My friend and long term political compañera Lee Cridland and I have written an article about the current situation in Cochabamba, the city where we live. Here it is.
Cochabamba is a city with a history of struggle. In April 2000 the people stood up against the privatisation of their water supply, threw out the multinational Bechtel and retook control of the local water company. In October 2003 they joined the thousands of people on the street in El Alto, La Paz and other cities to defend the right of the people to nationalize the country’s gas reserves, effectively forcing, then president and champion of the neo-liberal economic model, Gonzales Sanchez de Lozada to flee the country.
Over the last few months, the citizens of the Department of Cochabamba have once again taken to the streets to defend democracy, this time calling for the resignation of the Perfect of the Cochabamba (a position similar to governor). In a so called pro-democracy, pro-autonomy rally in December of last year the Governor of the Department of Cochabamba, Manfred Reyes Villa, aligned himself with the Media Luna (the block of Eastern Departments demanding autonomy) and called for yet another referendum on the issue of autonomy despite the fact that in July 2006, the same referendum was defeated by 63% of the voters. This plus his long history as a nefarious civic leader, has forced the social movements (campesinos, teachers, factory workers, small merchants, coca growers and others) out into the streets demanding his resignation.
Who is Manfred?
Manfred Reyes Villa is a former student of the School of the Americas in Panama. He was a student of the brutal dictator Garcia Mesa who has been implicated in a number of political assassinations. During his time as Mayor of Cochabamba he signed the contract with Bechtel, privatising the city’s water supply hence precipitating the Water Wars. He was a member of the last Gonzales Sanchez de Lozada government under which up to 80 people were killed during February and October 2003. In 2005 he was elected Prefectura of Cochabamba and during his 11 months in office he has used state funds to finance a political advertising campaign which has been used to cover up his past political doings and further his own political ambitions. He owns several houses in Cochabamba and the US.
Recent Events
Reyes Villa’s previous history, combined with his call December 14, 2006 in a public rally of his supporters, for another vote on the issue of autonomy set in motion a series of massive open meetings called “cabildos”, and marches. As the social movements took to the streets through out December and early January, resentment continued to grow and eventually lead the social movements to call for his resignation.
On January 8, a march on the main plaza turned into a fight between local police and protesters and part of the Municipal Council building was burnt. With a people dozen injured, the social movements began to march each day demanding the resignation of Manfred Reyes Villa.
On January 11, violence erupted when Manfred supporters, many of whom wore white shirts to identify themselves, and a group called Youth for Democracy broke through the police lines and began indiscriminately beating any indigenous person they could find. The “white shirts” then attempted to take the main plaza but those in the plaza fought back. A long and violent battle that lasted well into the night resulted in 2 dead (one campesino and one member of Youth for Democracy) and over 200 injured. The city was in shock as images in the media of the white elite fighting the brown skinned working class graphically illustrated the clear class and race divisions within Bolivia.
The Aftermath
Before the violence broke out on January 11, Reyes Villa went to La Paz for a meeting with the Governors of the Media Luna block, (some of his supporters were angry that he had deserted them). From there he flew to Santa Cruz, refusing to return to Cochabamba for fear of inciting violence, and demanding the government come to Santa Cruz to negotiate with him. In doing this he has clearly aligned himself with the eastern states, and this may serve to anger some of his base here in Cochabamba where divisions, even amongst the elites, are regional.
Evo Morales returned from early from his Central American tour to meet with the social movements and has said that this is clearly an issue that needs to be negotiated between Cochabamba´s social movements and Manfred Reyes Villa and not an issue for the National Government. Morales also introduced a new law which would allow official recall votes of any public official, similar to the law passed in Venezuela. The MAS government have repeatedly said that they will not go to Santa Cruz to negotiate with Reyes Villa, that Cochabamba’s problem must be negotiated in Cochabamba..
Racism, Class and Autonomy
The push towards autonomy in the Media Luna states is steeped in racism. These states hold the vast natural resources, which the Morales government has just nationalised, and most of the economic wealth. The divisions between class and race were no clearer than in Cochabamba on the afternoon of January 11. The white shirted Manfred supporters were mostly white, middle and upper class people, whereas the social movements represent the working class, peasants and poor.
The history of Bolivia is a history of exploitation. From the Spanish Invasion and the use of slave labour in the mines in Potosi 400 years ago, to the neo-liberal policies of previous governments, indigenous people have been exploited and excluded from wealth and power for over 500 years. The election of Evo Morales in December 2005 was a turning point in the history of Bolivia, yet many of the elites (a lot of who gained their wealth through government corruption) cannot except that their “right to rule” is over.
The Media Luna block are fermenting divisions between departments, with their political speeches, their open racism towards President Morales and their unwillingness to share the wealth with the rest of the country.
MAS and the Social Movements
For some time now an interesting dynamic between MAS and the social movements has been developing. There are those social movements aligned with the government, such as the cocaleros and some which are clearly not (Coordinadora of Water and Life in Cochabamba). Some of the social movements critique the government and accuse them of coopting the movements so that criticism of the government is kept to a minimum.
During the cabildo on Tuesday 15 January the social movements of Cochabamba elected a Popular Prefectura and its council The MAS government has come out and said that they do not support this decision as it is not supported by the constitution and is un-democratic. A party which was once at the front line of the struggle has now become a voice for the system. Whilst Evo and has government are pushing along with some reforms which benefit the people (free universal health care, financial support for education, literacy programs) they are also allowing the right to still dictate the way they govern.
January 18 will be the first anniversary of Evo Morales’s inauguration as Bolivia’s first indigenous President. The hope and excitement of that day is not forgotten, but a lot of reflection needs to take place on which road the government will choose to take this year and who they are willing to placate instead of listening to the people and their own base.
In Cochabamba, like Oaxaca, Mexico, the people are standing up against corruption and oppression. It is the people of these cities who serve as an inspiration to those of us who are living in the world of Howard and Bush.
