South America

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Tue Nov 12, 2019 3:02 pm

snapshot:

Bolivia under Evo Morales. No wonder they wanted him out.

Illiteracy
2006 13,0%
2018 2,4%

Unemployment
2006 9,2%
2018 4,1%

Poverty
2006 60,6%
2018 34,6%

Extreme poverty
2006 38,2%
2018 15,2%

courtesy John Hilary @jhilary (a British Labour functionary)
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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Tue Nov 19, 2019 12:26 pm

A ghost travels the continent, it is the ghost of the citizen rebellion against the oligarchy, neoliberalism and the coup that aims to stop the history made by the peoples.

A ghost travels the continent: the citizen rebellion against neoliberalism and coups
It is real, and that is why imperialism, the right and the oligarchies that are threatened with their class position, do not know how to falsify it, when they say that the ghost was caused by socialist, progressive and alternative governments such as Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Bolivia , those who after long and expensive revolutionary processes, managed to break the umbilical cord that tied them to neo-colonial dependence and subjugation.

This popular and citizen, mestizo, indigenous, Afro and peasant rebellion advances like a tsunami in two directions: the one that faces the neoliberal model and seeks to bury it; and the one that faces the coup plotters in their attempt to overthrow the anti-neoliberal and anti-imperialist governments, seeking to impose de facto regimes that have met with powerful popular resistance, with the will and determination to confront them, if forced, in a civil war .

On the one hand, with millions of citizens in revolt who have taken to the streets and public squares against the neoliberal model that has only created misery, exclusion and suffering on the side of the majority; while it has generated immense wealth on the side of the oligarchies and multinationals. Such is the extreme case of Haiti, Central America, Ecuador and Chile; It is the same ghost that today after the announcement of the national strike on November 21 is afraid, and rightly so, of the Colombian oligarchy.

On the other, in the popular resistance against the oligarch and coup, racist and evangelical opposition factions endorsed by corporate media and imperialism, which has returned beaten to its once "backyard", ready to recover space and time lost after their setbacks in the Middle East.

This is the case of the coup d'etat in Bolivia carried out by the United States, with the OAS and Luis Almagro as spearheads, which included the murder of its legitimate president, Evo Morales, the dismantling of the Plurinational State and social conquests and economic, the return of the old oligarchic republic and the imposition of a de facto government, as is happening.

But it is also the case of Venezuela, whose Bolivarian government could not and will not destroy, due to the solid Bolivarian conscience and the majority support of its citizens, rebellious and willing to defend its historical anti-neo-liberal and anti-imperialist project to the last consequences.

Undoubtedly, the United States will continue trying to overthrow it, give a coup d'etat or generate a civil war like the one that is about to explode in Bolivia, they will try as long as their "soft coups" have failed and their conspiracies and opposition have been defeated. In all elections.

That ghost that travels the continent arrived in Colombia, announced a National Unemployment on November 21 and the old oligarchy is paralyzed with fear, a fear that seeks to radiate the citizens in rebellion, who have proposed to exercise the inalienable right to protest In the streets and fields.

Entrenched in military garrisons and with the great media at your service, try to prevent citizen rebellion, like a ghost, from touring the country and turning into your alter ego, shaking its bicentennial foundations. That is why the superior command of the oligarchy has ordered its troops to quartering in the first degree, and does not rule out the decree of the State of emergency. She has been tested in all forms of repression and institutional terrorism known by other peoples of the continent, since before the Condor Plan.

In this way, the old oligarchy that governs in a foreign body through the inexperienced sub-president Iván Duque, brings out the oiled repression apparatus with which historically has crushed the opposition throughout the Republican era, to frighten, generate fear and try to prevent unemployment from becoming a general outbreak, because the discomfort and outrage in the vast majority of Colombians is so great that a chaotic scenario like this is not ruled out.

Faced with the horrific situation he faces, he shoots from the loyal media and threatens from his military garrisons, determined to discredit the national movement in favor of unemployment. That is why it is not at all strange that he has begun to spread false news; to generate fear and spread the rejection that the strike was convened by the Social Forum of Sao Paulo, repeating an old lie that only creates alienated minds and prepaid journalists, or the other equally false version, that behind the strike is the “castro- Chavismo. "

But that cheap propaganda is no longer enough for him, that's why he has dedicated himself to denying that they have a neoliberal package in their government agenda, with a tax reform that will impose more taxes on the pockets of the wage earners; that they plan to make a pension reform that will leave millions of adults and pensioners on the street, giving the pension funds to the financial lords for those who govern, the Sarmiento Angulo and others; which increases the price of fuels every December when people are going through the hangover of the holiday season, which increases the cost of living; who has proposed lowering the minimum wage; that is, try today, even if it sounds weird, denying yourself as if doing so would disappear the historical responsibility of the failures that weigh on it,

Distressed, discredited, delegitimized, cornered and fearful that this time after decades of bad, corrupt, mafia and criminal governments, thousands of civilian murders on behalf of the "defense and security of the homeland"; of the systematic elimination of social leaders; from breach of peace agreements; of the murder of the former members of the FARC who signed and complied with the agreement; to give orders to bomb camps of illegal armed groups where beforehand he knew that there were children and minors; that his only proposal is the continuism of the impoverishing neoliberal model; that this time the National Unemployment, like the one called by all and by no one, for one and a thousand reasons, could indicate the before and after of its historical existence.

