[Marxism] Spiegel Interview with Bolivia's Evo Morales

["Walter Lippmann" <walterlx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
sent by Steven Robinson (activ-l) - Sep 2, 2006

DER SPIEGAL - aug 28, 2006
<http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/spiegel/0,1518,434272,00.html
>

Spiegel Interview with Bolivia's Evo Morales

"Capitalism Has Only Hurt Latin America"

Bolivia's President Evo Morales, 46, talks to DER SPIEGEL about
reform plans for his country, socialism in Latin America, and the
often tense relations of the region's leftists with the United
States.

The interview was conducted by Jens Gl|sing and Hans Hoyng translated
from German by Christopher Sultan.


SPIEGEL: Mr. President, why is such a large part of Latin America
moving to the left?

Morales: Injustice, inequality and the poverty of the masses compel
us to seek better living conditions. Bolivia's majority Indian
population was always excluded, politically oppressed and culturally
alienated. Our national wealth, our raw materials, was plundered.
Indios were once treated like animals here. In the 1930s and 40s,
they were sprayed with DDT to kill the vermin on their skin and in
their hair whenever they came into the city. My mother wasn't even
allowed to set foot in the capital of her native region, Oruro. Now
we're in the government and in parliament. For me, being leftist
means fighting against injustice and inequality but, most of all, we
want to live well.


SPIEGEL: You called a constitutional convention to establish a new
Bolivian republic. What should the new Bolivia look like?

Morales: We don't want to oppress or exclude anyone. The new republic
should be based on diversity, respect and equal rights for all. There
is a lot to do. Child mortality is frighteningly high. I had six
siblings and four them died. In the countryside, half of all children
die before reaching their first birthday.


SPIEGEL: Your socialist party, MAS, does not have the necessary
two-thirds majority amend the constitution. Do you now plan to
negotiate with other political factions?

Morales: We are always open to talks. Dialogue is the basis of Indian
culture, and we don't want to make any enemies. Political and
ideological adversaries, perhaps, but not enemies.


SPIEGEL: Why did you temporarily suspend the nationalization of
natural resources, one of your administration's most important
projects? Does Bolivia lack the know-how to extract its raw
materials?

Morales: We are continuing to negotiate with the companies in
question. The current lack of investment has nothing to do with
nationalization. It's the fault of the right-wing government of
(former president) Tuto Quiroga, who stopped all investment in
natural gas production in 2001 because, as he claimed, there was no
domestic market for natural gas in Bolivia. We plan to start drilling
again. We have signed a delivery agreement for natural gas with
Argentina, and we are also cooperating with Venezuela. We have signed
a contract to work an iron mine with an Indian company. This will
create 7,000 direct and 10,000 indirect jobs. We have negotiated much
better prices and terms than our predecessors.


SPIEGEL: But there are major problems with Brazil. Bolivia is
demanding a higher price for natural gas shipments. Doesn't this harm
your relationship with (Brazilian) President Luiz Inacio "Lula" da
Silva?

Morales: Lula is showing his solidarity. He behaves like a big
brother. But we are having problems with Petrobras, the Brazilian
energy company. The negotiations are very difficult, but we are
optimistic.


SPIEGEL: Petrobras has threatened to end all of its investments in
Bolivia.

Morales: This isn't coming from the Brazilian government, but from a
few Petrobras executives. They print these threats in the press to
put us under pressure. Brazil is a major power, but it has to treat
us with respect. Compaqero Lula told me that there will be a new
agreement, and that he even wants to import more gas.


SPIEGEL: Bolivia doesn't sell natural gas to Chile because the
Chileans took away Bolivia's access to the sea in a war more than 120
years ago. Now a socialist is in power in Chile. Will you supply them
with natural gas now?

