[3 articles]
Uruguay Elects Former Guerrilla as Next President
http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/2229/48/
Written by Darío Montero
Tuesday, 01 December 2009
Left-wing candidate José Mujica was elected president of Uruguay with
nearly 52 percent of the vote Sunday, seven to eight percentage
points ahead of his rival, the right-wing Luis Alberto Lacalle,
according to projections by pollsters.
Mujica, a former senator and agriculture minister, will take over
from socialist President Tabaré Vázquez on Mar. 1, to head the second
administration of the leftist Broad Front coalition.
The unseasonal heavy rains of the last few weeks, which have forced
more than 6,000 people out of their homes due to flooding in
different provinces, hardly let up on Sunday, but voters flocked to
the polls anyway in this South American country, where voting is compulsory.
The mood during Sunday's runoff was much less jubilant than in the
first round on Oct. 25, when the Broad Front garnered just over 48
percent of the vote, winning a majority in parliament for the second
time in history, but falling short of an all-out victory for Mujica.
By contrast, Lacalle's National Party won 29 percent, and the
Colorado Party took nearly 17 percent.
The National and Colorado Parties, which were founded in 1836,
dominated the political life of the country until 2005, when the
Broad Front - created in 1971 - won the national elections for the
first time ever.
Observers consulted by IPS said Sunday's calm was due to the
sensation among voters on the left that the runoff was merely a
formality, given the large proportion of votes won in October and the
projections of the polling companies. However, Montevideo, the
capital, exploded in celebrations when Mujica's triumph was announced.
Nor will there be any surprises on Mar. 1, when Vázquez hands over
the presidential sash to his successor. Despite their very different
personalities, no major modifications are expected in terms of the
government's economic policy, marked by a strong emphasis on social
justice, or its foreign policy, according to political scientist
César Aguiar and economist Marcel Vaillant.
Despite the contrast between the blunt-talking Mujica, known for his
colourful, colloquial expressions, who did not trade in his
comfortable casual garb for a sports jacket until the campaign was
well under way, and the soft-spoken circumspect Vázquez, an
oncologist, there will be no shift in course, as the president-elect
himself has repeated over and over during the campaign.
"If at any point my temperament as a fighter made me go too far in my
remarks, I apologise, and tomorrow we will all walk together," Mujica
said Sunday night from the platform set up in front of the NH
Columbia hotel across from Montevideo's oceanfront drive, addressing
thousands and thousands of supporters whipped by the heavy rains and
the strong winds coming off the Rio de la Plata estuary.
His comments were directed towards the opposition, with which the
Broad Front has proposed negotiating policies of state on certain
issues above and beyond party politics, over the next five-year
presidential term. "Here there are neither winners nor losers; all
that has happened is that a new government has been elected," said Mujica.
The calm was reinforced by the words of Lacalle, who greeted his
rival and called on his followers to be "respectful" of the Broad
Front's victory.
The president-elect based his campaign on the achievements of the
current administration, which included a reduction of the poverty
rate to 20 percent from a record high of 32 percent in 2004, and a
decline in extreme poverty from four to 1.5 percent of the population.
In addition, as Mujica and his running-mate Danilo Astori - Vázquez's
former economy minister - pointed out during the campaign, economic
growth ranged between 12 and seven percent a year until last year,
before the global economic crisis hit, and unemployment fell from 21
percent in 2002 - during the financial collapse in neighbouring
Argentina and Uruguay - to just eight percent today.
Another major accomplishment was the Plan Ceibal, which made Uruguay
the first country in the world to provide a laptop, with internet
connection, to every primary schoolchild in the public education
system - a programme that will now be expanded to secondary school.
In addition, the government carried out a major tax reform aimed at
redistributing income by increasing the burden on the middle and
upper income sectors.
"To judge by the campaign, the changes with respect to the current
government will be minimal," university professor César Aguiar, a
sociologist who heads the Equipos MORI polling firm, told IPS.
While Aguiar said that although the president-elect's personality
could usher in certain modifications, he added that there will be no
radical changes, and that the next five years "will be calm."
