World Economic Forum
South America's resurgent left grapples with the way forward
January 30, 2006
By Jorge Rueda
Caracas, Venezuela - Notable differences have emerged among Latin American leftists meeting at the World Social Forum, pointing to a region with varying visions of what the left should stand for and how best to help the poor.
While many activists said they agreed with Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez that Latin America needed a shift away from capitalism, others argued that free market approaches could be harnessed to help lift millions out of poverty. Still others urged a more radical turn towards socialism.
"What it means to be of the left is in full debate in Latin America, and there is no consensus," said Venezuelan historian Margarita Lopez Maya. Some of the differences were on display as about 1 000 marchers paraded through Caracas on Friday.
The crowd was dominated by Chavez supporters, but one small group calling itself Radical Critics held a sign accusing Chavez and other leaders of not taking a hard enough stance against corporate capitalism.
Chavez has used a windfall in oil profits to funnel millions of dollars into programmes for the poor while extending preferential oil deals to countries such as China and Argentina in an effort to line up alternative trade partners to the US, the leading buyer of Venezuelan oil.
Some radical leftists argue that Chavez's government should stop working with transnational oil companies altogether. "Real social fighters like us cannot be indifferent," said Maria Aparecida Barros from Brazil.
A number of seminars during the six-day World Social Forum focused on diversity within the Latin American left. Many strongly agreed in rejecting neoliberal economic policy and the US plan for a free trade area of the Americas.
But while some discussed co-operatives and Soviet-style communism, others suggested the free market could be fair if guided by a social conscience. Chavez, for his part, called capitalism a global scourge and urged activists to do "battle" against US imperialism. His message drew thundering applause.
The forum comes as leftist leaders appear to be on the rise in Latin America, capitalising on disillusionment with old political classes. But several intellectuals have noted the rise to power by leaders such as Chavez, Bolivia's Evo Morales and Chile's Michelle Bachelet came in response to vastly different factors.
The socialist Bachelet will assume leadership of a government with policies much more centrist than those of Chavez or Cuba's Fidel Castro.
"She symbolises forgiveness" between the left and the right, said Luis Abendano, a Chilean activist.
He said Bachelet now "has the job of guiding the destiny of a country that has the free market as its main engine of prosperity".
Chavez, in contrast, called for resistance against US free trade and said revolutionary changes were needed to help the poor.
- Sapa-AP
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