Epilogue- Back to life, Back to reality

I’ve been home for barely a week, but it already feels like it's been much longer. Bolivia almost seems like it was a dream now...
I thought the ‘culture shock’ would be worse than it has been- so far I’ve only had a couple of shocking experiences and only a few breakdowns. I thought it would be seeing McDonalds and Starbucks again that would get to me, or even just seeing downtown Toronto again with its skyscrapers, ritzy hotels and exclusive restaurants, but that stuff hasn’t actually phased me that much. Instead, what I’ve been most struck by are the smaller, subtler lifestyle differences.

Toronto / Sucre

Opening my closet to unpack, I saw piles of clothing that I had totally forgotten about while I was away. Living out of two suitcases in Bolivia, I had convinced myself that I led a pretty humble and reasonable existence, but seeing an entire wardrobe that I will probably never wear again and that I will give away next month when I move out, reminded me of how differently I really do live here.

Another thing that got to me was remembering how cold and abrasive people can be here. Earlier this week when I was downtown running some errands- picking up things for my Mom, buying a CD for my friend's birthday- I was completely appalled by the way I was treated. Maybe Bolivia turned me into a softie or maybe Torontonians have just become meaner, but I can’t help but notice how harsh people are with one another here. The store personnel appeared to be almost offended when I asked them to help me find a CD. Granted, I was in an indie CD store run by the ultimate hipsters so I guess it was my fault for disturbing their 'scene', but still… stop combing your emo bangs into your eyes, put down your Vice magazine, and communicate with me damn it! (Sorry… obviously I didn't lose my irrational streak of North American rage down there...)
It’s just that in Sucre I became accustomed to walking down the street and saying ¡Buen Día! to anyone I passed, and I got used to greeting people with a kiss on the cheek. Obviously I am not going to walk down the streets of Toronto saying Good Day! to strangers, but if I am speaking to a person, especially in customer service, I expect them to at least acknowledge my existence. I just feel like everyone here is in fast forward and has no time for anyone other than themselves.

Mostly what I’ve been thinking about since I’ve been back is this conversation I had with my coworker Jorge back in Sucre. At the time it didn’t have a huge impact on me, but walking around downtown the other day I was reminded of it and now I can’t get it out my head.
Jorge and I shared an office and one day he started asking me all sorts of questions about Canada. Mainly about what our houses were like, how much things cost and how much money people made, but then he asked me: Are there homeless people in Canada? To which I responded: Yes! Almost as though I was proud to say that Canada isn’t perfect and that we too have inequality and suffering. Jorge then asked me: Why? I paused for a while, and then quietly mumbled: I don’t know… And that was the end of the conversation.

Since I’ve been home walking the streets of Toronto and remembering the wealth and luxury that exists here, a sort of prosperity you would never see in any part of Bolivia, Jorge’s simple question: why? keeps popping into my head. I still don’t have an answer for him and I don’t think anyone really does, but that's because it's a very good question. During my conversation with Jorge I was practically boasting about the fact that Canada has homeless people because I wanted to make it seem as though our situations were comparable, but now I am just ashamed. I am embarrassed that these problems exist, but I think more than anything I'm just confused. And I disagree with the argument that the planet is simply over populated and therefore incapable of supporting this amount of humans. I believe that there is truly just a distribution problem. If the latter were really the case, then why does the Miami airport have competing doggie cafes that sell aromatherapy candles for dogs? Don’t get me wrong, I love dogs and believe that they should be treated with care, but the fact that there is actually a market for candles made specifically for dogs horrifies me.

Don’t worry, my time in Bolivia hasn’t made me more cynical (I think I was already at the limit) and it hasn’t turned me into a ‘hater’ either. I think it just made me less apathetic. I used to rationalize issues like homelessness in my head somehow and just sort of turn a blind eye to it. Now, I am unable to ignore it and find myself fascinated by the way we are able to live guilt-free in a society that permits such inequality- myself included. Sadly, I haven’t come up with an action plan to combat the aloof attitude we North Americans have towards our own social problems, but it’s funny how working abroad really just made me more aware of the problems we have right here at home.

That's all folks.

Thanks to those of you who took the time to read my rantings. I wish I had something more profound to say at the end of such an unforgettable life experience, but I think it is something that I will be trying to make sense of for years to come.