That view, which coincides with those of other experts who spoke to
IPS, contrasts sharply with Mujica's past as a young urban guerrilla
fighter in the 1960s and 1970s - an aspect that figures prominently
in news coverage from outside of the country.
"It is important to highlight that although Mujica in the past was
one of the leaders of the Tupamaro National Liberation Movement
(MLN-T), that was four decades ago, after which he spent 13 years in
prison (during the 1973-1985 military dictatorship) and now has been
involved in normal civic life for a full 25 years, during most of
which he was a parliamentarian," Aguiar underlined.
Since he was released from prison when democracy was restored in
Uruguay, Mujica has dedicated himself to building a strong political
faction within the Broad Front and to cultivating flowers on his
small farm on the outskirts of the capital, where he will continue to
live as president, and plans to build a farming school with his
presidential salary.
Furthermore, "personality-based politics in Uruguay are neutralised
by an institutionalised system of political parties with strong
traditions that are very hard to break.
"Things are different in Uruguay than in other countries of Latin
America, where politics are more unstable because large proportions
of the population are young people or rural migrants to the cities,
or the indigenous population is increasingly being incorporated into
civic life - in other words, major social changes are taking place," he said.
"The only significant change we have here is that every year we get a
year older," he joked, referring to the ageing of the population.
For Aguiar, "not even the left's arrival to the government for the
first time, in 2005, was a radical change. It was not a rupture, but
merely a long-announced change that took place in a very smooth, calm manner."
Mujica has friendly ties with left-leaning Argentine President
Cristina Fernández and her husband, former president Néstor Kirchner
(2003-2007), and with the leftist Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and Evo
Morales of Bolivia. But he has also clearly marked his differences
with them, and has repeatedly stated that his model is Brazil's
moderate leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
"With regard to the country's economic policy and foreign relations,
there will be a sense of continuity with the Vázquez administration,
above and beyond a new aesthetic and some gestures that could make
(the new president) look more like Chávez or Morales," said Vaillant,
a professor of international trade at the University of the Republic.
But he noted that Mujica has stated many times that he is aligned
with Lula's approach, "which points to continuity," he said, adding
that the president-elect will also take "the middle way" in regional
relations.
"It would be illogical for the new government to shift direction
when, for example, the current policies have brought high economic
growth and high levels of foreign direct investment, which has
boosted growth and has helped the country weather the global crisis
without damages."
Vaillant, an expert in regional integration, said "foreign investment
has set truly historic new records during this government."
--------
Tupamaro Revolutionary José Mujica's Presidency
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0912/S00492.htm
by COHA Research Associate Elizabeth Benjamin
Thursday, 17 December 2009
Press Release: Council on Hemispheric Affairs
Former Tupamaro Revolutionary José Mujica's Presidency Will Likely
Follow the Incumbent's Successful Policies
On November 29, 2009, José "Pepé" Mujica of the left-center
coalition, Frente Amplio (Broad Front-FA), won the run-off election
in Uruguay with 53.2% of the vote compared to the 42.7% of his
opponent, former president Luis Alberto Lacalle. Mujica's win
represents a consolidation of power for the FA, as the incumbent
Tabaré Vázquez was not only the coalition's first elected president,
but also the first left-leaning leader since before the era of
military rule, which lasted from 1973-85. Vazquez's near 70% public
approval rating paved the way for Mujica, who has promised to follow
in his predecessor's footsteps by continuing his moderate social and
market-friendly reforms, with little focus on foreign policy.
Overview of the Tupamaros and the Frente Amplio
The National Liberation Movement-Tupamaros originated in the 1960s as
an urban guerrilla group seeking to propagate its agenda of political
and social change. It was established to rebel against the highly
bureaucratic government in Uruguay, at a time when the country was
experiencing high unemployment and inflation, as well as a steep
decline in its standard of living. The Tupamaros' initial acts of
resistance included robbing banks and businesses, and then
distributing the stolen funds to the poor. Eventually, the political
movement culminated in increasingly violent acts such as political
kidnappings and assassinations. In 1973, a military junta began to
exercise power behind-the-scenes, with the allegedly fraudulently
elected president, Juan María Bordaberry, acting as a figurehead
leader, but by 1976 the military had removed Bordaberry from office.
