The ALBA advances

Some
are barking

By
Eduardo Dimas                                                                      Read Spanish Version

The
Sixth Summit of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA)
ended on Jan. 26 with the admission of the Island of Dominica, the
second Caribbean country. It is the fifth nation to integrate this
union of a new type, without hegemonies, despite the economic
superiority of some nations over others.

A
common element of all member nations is that they are underdeveloped.
Some, like Venezuela and Bolivia, contain enormous economic
resources, especially crude oil and minerals, that have been
systematically exploited by the transnational corporations. The
others, Cuba, Nicaragua and Dominica, have scant or few resources, in
some cases unexploited.

The
other common element is that their current leaders refuse to accept
the rules imposed by the neoliberal model — the notorious "free
market," something impossible in these days of transnationals —
and hope to create a fairer, more equitable society for all, because
even the wealthiest members of the ALBA have a high level of poverty,
the product of a centuries-old inequitable distribution of wealth.

The
closing of this Sixth Summit, in Caracas, Venezuela, coincided with
the celebration in many world cities of the Day of Global Action
against neoliberalism, war and globalization. At the same time, in
Davos, Switzerland, the most powerful nations defended the neoliberal
model in the World Economic Forum and made plans to preserve it.

Such
are today’s contradictions. Five states, with a total population of
fewer than 60 million, try to achieve a union where cooperation and
the complementation of economies will help improve the living
conditions of their people.

One
of the results of the Summit was the creation of the Bank of the
ALBA, whose $1 billion initial fund will serve to finance development
projects. A laughable figure, when we consider the capital of other
international banks and of hundreds of billionaires worldwide, but
that’s the amount available at this time.

Let
us not forget the existence of the Bank of the South, with a capital
of more than $7 billion contributed by its members (Argentina,
Brazil, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Uruguay and Paraguay), an
institution that does not answer to the precepts established by the
International Monetary Fund or the World Bank, representatives of the
interests of the transnationals.

Like
the Bank of the South, the Bank of the ALBA will have, according to
its bylaws, a Ministerial Council and an Executive Board with a
rotating presidency. The contributions of each country will
correspond to the member nations’ abilities and possibilities. None
of the members has more votes than any other, regardless of the
amount it contributes.

According
to news agencies, the Sixth Summit ratified the ALBA Cultural Plan,
aimed at promoting, preserving and strengthening the cultures of the
member countries and to counteract the cultures and ways of living of
other powerful countries that are interested in imposing their
tastes, customs and interpretation of the world.

In
addition, summit-goers signed a treaty of alimentary security, along
with 17 other projects for "grand-national" enterprises, a
name given to joint proposals, in contrast to "transnational"
enterprises. Needless to say, this is not a simple change in name.

As
noted by the Telesur network, grand-national companies will be "those
whose production will be intended basically for the intra-ALBA market
(zone of fair commerce) and whose operation will be carried out in an
efficient manner."

The
Sixth Summit also approved the first projects of cooperation with the
island of Dominica, in the fields of coffee and energy production.

Symbolically,
the Summit was closed at Venezuela’s Latin-American School of
Medicine, where 395 students from several Latin American and
Caribbean countries attended the introductory Medical Sciences course
that is part of the ALBA’s educational program.

The
training of doctors who will care for low-income people is another of
the ALBA’s concerns. Let us not forget that through Operation
Miracle, a project promoted by Cuba and Venezuela, more than one
million people have undergone eye surgery, free of charge, in the
past several years.

The
number of people taught how to read and write through the Cuban
program "Yes, I Can," exceeds 1 million, throughout Latin
America. It’s part of what be done if there is a political will to
attend the most urgent needs of low-income people, who in the past
were condemned to blindness and ignorance.

Also
during the Summit, Cuba and Venezuela signed an accord for the
installation of a submarine cable between the two countries. The
project is of extreme importance for Cuba, which cannot use the
cables controlled by the United States, because of the blockade. An
underwater cable has linked Cuba with the U.S. since 1956.

The
underwater cable with Venezuela will permit a major expansion of
Cuba’s international and Internet communications, which at present
have a limited bandwidth because they are conducted via satellite.
The cable’s capacity is practically unlimited.

At
the proposal of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, the participants
agreed to take one branch of the underwater cable to Nicaragua, so as
to establish connections with Central America. There is a possibility
that other branches will be extended toward the Caribbean, with
Jamaica the first beneficiary.

For
his part, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez recalled the
possibilities that are opened with this accord and the launching in
August of the Chinese-made satellite Simón Bolívar,
which will serve both Venezuela and the ALBA.

In
addition to Chávez and Ortega, the Summit was attended by
Bolivian President Evo Morales, Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt
Skerrit and Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage Dávila. Invited
guests included the prime ministers of St. Vincent and the Grenadines
and Antigua & Barbudas, Ralph Gonsalves and Baldwin Spencer,
respectively.

Hopefully,
other countries will apply to join the ALBA in the next several
months and years. Ecuador could be one. Several Caribbean nations are
known to be interested in joining this organization of states whose
main attraction is the equality among all its members.

The
results of the Sixth Summit of the ALBA make clear that its members
are advancing toward new forms of cooperation and complementation of
economies. Also, that the bases of justice and equity in ALBA’s
foundations are pleasing to other governments that are interested in
improving the living conditions of their peoples.

As
the ALBA advances, some critics are barking and looking for ways to
bar its success. Plans orchestrated by the Center-Democratic
International and its Latin American branch, the Christian-Democratic
Organization of the Americas (ODCA) are under way to put an end to
the Bolivarian Revolution and Hugo Chávez, to boycott the
changes occurring in Bolivia under the Evo Morales administration,
and, if possible, to remove him from power.

The
plans against Cuba are old and I shall not refer to them. Behind
those plans is not only the United States government but also several
European governments that are interested in augmenting their
exploitation systems in Latin America or in regaining it.

Some
Latin American leaders are traveling through Europe to increase
investments in their countries. They’re asking for Christopher
Columbus to return. Maybe, without realizing it, they’re asking for
the Reconquest. Others try to justify what’s unjustifiable and, oddly
enough, they get support. That is proof that the process of
integration in Latin America does not please the centers of worldwide
economic power.

Not
everything is rose-colored in the process of integration in Latin
America and the Caribbean. Willingly or unwillingly, some of the
leaders are pawns of the Empire and play along with interests that
are not Latin American. The ALBA, as part of the process of
integration of the countries in the region, advances.

Other
Latin American multinational entities bog down and don’t take
advantage of the present circumstances. It is part of the dialectics
of the development of integration, especially when major forces
oppose it. Time will tell if justice for the people, or the avarice
of the Empire succeeds. Let us hope for the best.