city of Cochabamba.
The Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of Our America was established in 2004 on the initiative of Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro, with "alternative" later replaced by "alliance."
ALBA comprises Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Dominica, Honduras, Ecuador, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Haiti, Iran and Uruguay have observer status.
Bolivian President Evo Morales is expected to personally present the book to ALBA leaders and foreign ministers. Copies will also be given to libraries and cultural establishments of ALBA members.
Bolivia: In a spooky development, mainstream financial newswire actually does its job for a change and reports facts about Evonomy
Republished with original introduction by Otto Rock from Inca Kola News Blog
Hats off to Eduardo Garcia of Reuters Bolivia (we've feted the dude before due to his better-than-the-rest reports on Bolly) who published the following report on Reuters newswires last week (h/t reader PD).
To finally see some credit given by serious financial media (not just sillyblogs like this one) to the Bolivian economic success story is a refreshing change, but Garcia gets into the nitty-gritty as he explains how Evo's radical communist idea of "giving money to the poor" actually helps the economy.....wild huh? It also has wild'n'crazy things called "facts" that include:
Hats off to Eduardo Garcia of Reuters Bolivia (we've feted the dude before due to his better-than-the-rest reports on Bolly) who published the following report on Reuters newswires last week (h/t reader PD).
To finally see some credit given by serious financial media (not just sillyblogs like this one) to the Bolivian economic success story is a refreshing change, but Garcia gets into the nitty-gritty as he explains how Evo's radical communist idea of "giving money to the poor" actually helps the economy.....wild huh? It also has wild'n'crazy things called "facts" that include:
- Bolivia's record international currency reserves
- How Bolivia is on track to be the fastest growing country in the whole of Latin America this year
- The manner in which children are getting better schooling
- The communist conspiracy of giving retirement aged people a pension
- The red-in-bed way of "helping pregnant mothers"
- The way economic growth brings social stability (neocons: read&weep, dumbasses)
- The absence of bad debts in Bolivia's macroeconomic make-up
So here's Garcia's piece. By the way, it's unlikely you've seen it before, because although it was a strong note on the Reuters newswire service, strangely and weirdly not a single open web service picked up on the note so strangely and weirdly it has managed to miss the eyes of those of us not equipped with a U$1,500/month Reuters terminal. It's almost as if they didn't want to you read it...strange'n'weird that, innit?
LA PAZ, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Bolivia's economy is healthy despite the global slump because leftist President Evo Morales is redistributing soaring state revenue as subsidies to the poor, the country's finance minister told Reuters on Thursday.
The Bolivian economy grew 3.2 percent in the first six months of this year, despite lower export income for natural gas, which is key to the Andean country's economy.
The International Monetary Fund says Bolivia is likely to post the highest growth in gross domestic product, in Latin America at 2.8 percent.
Finance Minister Luis Alberto Arce is even more optimistic. He expects GDP to grow 4 percent this year, largely because Morales has handed out money to the country's poor majority, which is boosting their spending.
"Our policy was to make the cake bigger for Bolivians with the nationalization policies, to increase state revenue. Our second policy was to divide the cake better in order to give more to those who have less," said Arce.
Arce said the subsidies are the "small engine of growth" that has allowed Bolivia's economy to grow despite lower export revenue caused by drops in demand and prices for natural gas.
Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings upgraded Bolivia's credit ratings last month, citing the country's good macroeconomic performance.
But they noted that years of above-trend growth, the benefits of external debt forgiveness, limited foreign banking interests in the Andean nation and the absence of bad debts prevalent in developed markets helped Bolivia to avoid a direct fallout from the global crisis.
CASH FOR THE POOR
Morales, an Aymara Indian from a poor background who took office in 2006, has increased taxes on foreign investors and has nationalized energy, mining and telecommunications firms.
State revenue from the key natural gas sector boomed to $2.65 billion last year, from just over $1 billion in 2005, and revenue from the mining sector increased fourfold in the same period to $128.1 million.
The country's foreign reserves have rocketed to around $8.5 billion from $1.7 billion at the end of 2005.
