Latin America: Independent, Sovereign

35 years after the US backed coup against Allende the UNASUR summit met in Chile and made the Moneda Declaration from the Palacio de La Moneda. 35 years after the fascist Pinochet (admired by our own lovely Margaret Thatcher, yes the one Gordon met with this week, again) supported by America overthrew the democratically elected government, stormed La Moneda and Allende died. As did over 3,000 people executed and tortured to death and thousands more tortured to keep the terrorist government in power all endlessly praised by the US and Milton Friedman & his acolytes. 35 years and their forces of torture regimes that spread throughout Latin America, sometimes staffed by escaped Nazis, America allying with former enemies from WWll, perpetrators of the Holocaust, implementing fundamentalist neoliberalism.

They have lost.

In facing down the Santa Cruz fascists and their allies in Washington Evo Morales and UNASUR have signalled a new reality for Latin America, independent, sovereign and no longer Uncle Sam's 'backyard'. The struggle is far from over but the unity and purpose of the congregated leaders demands respect and is a powerful symbol of the new democracies grown from the ashes of right wing dictatorships of unimaginable brutality.

An essential summing up of recent events at Abiding in Bolivia, with all the racism and fascism the corporate media oddly never mention- Santa Cruz, Republica de Mierda

The full translated text of the Moneda Declaration below by Otto @ Inca Kola News (also see his personal delcaration, word!). And after it Evo Morale's 10 points to save the planet, life and humanity, here's a hint to our 'leaders' he got 67% of the vote, you feel me?

Santiago de Chile, September 15 2008

The heads of state and the government of Unasur, meeting in the Palace of the Moneda, Santiago de Chile, September 15 2008, with the purpose of considering the situation in the Republic of Bolivia and remembering the tragic episodes 35 years ago in this very place that shocked all humanity:

Considering the the constitutive treaty of Unasur, signed in Brasilia on May 23rd 2008, enshrines the principles of unrestricted respect for sovereignty, of the non-interference in internal affairs, of the integrity and inviolbility of territory, of democracy and its institutions and the unrestricted respect of human rights;

Faced with the grave occurances reported in the sister Republic of Bolivia, and in favour of the strengthening of political dialogue and cooperation for the strengthening of citizen's security, the countries that make up Unasur express:

1. Their fullest and decided support for the constitutional government of President Evo Morales, whose mandate was ratified by a wide margin in the recent referendum.
2. They warn that its respective governments energetically reject and do not recognize any situation that implies an intent of civil coup d'etat, the rupture of institutional order, or that compromises the territorial integrity of the Republic of Bolivia
3. Consequent to the above, and in consideration of the grave situation that affects the sister Republic of Bolivia, they condemn the attack on government installations and public forces by groups that look for the destabilization of Bolivia's democracy, and demand the prompt return of those installations as condition for the start of the dialogue process.
4. At the same time, they call for all political and social actors involved to take the necessary measures so that acts of violence, intimidation, attacks on the democratic institutionality and estabished judicial order cease immediately.
5. In this context, they express the firmest condemnation of the massacre that took place in the department of Pando, and support the call made by the Bolivian government for a Unasur commission to be set up in this brother country to impartially investigate and report this lamentable occurance as soon as possible, and to formulate recommendations in such a way that it is not left unpunished.
6. They ask all members of Bolivian society to preserve national unity and the territorial integrity of that country, basic fundamentals of any State, and to reject any intent to undermine those principles.
7. They call for dialogue to establish the conditions that will permit the present situation to be overcome, and create the search for a sustainable solution, under full respect of the state of curfew and the current legal order.
8. In this respect, the Presidents of Unasur agree to create a commission open to all members, coordinated by the Pro-tempore Presidency, to accompany the tasks of the the dialogues conducted by the legitimate government of Bolivia
   
9. They will create a support and assistance commission to the government of Bolivia, in function to its requirements and including specialist human resources.