The biggest failure of the Colombian oligarchy was not having understood or heard in time, when previous generations, even in their most radical and armed expressions, demanded reforms and democratization of the State that has served as support.

We do not know exactly what this new generation wants, but it does want a change and not of any kind; that she has lost her fear and that she is not easily deceived with fake news. Okay, it's not a ghost that goes the streets on November 21.

https://www.telesurtv.net/bloggers/Un-f ... -0002.html

Mebbe when that ghost grows up it will be a 'specter'.
"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Wed Nov 20, 2019 8:13 pm

One month since the insurrection began in Chile

CMI - Chile 20 November 2019

Image

One month has passed since an insurrectional movement began in Chile. The mass uprising has placed the government of Sebastián Piñera, one of the richest men on the continent, against the ropes. In the face of the movement he has proposed minimum concessions that are only a trap to demobilise the working class and youth.

In addition to this, the repression has resulted in very serious human rights violations, such as torture and sexual abuse. To date, official figures note 23 deaths, more than 3,000 injured, among which more than 200 people have suffered eye damage, with permanent loss of visibility in one of their eyes.

“The greater the spontaneous upsurge of the masses and the more widespread the movement, the more rapid, incomparably so, the demand for greater consciousness in the theoretical, political and organisational work”. (Lenin, What is to be done?, 1902)

The social outbreak in Chile puts on the table the possibility of a fundamental change, with enormous repercussions throughout Latin American and beyond. For their part, the government and the bourgeois parties responded with repression, curfews, a state of emergency, and at the same time, spreading false concessions with the intention of deactivating the movement. The 12 November general strike marked a new turning point that continues to strengthen the confidence of the movement. This successful strike worried the ruling class and precipitated the so-called “agreement for peace and the new constitution”, the latest act of trickery by the regime's parties. This agreement was accomplished in the early hours of Friday and it summoned the parties of Chile Vamos (the right-wing coalition in government), Ex-Concertación Nueva Mayoría (centre-left coalition that was in government for more than 20 years after the end of the dictatorship) and some parties of the Frente Amplio (a wide coalition of left and liberal groups). The Communist Party was a noteworthy exception.

Piñera's insistence on compensating for his political weakness through military intervention has even left police and military forces on a bad footing. In the first week of protests, the state of emergency and curfew were ultimately defeated by the fighting spirit of the masses in the streets. There seem to be disagreements between military commanders and the ruling party, which in recent hours have generated controversy. One is related to the negative response that the high command of the Armed Forces apparently gave to Piñera's suggestion on Tuesday evening to declare a new state of emergence. The president had an impromptu meeting with the Ministers of Defence and Interior in the government palace. There were tense moments when it was rumoured that an announcement was forthcoming that decree the State of Emergency and even a curfew.

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The movement in Chile poses the possibility of fundamental change, with enormous repercussions in Latin American and beyond / Image: fair use

A few weeks after declaring the "war against a powerful enemy," now Piñera wanted to convince us of an "peace agreement." He insisted on some concessions as part of his so-called “social agenda,” and continued to threaten to apply the State's Internal Security Law against protesters. A seemingly improvised speech, which raised doubts about the state of the president's relations with the ministers, of these with the government’s parties, and as a whole with the military commanders. In addition, retired police officers were called back to service, a sign of the significant wear and tear that already affects the police. Even General Director Mario Rozas, in leaked audio, indicates that he is “scared shitless" of the events.

With the repression and provocations of the government, naturally their spirits are getting more and more inflamed. The masses have lost their fear and are improving their methods of self-defence. But all these factors in the equation are developing at uneven speeds.

The class consciousness and organisation, the divisions and regrouping of the regime, the morale of the repressive forces, and the spirit of the masses, are all at different stages that are not always harmonious with a pre-established scheme of revolution. In a political conflict, timing and chance events can be decisive factors. The clear orientation that a determined working-class leadership can give the movement is now urgent.

12 November: workers to the streets!
A week ago, a 24-hour general strike was prepared for Tuesday, 12 November. The National Strike committee, also backed by the Social Unity Board (a large front with the main unions and more than 200 organisations) called for an effective stoppage and massive demonstrations in every city. Unions in every sector - ports, mining, construction, industry, commerce and financial services, education, healthcare, agriculture, agribusiness and public services - joined together to demand structural changes to the system, a demand that the movement identifies with a new Constitution.

We must insist on the importance of this fact for the development of the movement. A general strike clearly demonstrates the power of the working class in a capitalist society, the power to paralyse all production, transport, etc. It is at times like these that the class becomes aware of its own power. Obviously, the general strike puts the whole movement in a position of strength, because it touches the economic interests of the capitalist class, the owners of Chile. It raises the fundamental question about who really makes the economy and society run. Ultimately, a general strike would end up posing the question of power. In this sense, the working class is key, not necessarily as a group based on shared belonging or identity, but because of the role it plays in a capitalist society. Especially as a collectively exploited class that is historically in conflict with the capitalist class: a minority that lives at the expense of the majority's work.

The general strike was massively observed, with the paralysis of the main productive sectors. It is very important to emphasise that this qualitative change in the character of the mobilisations, putting the general strike and the working class at the forefront, has put the regime's parties in a hurry to take the initiative in the conflict and even try to lead the movement (below we will explain the “agreement for peace and new constitution” proposed by the parties).