Morales' government is spending some $320 million a year in grants to encourage parents to keep their children in school, in pensions for the elderly and in cash handouts to persuade pregnant women and mothers to go through health checks.
Earlier this year the government said that in 2008 nearly 2.4 million Bolivians received cash subsidies, roughly 25 percent of the country's population.
That is on top of the nearly $200 million donated by Morales' main Latin American ally, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, that Morales has spent in hundreds of small education, sports and health projects since 2006.
Although critics have said the government is giving subsidies to buy support from poor Bolivians, Arce says the stipends are a good way to redistribute wealth.
"These are policies to redistribute income ... tomorrow when the poor of today are no longer poor, of course we're going to have to stop giving this support," Arce said.
But the economist said that the government is likely to continue giving subsidies in the medium term because they stabilize the country.
"We can't stop ... because it's something that brings social stability. Social conflicts have decreased greatly with our government because we're solving the social problems that people have," Arce said.
Before Morales took office, three presidents in three years were forced to step down amid social unrest.
Evo Morales at the UN: The cause of the crisis is capitalism
Statement by H.E. Evo Morales Ayma, President of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, delivered to the United Nations General Assembly last week at UN headquarters in New York City
Thank you to the President of the United Nations General Assembly, greetings fellow
presidential brothers, to the distinguished delegation of this global forum, reunited at the United Nations to share problems, concerns and solutions to serve our fellow people of the world.
This morning I listened carefully to the speeches, beginning with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. There exist enormous similarities in expressing problems such as the financial crisis, the environment and the stability of the institution of democracy. There have been many positive suggestions, beginning with the Secretary-General’s humble request for unity between the presidents of the United Nations.
I agree with the importance for governments of the world to unite in order to successfully tend to our peoples demands and resolve these crises. Unity within the United Nations to solve profound economic differences, asymmetries between continents, families and countries is paramount for the equality, dignity and resolution of the demands of our people.
There exists an ongoing debate about the financial crisis, climate change and democracy. We cannot forget the food and energy crises. I applaud the addresses, which focus on the origins of the crisis. However, the majority of the speeches only speak of effects, never the cause. I came here today to speak plainly with you all. The origin of this crisis is the exaggerated accumulation of capital in far too few hands. It is the permanent removal of natural resources and the commercialization of Mother Earth. The origins come from the system and an economic model of Capitalism. If we don’t share the truth of this crisis with one another nor the international community, we will disseminate a lie to our people whom expect more from their presidents, governments and these kinds of forums.
We must securely establish and seek peace. Social peace cannot exist if economic inequalities still remain. Worse even, where there are foreign military bases in countries. In many continents, especially in Latin and South America, the presence of U.S. military bases provokes distrust among our people.
I can briefly relate my experiences as the victim of a foreign military presence operating in my country. This was before I assumed office of the president and before the social movements would become actors in a new country with equality and social justice. We were all victims of the U.S. military presence in Bolivia and as victims we know what U.S. soldiers in different countries of South America do. When there is a U.S. military base in Latin America especially, I don’t know what will be their behavior in Europe or other continents, but in Latin America U.S. military bases do not guarantee social peace, they do not guarantee democracy, they do not guarantee the integration of our countries and less of the people who organize themselves in pursuit of profound economic, social, and cultural structural changes.
Here we have Honduras, if there is a U.S. military base in Honduras why can’t that military base guarantee democracy?
I salute the valor of our colleague, the president of Honduras, Zelaya, who peacefully perseveres towards a democratic recovery. Also, I must extend my respect and admiration to the rebellious people of Honduras in defense of democracy. It would be wonderful if the Assembly President of the United Nations, this grandiose global organization, would arrive with a resolution where an ultimatum assures the dic tatorship in Honduras is abandoned, returning and acknowledging Zelava as the sole president. I am convinced the U.S. Southern Command does not accept presidential nor governmental heads in Latin American countries seeking liberation. My brothers and colleagues who’ve supported the direction of Bolivia and Latin America have commented to me, that the only reason there isn’t a coup in the U.S. is because there is no U.S. embassy within the United States. I want you all to know, presidential brothers, that last year there was a coup attempt in Bolivia. Thankfully, because of the forces of organized union and the international community, especially from UNASUR, we civilly halted a coup without use of military force. The coup failed to succeed. We are convinced military bases do not guarantee democracy, or integration, or social peace.
