"Evo Morales- The First Indigenous President" Part 2

Two weeks ago I wrote a post about President Morales of Bolivia and what the impact of his lineage from the Aymarans was. I knew nothing about the topic when it was given to me but wrote based on what information I found from some articles I read. I had already approached the topic with an optimistic viewpoint, as the treatment of Natives in any country has always been something that I find to be saddening and maddening. However, the good work of a leader cannot be based in his genealogy alone, but instead by goodwill and the effects of his policies, right? So I asked a Bolivian acquaintance of mine what the thought of Morales and the changes he has made.

President Morales has supposedly tried to improve the condition of the lives of his people. But Morales has little education, barely finished high school, and cannot make a speech worth anything. Apparently, none of his policies really do any good and because of his background he is very easily influenced and manipulated by other leaders, for example Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. Therefore, Bolivian foreign policy has diminished in success and imports and exports have decreased. Because of this, the country is getting even poorer.

My source's opinion is that Morales came into power because most of the population there is indigenous and they were very easily manipulated by an alluring leader, so they voted for him in the hopes that he would represent them well in congress and Bolivia would be a better place to live. Instead, things have gotten worse for them and international relations have become strained.

I did not do any lengthy research, but nothing that I read said anything alluding to the ideas above. I think this is a good lesson for all of us In The News students and Extempers: we cannot fully understand the scope of a situation by reading mainstream news articles or reviewing American opinions only. Sometimes our own opinions get in the way of the truth and biased sources lead us to believe things that are simply untrue. I was very thankful to receive such insight from an actual Bolivian citizen, for who could know better about the condition of Bolivia? I do hope that if President Morales does not find a way to improve the lives of the people he presides over, a new leader will. I know that if I were an Aymaran in modern-day Bolivia I would have voted for Morales based on his genealogy, however shallow that may be. Perhaps this will teach a lesson not only to the indigenous voters, but us outside spectators as well. I for one am not going to be so hasty to form an opinion in the future; there is always a story behind the story.

Evo Morales: The First Indigenous President of Boliva

In December of 2005, a long-standing history of oppression was reversed when Evo Morales won the largest majority vote in Bolivia's revamped democracy and became the first indigenous President of Bolivia. Morales is the leader of a movement called the Movement towards Socialism (MAS)*, which pushes for more political power and independence for the Aymara and other native groups. In concordance with the MAS, he has succeeded in giving control of the country's gas fields and other precious resources to the state, reforming the constitution to specify the rights of the indigenous people, and enforcing independence of local regions and provinces.

It is largely due to President Morales' family lineage that the Aymara people have been granted more and more rights in Bolivia. The Aymara have been oppressed since about 1483, when the Incas assumed control over the Aymara region. Although they maintained some autonomy throughout Incan occupation, they were still conquered and controlled until about 1523, when they were subjected to Spanish control. Without having been persecuted or enslaved outright, the Aymara and other smaller divisions of natives have gone without full freedom for a long time, despite having been an established group throughout the Andes Mountains in Western Bolivia, Southern Peru, and Northern Chile for over 2,000 years.

An obvious impact of President Morales' regime in Bolivia is his coca growing, about which he says " I am a coca grower - I cultivate coca leaf, which is a natural product, I do not refine [it into] cocaine." The Aymara have grown coca for centuries, chewing it, using it as medicine, and using it in ritual offerings to their gods. But in the last 100 years the government has been confiscating it to prevent the cultivation of cocaine (which can be chemically extracted and isolated from the plant), ignoring the fact that the leaf is a big part of their tradition and has even become a symbol of their cultural identity. President Morales is the head of the biggest coca-growing union in Bolivia, which has sparked controversy and criticism from the opposition who call him a "narco-trade unionist".

In 2008, Morales suspended cooperation with the US Drug Enforcement Administration in Bolivia, accusing them of involvement in anti-government protesting (which the U.S. denied). This, in addition to his close alliance with President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, has severely strained relations with America. President Morales was reelected on the 6th of December, allowing him to further the Movement towards Socialism and his pro-Aymara policies. His decent from the Aymara is an obvious part of his political ideology and attitude towards America, as well. Hooray for the natives who deserve to finally be free, but woe to America whose policies (oddly reminiscent of imperialistic Spain, the second conquerer of Morales' people) are being fought and opposed. May President Morales continue to protect the rights of his people but find a way to do so in accordance with other nations to ensure sound international relations.

*The acronym for the Movement towards Socialism is MAS because the Spanish term is "Movimiento al Socialismo", in case any of you were wondering.

President Obama's Nobel Prize speech

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iRWjTDaT4JuS0nFj9APZAues8vjAD9CGFID00

This is a link to the speech text. The speech is brilliant in many ways. I am inadequately qualified to amplify or clarify the philosophy that is presented. I do think that the history of Reagan and perestroika is not as it is presented. This however is a minor point and although it is interesting that this understanding is that of the American president, a well educated and brilliant man. This of course makes me doubt my understanding of this time in a big way. If you read Gorbachev's book, it is clear that the ideas of perestroika were not primarily about economic freedom as is often quoted in the West. An example quote:" Those who hope that we will move away from the socialist path will be greatly disappointed. Every part of our program of perestoika... is fully based on the principle of more socialism. Mikhail Gorbachev November 2, 1987 The idea was to find a way to integrate what was a third world country economically with a first world military. The arms control part of the comment may also be faulty, but again, who am I to question the president and his history majoring, ivy league going speech writers. My memory had it more like tough love arms negotiations by Pres. Reagan. If I have this wrong, I would like to be corrected.

But really folks, this is a great speech!!! -read it!

-

Intersections/ Hacker

The following link is an interesting piece of blog journalism that looks at the identity of the hackers of the climate emails. The question considered is whether the hackers were part of the Russian intelligience community. http://intelligencenews.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/03-119/