Image
The general strike on 12 November was massively observed / Image: fair use

While the movement remains within the limits of large days of protests, with fierce battles between protesters and police, the government can maintain some media control over public opinion. Thus, police are presented as heroic protectors of private property and of the "citizens” who protest peacefully. But with the entry into the scene of the methods of struggle of the working class (the general strike, organised self-defence) puts the situation on a qualitatively higher plane.

Some trade union and leftist organisations have for years maintained a pessimism that saw social change as impossible: a scepticism that prevailed in academic and intellectual spheres. For our part, Marxists fully rely on the creative capacity of human labour, not as mere slaves of capital, but as an emancipatory activity that defines what is properly human in close relationship with nature and society. For this reason, we think that the working class has the ability to transform society, because objectively it supports society day by day with its labour. What is missing is the subjective factor, that is, the workers’ ability to become aware of their own situation and take control of their own strength.

Most people know that they do not want the Piñera government or the Pinochet constitution. But it is not clear to everyone how to reach the society they want. The most recent political development - the agreement for a new constitution subscribed to by right-wing parties, “transition” parties, and also elements of the Frente Amplio - has cleared up some doubts regarding institutional paths, but on the other hand, it poses new questions.

Leon Trotsky, the great leader of the Russian Revolution, pointed out the following about this spirit of the masses:

“The swift changes of mass views and moods in an epoch of revolution thus derive, not from the flexibility and mobility of man’s mind, but just the opposite, from its deep conservatism. The chronic lag of ideas and relations behind new objective conditions, right up to the moment when the latter crash over people in the form of a catastrophe, is what creates in a period of revolution that leaping movement of ideas and passions (...) The masses go into a revolution not with a prepared plan of social reconstruction, but with a sharp feeling that they cannot endure the old régime. Only the guiding layers of a class have a political program, and even this still requires the test of events, and the approval of the masses. The fundamental political process of the revolution thus consists in the gradual comprehension by a class of the problems arising from the social crisis – the active orientation of the masses by a method of successive approximations." (Trotsky, Preface for The History of the Russian Revolution, 1932).

About the Constituent Assembly
The debate on a New Constitution has involved all sectors and political groups in the country. In 2017, at the end of the Nueva Mayoría government, ex-president Michelle Bachelet proposed a mechanism for a new constitution. However, this proposal faced obstruction from the right-wing opposition and the lack of a binding indigenous consultation. Above all, one thing was missing. Now, we see a movement of the masses mobilised and eagre to change the illegitimate constitution of the military dictatorship.

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A constitution in and of itself is just a piece of paper. Real change will only be accomplished through a struggle of living forces / Image: Frente Fotografico

This consensus is now overwhelming. According to the latest CADEM survey, 78 percent of respondents believe that a change in the constitution is necessary. More than half of all respondents believe that it is "absolutely necessary" to write a new constitution. The fact that the 1980 Constitution still governs clearly reflects how the current regime was built, with an agreement from above with the dictatorship rather than a revolutionary overthrow from below. The opposition to the 1980 Constitution therefore opposes the entire existing regime.

However, we have to say clearly, it is not the existence of the 1980 Constitution that has allowed the looting of labour and nature, denying access to basic goods and services such as health, education and housing; in addition to the plunder of the Mapuche territory for the benefit of forestry companies. Quite the contrary, the Chilean ruling class has imposed a brutal capitalist system, and the Constitution is a reflection of that, not the other way around.

In this sense, the state and the ruling class have used the Constitution as a justification for inequality. Rosa Luxemburg pointed out this situation:

“On the one hand, the State assumes without doubt functions of general interest in the sense of social development”; but, at the same time, it does so only "to the extent that the general and social interests coincide with the interests of the ruling class" (Luxemburg, Reform or Revolution? 1896)

A constitution may contain very advanced democratic principles and progressive clauses, but after all, a constitution is nothing more than a piece of paper. None of that is really guaranteed under the capitalist regime, and all those formal rights are constantly attacked by capitalism in crisis. What determines the rights and conquests of the working class is the real correlation of forces in their confrontation with the capitalist class. It is obvious that there is huge support for changing the Constitution. But we must warn that a new constitution, by itself, however democratic, does not change the relations of production in society and therefore will not be able to guarantee the rights and the demands of the movement.

No more parliamentary farce. For a workers’ government!
The support of the masses in the streets for a Constituent Assembly represents their aspiration for a fundamental social change and a rejection of the entire existing regime. The government response has been to try at all costs to preserve the legitimacy of the Congress. Even the right-wing parties, faced with the danger of being swept away by the uprising, have been forced to forge an agreement with the opposition in order to deactivate the movement. Hence the so-called "agreement for peace and the new constitution" signed by all parties, from the right wing in government all the way to the Socialist Party and Broad Front “left”, with the only exception being the Communist Party.

The agreement proposes two methods to be voted on a plebiscite in April next year. The “Constitutional Mixed Convention”, composed of delegates drawn from the current congress. This is the government’s trap: its provisions are for a bourgeois democracy. This has been justly rejected by the movement.

