Tribune – news, features and comment from Britain's left-wing magazine

by Colin Burgon

WITH the failings of the unrestrained free market brutally exposed in recent months, those seeking alternatives could learn from developments in Latin America. The continent where neo-liberal orthodoxies were disastrously imposed on populations – at the barrel of a dictator’s gun in Chile and elsewhere – has rejected these policies and is now at the forefront of promoting social justice.

Bolivia, Latin America’s poorest nations, is a case in point. In less than one full term of office,  Evo Morales’ government has used the wealth from newly nationalised resources to bring hundreds of thousands out of illiteracy, provide a retirement pension to all Bolivians and establish hundreds of medical clinics. It is no wonder that Morales, Bolivia’s first indigenous President, won 67 per cent support in a referendum on his presidency earlier this year.

Rafael Correa’s government in Ecuador has similarly embarked on a path of social transformation. A new constitution, passed this autumn in a popular referendum, gives the state greater control of vital industries, redistributes idle farmland, and provides free healthcare for older citizens.

Venezuela’s achievements are even more striking. This month marks a decade since Hugo Chávez’s first election as President. His government has eradicated illiteracy to UNESCO standards, lifted two million people out of poverty and halved the levels of extreme poverty. Millions of people now have access to subsidised food and clean water that they were denied before.

A World Health Organisation report has praised Venezuela’s development of a free national health service, whose creation it is estimated has saved 100,000 lives.

For decades, Cuba was an inspiration across the world, guaranteeing its people access to employment, social security, free health care and education. Thanks to Latin America’s progressive shift, this small island is no longer alone in seeking to protect its population against the savageries of the neo-liberalism.

Regrettably, mainstream media coverage in Britain has reported much of the recent developments in Latin America through a lens of distortion, misrepresenting the facts and leaving many badly informed of this widespread social change. The failure to portray accurately the developments in Venezuela comes not only from the right-wing media but also from sections of the mainstream liberal press that has traditionally been supportive of progressive causes.

Recent elections in Venezuela are a clear example. Venezuelans went to the polls last month to elect 22 state governors, 328 mayors and hundreds of local legislators. This was the 13th national vote held since 1998 when President Chávez was first elected.

The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), headed by Chávez, won 17 out of the 22 states, 80 percent of mayoralties and 80 of the 100 most populous constituencies. It won the popular vote with 5.4m votes compared to 4.3m for the main opposition candidates, with the pro-Chávez vote up by one million on last year’s constitutional referendum. The opposition to the Chávez government won 5 state governorships and 20 percent of mayoralties, including some important urban areas such as Caracas.

George Orwell once said: “In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.” The labour movement’s role in ensuring the truth is told on developments in Latin America has never been so important.