[Marxism] Correa Will Order Constitutional Assembly Tomorrow "A sovereign, dignified, just and socialist Latin America is beginning to rise"

["Fred Fuentes" <fred.fuentes@xxxxxxxxx>]

[from the article ``My duty as president is to complete your mandate
for profound change,''  said Correa, flanked by his regional allies,
presidents Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Bolivia's Evo Morales. ``A
sovereign, dignified, just and socialist Latin America is beginning to
rise.'']

Correa Will Order Constitutional Assembly Tomorrow

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aSJ9jJfmKFoQ&refer=latin_america

By Theresa Bradley

Jan. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Ecuadorian President-elect Rafael Correa will
tomorrow order an assembly be convened to rewrite the country's
constitution so socialist economic and political changes can be made.

``We're not talking about little reforms, about making things less
bad,'' Correa told crowds at a symbolic swearing-in ceremony among
indigenous groups in the Andes today, ahead of taking his formal
oath-of-office tomorrow.

``My duty as president is to complete your mandate for profound
change,'' he said, flanked by his regional allies, presidents Hugo
Chavez of Venezuela and Bolivia's Evo Morales. ``A sovereign,
dignified, just and socialist Latin America is beginning to rise.''

Correa, 43, a U.S.-trained economist who served a five- month stint as
Finance Minister in 2005, won 57 percent of the vote in a Nov. 26
run-off election. He has aligned himself with Chavez's vision of
``21st Century Socialism,'' vowing to boost spending on the poor,
renegotiate foreign oil contracts and review Ecuador's $11 billion in
foreign debt obligations.

Correa's call for a constitutional assembly echoed steps taken by
Chavez when he was first elected in Venezuela in 1998. The
constitution drafted and approved there by popular referendum in 1999
became the foundation of Chavez's so-called ``Bolivarian'' revolution,
named for Simon Bolivar, who fought to rid 19th century South America
of Spanish rule.

``A constitutional assembly is the only peaceful road to refounding
the republic and making the social and economic reforms we need,''
Chavez said in remarks preceding Correa's speech in Ecuador's Cotopaxi
state.

`New Hour'

Unlike Chavez, who controls all 167 seats in Venezuela's National
Assembly, Correa founded his own party to run for office and has few
allies in Ecuador's congress. That sets the stage for conflict between
the popular majority who supported Correa's platform and the majority
of lawmakers who oppose it.

Chavez, backing plans for a constitutional revision, asked Ecuadorians
to ``support Correa, support this new leader for Latin America's new
hour.''

Chavez and Morales are expected to be joined at Correa's inauguration
in Quito tomorrow morning by the presidents of Brazil, Chile,
Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru and Iran, Venezuela's state Bolivarian news
agency reported.

Correa is due to sign a decree convening a constitutional assembly in
Ecuador shortly after he takes the oath-of-office.

Energy Accords

Chavez and Correa are expected to sign a series of energy accords in
Quito on Jan. 16, agreeing to modernize Ecuador's Las Esmeraldas
refinery and form a joint venture between state-owned Petroleos de
Venezuela SA and PetroEcuador to explore Venezuela's Orinoco Belt oil
reserve.

Petroleos de Venezuela, South America's largest oil company, will next
month begin processing up to 100,000 barrels of Ecuadorian crude a day
at no charge, Chavez said on Dec. 22, reducing Ecuador's reliance on
closely held foreign refineries.

``The neo-liberal night is reaching its end,'' Correa said today, in a
speech laced with the indigenous language Quechua that praised
revolutionary figures Bolivar and Che Guevara.

``Latin America isn't living an era of change,'' he said. ``It's
living a change of eras.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Theresa Bradley in Caracas at
tbradley7@xxxxxxxxxxxxx .

Last Updated: January 14, 2007 16:35 EST

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