The agreement presents another option called the "Constituent Convention". In reality, this means elections to a Constituent Assembly (which in the current circumstances, is nothing more than a bourgeois democratic parliament), with the particularity that its task is to develop a new constitution. Those who present themselves for such an election are either from the current existing parties, or in the case that parties were not allowed to run, they would probably be “experts” (lawyers, constitutionalists, economists, etc.) that ultimately owed their allegiance the same existing political parties that have access to the media, etc. For example, it is proposed that the election of the members of the Constituent Assembly be made jointly with the regional and municipal elections in October 2020. The election of deputies to this Constituent Assembly would not be done in workers' assemblies or in territorial assemblies where the working class deliberates, but through a bourgeois-democratic vote in which citizens (individuated and atomised) are placed in front of a ballot box and issue their vote for one of the options that the regime allows.

Furthermore, the rules of this Constituent Convention are rigged. Any decisions would need a ⅔ majority, which means that a small, ⅓ right-wing bloc would have a right to veto any majority decisions.

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Piñera, out! National Assembly of the Working People! For a Workers’ Government! / Image: public domain

The response from some unions and social organisations has not been long in coming. A massive call on Friday 15 November expressed a clear rejection of the political parties signing this agreement. The uprising rejects the entire regime and therefore is not willing to accept that it is the regime itself who decides what changes must be made.

"Chile is not For Sale" is the slogan from the ACES (a high school students’ association), which also calls the people, anti-capitalist organisations, the Social Unity and territorial assemblies to continue with the mobilisation. That is, against the neoliberal model, and the Piñera government. The Social Unity Board, the National Association of Fiscal Employees (ANEF), and Teachers’ Unions, among others, have denounced the legitimacy of this parliamentary agreement.

The militant Port Workers’ Union of Chile and also the Social Unity have been emphatic in pointing out the incongruities that this farce has with the original demands of the people. Social Unity explained the following: “It is telling that the Agreement includes mechanisms that we emphatically reject: 1) A high quorum that perpetuates the veto of minorities. 2) Discriminates people under 18 years. 3) Does not include mechanisms for Plurinational participation and Gender Parity. 4) It establishes a mechanism of representation and functional election to the political parties that have been responsible for the current political and social crisis.” These points are clear in denouncing the trickery of this agreement. But we must insist that the issue is not the form, but the content. Regardless of the technical arguments, the content is determined by the corrupt parties that made up this agreement behind the people's backs. The streets demand the resignation of the businessman-president Piñera. The working people must tear down this regime, and after this they can utilise their own power through their own democratic bodies in whatever way they deem appropriate.

In addition, these organisations that are objectively the leadership of the movement, through the Social Unity Board, have stated that they will call for a new general strike. This is correct, given the urgent circumstances that the country is going through. But it is also necessary to schedule a general strike, not only an event of 24-or-48 hours. It is necessary to take the next step, a qualitative leap. This time, the tendencies towards the self-organisation of the workers and the communities must be developed to the maximum, in an indefinite general strike. The territorial assemblies and open councils must be strengthened and coordinated by elected and revocable delegates in regional and national councils. Self-defence organisations must be created to face police repression. The people have shown a tremendous disposition for combat, but their patience and heroism cannot be betrayed. Now is when an offensive that overthrows the government and the businessman-president Sebastián Piñera must be effectively organised.

Actually, what is being raised right now is the possibility that the working class will take power. If there was a revolutionary leadership worthy of what this uprising has already accomplished, the convening of a large National Assembly of the Working People would be discussed, with delegates elected in the Territorial Assemblies, the Cabildos and self-convened assemblies, or the Strike Committees. Such an Assembly would consider taking power and expropriating the bourgeoisie and multinationals. Only in that way, by taking control of the means of production, can the serious problems that gave rise to this movement be resolved. This is about putting an end NOW to the power of entrepreneurs in education, health, pensions, housing, etc. This cannot wait until 2021 for their parliamentary arrangements and farce. We need to demand a minimum salary of 500,000 pesos. A minimum pension equal to the minimum salary. Nationalise natural resources, lithium, copper and water under the control of workers and communities. We want to expel immediately the forestry, hydroelectric and mining companies that plunder the Mapuche territory and its people. The thousands of Mapuche flags demonstrate this deep feeling of solidarity from the Chilean people. For its part, the Mapuche nation must be protagonists of their own history. Now is time!

Without justice, there will never be peace! There can be no agreements written in the blood of our dead!

Piñera, out!

A plan of nationalisation and social rights NOW!

National coordination of all assemblies and councils!

National Assembly of the Working People! For a Workers’ Government!

chile@americasocialista.org

https://www.marxist.com/one-month-since ... -began.htm
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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Fri Nov 22, 2019 2:25 pm

More than 200 protesters in Chile have lost their eyes
In Chile, a "model" country of neoliberalism, more than 200 people - mostly young people - have lost an eye or both, because of the rubber bullets with metal caps, used by the police to repress the demonstrations

Author: Elson Concepción Pérez | internet@granma.cu

November 22, 2019 00:11:34

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Although neither the OAS nor the UN Commission on Human Rights rule against such terrible events, the Chilean people are still in the streets and squares. Photo: Weather

In Chile, a "model" country of neoliberalism, more than 200 people - mostly young people - have lost an eye or both, because of the rubber bullets with metal caps, used by the police to repress the demonstrations.

Although neither the OAS nor the UN Commission on Human Rights rule against such terrible events, the Chilean people are still in the streets and squares, and while, its president Sebastián Piñera tries to apply cosmetic measures without affecting the foundations of the prevailing model.