Maybe Dylan was right

Call me an optimist, but I’m starting to think that Dylan might have been on to something when he sang: ‘The times they are a-changin’’. He just jumped the gun a bit- a bit being 45 years.

Watching CNN the other night, (it’s my only international news source here so give me a break) I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. In his first sit-down interview since taking office, the President of the United States of America met with Al-Arabiya, an Arab (gasp!) news network, and told them that he has advised the US envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, to listen before acting. He said that the United States has a tendency to go into international conflicts assuming the role of a dictator, not a listener, and that this needs to change. He even mentioned that suggestions from other nation states in the Middle East should be considered during the peace making process! What?? Hold on, I’m sorry Mr. Obama, but what country do you think you are the president of? The United States? I don’t think so... Please reevaluate your rational approach to international conflict and then get back to me. And next time, try to make it a little more belligerent- you’re scaring me...

Seriously though, he’s been in office for just one week and already he’s rolling back archaic Washington policies and putting some fire under congress’ wrinkly, saggy, white behind. He has issued solid economic plans, taken a significant stance on environmental issues and finally begun to tackle the world’s most barbaric institution- Guantanamo Bay.
(As an aside, I would just like everyone to know that McDonalds and Starbucks both operate franchises at Guantanamo Bay to serve the American prison employees- 'I'll have a non-fat, no-whip, skinny mocha latte please with an extra shot of injustice, thanks!')

Back on the ranch, (think of Bolivia as my ranch) there have been some historic changes happening as well. On Sunday Bolivians approved a new constitution that Evo Morales has been trying to put forward since he began his presidency. The counts aren’t finalized yet, but initial results show that about 60% of the country approved the new charter. It is the first time that the country has ever put its constitution under a nation-wide vote and it’s the first real attempt to decolonize the country. Bolivia has suffered from both external and internal colonization for hundreds of years and finally, the rights and freedoms of its people will be officially recognized. The new constitution acknowledges the rights of 36 indigenous groups, who just 50 years ago weren’t even allowed to walk through Plaza Murillo in La Paz, and who were only given the vote in 1952.

Sadly, the approval of the new constitution hasn’t totally stabilized the country. In fact, the referendum may have just reinforced the country’s polarized state. Four of Bolivia’s nine states voted against the new constitution and they are still adamantly campaigning against it. This could be somewhat problematic in the near future, because 100 of the new articles still have to go through congress and the senate, which is dominated by the opposition. The opposition claims that the new constitution puts indigenous people first and that it’s just an excuse for Morales to stay in power. It’s true that the new constitution allows the President to run for office for another consecutive term, but I don’t think that was Evo’s only intention. There are so many other important changes the constitution makes for the country that are long overdue. It has put an end to excessive land ownership, made moves to decentralize the government, and allowed for more state control in the economy, which has been heavily influenced by transnational corporations since colonialism.
Perhaps the most interesting change is the idea of making a plurinational assembly that will replace the current congress and require a certain number of its members to be from indigenous communities. The exact numbers haven’t been determined yet, but one thing is for sure- Evo means business.

Another aspect of the new constitution that the opposition has beef with is the fact that it recognizes the legal and judicial systems of indigenous communities as being equal to the legal proceedings carried out by the state. People seem to think that this will cause the country to succumb to a state of anarchy where campesinos will aimlessly start lynching and stoning people on a daily basis. The reality is however, that these two legal systems have always coexisted; it’s just that now community laws will also be viewed with authority. And just to clarify, indigenous legal systems do not consist solely of violent and publicly humiliating acts. Mostly elders of a community will jsut subject a mutually agreed upon criminal to some sort of community service or deprive them of certain privileges for a period of time. A lynching would only occur in extreme circumstances.

There is one concern about Evo's big plans that is shared by both MAS supporters and MAS haters, and it's over how the economic crisis will effect the country. Carlos Toranzo, a political analyst, told BBC Mundo that it’s one thing for Evo to offer Bolivia a whole new world when oil is US$100 a barrel, but it’s another thing for him to make those promises when it’s barely US$40 a barrel… Natural resources are Bolivia’s main gig, so if they’re not getting top dolla for them then that could be a problem.