The repressive military regimes specifically targeted the radical
Tupamaros, murdering and imprisoning many of their leaders on charges
of being leftist insurgents.
Upon the country's restoration of democracy in 1985, the Tupamaros
evolved into a political party known as the Movimiento de
Participación Popular (MPP), which eventually joined the FA
coalition. The FA was established shortly before the military
takeover in 1971 and fundamentally emulates a social democratic style
of governance. The coalition is comprised of several institutional
center-leftist parties who offer a politically socialist agenda.
Moreover, these center-left parties have not only engendered the
unfaltering support of labor unions, but have also been fully
integrated into a pluralistic and competitive party system.
Jorge Lanzaro, a professor at the Political Science Institute at the
University of the Republic in Uruguay, and a Public Policy Scholar at
the Woodrow Wilson Center, emphasized that, in contrast to other
leftist governments in the region, such as radical Venezuela and
Bolivia, Uruguay boasts a left government with functioning and
competitive political parties. Moreover, despite the Tupamaros'
historically revolutionary beliefs, they now have a more moderate
ideology. This is evidenced by the current government's emphasis on
social inclusion programs for the underprivileged, as well as
economic prosperity built on a free market system. Similar to social
democracies in Europe, although not as well funded and as
successfully implemented, Uruguay's social democracy is a proponent
of the welfare state: everyone theoretically receives free education,
healthcare, and other government-provided social services.
For the first twenty years following the dictatorship, Uruguay's two
traditional political parties, the Partido Nacional and the
Colorados, both established in the 1800s, overshadowed the FA.
However, that changed in 2005 when Vázquez became the first president
in the nation's history who did not belong to either of the
traditional parties, marking a significant victory for the FA and the
social democrats. Ever since, the FA has steadily gained popularity.
In addition to the presidential seat, the coalition currently holds a
majority in both houses of congress.
Mujica: Moderate Social Reformer or Populist Leader?
Mujica, now 74 years old, was an early actor in the revolutionary
Tupamaros. Due to Mujica's integral involvement with the Tupamaros,
as well as the oppressive nature of the military regime that emerged
in 1973, he was imprisoned for 14 years. Since the country's
restoration to democracy and Mujica's subsequent release from prison,
he has played a decisive role on the Uruguayan political stage. He
served for several years in the senate and also held the position of
Minister of Livestock and Agriculture during Vazquez's presidency.
Like Vázquez, Mujica is popular among the poor and working classes
for his proposed efforts to improve the standard of living through
the implementation of Vazquez-style domestic and economic reforms.
During the FA's primary elections, Mujica's campaign was slightly
more to the left than it has been in recent months. However, despite
the opposition's attempts to use Mujica's radical past to paint him
as a Chávez-style populist strongman, such portrayals have only
proven to be counter-productive. Mujica's strategy of distancing
himself from the Venezuelan leader and his inflammatory rhetoric was
key to positioning himself closer to the center than to the left, and
in securing the win. During the initial round of voting in October,
Mujica failed to receive an absolute majority vote, which is required
for immediate election, thus necessitating a run-off election in
November. Mujica, in an attempt to garner popular support, further
emphasized his proposed continuance of Vázquez's reforms as a
maneuver to separate his policies from those of Chavez, thus
reassuring undecided and skeptical voters. He dismissed Chávez's 21st
Century Socialism as "a lot of bureaucracy." Nonetheless, the
Venezuelan government praised his election: "This historic victory of
the left ratifies that the destiny of the Uruguayans continues to be
of equality and social justice, and consolidates the large wave of
transformation, dignity and sovereignty that is crossing our Latin
America and the Caribbean, making the time of the peoples more and
more irreversible." While Mujica is not committed to socialist
economic reforms like the Venezuelan leader, Chávez and other more
moderate regional leaders have praised Mujica's dedication to social
inclusion.
According to Professor Lanzaro, in the event that Mujica did plan to
implement populist, Chávez-fashion reforms, the strength of the FA
would make it extremely difficult to accomplish this. The FA
coalition, the majority part in both congress and the senate, has a
relatively diverse composition, ranging from communists to moderates,
that create an internal balance of power. Essentially, the coalition
itself moderates Mujica's possible policy reforms. As a result, it is
likely that Mujica's administration will seek only moderate reforms
in the manner of Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Chile's
Michelle Bachelet.
