Chavez at the vanguard (Dr. Francisco Dominguez, Middlesex University)

[EFerrari]

Chavez at the vanguard
Friday 03 April 2009
Francisco Dominguez


A QUICK look at Latin America between 1999 and 2009 shows the remarkable transformation the region has undergone.

By 1999, it was in the middle of an almighty economic crash - the "crisis of the emerging economies" - which was taking place in the wake of the Asian financial crisis that had left several neoliberal showcases, such as Argentina and Brazil, reeling.

By 1998-9, most Latin American countries suffered a severe economic recession which drove corporations into insolvency, forcing many to close down.

The crisis also led to the deterioration of the banking system and massive lay-offs that had increased unemployment and caused the loss of purchasing power among large sectors of the population.

~snip~

Both Bill Clinton and Bush had been pushing for a free-trade area of the Americas proposal, which would be described by Brazilian President Lula da Silva as "the US economic annexation of Latin America."

http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/index.php/news/features/chavez_at_the_vanguard

Dr Francisco Dominguez is a member of the Venezuela Information Centre and head of the Centre for Latin American Studies at Middlesex University.

[Judi Lynn]

1. I saw the part you bolded. It's so true, but so grim.

My heart just fell to my knees even thinking about it.

Sure hope they've found a way to prevent it.

Will return later to read this article closely. Thank you.

[Idealism]

2. There is much hope for South America now

and in such a short turnaround from their debt crises that this article mentions. It is truly remarkable, although much work is left to be done. Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil are all highly socially stratified countries with millions and millions living in abject poverty. The hope they have lies in the strength of their democratically elected officials. Measures being undertaken to combat the FTAA proposal like MERCOSUR and the Banco del Sur will expand and hopefully better the lives of millions of underprivileged South Americans.

[Peace Patriot]

3. TRANSPARENT vote counting is THE most important key to the leftist revolution

in South America.

We need to keep reminding ourselves and others of this, because it is SO IMPORTANT.

Please see my comment on Eridani's post, "Beyond Elections: Redefining Democracy in the Americas."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=405x13589

If we miss this point--and our people don't get informed about how our elections are stolen here--we will never have a leftist revolution here, or at least not one without blood on the streets.

HOW did this happen in South America? There is a two-part answer: transparent elections and grass roots organization. (I add a third: think big.) Transparent elections is first, because you can do all the grass roots organizing you want to, and if you can't get real leftists (majorityists) into office, your struggle for justice can become impossible. The repression can become so brutal--whether overt, or subtle--that people give up. You also have to think big, but that has gotten a lot of leftists dead in South America--thinking big, and NOT attending to the basics of democracy (transparent vote counting). And, obviously, you have to have boffo grass roots organizing, to counter the influence of fascist money and power. But even if you have great grass roots organization, and even if you think big, serious social justice and other important change cannot occur peacefully without adequate representation in the halls of government. The people--the poor/middle class majority--will never have representation in corporate board rooms, or on Wall Street, or among rich, entrenched, corrupt elites. We can strike. We can protest. And if we are willing to take casualties, we can probably shut the "system" down. But democratic government is our only means of peaceful, creative, forward-looking power--and that is absolutely contingent upon transparent vote counting.