In Ecuador, the nation of the "center of the world", where thanks to Cuban solidarity, 189,000 people were operated from the eyes, to whom the vision was returned or improved, now thousands of citizens are left helpless receive these medical services, because his Government has opted for blind neoliberalism.

The last 382 health professionals who worked in 23 of the 24 provinces of Ecuador, have already returned to the Island of resistance and solidarity.

There have been 27 years of support specified in 6.8 million consultations conducted by 3 565 Cuban health professionals, who have performed 212 360 surgeries, 3 548 deliveries and have applied 100 084 doses of vaccines.

A fact that showed how human is the medical care provided by our country was the Manuela Espejo Solidarity Mission, which was responsible for conducting a psychosocial, pedagogical and clinical-genetic study of people with disabilities throughout Ecuador, where 825,576 Ecuadorians were treated. 35,257 investigations were carried out by specialists in Neurophysiology and Otolaryngology, and 21,062 patients underwent clinical genetic studies.

They are true that neoliberalism tries to hide, but that the people will be responsible for making visible.

In the case of Bolivia, the shooting against the population by the police and the military has not been with pellets, but with real shooting bullets and extreme repression similar to that of Chile.

In that land, after the coup d'etat against Evo Morales was completed, a government has been established with authorities brought to light thanks to the military support and full support of institutions such as the OEA - active participant of the coup - and the ever present Government from the United States.

Against our medical staff that provided health and love there were acts of violence, illegal detentions and a campaign of infamy to try to discredit such a noble mission.

Our doctors, nurses and other health personnel forced to leave Bolivia, happy to be in their homeland, feel at the same time sad for the thousands of Bolivians who were waiting for their attention, in an already agreed consultation, or for a planned operation , perhaps even to restore sight to those who capitalism and blind neoliberalism.

http://www.granma.cu/mundo/2019-11-22/m ... 9-00-11-34

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Sat Nov 23, 2019 5:40 pm

A photo collection in black&white of recent events in Chile:

https://t.co/UH7Po4msyC?amp=1
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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Mon Nov 25, 2019 2:15 pm

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Horrible murder, by police, of the journalist Albertina Martínez Burgos ...
Posted by: Jose Sant Rozon:November 25, 2019In: Articles , InternationalNo Comments Print Email


The Office of Chile opened an investigation into the death of journalist, Albertina Martinez Burgos, who distinguished himself by recording the abuses of police against the population in the context of mass demonstrations demanding a new socio - political model in the country.
«The journalist was found lifeless in her apartment. We have to wait for the autopsy, but we are clearly investigating an alleged homicide, ”said prosecutor Debora Quintana.
In addition, the Chilean prosecutor explained that she met with the boyfriend and mother-in-law of the photojournalist, who "are in the capacity of witnesses, because they were the complainants and it is an ongoing investigation."
The journalist was dedicated to document the violence towards women journalists and communicators in the protests in Chile and actively participated as a photographer in the mass demonstrations.
For this reason, the Chilean authorities investigate the disappearance of photographic material from their home, along with other valuable items.
«Today we demand that the causes of his death be clarified, not to mention that neither his computer nor his camera were in his apartment at the time of being found lifeless. Let's not forget his name, let's not forget his face, ”denounced the feminist movement“ Not one less ”in Chile , after knowing the death of Martínez Burgos.
According to the Public Ministry, the collection of data and audiovisual evidence is continued to clarify the circumstances of the death on Friday, and they already have images of a security camera, which captured the presence of strangers near the door of the house the night before being found dead .

https://www.ensartaos.com.ve/horrendo-a ... ez-burgos/

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Tue Dec 03, 2019 3:06 pm

The Salta Agrarian Forum called for unity to end hunger
They also requested a territorial emergency committee to “channel territorial conflicts” from peasant and indigenous organizations.
By Maira López
The fair in the center of the stadium
The Sovereign and Popular Agrarian Forum was held in the province with more than 300 people who gathered at the Freedom Club of the city of Salta. Its participants called for unity and pointed out the need to implement a model of food sovereignty throughout the territory. In the final statement, they announced that they are "to end hunger in Salta and Argentina ." In addition, they asked for the creation of a Provincial Council to develop public policies between the organizations and the provincial State.

Various peasant and indigenous organizations met on Saturday from 9 in what was the Salta Chapter of the Sovereign and Popular Agrarian Forum . The central axis of the day was in the importance of marking the unity of the peasant and indigenous organizations, of rural and state workers , an event that marked a precedent in joint construction, something that, so far, had not been achieved in a way so effective

“It is time to be protagonists of national, provincial and municipal public policies. It is time for Unity, ”they said in the final declaration of the meeting.

The referent of the National Indigenous Peasant Movement-Vía Campesina Salta, Noelia Lopez, said that there is a “great responsibility to come from the peasant and indigenous territories to discuss and put our problems with the intention of improving our territories”. He urged to replicate what happened from each of the organizations' places. "So that the partners who have not been able to arrive can know what we are doing." "Unity is what makes us the way and this is a great bet," he said.

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For more than four hours, those present were divided into nine commissions: indigenous peoples, gender, land and territories, commercialization, rural work, productive system, water, youth and rural roots and participation and public policies. Many of the themes were related to the work done at the National Agrarian Forum that took place in Buenos Aires in May and that was born from an initiative of the Union of Land Workers (UTT) with several producer organizations.