Regardless, Evo Morales has complied with the promises he made at the beginning of his presidential campaign, and as far as I’m concerned, when it comes to politics, following through with your promises is a novel concept that definitely constitutes change.

As I wrap up my final week here in Bolivia I find myself reflecting on how lucky I have been, not only to have had the opportunity to work here, but also to have been here at this specific moment in time. The conflict and unrest that has taken place in Bolivia since I’ve been here has forced me to pay attention to what’s going on and as a result, I’ve learned a lot about the country. What I am most grateful for though is that thinking about Bolivia’s current struggles has made me think about Canadian politics more critically.
I’ve realized that although we are considered a ‘first world’ nation, we still maintain many regressive policies- especially those surrounding the treatment of Canada’s First Nations people. I don’t mean to suggest that Harper should take a page out of Evo’s book (mainly because it's in Spanish) but for me, thinking about my own country as compared to another country in the Americas has been very helpful. It has opened up my eyes to a whole bunch of issues that Canadian politicians avoid like the plague.

Above all, what this experience has taught me is that even though Canada is part of the self-proclaimed 'developed world', it is still far from complete.

Nominal GDP Per Capita in US$
Source: International Monetary Fund 2008

(Click on it to see it larger, but Bolivia is the orange country in the middle of South America and Canada is the big blue one up near the north pole)

DELUXE SPECIAL REFERENDUM EDITION

Yesterday afternoon I was disturbed from my work by the sound of exploding dynamite coming from the main plaza. As I was not doing anything terribly important at the time, (just trying to sum up 5 months worth of work in a report written in Spanish) I decided to go see what all the fuss was about.

I arrived at the plaza to find what seemed like all of Sucre dressed in white and red (Sucre’s official colors) waving NO flags. I soon realized that it was the final day of the NO A LA NUEVA CONSTITUCION campaign and that I had stumbled across the closing ceremonies. They shut down all the roads around the main plaza, which is also where all the government buildings are, and there was a stage set-up with a band playing. The Governor of Sucre, Savina Cuellar, was on stage as well and she later delivered a heated speech in Quechua, which I assume, was about how horrible the new constitution is.

Bolivia Escucha Vota por el NO- Listen Bolivia, Vote NO!

All around people had different versions of NO flags or NO t-shirts and people of all ages, even small children, were dressed in pro-Sucre/anti-MAS garb handing out propaganda. A 7-year-old girl tried handing me a NO pamphlet and it freaked me out. I know in Canada we also tend to take on the politic beliefs of our parents, but that was a little much... As interesting as it was to be in the middle of that historical moment, I couldn’t help but feel creeped out by the mob like mentality. Not to mention the fact that government officials were participating in the campaign. I’m used to government offices remaining neutral on these types of issues, but that is certainly not the case here in Sucre.

NO- in the colors of the Bolivian flag.

After about 20 minutes I had reached my limit of listening to dynamite explosions and speeches about how the new constitution discriminates against whites and mestizos (people of mixed European-indigenous descent). I returned to the office to tell my coworkers about how full the plaza was and how strong the NO campaign seemed, but they brought some important points to my attention: A lot of people let the NO campaigners put bumper stickers on their car and a lot of people go out and wave their Sucre flags because their workplace, their family or even their school pressure them to, but that doesn’t mean that they will all necessarily vote NO this Sunday. The NO campaign might just seem more powerful than it really is because the people running the NO campaign happen to be the wealthy. Furthermore, it is important to remember that the NO campaigns are concentrated in just a few Bolivian city centers- Santa Cruz, Sucre and Tarija. Outside of those centers however, the SI campaign is strong, and of course, it is especially strong in and around La Paz.

Just to reiterate what this new constitution is all about, I have translated (ie: paraphrased and added my two cents to) a summary I found on BBC Mundo of the 10 major points the new Carta Magna proposes.

1. INDIGENOUS POWER- the 36 first nations of Bolivia will be recognized by the new constitution and granted participation in all levels of the state and economy.

2. AUTONOMY- 4 levels of autonomy will be recognized: indigenous, departmental, regional and municipal. This is seen as part of the widespread effort to decentralize the government.