Also in debate is the topic of climate change. I want to take this opportunity to propose a few themes that are very important to the inhabitants of Mother Earth. For the indigenous movement, not only harmony with human kind, but harmony with Mother Earth is sacred.
Mother Earth gives life, water, natural resources, oxygen and everything that supports the well being of our people. If we talk, work and fight for the well being of our people we first have to guarantee the well being of Mother Earth; otherwise it will be impossible to guarantee the well being of our citizens. Mother Earth, Planet Earth, will exist without human life, but human life cannot exist without Mother Earth.
After hearing many speeches, I’ve concluded that in this new twenty- first century, defending Mother Earth will be more important than defending human rights. If we do not defend the rights of Mother Earth, there is no use in defending human rights. I am willing to debate this concept, but now or later it will be proven that the rights of Mother Earth supersede the rights of human beings. We must protect what gives us life. Coincidently, as we are in the climate change debate, we want to propose, dear presidents, delegates from distinct countries, to the brothers of the world that are listening, a very simple proposal which can be summarized in 3 points.
First: Developed countries must honor and pay the climate debt they owe to mankind and planet earth.
Second: We currently do not have a structured manner in which we can quantify the damages committed by nations. My dear presidents, it is of utmost importance to create a Court for Climatic Justice, in which countries will be tried and punished assuming they do not follow international laws and continue to destroy the earth.
Third: A proposal derived mainly from Indigenous farmers: nations must declare and expand the rights of Mother Earth’s natural regeneration. Nations must also declare rights on behalf of the right to life, a clean life and the right to harmony and equilibrium for all and everything.
Hopefully these proposals will be taken into account and debated in Copenhagen, Denmark. We hope the discussions in Copenhagen will provide us with short and long term solutions over the enormous problems that our distinguished countries endure.
I want to also take this opportunity to gather proposals from other presidents. If we first want to change the world then we must first change the configuration of the United Nations. If within our
countries we strive for equality through change then why not begin with changing the structure within the United Nations?
While listening to many presidents speak in the United Nations Security Council, I’ve noticed many coincidences. We need true democratization; toward this we have established the following:
The permanence of membership in the Security Council, similarly the right to veto, should be eliminated. It cannot be possible that in the twenty-first century we are still practicing the style of totalitarianism from a monarchy era. All countries have the same rights within the UN. Those that proclaim themselves as leaders of Democracy should resign their privileges and accept true democracy from the Security Council. Let us be responsible to the promise of democracy, and let us start with the democratization of the UN.
To end this speech, and not abuse my allowed time, is a discipline of truth and respect that we follow in Bolivia. I apologize if by speaking the truth, the U.S. government may feel slightly bothered. I have confidence in President Obama and congratulate him for closing Guantanamo.
That is progress and we congratulate it, but don’t only close the Guantanamo prison, you must end the economic blockade of Cuba. This is a respectful request to the President and the American people.
In Bolivia and Latin America, the United States initially granted tariff preferences. Former President Bush eradicated these tariff preferences with Bolivia and falsely accused that there is no war against drug trafficking nor a struggle against poverty in Bolivia. I knew that these allegations were political decisions. Former U.S. President Bush never observed Bolivian norms, and much less Bolivia’s Political Constitution. Now, in this new government of Mr.
Obama, there are reports published on the developments and concerns of Bolivia’s Political Constitutional State. I know that this observation was made to Article 56 of the New Bolivian State Constitution on private property, which for the first time in 183 years of republican life of the Bolivian people was approved with their vote. This seems to be an open interference by the U.S. government to the Constitution that I do not accept and reject outright.