The referent of the UTT, Nahuel Levaggi, told Salta / 12, that what happened in May was "to discuss the integrality of the agricultural model that we have in Argentina and that is never discussed. An agricultural model in relation to the agro - export and never is questioned for what is the field , the land and depending on what is ".

In this sense, it was the importance of addressing in depth what is happening in Salta. The leader of the National Meeting of Territorial Organizations of Native Peoples (ENOTPO), David Pastrana , said that it is necessary to see “what are, in the province, the important points to address and propose them to the provincial State and municipalities as public policies towards the sector "

He said that one of the challenges of the peoples refers to the struggle for the territories. “We fight for land to be territory. Let us talk about territory because for us it is the way of life, in harmony and it is a different production model from the extractivist model ” , he warned. He pointed out that "there is the joint challenge among all our organizations, in being able to create that model."

In this regard, he stressed the importance of food sovereignty . "Sovereignty not only in saying what we can eat but in eating healthy too," he said. An example was the fair of local and vintage products that could be observed in the center of the stadium. There, those present were able to buy and exchange vegetables, fruits, wines, packaging and tissues.

In the closing document, they expressed that the call was "to say that we are to end hunger in Salta and Argentina, and we are to be protagonists of the program to fight hunger . " Echoing the national program announced in November by the next president, Alberto Fernández .

“ We are food sovereignty, because the return to the countryside, the roots, is part of the future for our young people. Because we are part of our mountains and without them there is no life, ”they said.

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The protestor of the Federation of Nuclear Organizations in Family Farming (FONAF) and rural leader of Morillo, Lucía Ruiz , emphasized “seek unity” by the “disaster” to the family farming sector that caused the national government of Mauritius Macri . He considered that if “from the governments they build public policies for our sector, we will surely start to see improvement”.

He pointed out that in several places “there is a lack of water, roads, markets that come to the big cities but from the small producers . We need to talk about land and territory. We ask for public policies for our sector so that we have what we really deserve. ”

From the Forum they requested that a Provincial Council be created “where organizations and the provincial government can develop policies for our sector, as well as in the municipalities”. They added that “a territorial emergency committee where to channel territorial conflicts with the voice of our organizations” should also be created .

Peasant organizations, native peoples, family farmers, rural workers, state workers of the Undersecretary of Family Agriculture and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology, teachers and students of the National University of Salta participated in the day .

The legislative commitment
Among the actions for the day was the call to national and provincial officials to listen to the demands discussed. There were the national deputies Lucas Godoy and Juan Ameri and the provincial deputies, Ramón "Rana" Villa, Ivan Mizzau and Jorgelina "Koky" Juarez. All assumed the commitment to continue working together.

For Godoy, “the State, third sector organizations, churches, communities, universities and movements” have to strengthen joint work. In addition, he added that “they were asked to be attentive to sustain the legal conquests we have achieved.” Among them, Law No. 7,658 , which in November conquered the extension for two years to avoid evictions to rural families and small agricultural producers .

The deputy Villa said that "it is not easy (to legislate) in a province where pure conservatism governs , it is not easy to make laws like the ones we have taken out." He said that with the company and the support of the organizations it was possible to "fight laws for the benefit of family farming." "We pledge to continue working from the Chamber of Deputies," he said.

Godoy held the big call and asked for the final conclusions of the day. “From there we will work to recover the levels of health, of food. Work on strengthening and creating rights, which fundamental values ​​for our society in Salta, ”he said.

https://amp.pagina12.com.ar/234215-el-f ... ssion=true

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"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Thu Dec 12, 2019 12:44 pm

Chile Awakens: The End Of The Neoliberal "Miracle"

Chileans have awoken. Millions of people have risen up against their billionaire president and decades of neoliberal policies, challenging what free market economists have called an economic "miracle".

redfish went to Chile, where neoliberalism was born, to speak to those fighting to end it.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sf4z9CF ... e=youtu.be
"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Tue Dec 17, 2019 2:21 pm

Chile, two years after the election of Sebastián Piñera

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Despite the demonstrations, Piñera's privatization agenda has not changed even in transport issues, the origin of the social conflict. | Photo: EFE
Posted December 17 2019 (6 hours 5 minutes ago)

Despite Chile's great social upheaval and repeated complaints about the violation of human rights during the demonstrations, Piñera says he will end his term in 2022.

Sebastián Piñera won the elections held on December 17, 2017 with 54.5 percent of the votes , however, the latest data from the Cadem Survey indicate that the president of Chile only has 13 percent approval, although before the Social outbreak last October, was only approved by 30 percent.

Years ago, Chile manifests a stable economy and a significant reduction in the poverty rate of 40 percent in 1990, when the dictatorship ceased, to 8.6 percent in 2017. For its part, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) It positions it as the third country with the highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Latin America. In addition, this year is expected to grow by 3 percent, although it represents lower growth than last year when it grew by 4 percent.

However, these figures fail to hide the great inequality that nation faces. The Gini index of the World Bank places Chile as one of the most unequal countries in the world.