3. LAND- although the current constitution does not technically allow ‘latifundios’ (large estates) there are currently no limits in place to enforce that rule. On Sunday, in addition to voting on the new constitution, Bolivians will vote between 2 land allowance options: A property limit of 5000 or 10,000 hectares. The implementation of this rule however, will not be retroactive. I’ve had a lot of right wing Bolivian’s try to convince me that Morales will literally go and take people’s land out from underneath them, but that is not the case. The rule will just apply to new land purchases.

4. RIGHTS- the current constitution generally respects ‘rights’, but this new one will have more than 100 articles referring to the rights of indigenous people, children, families, seniors, disabled people, and it even talks about consumer rights (which would have made my job a whole lot easier… more on that later). The rights section also includes stuff on environmental rights, economic rights, and rights to health care and education. What’s causing the most controversy though, are the articles pertaining to sexual and reproductive rights, which open up the door to easier access to contraceptives and perhaps the legalization of abortion. This is what has the conservatives’ panties in a knot. That and the fact that they think the new constitution will create first and second-class citizens; indigenous people being the first class. Wait, doesn't Bolivia already have classes or is that just me?

5. PLURAL STATE- the Morales government proposes to replace the current capitalist or mixed market economy with a state run economy. The state will not participate in the economy, but it will govern it. An important point here is that Bolivian enterprises will now take precedence over foreign ones and that the government will start to promote cooperatives and other alternative/community economies.
If Bolivia had a Wall Street, they would not like the sound of these clauses.

6. NATURAL RESOURCES- belong to the people of Bolivia and their management will correspond to the government with the interests of the public in mind. This section also states that water cannot be privatized and that energy can only be state owned.

7. RELIGION- the biggest point here is that Catholicism will lose its place as Bolivia’s #1 religion and that the state is will now be completely independent from religion.

8. REELECTION- currently the constitution says that you can only run for president for a second time after another presidential term has passed. The new constitution would change this so that after your term is up you could be elected right away. And by you, I mean Evo.

9. COCA- right now coca is not in the constitution, but the new one will declare that coca must be protected and recognized for its ancestral and cultural importance, and for its importance as a natural resource and a cohesive social factor.

10. OCEAN- In case you didn’t know, Bolivia is landlocked. They lost their little bit of coastline to Chile in the War of the Pacific in 1883. The stuff in the new constitution on 'ocean' states that they have a right to the territory they lost... I don't know if that means they're going to start moving over there, or if Evo just thinks that they should be allowed to drive through there to have access to the coastline for trading opportunities. I recommend the latter approach...

'Bolivia was born with the ocean damn it!'

That's all for now. More to come once the votes are in.

Wishful Thinking

This upcoming weekend promises to be a very interesting one for Bolivia. Not only will citizens vote on a new constitution, but in La Paz they will also celebrate the Alasita festival- an Aymara tradition to ring in the New Year. Alasita is Aymara for Cómprame pues, which is Spanish for Well buy it for me then (I think...)

The festival is centered on Ekeko an Andean God who represents abundance, and it is based on the idea of hoping for the best in the New Year. Celebrations will begin at noon this Saturday and last for a month as Paceños (people from La Paz) flock to the streets buying miniature representations of things they hope to receive this year. Popular items include mini university diplomas, marriage certificates, houses, passports and dollar bills. After purchasing the miniature of your choice it is customary to perform a ch’alla (an Andean ritual using alcohol, incenses and flower petals) to bless it and ensure its effectiveness. Sometimes the miniatures are then blessed a second time in a church. It is most common to buy something for a loved one that represents what you wish for them this coming year, but it is also acceptable to buy a miniature for yourself. Apparently if you are single it’s recommended that you purchase yourself a mini hen if you’re a boy, or a mini rooster if you’re a girl. I will be passing through La Paz in two weeks to catch my flight back to Toronto so I look forward to taking part in this festival. I have no loved ones here who will buy me something, but I also have no shame- I plan on buying myself a mini Hummer and a mini color coordinated Louis Vuitton luggage set. They shouldn't be too hard to find.

This is a photo of Ekeko and some little trinkets.