Vazquez's Successful Domestic Policies
President Vázquez implemented highly successful social and economic
reforms that resulted in his high approval ratings. Despite
overwhelming popular support for Vázquez, the Uruguayan constitution
forbids consecutive re-election. Vázquez implemented a series of
highly successful economic reforms under the guidance of his Minister
of Economy and Finance, Danilo Astori. Astori's reforms were not only
successful in improving the standard of living for the average
Uruguayan, but also in significantly sheltering Uruguay from the full
shock of the global recession.
Unlike the nationalist economic policies that Chávez pursues, Vázquez
enacted neoliberal economic reforms comparable to those implemented
in Chile, Peru, and Brazil. Such economic reforms resulted in many
positive changes for the Uruguayan population. Uruguay's GDP per
capita rose from $6,000 in 2005 to and estimated $10,000 in 2009,
with a real GDP growth of 7 percent at the end of year 2008. The
economic reform campaign also resulted in an increased flow of
foreign investment as exports more than doubled from $3.5 billion in
2005 to $7 billion in 2008, before it slightly declined due to the
global recession. Foreign investment has started to rise again and it
currently stands at $6.5 billion according to statistics from November 2009.
These macro-level economic reforms also improved Uruguayan's job
opportunities and standard of living. For example, the unemployment
rate steadily declined from over 13% in 2005 to 6.4% in November of
this year. Vázquez also successfully reduced the poverty rate from
32% in 2004 to 20%, and the percentage of people living in extreme
poverty fell from 4% to 1.5%. Another success is the ambitious "Plan
Ceibal," which aimed to provide one laptop with internet connection
to every primary student and teacher in the country's public
education system. The plan will soon expand to secondary school
students as well.
Given this incredible economic success, Vázquez would surely have
been a contender in the recent election. According to Arturo
Porzecanski, Professor of International Finance at American
University, Vázquez's economic reforms created a "good" economic
backdrop during Mujica's campaign. Although the Uruguayan economy
experienced a slight lapse in the first quarter of 2009, the IMF
reported in November that it "has held up considerably well in the
face of the global recession." As Porzecanski further points out, at
the time of the elections the economy was on an upswing, which in
turn pushed economic worries to the backburner when Uruguayans went
to the booths.
Mujica's Uruguay
Mujica ran with a presidential platform based on the successes of
Vázquez and reassured the public that he would continue these
policies. Political analysts believe that Mujica's government will
essentially be no more than an extension of Vázquez's governance, but
with a specific focus on education, energy, environment, and public
security. However, Mujica's pronounced intentions of maintaining a
steady economic course are also of high importance. Danilo Astori,
who is now Mujica's vice president, is likely to provide a political
balance since he does not belong to the Tupamaros, but rather to
another faction of the FA. Serving as Vazquez's economic advisor has
provided Astori with substantial knowledge and experience in economic
reforms. He will continue to ensure the steady progress of the
country's economy, which is largely based on agriculture and beef
exports, an economy that has grown by 7% since the election of Vázquez.
For the most part, Mujica faces a largely successful economic legacy.
However, progress remains to be made and Mujica will face some
challenges on the economic front. One such obstacle to tackle will be
inflation. According to the IMF, inflation dropped from 14% in 2004
to a projected 7% in 2009; however, Uruguay claims the second highest
inflation rate in South America and the third highest in the
hemisphere. Another economic challenge facing Mujica will be the
country's dependency on the somewhat unpredictable economy of its
largest trading partner, neighboring Argentina. For instance,
Argentina's debt crisis in 2001 severely affected Uruguay's economy
because the latter was highly dependent on the former's imports and
also because the economic crisis in Argentina created a run on the
banks that extended to Uruguay. Under the leadership of Mujica,
Uruguay might decide to relax its dependency on Argentina and focus
on further strengthening its already strong trading relationship with
its more stable northern neighbor, Brazil.