The economist Raúl González Meyer, a PhD in Social Sciences from the Academic University of Christian Humanism, said: “Apart from Chile not being the most unequal country in the region, it is very high. It has long been installed in Chilean society as one of the big problems of the economic model. The truth is that there were no strong patrimonial policies, nor measures to change a tax system still very regressive. ”

The model developed by Chile for years and continued by Sebastián Piñera with the increase and maintenance of privatization places great dependence on the ups and downs of the market, which causes great uncertainty in the popular and middle sectors in the fear of losing their jobs, get sick or retire.

“Chile has a social services provision linked to income conditions, therefore, quality services are only for those with economic resources. The waiting lists in the health system for vulnerable families are years old, schools for them are of much lower quality and a forecast based on individual contributions makes the conditions of origin reproduce, ”says economist Juan Pablo Valenzuela , researcher of the University of Chile.

Year 1
When Piñera assumed power, in March 2018, he found a more united opposition, he faced the Castrillanca case for the murder of the young Mapuche by Carabineros who did not leave it well stopped and which overshadowed one of the central projects of his administration: the Araucanía Plan that sought the development of the area and finally the slowdown of the national economy.



At the end of his first year of government, Piñera celebrated and described as major achievements, which he described as “putting order in our house in matters of migration and facing the serious crisis that affected Carabineros de Chile,” allusion to the enormous corruption of this The institution also celebrated the then growth of 4 percent of gross domestic product.

In that first year, Piñera promoted immigration reform that regularized the arrival of immigrants that had become a relevant issue. He favored the arrival of Venezuelan citizens with a "democratic responsibility visa" and established tourist visas for Haitian citizens, which significantly reduced their arrival in the country.

However, the analyst Germán Silva of the Universidad Mayor affirms that the over-expectation generated by his presidential campaign under the slogan "Better Times" ended up "passing him a very large bill." The expert states that the employment figures have been very low, they have been around 7 or 7.1 percent, very similar to the previous Michelle Bachelet government.

Its first year was mainly marked by the fact that the economy did not take off with the pace assured before the elections, which together with the lack of confidence of the Chileans regarding the institutions or authorities marked the level of approval of Piñera the March 11 this year at 37 percent, according to the Cadem survey, until then the lowest figure in his second term.

Year II
Mireya Dávila, an analyst at the Institute of Public Affairs of the University of Chile, already envisioned a complicated second year for the president, saying that it would be a challenge for Piñera to consolidate the Government's agenda and the demands of those who support it. Here there is a tension that is difficult for the president to solve because he has to have greater approval in public opinion and at the same time meet the expectations of his sector, "he said.

Piñera began his second year of government with several reforms still in the pipeline. Together with the Labor Reform and the Tax Reform, the Pension Reform is one of the future adjustments for workers and popular sectors which will increase their individual contribution by 4 percent. However, the government publishes a demagogue speech of wanting to favor the retired although with these it intends to increase the business of the Pension Fund Administrators (AFP) after 20 years of its operation in this country.



The reform project omits that the level of pensions received by the majority of current retirees does not allow them to meet their basic needs. So it is not a problem of expectations as Piñera wants to make believe but survival, it is a social and humanitarian emergency.

Experts affirm that the problem of pensions lies exclusively in its contributory pillar, which is the paradigm of individual accounts, in this case the AFPs, so it is condemned to produce low pensions. In the manifestations of the last weeks, Chileans and Chileans have also demanded that the country define through a democratic discussion a pension system that adapts to the reality of people living in that country to ensure their survival.

As the AFPs where Chilean workers contribute 10 percent of their salaries, their profits increased 70 percent between January and September of this year compared to the same period in 2018. Every year, they make millions of profits from the investments they make with the contributions of the workers, even though they then give very low pensions to the retirees.

[Last update] Figures collected directly by the NHRI in observations to demonstrations, police stations and hospital centers, from Thursday, October 17 until Thursday, December 12, 2019. Follow the timeline of the INDH figures here https: // t .co / YiTEBLbyGr pic.twitter.com/uL2yTxGmkg

- INDH Chile (@inddhh) December 13, 2019
The protests that began last October 18 and that remain in different parts of the country have generated in the international public opinion several questions and questions about the Chilean model and its economic triumphalism. The fact is that some of the main demands of thousands of protesters are fairer prices for electricity, gas, university education and health services as well as a review of pensions and salaries. Chile presents one of the most privatized economies, including its constitution proposes the privatization of water. These neoliberal policies have caused the cost of living in the Andean country to be very high.

1 percent of Chileans own 26.5 percent of the wealth and 50 percent of the less favored families have only 2.1 percent of the country's total wealth. Likewise, a report from the Sol Foundation published last August revealed that 7 out of 10 workers receive a liquid salary of less than 550,000 pesos, which represents about $ 745 per month, while only 6.1 percent of Chilean employees earn more $ 2,050 per month.

The wave of protests unleashed under Piñera's noses has left him badly stopped before national and international public opinion and not a few predict his political end. He has been widely criticized for his mishandling of the demonstrations by classifying them initially as the work of criminals, then invoked the state of exception and then decreed the curfew, measures never seen since the return to democracy.

Amnesty International expresses deep concern over the results of a new study that warns that the water thrown by the cars of @Carabdechile
would contain pepper gas and caustic soda. https://t.co/UEsgJi3y0P

- THINK PRESS (@PiensaPrensa) December 17, 2019
Likewise, complaints about violations of human rights in Chile by citizens are alarming. International organizations such as the United Nations have expressed concern about this situation.