Bolivian President Evo Morales’ 10 commandments to save the planet, life and humanity:

1-Acabar con el sistema capitalista
1-Stopping the capitalist system

2-Renunciar a las guerras
2-Renouncing wars

3-Un mundo sin imperialismo ni colonialismo
3-A world without imperialism or colonialism

4-Derecho al agua
4-Right to water

5-Desarrollo de energías limpias
5-Development of clean energies

6-Respeto a la madre tierra
6-Respect for Mother Earth

7-Servicios básicos como derechos humanos
7-Basic services as human rights

8-Combatir las desigualdades
8-Fighting inequalities

9-Promover la diversidad de culturas y economías
9-Promoting diversity of cultures and economies

10-Vivir bien, no vivir mejor a costa del otro
10-Living well, not living better at the expense of others

More detail -

First: a call to end the capitalist system. The capitalist system was inhuman and encouraged unbridled economic development. The exploitation of human beings and pillaging of natural resources must end, as should wars aimed at securing access to those resources. Also, the world should end the plundering of fossil fuels; excessive consumption of goods; the accumulation of waste; as well as the egoism, regionalism and thirst for earning where the pursuit of luxury was taking place at the expense of human beings. Countries of the south were heaped with external debt, when it was the ecological debt that needed paying.

Second, the world should denounce war, which brought advantage to a small few, he said. In that vein, it was time to end occupation under the pretext of “combating drugs”, such as in South America, as well as other pretexts such as searching for weapons of mass destruction. Money earmarked for war should be channeled to make reparations for damage caused to the Earth.

Third, there should be a world without imperialism, he said, where no country was dependent upon or subordinate to another. States must look for complementarity rather than engage in unfair competition with each other. Member States of the United Nations should consider the asymmetry that exists among nations and seek a way to lessen deep economic differences. Moving along those lines, he said the Security Council — with its lifelong members holding veto rights — should be democratized.

Fourth, he said access to water should be treated as a human right, and policies allowing the privatization of water should be banned. Indigenous peoples had a long experience of mobilizing themselves to uphold the right to water. He proposed that they put forth the idea of forming an international convention on water to guarantee it as a human right and to protect against its appropriation by a select few.

Fifth, he said the world should promote clean and eco-friendly energies, as well as end the wasteful use of energy. He said it was understood that fossil fuels were nearing depletion, yet those who promoted biofuels in their place were making “a serious mistake”. It was not right to set aside land not for the benefit of human beings, but so that a small few could operate luxurious vehicles. It was also because of biofuels that the price of rice and bread has risen; and the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were now warning that such policies must be prevented. The world should explore more sustainable forms of alternative energy, such as geothermal, solar, wind and hydro-electric power.

Sixth, he said there should be more respect for Mother Earth, and the indigenous movement must bring its influence to bear in fostering that attitude. The world must stop thinking of Mother Earth in the capitalist sense — which was that of a raw material to be traded. For who could privatize or hire out his mother?

Seventh, he stressed the importance of gaining access to basic services for all. Services such as education and transport should not be the preserve of private trade.

Eighth, he urged the consumption of only what was necessary and what was produced locally. There was a need to end consumerism, waste and luxury. It was an irony that millions of dollars were being spent to combat obesity in one half of the globe, while the other was dying of hunger. He said the impending food crisis would necessarily bring an end to the free market, where countries suffering hunger were being made to export their food. There was a similar case with oil, where the priority lay in selling it abroad, rather than domestically.

Ninth, he said it was important to promote unity and diversity of economies, and that the indigenous movement should put forth a call for unity and diversity in the spirit of multilateralism.

Tenth, the world should live under the tenet of “trying to live well”, he said, but not at the expense of others.

He said the best way forward lay in social movements, such as the indigenous people’s movement, which would not fall silent until it had brought about change. He ended by greeting fellow South Americans in the room, acknowledging their role in the fight. In Bolivia, the provisions of the Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples had been made into law, and he expressed hoped that other countries would do the same. He welcomed the attention, good or bad, he was receiving as a member of that movement, saying that perhaps it would lead to ideological clarity.

Xposted @ TenPercent