Thursday, September 30, 2010

The Batttle for Ecuador


Originally this post was titled 'Battle for Democracy". That word, however, is too vague and emotionally laden to carry any meaning. Some political scientists, such as Robert Dahl have ceased using it entirely. Democracy is a spectrum, not a category. States are differentiated only by the relative degrees to which they reflect and resist the wishes of their populations.

Certainly the government of Rafeal Correa has done both. In his record on indigenous rights, environmental issues, and corruption there is much to be criticized. His brother received hundreds of millions of dollars of government contracts. In the past he has used strong-armed tactics against Congress. However, he also presides over the freest government in his nation's history, and that is what has alienated foreign and elite interests. Correa is not a saint, but it would make no difference if he were.

His government has repudiated the debt of Ecaudor's dictatorship, alienating it from foreign lenders, it has refused to renew the U.S's military base, earning Washington's ire, it has moved towards taking control of its oil resources away from multinational corporations and spending oil revenues on social programs for the poor, irking big business, and it has refused to block a $27 billion lawsuit against Chevron, concerning the company's disastrous environmental practices in the Amazon. Ecuador's Bhopal, the case is called.

These measures resonate with the public of a country tired of being bullied and exploited by outside interests. A poll in August pegged the President's approval rating at over 70%. This is not a defense of Correa, it is a defense of him against the alternatives, because, for all of his faults, his Presidency has seen more progress in the country than any of his predecessors.

Yesterday, renegades within the security services threatened that progress. The revolt by members of the police and air force was well coordinated. Congress was seized, the airport was blocked off, state tv came under attack, and President Correa was attacked, tear gassed, and trapped in a police hospital for over ten hours before the building was stormed by the military. Former President Lucio Gutiérrez is rumored to be involved, but thought it is evident who might benefit from Correa's overthrow it is unclear who organized the uprising.

Until more details emerge it is hard to gauge the security of the government. With over 30,000 members, the police, where the revolt began and appeared strongest, constitute a significant portion of the security services. It is unclear, however, how much support an attempt to overthrow the government would garner among the security services. Also unknown is the role, if any of the U.S. The American government quickly came out in support of President Correa, however many of the individuals involved in the uprising are rumored to have connections to U.S Agency for International Development and the National Endowment for Democracy. There is not enough information to draw conclusions or make accusations. If confirmed, however, this would implicate the U.S, two of whose diplomats have recently been expelled by Quito for allegedly meddling with the security services.

Any attempts at setting back Ecuador's social progress, regardless of their source, must be viewed with concern. President Correa deserves support, but that support must be critical, especially once this crisis has passed. Particularly if the government intends to exploit the situation to claim additional powers.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

The Open Veins of Latin America

The 1971 publication of Las venas abiertas de América Latina, the Open Veins of Latin America, earned Eduardo Galeano exile from Uruguay and entry into the pantheon of literary giants. Even in its English translation, the story of "five centuries of the pillage of a continent," as the book's subtitle describes the work, is almost pleasurable reading by way of Galeano's extraordinary eloquence.

The primary relevance of Open Veins, however, is a capacity for moral outrage and thoughtful analysis in its author commensurate with his literary abilities. Blending journalism, history, and economics with political and moral analyses, the book traces the roots of Latin America's misery to the exploitation and domination of the region, by Spain, other European powers, and eventually the United States, often in the company of local elites.

For five centuries, Latin America, among the richest of regions beneath the soil, has languished in an unnatrual poverty. Beginning with the Spanish conquest, the region has been looted, its great fortunes reserved for foreigners and their local collaborators, and toil and misery allotted to its people. Thought the details may be obscure, the plot is familiar.

The story of Open Veins is another familiar plot of obscure details. It gave voice to the marginalized and oppressed peoples of the region, who received it with enthusiasm. Isabel Allende refers simply to the book with the yellow cover that accompanied her into exile from Chile after the overthrow of democracy there. The military dictatorship of Chile was joined by those in Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay in banning the book.

Those regimes have collapsed, the books has outlived them. The continued popularity of Open Veins, however, must be seen in part as reflection of the continuation of the injustices it denounces. When Barak Obama received a copy of the book at a diplomatic conference he scoffed that just because he is given a copy of Peter Pan doesn't mean he will read it.

But Obama already knows the plot well. The month after comparing Galeano's masterpiece to Peter Pan the democratically elected government of Honduras was overthrown in a military coup. It is not known if the American government was involved in the coup, it is clear, however, that President Obama broke with the rest of the region and of the world in supporting and thus preserving the coup. A few months later he established a ring of new American military outposts in the region. So the pillage continues into a sixth century. Perhaps more Americans should read the book their President mocks.