Morales: We want to overcome our historical problems with Chile. The
sea has divided us and the sea must bring us back together again.
Chile has agreed, for the first time, to talk about sea access for
Bolivia. That's a huge step forward. The Chilean president came to my
inauguration, and I attended (Chilean President) Michelle Bachelet's
inauguration in Santiago. We complement each other. Chile needs our
natural resources and we need access to the sea. Under those
circumstances, it must be possible to find a solution in the interest
of both countries.


SPIEGEL: What influence did Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez have on
the nationalization of Bolivia's natural resources?

Morales: None whatsoever. Neither Cuba nor Venezuela was involved. I
managed the nationalization myself. Only seven of my closest
associates knew about the decree and the date. Although I did meet
Chavez and (Cuban leader) Fidel Castro in Cuba a few days before the
announcement, we didn't talk about nationalization. I had already
signed the decree before I departed for Cuba, and the vice president
gave it to the cabinet. When Fidel asked me in Cuba how far the
project had progressed, I told him that we planned to announce the
nationalization in the coming days, but I didn't give him a date.
Fidel warned me to wait until the constitutional convention. Chavez
wasn't aware of anything.


SPIEGEL: Chavez wants to install a socialism for the 21st century in
Venezuela. His ideological advisor Heinz Dieterich, a German, was
recently in Bolivia. Do you intend to introduce socialism in Bolivia?

Morales: If socialism means that we live well, that there is equality
and justice, and that we have no social and economic problems, then 
I welcome it.


SPIEGEL: You admire Fidel Castro as the "grandfather of all Latin
American revolutionaries." What have you learned from him?

Morales: Solidarity, most of all. Fidel helps us a great deal. He has
donated seven eye clinics and 20 basic hospitals. Cuban doctors have
already performed 30,000 free cataract operations for Bolivians. Five
thousand Bolivians from poor backgrounds are studying medicine at no
charge in Cuba.


SPIEGEL: But Bolivian doctors are protesting the Cubans' presence.
They say that they deprive them of their livelihood.

Morales: The Bolivian state doesn't pay the Cuban doctors any
salaries, so they're not taking anything away from the Bolivians.


SPIEGEL: Do you know how Castro is doing?

Morales: Yes, I spoke with him on the phone today. He has been
feeling better for the last two days. He told me that he'll be well
enough to attend the summit of nonaligned nations in Havana in
September.


SPIEGEL: And he'll give a speech then?

Morales: Certainly. It's an opportunity he won't miss.


SPIEGEL: The Americans are worried that Chavez is gaining too much
influence. Aren't you making yourself dependent on Venezuela?

Morales: What unites us with Chavez is the concept of the integration
of South America. This is the old dream of a great fatherland, a
dream that existed even before the Spanish conquest, and Simon
Bolivar fought for it later on. We want a South America modeled after
the European Union, with a currency like the euro, one that's worth
more than the dollar. Chavez's oil is unimportant for Bolivia. We
only get diesel under favorable terms. But we are not dependent on
Venezuela. We complement each other. Venezuela shares its wealth with
other countries, but that doesn't make us subordinate.


SPIEGEL: The Latin American left is fracturing into a moderate,
social democratic current, led by Lula and Bachelet, and a radical,
populist movement represented by Castro, Chavez and yourself. Isn't
Chavez dividing the continent?

Morales: There are social democrats and others who are marching more
in the direction of equality, whether you call them socialists or
communists. But at least Latin America no longer has racist or
fascist presidents like it did in the past. Capitalism has only hurt
Latin America.


SPIEGEL: You are the first Indian president in Bolivian history. What
role will indigenous culture play in your government?

Morales: We must combine our social consciousness with professional
competency. In my administration, intellectuals from the upper class
can be cabinet ministers or ambassadors, as can members of Indian
ethnic groups.


SPIEGEL: Do you believe that the Indian peoples have developed a
better social model than the white, Western democracies?

Morales: There was no private property in the past. Everything was
communal property. In the Indian community where I was born,
everything belonged to the community. This way of life is more
equitable. We Indians are Latin America's moral reserve. We act
according to a universal law that consists of three basic principles:
do not steal, do not lie and do not be idle. This trilogy will also
serve as the basis of our new constitution.