We do not want interference with diplomatic relations but diplomatic relations of cooperation and investment. The New Political Constitution of Bolivia guarantees private property, guarantee state ownership, but fundamentally, for the first time, ensures collective ownership, partnerships, cooperatives, community land of the original indigenous movements. For the first time Bolivia’s new Political Constitutional State guarantees private property and state property. Fundamentally, it incorporates a guarantee of collective cooperation of associations, corporations and collective property of the original indigenous peoples.
Besides that, they accuse me and say in their document: "current challenges include explicit acceptance and encouragement of the production of coca leaf in the upper echelons of the Bolivian government.” I promote coca cultivation. I want you to know that one thing is the coca leaf, the planting of coca leaf, cocaine is something else. Cocaine we do not defend, we will fight cocaine. Our proposal is zero cocaine. But there cannot be free cultivation of coca leaf. This inits natural state is good, is healthy for human life. You know that we are campaigning to decriminalize the traditional consumption of the coca leaf. I guarantee there will never be free cultivation of coca leaf, nor zero coca, but rather, zero cocaine. You cannot tell me that I incentivize the planting of coca in Bolivia. This is false.
Most worrying, you know that I come from the union struggle, from a social, trade union leader but I was also president momentarily. The document says the government may dissolve unions by administrative decree. I do not wish to stop the unions. The force of this government - that of Evo Morales - is of social and union forces. Even though I’ve created and constructed union headquarters, donated automobiles to unions, forces still accuse me of subverting them. I can be sure that President Obama may not know this document and it may come from the Department of State of the United States. Sometimes we change presidents, but it is difficult to change the structure of states. I understand this deeply, after reading this document.
In Latin America those called afro-bolivians, those called indigenous Indians, are the most disadvantaged sectors of society. In popular terms we say black, Indian. I can’t understand how a black person discriminated against, an excluded black person, discriminates or excludes another Indian. It really is a huge concern that we live with. Hopefully, these historical wrongs can be corrected, not just for the sake of the President of the Bolivian people but also by the good image of nations like the United States. I fully understand that it is sometimes not easy to change these structures and perhaps work against our people.
Finally, to conclude dear presidents, president of the Assembly, in Bolivia in order to resolve some historical demands, like the demand to return to the sea, I would like to inform you that two sister Republics, Chile and Bolivia, are building trust with one another in order to resolve oceanic matters. I have high hopes in resolving bilateral relations. It is important that the international community intervene if a solution has not been reached. Although there has been headway in building mutual trust in order to solve matters, trust continues to be of great importance. But it does not end with trust; further important steps must be taken.
Brothers and Sisters, I thank you for listening and considering my words and the message of my people. I want to continue sharing your experiences, your proposals and your worries for the collective well being of the human race.
Thank you very much.
Republished from MaximsNews
Thank you to the President of the United Nations General Assembly, greetings fellow
presidential brothers, to the distinguished delegation of this global forum, reunited at the United Nations to share problems, concerns and solutions to serve our fellow people of the world.
This morning I listened carefully to the speeches, beginning with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. There exist enormous similarities in expressing problems such as the financial crisis, the environment and the stability of the institution of democracy. There have been many positive suggestions, beginning with the Secretary-General’s humble request for unity between the presidents of the United Nations.
I agree with the importance for governments of the world to unite in order to successfully tend to our peoples demands and resolve these crises. Unity within the United Nations to solve profound economic differences, asymmetries between continents, families and countries is paramount for the equality, dignity and resolution of the demands of our people.
There exists an ongoing debate about the financial crisis, climate change and democracy. We cannot forget the food and energy crises. I applaud the addresses, which focus on the origins of the crisis. However, the majority of the speeches only speak of effects, never the cause. I came here today to speak plainly with you all. The origin of this crisis is the exaggerated accumulation of capital in far too few hands. It is the permanent removal of natural resources and the commercialization of Mother Earth. The origins come from the system and an economic model of Capitalism. If we don’t share the truth of this crisis with one another nor the international community, we will disseminate a lie to our people whom expect more from their presidents, governments and these kinds of forums.
We must securely establish and seek peace. Social peace cannot exist if economic inequalities still remain. Worse even, where there are foreign military bases in countries. In many continents, especially in Latin and South America, the presence of U.S. military bases provokes distrust among our people.