Since Evo Morales became President he has become a popular figure in the Alasita festival. Miniatures have been sold of his famous chompa (a striped sweater that he wears all the time) and of him delivering a speech to congress. Newspapers release mini newspapers on the first day of the Alasita along with their regular editions that contain comics and jokes, but in recent years they have mainly consisted of politic jokes revolving around Evo. This year however, things have taken a more serious turn. A Bolivian feminist movement, Mujeres Creando (Women Creating) has released a miniature of Evo holding a baby on his back while wearing his famous chompa. The organization has said that the figure represents the idea of a ‘responsible father’, but that it is also meant to battle the machista attitude of government officials.

This is a photo of a member of Mujeres Creando talking about the Evo miniature. Take note that he is also holding a broom and a grocery bag.

Machismo is a term used to describe the sexist and excessively masculine attitude of many Latin men. Of course forms of machismo manifest themselves in different ways across the world, but unfortunately the term originates from this part of the world for a reason… A representative from Mujeres Creando, Christina Ojeda, has said that a machista attitude emanates from the government and that Evo plays a role in perpetuating it. He has commented on the benefits of the ‘single life’ in public speeches and has openly praised the conquests of vice president Alvaro García Linera who is also single. Evo's most notable offense was when he claimed that after his presidency he plans on returning to Chapare to live on a farm with a quinceañera (15 year old girl). The 15th birthday of young girls is celebrated throughout much of Latin America as their ‘coming out’ or the age at which they become women- kind of like the American Sweet Sixteen, but less MTVish. Needless to say, his comment was hugely inappropriate and caused lots of controversy for obvious reasons.

Through the sale of this new Evo doll, Mujeres Creando hopes to raise awareness of what it means to be a responsible Father- 'someone who takes care of the kids, helps out around the house and goes grocery shopping' (that's how they described it). I’m not sure how effective their miniature Evo will be, but it’s certainly worth a try. Even if the members of this feminist movement are the only ones who buy it, hopefully Ekeko will grant them their wish.
Evo actually does have two kids of his own who have appeared with him in public a couple times, but I don’t think there is a strong fatherly bond...

As for Sunday’s referendum things are still looking all shades of grey. Last week Lula da Silva, the President of Brazil, made a visit to Bolivia to show his support for Evo. The trip was claimed to be in honour of two transnational highways that opened last week, but many think that the visit had a much more political edge. Analysts suggest that the visit was specifically timed less than 10 days before the referendum so that Bolivians could see the international support Evo’s government has.

Another interesting development occurred last week in a MAS congress meeting when Evo said that if the opposition boycotts this weekend’s vote or tries to obstruct the rules of the referendum in anyway then he will push the constitution through by decree. I don’t like the sounds of that... Usually pushing something through by decree isn’t considered to be a very democratic move, so I hope that Evo doesn’t feel that this is necessary in the end.
I did see a campaign for ‘Sí’ last week in Sucre, which should spice things up a bit here in this largely 'No' part of the country. They were marketing it as ‘Si es Si a la autonomia’ (Yes means Yes to autonomy), but either way at least it was a different side of the story.
I haven’t seen them yet this week though… I don’t know if that should worry me or if I should just assume that they’ve given up.

Bolivians will head to the polls on Sunday from 8am to 4pm and then on Monday hopefully we’ll have an answer. Obviously tensions are too deeply rooted to be resolved overnight, but with a big enough majority the constitution should go through without too many comments from the peanut gallery. What most people are worried about though is that if the numbers are too close then whatever side loses might not respect the results. Unfortunately, democracy is still new to Bolivia so unlike our willingness to let a minority government rule Canada, Bolivians may not stand for a new constitution that only wins by a small margin.
More to follow after Sunday’s results come in.

But speaking of Canada… Parliament is back next week! Woohoooooo!
Party on Harper! Party on Ignatieff!

This is a photo of Stephen is his party suit (just incase you couldn't tell)

It may be a New Year, but will there be a New Constitution?

The New Year is off to an exciting start down here in Bolivia. Yesterday morning on my daily stroll through the central plaza I was greeted by exploding dynamite set off by groups of supporters for the current municipal council president, Fidel Herrera Ressini. It was the day of Sucre's municipal election and so people were crowded around outside of the government offices waving bright, lime green flags that said ‘Todos con Fidel’ (Everyone with Fidel). It was much like the pomp and pageantry that goes on back home during Canadian municipal elections... Wait, when are those again? We do have municipal elections, right? Just checking…
I don’t know anything about this Fidel character, and when I first saw the demonstration I thought that they were referring to Castro (because he'll always be the only Fidel in my life), but I do dig this Fidel’s lime green flags. Canada usually sticks to red and blue. I guess there is the Green party, but I would say that the orange NDP’s are about as daring as things get in the motherland.
These colorful municipal elections aren’t even the tip of the iceberg though, and I wasn't even aware of them or going to mention them until the dynamite interrupted my pleasant morning jaunt.

