South Florida Groups Support Bolivian Civil Society

 
A large and enthusiastic Miami audience met with one of the current icons of resistance to World Bank and International Monetary Fund privatization policies, Bolivian Oscar Oliveira, at a November 1 meeting organized by the Miami Workers Center. The event concluded a US and Canadian speaking tour by Oliveira, one of the leaders of protests against the privatization of the water system in Cochabamba, Bolivia. The gathering, at the new headquarters of the Human Services Coalition of Dade County, was a chance to gauge the growing interest in international issues by the local social action community. Attendees included a diverse group of at least 80 participants from Dade, Broward and even Palm Beach counties.

Cochabamba, a city of 600,000 inhabitants located in the central Altiplano of Bolivia, entered into a dispute with the Bolivian government when the rights to the distribution and control of the region's water resources were turned over to a private firm. In April, after months of sometimes violent street protests and the declaration of martial law, the government gave in to the demands and canceled the contract. The community itself is now in charge of running the water system.

The challenge is to make the community's victory work by finding alternative water management options, Oliveira noted. The purpose of his speaking tour was not only to seek support for efforts to change World Bank and IMF policy, but also to rally technical and financial support for Cochabamba's water management. Not the least of the community's problems is a legal challenge by the private firm contracted by the Bolivian government, a subsidiary of the Maryland-based Bechtel Corporation, which is demanding a huge indemnity.

According to Oliveira, the Bolivian government risked a popular upraising and blood bath from the protests, which began spreading to other parts of the country. Many levels of leadership were driven into hiding or arrested and yet, the resistance continued to grow. Government and allied interests claimed the revolt was driven by drug money, but even a top government negotiator recognized that it was above all a popular movement. The experience changed what was a model program of privatization into a nightmare for Bolivia and other countries. It raises questions about the way privatization has been carried forward without a clear mandate from those who are supposed to be the beneficiaries.

The Cochabamba protests were also a centerpiece in the movement to "break the Bank." Oliveira spoke at workshops during the April demonstrations against the IMF and World Bank meetings in Washington, D.C. His subsequent speaking tour was part of the effort to broaden the base of these movements. From the reactions of the audience to his talk, the strategy hit its mark.

Local organizations in South Florida have become involved in a campaign to block the purchase of World Bank bonds, a trend that began in several large California cities and is spreading. The idea is similar to another international action based on local sovereignty, the decision of some local governments to boycott goods from certain countries, including Burma. This initiative was struck down in federal court after threats of World Trade Organization action.

The World Bank and the IMF have redoubled their efforts to become more responsive to NGOs and other groups that are leading the pressure for their reform. In October, the World Bank and IMF received a high-level delegation of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), which presented detailed demands and suggestions to revamp the policies and operations of these organizations. The ICFTU complained that previous promises for better consultation with union organizations during World Bank/IMF visits to developing nations have not progressed beyond good intentions.

Many local South Florida groups are becoming better informed and more active in campaigns protesting aspects of globalization. Their efforts are an interesting counterpoint to the efforts of the state and region to improve corporate contacts and trade with the developing world.