I can briefly relate my experiences as the victim of a foreign military presence operating in my country. This was before I assumed office of the president and before the social movements would become actors in a new country with equality and social justice. We were all victims of the U.S. military presence in Bolivia and as victims we know what U.S. soldiers in different countries of South America do. When there is a U.S. military base in Latin America especially, I don’t know what will be their behavior in Europe or other continents, but in Latin America U.S. military bases do not guarantee social peace, they do not guarantee democracy, they do not guarantee the integration of our countries and less of the people who organize themselves in pursuit of profound economic, social, and cultural structural changes.
Here we have Honduras, if there is a U.S. military base in Honduras why can’t that military base guarantee democracy?
I salute the valor of our colleague, the president of Honduras, Zelaya, who peacefully perseveres towards a democratic recovery. Also, I must extend my respect and admiration to the rebellious people of Honduras in defense of democracy. It would be wonderful if the Assembly President of the United Nations, this grandiose global organization, would arrive with a resolution where an ultimatum assures the dic tatorship in Honduras is abandoned, returning and acknowledging Zelava as the sole president. I am convinced the U.S. Southern Command does not accept presidential nor governmental heads in Latin American countries seeking liberation. My brothers and colleagues who’ve supported the direction of Bolivia and Latin America have commented to me, that the only reason there isn’t a coup in the U.S. is because there is no U.S. embassy within the United States. I want you all to know, presidential brothers, that last year there was a coup attempt in Bolivia. Thankfully, because of the forces of organized union and the international community, especially from UNASUR, we civilly halted a coup without use of military force. The coup failed to succeed. We are convinced military bases do not guarantee democracy, or integration, or social peace.
Also in debate is the topic of climate change. I want to take this opportunity to propose a few themes that are very important to the inhabitants of Mother Earth. For the indigenous movement, not only harmony with human kind, but harmony with Mother Earth is sacred.
Mother Earth gives life, water, natural resources, oxygen and everything that supports the well being of our people. If we talk, work and fight for the well being of our people we first have to guarantee the well being of Mother Earth; otherwise it will be impossible to guarantee the well being of our citizens. Mother Earth, Planet Earth, will exist without human life, but human life cannot exist without Mother Earth.
After hearing many speeches, I’ve concluded that in this new twenty- first century, defending Mother Earth will be more important than defending human rights. If we do not defend the rights of Mother Earth, there is no use in defending human rights. I am willing to debate this concept, but now or later it will be proven that the rights of Mother Earth supersede the rights of human beings. We must protect what gives us life. Coincidently, as we are in the climate change debate, we want to propose, dear presidents, delegates from distinct countries, to the brothers of the world that are listening, a very simple proposal which can be summarized in 3 points.
First: Developed countries must honor and pay the climate debt they owe to mankind and planet earth.
Second: We currently do not have a structured manner in which we can quantify the damages committed by nations. My dear presidents, it is of utmost importance to create a Court for Climatic Justice, in which countries will be tried and punished assuming they do not follow international laws and continue to destroy the earth.
Third: A proposal derived mainly from Indigenous farmers: nations must declare and expand the rights of Mother Earth’s natural regeneration. Nations must also declare rights on behalf of the right to life, a clean life and the right to harmony and equilibrium for all and everything.
Hopefully these proposals will be taken into account and debated in Copenhagen, Denmark. We hope the discussions in Copenhagen will provide us with short and long term solutions over the enormous problems that our distinguished countries endure.
I want to also take this opportunity to gather proposals from other presidents. If we first want to change the world then we must first change the configuration of the United Nations. If within our
countries we strive for equality through change then why not begin with changing the structure within the United Nations?
While listening to many presidents speak in the United Nations Security Council, I’ve noticed many coincidences. We need true democratization; toward this we have established the following:
The permanence of membership in the Security Council, similarly the right to veto, should be eliminated. It cannot be possible that in the twenty-first century we are still practicing the style of totalitarianism from a monarchy era. All countries have the same rights within the UN. Those that proclaim themselves as leaders of Democracy should resign their privileges and accept true democracy from the Security Council. Let us be responsible to the promise of democracy, and let us start with the democratization of the UN.