On January 25th Bolivians will vote on the government’s proposed, new constitution and although that is still a couple weeks away, tensions are rising. All the polls in Bolivia’s highly reliable and objective newspapers predict that the constitution will be approved, but I find this hard to believe because I live in a highly concentrated ‘No’ area. The opposition has launched a substantial campaign, ‘NO A LA NUEVA CONSTITUCION’, and their posters are in restaurants, stores and homes all over Sucre. My particular favorite is one that is a take-off of the more common ‘no a la nueva constitucion’ poster, but instead says ‘NO A LAS DICTADURAS’ and displays a photo of Pinochet, Chavez and Morales. I think this one appeals to me because it’s like a little riddle for me every time I see it. I try to figure out what these individuals have in common (other than male body parts) and then I try to figure out why the creators of these posters chose these 3 humans to represent the idea of dictatorships.
Chavez and Morales were both democratically elected by large majorities. Pinochet, on the other hand, was the leader of a military junta and ruled as a dictator in Chile from 1973-1989, until the country returned to democratic rule. So yes, they’ve got one thing right, Pinochet most definitely qualifies as a dictator, but I’m still waiting for someone to explain to me how Chavez and Morales fall into the category of military dictators.

In the ‘No’ campaign office they also have a large t-shirt that is available for ‘No’ supporters to sign. It is apparently the largest t-shit in the republic. Other opposition states may be running their own ‘No’ campaigns, but only Chuquisaca has the biggest t-shirt. Watch out!

The text on the t-shirt reads: Come and sign 'No' on the biggest T-shirt in Bolivia!

Morales was supposed to come to Sucre this week because this is where the Supreme Court is and every year there is a ceremony to ring in the new judicial year. He refused to come however, saying that some of the judges have been blatantly supporting the opposition and sketchy special interest groups (there is no direct translation for ‘sketchy’, but I’m sure that’s what he meant). In turn, the four opposition governors refused to attend a meeting with Evo on Monday because they don’t want to talk about matters of the state until the referendum on the 25th.
Instead, they had a meeting in Sucre where they prayed to the Catholic Church to watch over them and their country during these next few weeks. The day of prayer was led by the Archbishop of Chuquisaca, Jesús Pérez, and an evangelical pastor, Charles Suárez. This has added a religious sentiment to the 'No' campaign and a new sub-slogan: 'Dile sí a Dios, vota No'. Meaning: 'Tell God yes, vote No'.
The opposition believes that the constitution is against the faith of all Bolivians because it removes Catholicism as the country's only official religion and changes some clauses so that the door is now open to legalize abortion. The fourth article of the new constitution reads: "el Estado respeta y garantiza la libertad de religión y de creencias espirituales, de acuerdo con sus cosmovisiones. El Estado es independiente de la religión"- The state respects and guarantees the liberty of religion and spiritual beliefs according to one's cosmovision. The State is independent of religion.
Pastor Suárez referred to the new constitution as 'Antichrist and abortionist'. To be even more blunt he added, 'antes de honrar a la Pachamama (deidad andina), prefiero honrar a Dios y mi voto será por el No', which means: 'Before honoring the Pachamama (the Andean earth goddess), I prefer to honor God and so my vote will be 'No' (to the new constitution)'.
Putting the Pachamama second basically symbolizes putting Bolivia's indigenous roots and indigenous people second.

Commenting on this religious gathering, the vice-president of decentralization, Fabián Yaksic, said that the opposition’s choice not to attend the meeting with Evo was an act of treason and that if they really want autonomy then they should do a whole lot more than pray. (Crazy talk). Below is a picture stolen from BBC Mundo showing the gathering in Sucre, which was dubbed: 'Defiende tu fé'. Or, 'Defend your faith'.

