A summit with neither pain nor gain

By
Eduardo Dimas                                                                   Read Spanish Version

What
caught my attention during the Fifth Summit of Latin
America-Caribbean-European Union (LAC-EU) Countries held in Lima,
Peru, May 16-17, was the fact that, in his closing speech, host
President Alan García forgot to mention the Caribbean, leaving
out 18 nations and the governments represented at the parley. 

A
mental lapsus? Repressed wishes? I don’t know. I will remind you that
it was Alan García who, on an official trip to Spain, asked
King Juan Carlos and Prime Minister Rodríguez Zapatero for
"the return of Christopher Columbus to Latin America." In
plain Spanish, that’s like asking for a new European conquest,
rather, a reconquest of this region of the world.

Maybe
the words of the Peruvian leader were nothing more than diplomatic
rhetoric. But let’s not forget that he is one of the principal
defenders of the neoliberal model in Latin America. The same model
that Europe and the U.S. are trying to make the only possible
standard, despite its obvious failure in the struggle against poverty
and inequality.

And
that was precisely the main issue at the summit, because the central
themes were closely linked with the prevailing economic model: "The
struggle against poverty, inequality and exclusion," and
"Sustainable development: the environment, climate changes and
energy."

In
the end, the 80 countries at the summit approved the Lima
Declaration, which had previously been brought to a consensus by
their negotiators and foreign ministers. That declaration established
the commitment of both continents to attenuate poverty, the world
food crisis and environmental decay.

The
document also establishes an agenda of cooperation on the issue of
sustainable development, the environment, climate changes and energy.
The latter issue, proposed by the EU, was modified at the suggestion
of negotiators from Latin America and the Caribbean.

The
Declaration also acknowledges the integrity of human rights, that is,
civil and political rights, along with economic, social and cultural
rights, without which the former cannot be exercised. However, there
was no mention of a basic right, the right to eat, without which it
is impossible to even think about the others.

According
to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
(ECLAC/CEPAL), the region has the greatest inequality when it comes
to wealth distribution. Barely 10 percent of the population holds 50
percent of that wealth, whereas the number of poor people exceeds 200
million. Of these, 84 million live in abject poverty.

On
the political level, the 80 governments at the summit ratified their
adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter and
rejected any kind of measure contrary to international law, such as
the United States’ blockade against Cuba. The Declaration denounced
the extraterritorial nature of the Helms-Burton Law, approved in 1996
to tighten the siege around the island. 

And
in this case it is good to remember that it is the fifth time that
the LAC-EU summit condemns the application of the Helms-Burton Law.
But let us not forget that many EU countries played the United
States’ game and, at some time or another, applied measures against
Cuba under the sponsorship of the former Spanish Prime Minister José
María Aznar — the famous "common stance," which is
now suspended.

We
mustn’t forget, either, that the EU withdrew in 1999 a lawsuit
brought at the World Trade Organization against the U.S. government,
in response to the application of that law to some European companies
that do business with Cuba. Ever since, the EU has condemned the law
in all international forums, but, needless to say, that’s not enough.

In
any case, it is difficult to believe that the EU’s promotion of free
trade finds receptive ears in Cuba, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and
Nicaragua, governments that some members of the EU call "populist,"
especially the government of Hugo Chávez.

Likewise,
I do not think that the EU’s full-court defense of neoliberalism can
be wholly supported by the governments of Brazil and Argentina, which
had bitter experiences when that model was applied to them and
maintain policies that defend the national interests, even though on
occasion those interests are closely linked to those of the
transnationals.

What’s
remarkable about the EU’s posture is that the Christian-Democratic in
power in several European nations held seminars prior to the summit
to combat the trend they call "populist," which is based on
the substitution of the neoliberal model, the defense of national
interests, the eradication of poverty and the integration of regional
economies.

That
European policy is part of the campaign against the progressive
governments of Latin America, which somehow or other plays in the
hands of the White House. While Europe subordinates itself to the
United States, it has its own hegemonic intentions. That is why its
governments staunchly defend the neoliberal model.

Parallel
to the Fifth Summit of the LAC-EU was the Alternative Summit of the
Peoples, with the participation of political, social and labor
organizations from Latin America and Europe. The meeting’s Final
Declaration denounced the so-called Accords of Association that
Europe intends to sign with several Latin American countries, because
they pursue the same objectives as the United States’ Free Trade
Agreements.

The
Peoples’ Summit rejected the EU’s strategy ("A global Europe:
How to compete in the world") because it said it only
"strengthens the policies of competitiveness and economic growth
that seek to implement the objectives of the transnational
corporations and deepen the neoliberal policies."

The
document stresses that "the principal cause of inequality,
social polarization, environmental degradation and discrimination is
the primacy of the market over and above the rights of people."
It adds that those ills are the consequence of granting all kinds of
guarantees to the corporations, which eliminate the state’s ability
to define national development projects with the participation of the
governments.

The
Final Declaration of the Peoples’ Summit also points out that the
policies aimed by the EU toward Latin America seek to deepen
neoliberalism and are incompatible with the EU’s discourse of a
struggle against poverty, against climate changes, and in favor of
social cohesion.

And
it maintains that it is possible to achieve a different type of
integration, based on free determination, respect for human rights
and for the democratic processes adopted by those governments that
veer away from the neoliberal trends.

A
copy of the Final Declaration of the Peoples’ Summit was delivered to
each of the delegations at the Fifth Summit of the LAC-EU. It was
well received by the progressive governments and ignored by those
that ignore the true clamor of the people. The EU recently approved a
semblance of a Constitution, without a referendum, that was rejected
by the people of the Netherlands and France two years ago.

The
balance is the same as always. Many speeches, much rhetoric. Firm
stances by the governments of Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and
Nicaragua against the neoliberal formulas. Nationalistic hues in the
assessments of other countries. Total servility on the part of those
who have signed free-trade pacts with the U.S. In sum, more of the
same. Yet one more summit. Everything remains the same.