Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Chile: Protests for the contraceptive pill

More than 20,000 Chileans marched on Tuesday night, April 22, through the streets of Santiago to demonstrate their rejection of the Constitutional Court's ruling which last week banned the distribution of the morning-after pill through the public health care system.

Earlier in the day, La Nacion reported: "The chairman of the Confederation of Workers of Health Municipalizada (Confusam), Esteban Maturana, said that the guild had accepted the call to paralyse its activities.” Subsequently, 80% of medical clinics went on a one day strike.

The Constitutional Court, on April 4, declared, by five votes in favour and four against, that the free distribution of the contraceptive, morning-after pill in public health services was illegal. This in a country where abortion is completely illegal.

The Chilean president, Michelle Bachelet, commented shortly after the decision: "I deeply regret the judgement, in a country that aspires to be in the major leagues, where people have equal opportunities in health, education, and development...this is an injury to the construction of a more equitable society."

The objection was submitted in early 2007 by 31 legislators from the right against the decree of the Ministry of Health, which provided for the free distribution of the emergency pill to teenagers older than 14 years without the consent their parents.

The church was implicit in waging the ideological battle. The question of morals, and "the right to life" were common arguments, with all forms of contraception being seen as an abortion.

Recently, Pope Benedict XVI, on the lush lawns of the White House, alongside president George W. Bush, reaffirmed the church’s position against abortion: “the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death”, reported on April 16 the Associated Press.

However, the safety, and right for a woman to have a choice, did not enter the right, nor the church’s vocabulary.

Indeed, while this decision does not prevent the contraceptive pill to be sold commercially in pharmacies – another indication that the neoliberal restructuring, and privatisation of the health care system continues - it will be the poor that suffer the most. Meanwhile, the wealthy woman will have the luxury of being able to pay for the pill and the privatised chilean health care system.

During the week the local media reported that a twenty-one year old woman was hospitalised after her boyfriend attempted to administer a backyard abortion. Unfortunately, this is not uncommon.

María Cáceres, from clase contra clase (class against class), reported in a April 10 article: “Today in the country there is between 160,000 and 200,000 abortions a year, even though abortion is illegal; tomorrow, with the recent [court] judgement, there will be double the abortions and we will see double the deaths due to clandestine abortions.”

Cáceres elaborated that, “when speaking about reproductive rights, it’s about rights that have been conquered by women years ago, through struggle, with the rise of the masses, through social and cultural change.”

However, where the right for choice has been eroded it means that “others simply decide for our [women's] bodies and lives”, commented Cáceres. She concluded that “it’s not about only defending the pills and other methods of contraception…but we should fight for [the proper] conditions and right to reproduction that are of quality, and are free.”

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Argentina and the recent Rural lockout

The government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, during the week met with the leaders of four entities of the agricultural sector, the ruralistas, to analyse, and discuss the implementation of a revised taxation package, which the government announced during the rural lockout.

The rural lockout lasted for 21 days, and began after the government introduced tax increases – from 35% to 45%, in most cases - on agricultural exports, such as wheat, soybeans, and beef.

The proposed package will rollback the tax increases, with compensation, for the small-to-middle agricultural producer.

At the time of writing, negotiations have stalled after the four entities denounced the Agricultural minister’s dialogue as “to apply pressure and threats” reported Clarin on April 16.

Agro-economy

The economic policies of Kirchnerismo, and previous administrations, has seen large subsidies for the agricultural sector. Subsequently, this has conduced a concentration of capital in the production of primary commodities – soybeans in particular since the 90’s, which now accounts for 22% of the GDP.

The powerful landowning bourgeoisie, and the foreign transnationals that benefit from the agro-production, have reaped super-profits from the rising prices of agricultral commodities.

On March 28, Clarin reported: “It was in the first quarter, when there was a registered rise of 30% of prices in the products that Argentina sells to the world. The products from the countryside represent 61% of the total exports.” Since last year the price of soybeans has risen by 70%.

With the dependence of the Argentine economy on agriculture, the grand agricultural producers continue to concentrate their power. “There is 2.2% who own 46% of production”, Pagina/12 reported on April 1. Meanwhile, the small-producer makes up for 80% of rural population, but only genearates “20% of the soy beans in Argentina.” There are more than 300,000 workers in the agricultural industry, with a miserable, average monthly-wage of 1200 pesos, $379 US.