SPIEGEL: Is it true that all government employees will be required to
learn the Indian languages Quechua, Aymara und Guaranm in the future?

Morales: Public servants in the cities are required to learn the
language of their region. If we already speak Spanish in Bolivia, we
should also be fluent in our own languages.


SPIEGEL: Are the whites treating the Indians better, now that you're
in power?

Morales: It's gotten a lot better. The middle class, intellectuals
and the self-employed are now proud of their Indian roots.
Unfortunately, some oligarchic groups continue to treat us as being
inferior.


SPIEGEL: Some critics claim that the Indians in Bolivia are now
racist toward the whites.

Morales: That's part of a dirty war the mass media are waging against
us. Wealthy, racist businessmen own much of the media.


SPIEGEL: The Catholic Church has accused you of wanting to reform
religious instruction. Will there be no freedom of religion in
Bolivia?

Morales: I am Catholic. Freedom of religion isn't at issue. But I am
opposed to a monopoly when it comes to faith.


SPIEGEL: Some large landowners have threatened violent resistance to
the planned land reforms. Whose land do you intend to seize?

Morales: We will expropriate large land holdings that are not being
farmed. But we want democratic and peaceful agrarian reform. The 1952
land reform led to the creation of many tiny, unproductive parcels in
the Andean highlands.


SPIEGEL: Bolivia is divided into the rich provinces in the east and
the poor Andean highlands. There is a strong movement for autonomy in
the east. Is the country at risk of breaking apart?

Morales: This is what a few fascist, oligarchic groups want. But they
lost the vote over the constitutional convention.


SPIEGEL: Bolivia is an important narcotics producer. Your
predecessors had illegal coca plantations destroyed. Do you intend to
do the same thing?

Morales: From our standpoint, coca should be neither destroyed nor
completely legalized. Farming should be controlled by the state and
by the coca farmers' unions. We have launched an international
campaign to legalize coca leaves, and we want the United Nations to
remove coca from its list of toxic substances. Scientists proved long
ago that coca leaves are not toxic. We decided on a voluntary
reduction in the amount of acreage being farmed.


SPIEGEL: But the United States claims that the majority of the coca
harvest ends up in the cocaine trade.

Morales: The Americans say all kinds of things. They accuse us of not
fulfilling the conditions of their development aid. My pro-capitalist
predecessor administrations supported the massacre of coca farmers.
More than 800 campesinos died in the war on drugs. The United States
is using its war on drugs as an excuse to expand its control over
Latin America.


SPIEGEL: The American Drug Enforcement Agency, the DEA, has agents
stationed in Bolivia who advise the military and the police in their
efforts to combat the drug trade. Will you be sending them home now?

Morales: They're still here, but they are no longer in uniform or
armed, as they were before.


SPIEGEL: How is your relationship with the United States? Do you plan
to travel to Washington?

Morales: A meeting with (US President) George W. Bush is not planned.
I do intend to travel to New York to visit the UN General Assembly.
When I was still a member of parliament, the Americans didn't let me
into the country. But heads of state don't need a visa to travel to
the UN in New York.


SPIEGEL: You broke your nose while playing soccer a few weeks ago.
Are you playing less these days?

Morales: Does my nose still look crooked? Playing sports has always
been my greatest pleasure. I don't smoke, I hardly drink alcohol and
I rarely dance, although I used to play the trumpet. Sports helped
get me into the presidential palace. My first position in the union
was that of sports secretary. I was head of a soccer club in the
countryside when I was 13.


SPIEGEL: Why don't you wear a tie?

Morales: I never wore a tie voluntarily, even though I was forced to
wear one for photos when I was young and for official events at
school. I used to wrap my tie in a newspaper, and whenever the
teacher checked I would quickly put it on again. I'm not used to it.
Most Bolivians don't wear ties.

SPIEGEL: Mr. President, thank you for speaking with us.

       
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