For their part, human rights groups say that during the protests, 26 people have died. While the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights affirms that another 12,000 have been injured.

For its part, the National Institute of Human Rights (NHRI) reported that from October 17 to December 6 of this year, 352 people have resulted in eye damage in the context of social demonstrations.

Piñera will celebrate this December 17 the second anniversary of his triumph at the polls with the shadow of having performed a management that has catalyzed one of the saddest pages in the history of his country. The only merit to stand out from his administration is to have awakened Chile.

https://www.telesurtv.net/news/chile-se ... -0001.html

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Re: South America

Post by blindpig » Wed Dec 18, 2019 6:40 pm

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Chile: 92.4% Voted in Favor of a New Constitution (Constituent Assembly)

December 18, 2019 orinocotribune Chile, Constituent Assembly, Magna Carta, new constitution, pinochet, police repression
The president of the Chilean Association of Municipalities, Germán Codina, reported Tuesday that 92.4% of Chileans voted in favor of the creation of a new Constitution.

According to a Prensa Latina report, the popular consultation held this weekend was attended by 2,116,984 people, however, the participation figure is expected to increase because the website for electronic voting was blocked in the BioBio region.

The tally showed that 7% voted against the creation of a Magna Carta [in a vote in] which 225 municipalities from all over the country participate

Among the questions for consultation was the mechanism for the drafting of the new Magna Carta. In this regard, 73% of the participants voted in favor of a Constitutional Convention, while 25% approved a mixed formula, in which both legislators and citizens participate.

However, in some municipalities, they allowed the option of the creation of a Constituent Assembly responsible for drafting the new legal text, which was supported by 83%, according to Prensa Latina.

On the other hand, 86% of the voters agreed that the vote be established on a mandatory basis, while 95.3% approved the prohibition of running for public office by people who have convictions for drug trafficking, corruption or money laundering.

This popular -non biding- consultation seeks to be a response to the demands of the Chilean people, who have been on the streets for two months in rejection of the neo-liberal policies imposed for decades in the country, as well as to demand a new Constitution that repeals the current Magna Carta, created during the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

The mobilizations – which have been repressed by state security forces, have left a balance of 23 dead, more than three thousand injured and hundreds of detainees. Among the injured, more than 300 people have suffered serious eye injuries, of which there are cases that have lost their sight completely.

Source URL: Panorama

https://orinocotribune.com/chile-92-4-v ... -assembly/

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Carabineros de Chile Use Caustic Soda in Water Cannons to Burn Protesters

December 17, 2019 orinocotribune
A report released on Monday confirms that the Carabineros use pepper gas and caustic soda in the water cannons they use to disperse the demonstrations. In recent weeks, complaints from protesters have multiplied because of burns after being targeted by hydrant trucks.

This Monday, at the headquarters of the FeCh (Federation of Students of the University of Chile), a press conference convened by the Health in Resistance Movement was held, an organization that presented a report on the chemical components of the water launched by the police from these vehicles, popularly known as “guanacos”.

“The only way that the molecules of the chemical compound capsicin can be diluted (contained in the water thrown by carabineros), is through an alkaline medium, such as caustic soda.” With these words, the chemist Francisca Leiva, who was in charge of the report, revealed the reason for the various cases of burns reported by protesters.

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According to Leiva, burns are a product of chemicals, and there is no doubt about it. The professional explained that the water released by the “guanaco” contains molecules of the chemical compound capsicin – an active component of hot peppers – and that for this to be dissolved in water, it requires an alkaline medium, such as caustic soda.

Leiva added that caustic soda generates physical effects and causes erosion on the dermis. This contradicts the cynical response of Carabineros that hinted at supposed “previous medical conditions” of the protesters who have reported burns.


The case of water burns from the water cannons of the Carabineros that were shown by the Health in Resistance Movement was that of Gonzalo, a young resident of Lo Hermida, who reported serious injuries and erosions on his neck and back as a result of police repression.

The young man from Lo Hermida said he was attacked by police and was sprayed when trying to remove tear gas bombs shot into his house by police.

In conversation with La Izquierda Diario, a doctor and a young woman from Lo Hermida pointed out that Gonzalo’s case is not isolated but that it occurs in the context of a serious situation of constant police repression faced by neighbors, and that includes dozens of injured with pellets, people who are attacked by police in their own homes, violence in courtyards and squares against children, adolescents and people in the sector, among others.


This complaint is in addition to those expressed by multiple local and foreign Human Rights organizations about the brutal repression of police officers and cases of torture and rape, as well as the shooting of pellets at eye level that left hundreds of people with eye damage.

It’s a matter of “punishment tactics” to “mark” physically, or psychologically, those who participate in the mobilizations. It is not something new, but the lessons that the police and military, not only from Chile but from all of Latin America, learn in joint exercises with the United States, and that are also “imported” from other armies, such as the French, which has policy experience of this type. They are those that these countries use in the wars that they carry out in different parts of the world and that apply against the local populations, as it happened with the School of the Americas and the “French School” during the genocidal dictatorships that our region lived through in the 1970s. Of course, Pinochet was no exception but one of their best students, and Carabineros continue to use these methods as part of their Pinochetist legacy which the street rejects and wants to end once and for all.

Source URL: La Izquierda Diario

Translated by JRE

https://orinocotribune.com/carabineros- ... rotesters/
"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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