The fiscal measures introduced – claims the government - is an attempt to keep basic food prices low for Argentines - by encouraging production towards the internal market and away from exportation; to stimulate economic development in other sectors; to restrain the “soyaisation” of the countryside, and encourage the farming of other crops; as a mechanism to mitigate the impact of the international financial crisis; and, above all, to redistribute the country’s wealth.

However, the economic model that Kirchnerismo proposes ensures that the agro-oligarchy has a dominant position in the economy. The inflation of primary commodities is, rather, a direct result of the economic policies that Kirchnerismo maintains. The fiscal measures are rather an attempt to redirect money to pay off Argentina’s existing foreign debt to the IMF.

Reactionary response

The generalisation of the taxation increase - an ineptitude of the Kirchner government – to apply to the entire agricultural sector, without differentiating between scale, sectors, or regions of the producers, facilitated the rightwing to unite all four agricultural entities under the political and economic program of the landowning bourgeoisie.

Sections of the bourgeoisie, united by the rural entities, mobilised the media, opposition, and middle-class, and used the rural strike to try to weaken the government.

The majority of those people blockading the roads were the small-to-middle producer, under the leadership of the landowning bourgeoisie. In the cities the cacerolazos - protests involving pot banging, made common during the 2001 uprising in the midst of the country’s economic crisis - comprised the upper-middle class, in solidarity with the ruralistas, who vehemently protested iniatially; but protests began to fade once food shortages become palpable.

The mass-media, notably the newspaper Clarin, was complicit in garnishing public discontent. Televisions streamed pictures of the blockages, ruralista speeches, and showed trucks dumping spoiled produce on the side of the roads - by the end of March, local supermarkets were out of meat.

Kirchnerismo responds

While initially unwilling to budge on the tax increase, the Kirchner administration eventually compromised. The revised tax increase would see a differentiation between producers, and would rollback the taxes on the small-to-middle producer, with compensation.

However, the Agrarian Federation, who represents the small-to-middle producer, and has the most members, followed the lead of the other entities, rejecting the government’s offer, almost immediately after its announcement, as “inadequate”. Instead, they declared that the lockout would continue until April 2.

Kirchnerismo mobilised 100,000 people for Tuesday, April 1, in a show of force. It waged a demagogic campaign drawing comparisons with events that led up to the 1976 military coup. On the day, president Cristina Fernandez de Kircher, spoke of “the defence of the national and popular government”, making references to Evita Peron, and Las Madres de la Plaza de Mayo – the Mothers who had family members disappeared during the dictatorship.

The following day, the lockout was suspended for 30 days. The government and rural entities are still in dialogue.

The Argentine Left

The confrontation between the government and the ruralistas, evoked numerous responses, and tactical differences, albeit fragmentations, from the left.

Firstly, there were those small layers, such as the debilitated Communist Party, and other pseudo-left organisations with government positions, that defended Kirchnerismo unconditionally, and mobilised for the rally.

However, one left block analysed the situation as a battle in between two wings of the bourgeoisie – “capitalism vs. capitalism” – argueing it was necessary to have an independant strategy, and not march behind the oligarchy.

The Workers’ Party (PO) stated on their website: “we made an action with a program independent from the capitalist blocks in struggle.” These left forces rallied behind the slogan “Not the countryside, Not the government.” The statement elaborates: “it’s necessary to face a systemic crisis, not the rate of a tax.”

Other left forces rallied behind the slogan “against Cristina, and against the oligarchy. Support for the small producer!” This layer argued that it was necessary to win over the middle-class, small-producer. It campaigned for the rollback of the tax increases, and criticised the government for not assisting the small- producer.

Vilma Ripoll, leader of the Socialist Workers Movement-New Left (MST), in a press-release published on April 9 by Pagina/12, commented: “Unfortunately, one sector who distances itself from the left, supported the government against the claims of the small-producers…others, sectarianly, rejected a policy of alliances of the workers and the middle-class sectors of the countryside and the city, indispensable for a left project that aims to be an alternative.”

Ripoll concluded: “After all, this crisis has demonstrated that the stage that opened Argentina since [the] 2001 [economic collapse] is not closed. Cristina has confirmed this reality, which for her and her government left a sour taste.”