To end this speech, and not abuse my allowed time, is a discipline of truth and respect that we follow in Bolivia. I apologize if by speaking the truth, the U.S. government may feel slightly bothered. I have confidence in President Obama and congratulate him for closing Guantanamo.
That is progress and we congratulate it, but don’t only close the Guantanamo prison, you must end the economic blockade of Cuba. This is a respectful request to the President and the American people.
In Bolivia and Latin America, the United States initially granted tariff preferences. Former President Bush eradicated these tariff preferences with Bolivia and falsely accused that there is no war against drug trafficking nor a struggle against poverty in Bolivia. I knew that these allegations were political decisions. Former U.S. President Bush never observed Bolivian norms, and much less Bolivia’s Political Constitution. Now, in this new government of Mr.
Obama, there are reports published on the developments and concerns of Bolivia’s Political Constitutional State. I know that this observation was made to Article 56 of the New Bolivian State Constitution on private property, which for the first time in 183 years of republican life of the Bolivian people was approved with their vote. This seems to be an open interference by the U.S. government to the Constitution that I do not accept and reject outright.
We do not want interference with diplomatic relations but diplomatic relations of cooperation and investment. The New Political Constitution of Bolivia guarantees private property, guarantee state ownership, but fundamentally, for the first time, ensures collective ownership, partnerships, cooperatives, community land of the original indigenous movements. For the first time Bolivia’s new Political Constitutional State guarantees private property and state property. Fundamentally, it incorporates a guarantee of collective cooperation of associations, corporations and collective property of the original indigenous peoples.
Besides that, they accuse me and say in their document: "current challenges include explicit acceptance and encouragement of the production of coca leaf in the upper echelons of the Bolivian government.” I promote coca cultivation. I want you to know that one thing is the coca leaf, the planting of coca leaf, cocaine is something else. Cocaine we do not defend, we will fight cocaine. Our proposal is zero cocaine. But there cannot be free cultivation of coca leaf. This inits natural state is good, is healthy for human life. You know that we are campaigning to decriminalize the traditional consumption of the coca leaf. I guarantee there will never be free cultivation of coca leaf, nor zero coca, but rather, zero cocaine. You cannot tell me that I incentivize the planting of coca in Bolivia. This is false.
Most worrying, you know that I come from the union struggle, from a social, trade union leader but I was also president momentarily. The document says the government may dissolve unions by administrative decree. I do not wish to stop the unions. The force of this government - that of Evo Morales - is of social and union forces. Even though I’ve created and constructed union headquarters, donated automobiles to unions, forces still accuse me of subverting them. I can be sure that President Obama may not know this document and it may come from the Department of State of the United States. Sometimes we change presidents, but it is difficult to change the structure of states. I understand this deeply, after reading this document.
In Latin America those called afro-bolivians, those called indigenous Indians, are the most disadvantaged sectors of society. In popular terms we say black, Indian. I can’t understand how a black person discriminated against, an excluded black person, discriminates or excludes another Indian. It really is a huge concern that we live with. Hopefully, these historical wrongs can be corrected, not just for the sake of the President of the Bolivian people but also by the good image of nations like the United States. I fully understand that it is sometimes not easy to change these structures and perhaps work against our people.
Finally, to conclude dear presidents, president of the Assembly, in Bolivia in order to resolve some historical demands, like the demand to return to the sea, I would like to inform you that two sister Republics, Chile and Bolivia, are building trust with one another in order to resolve oceanic matters. I have high hopes in resolving bilateral relations. It is important that the international community intervene if a solution has not been reached. Although there has been headway in building mutual trust in order to solve matters, trust continues to be of great importance. But it does not end with trust; further important steps must be taken.
Brothers and Sisters, I thank you for listening and considering my words and the message of my people. I want to continue sharing your experiences, your proposals and your worries for the collective well being of the human race.
Thank you very much.
Republished from MaximsNews
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