In terms of Mujica's foreign relations, policy will most likely
remain the same. Vazquez's government primarily was committed to a
concern for domestic policies, with a minimal foreign agenda.
However, Mujica will likely be pragmatic in terms of foreign policy
and continue to strengthen its relationship with MERCOSUR (Southern
Cone Common Market), which is also comprised of Brazil, Argentina,
and Paraguay. Given Mujica's alignment with Lula, it is probable that
he will stand by his Brazilian mentor in regards to foreign
relations, as well as behind UNASUR (Union of Southern American
States) in regards to regional integration.
Although the election of Mujica represents a consolidation of the FA,
it does not present a significant political shift for the country.
Uruguay will most likely continue down the path of moderate reforms
that have yielded relative economic prosperity and progress over the
past five years. Perhaps the biggest change will be the shift in
targeted reforms, such as energy, as imported oil is expensive and
hydroelectricity is not reliable. Given Mujica's intention to build
upon and improve both the neoliberal principles propelling Uruguay's
economy and the social programs catered to the marginalized and
underprivileged sectors of the population, his administration will
most likely continue to generate a satisfied public and maintain the
high approval ratings generated under Vázquez. Mujica's win is
another illustration of the continuing trend in Latin America towards
leftist-reformists who are dedicated to the improvement of social and
economic conditions in the region.
--------
Guerrillas take to government
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/the-americas/091210/guerrillas-government
One-time rebels now hold key political positions across Latin America.
By Tyler Bridges Special to GlobalPost
Published: December 21, 2009
LIMA, Peru Years after trying to shoot their way into power, dozens
of former guerrillas in Latin America have found a better way to help
chart their country's future through the ballot box.
A former member of the M-19 guerrillas in Colombia is a senator.
Several one-time rebels in El Salvador are congressmen, and one was
elected as the country's vice president in March.
In the latest example, Jose Mujica, who spent 14 years in prison for
waging war against the state as a Tupamaro guerrilla, was elected
president of Uruguay at the end of November.
"Is there anything better than having the people who thought that
killing, kidnapping and robbing was the path to power then decide to
join the political process and earn their way to high office without
rigging elections?" said Arturo Porzecanski, a Uruguayan who is an
American University professor.
The one-time guerrillas typically express no regrets that they took up arms.
"We have democratic governments today in many cases because of the
heroic struggles," said Sigfrido Reyes, a former FMLN guerrilla in El
Salvador who is now the vice president of the country's Congress.
"George Washington had to lead an armed struggle against the British.
Simon Bolivar used arms to overthrow the Spanish."
Today's one-time rebels typically chose a violent path during the
1970s and 1980s when military dictatorships or authoritarian elected
governments squelched dissident and freedom, often in the name of
stamping out communists.
The generals returned to the barracks in the 1980s and 1990s, and
newly elected democratic governments gave amnesties to guerrillas
that allowed them to return to civilian life in return for
forswearing violence.
Today, the only remaining guerrilla groups in Latin America are the
FARC and the ELN, both in Colombia.
"The political success of leftist parties and movements in the region
weakens the idea that violent strategies are necessary for
substantive change, strengthening the legitimacy of electoral
procedures and representative democracy," said William Aviles, a
Latin American expert at the University of Nebraska.
The former guerrillas began winning elections in the 1980s in Central
America and have steadily won more important races throughout Latin
America as they have gained the public's trust. Their success has
contributed to the leftward turn of Latin America in recent years.
Former guerrillas now hold key positions throughout Latin America.
Alvaro Garcia, who was just re-elected as Bolivia's vice president,
was a leader in the Tupac Katari Guerrilla Army that bombed 48
pipelines and electric pylons in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Garcia was captured in 1992, tortured and spent five years in prison,
before becoming a respected professor and political analyst.
Vice President Salvador Sanchez of El Salvador and at least a dozen
congressmen including Reyes fought with the FMLN guerrillas
against the country's military dictatorship.
Dilma Rousseff, a former cabinet minister favored by President Luis
Inacio Lula da Silva to succeed him in next year's presidential
elections, joined a guerrilla movement against Brazil's military
dictatorship and spent nearly three years in prison before becoming
an economist.
.
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Sixties-L" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en.