Argentina: Los Desaparecidos - The Disappeared

"Esta universidad será la casa mas hermosa, el sueño mas grande, es el camino increíble para la Revolución. A ellos les costo la vida pero no les quito los sueños, no les quito la esperanzas, y no nos quita nostras la oportunidad de ser sus orgullosas madres"

"This university is the most beautiful home, the biggest dream, it is the incredible road for the Revolution. It cost them their lives, but their dreams could not be taken, their hope could not be taken, and they could not take our opportunity of being their proudest mothers"

Such are the words that welcome a visitor as they enter la Universidad Popular Madres de Plaza de Mayo, Universidad de lucha y resistencia (The Popular University of the Mothers of the May Plaza, University of struggle and Resistance).

In 1999, with the experience and clarity forged in 23 years of struggle for justice for those sons, daughters, fathers, husbands, wives, mothers, that were either tortured, assassinated, or disappeared by the Argentine military regime of 76-83 - Dirty War - the Association of Mothers of the May Plaza decided to create a new space for social transformation: la Universidad Popular.

On March 24, Argentina commemorates those that fell victim to the state terrorism inflicted by the military regime, or Guerra Sucia (Dirty War) as it´s referred to. I had the fortunate opportunity - my two week stay in Buenos Aires was a late minute decision - to attend the rally this year. Las Madres (the mothers), those that a constantly reminded of their loss, lead the homage, Nunca Mas (Never Again). The story of the father or mother that hears a knock at the door, and immediately hopes that it is their son, or daughter who they do not know what happened to, is all too common in Argentina. Fifty metre long, by 2 metre wide banners, with an 8x10 photo of those that disappeared, are carried, like coffins, by the people to Plaza de Mayo, in the heart of Buenos Aires.

At the tribunal, in front of the obelisk that graces the centre of Plaza de Maya, a document, prepared by the various organisations that participate in the rally is read. The rally demands that the impunity of the military generals, officers, and all that were involved is ended, and are brought to justice. While the current government has made moves in this direction, the process is slow and painful, with many believing that the grace, and injustice of a natural death will be end result of the criminals.

The trial of one criminal, Miguel Etchecolatz - the director of investigations of the Buenos Aires Police, which was notorious for detention centres - was due to to conclude when the key witness, Julio Jorge Lopez disappeared the night before. One year later, he has not been seen. The people have seen this before, and too aware of manipulation, and distortion that the state is capable of. Another key demand of the rally was the safe return of Julio Lopez.

Prior to the rally, the streets are alive with radical graffiti: No to the impunity; Long live the rebellion of December 20; Down with bourgeoisie; Return Julio Lopez alive. The average Argentine walks past these familiar sights. But the new-comer will spend triple the time walking Avendia de Mayo, one of the main streets in Buenos Aires. The graffiti is still there, the messages starring the passer-by.

At the rally, on the loudspeaker, there´s the announcement, "comrades, we now need to clear out for the comrades of the second rally". Bemused, I enquiry what this second rally is: it is the Left´s turn. The scarcity of the red flags, che placards, had left me wondering that there was a tiny left presence in Argentina. How foolish was I? No, the Left have their own rally to mark this day, with much more radical demands are put forward, and a much larger hoard.

Various people from the second rally explained that this was the counter-rally, as the first has too many government supporters. This, as I was told, is the way this day is always commemorated, with two different rallies, otherwise their could be clashes.

The political level was sharper, as the orators, one-by-one, each representing various organisations, parties, and unions at the rally, put forward internationalist demands, calls for solidarity, and as well as those aforementioned: Hands off Venezuela and Cuba; Free the Cuban Five; No aggression on Iran; Yankee imperialism out of Iraq and Latin America.

The information leaflet - with course outlines, seminars, and free public forums that take place at university - that one can pick up as they enter la Universidad Popular, states: "from its origins, la Universidad de las Madres has as its purpose: to stimulate critical thinking and organise the space for creative reflection. Articulate the theory and the practical, generate the tools to promote intellectual discussions, open a space so that the popular sectors, and the new social movements can participate and construct the political and solidarity structures. "

Unfortunately, in Argentina and worldwide, crimes against humanity, such as those perpetrated by the Bush administration in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Occupation of Palestine by Israel, to only mention a few, are still being perpetrated in the names of liberty and democracy. Institutions such as La Universidad Popular provide a constant space for people to reflect on the past, critique the present, and organise for the future.