Issac Ávalos, a prominent leader of the campesino movement, spoke out and said that the Catholic church is interfering in an important political event and that this is a colossal error on their part.
Personally, I think that they are sort of shooting themselves in the foot because this perfectly exemplifies why the government might want to diminish the power that the Catholic church still has in Bolivia, but that's just me.

Things took another interesting turn on Monday when Evo and his comrades announced that they are going to reconsider autonomy as part of the new constitution. Evo declared that he understands that autonomy may be a necessary process in order for the country to stabilize and therefore he would like to include it in the new constitution. This has made things very confusing... Now that the government is coming around to the idea of autonomy (or at least pretending to) and even including it in the new constitution, the opposition will essentially be voting against autonomy (which they want very badly) if they vote against the new constitution.
The governor of the state of Santa Cruz, the heavy-weight state in all the autonomy talk (Bolivia’s Alberta- they’ve got gas), has said that if the government really wants to show their willingness to negotiate on autonomy then they should return the IDH (Impuesto Directo a los Hidrocarbunos/Hydrocarbon tax), which he claims was unfairly redirected from the state of Santa Cruz. Evo ceased this tax money in September in order to create a pension fund however, now with the global recession and low gas prices, the IDH may not even be enough to fund the pension plan. Oh geez....

Most Bolivians think that either way, whether the constitution is approved or not, tensions will escalate after the referendum later this month.
The government says that the wealthy folks don’t want to share the money earned from the country's petroleum and natural gas reserves, and the opposition claims that Morales is nothing more than a puppet of Hugo Chavez trying to impose an indigenous, socialist experiment on the country.

Speaking of Chavez... have you ever heard of the Citgo Low-Cost Heating and Oil Program? I hadn't until Venezuela was thinking of canceling it earlier this week due to low gas prices, but luckily they've decided to stick with it and it's pretty cool. Chavez refers to it as humanitarian aid, but some think it's just his way of embarrassing Bush. In any event, after Hurricane Katrina and Rita, Hugo Chavez and Citgo, a US incorporated, Venezuela state-owned gas company, decided to donate gas to low-income US citizens. Last year the program benefited 200,000 households.
Learn more here: http://www.citgo.com/CommunityInvolvement/HeatingOil.jsp

Back to Bolivia- I see no reason why this all shouldn't be sorted out in a timely and orderly fashion.
It's child's play really.

Ode to Colonial Humanitarianism

I am constantly amazed by the ability of North American culture to infiltrate virtually every corner of the planet. This week I was in Chuqui Chuqui, a small rural town about 1hr ½ outside of Sucre (please see photo above), sitting in a mud hut home and there, nailed into the disintegrating wall was a poster of Canada’s sweetheart- Avril Lavigne. I started laughing when I spotted her angelic face and so my boss, Dustin, had to ask me what was up (¿Qué tal?). I tried to explain to him that Avril is a Canadian celebrity who grew up outside of my hometown Toronto and that it was weird for me to see her all the way down here, but he didn’t seem to find it the least bit odd. Dustin’s uninterested reaction made me realize that people across the world are very used to seeing random B-list North American celebrities and that it isn’t that strange for them to appear in such remote places. I started wondering if anyone in Chuqui Chuqui had even ever heard an Avril Lavigne song before or if her poster was just mass-produced and then shipped out across the world to be scooped up by anyone infatuated by her bright blonde hair and girly-punkish style. My guess is however, that no one in Chuqui Chuqui has had the pleasure of hearing the masterpiece that is ‘Skaterboy’.

Thinking of the prowess of North American culture, I revisited a concept that was introduced to me formally in my final year at UBC, but that had certainly haunted me prior to that- Colonial Humanitarianism. It’s a concept that overwhelms me and drags me into hours of cyclical self-doubt and cynicism. Also known as neo-colonialism, it refers to the fact that a lot of humanitarian/aid work is frighteningly reminiscent of colonialism. It questions whether or not we are actually able to leave our ‘first world’ thinking at the door and work in partnership with developing nations without pushing our beliefs on them. It asks whether or not a new era of collaborative development work is possible when one side comes from an obvious position of privilege.

A movement known as North-South Solidarity has emerged within international development circles intending to combat the neo-colonial undertones found in development work by promoting relationships based on knowledge sharing (as opposed to just knowledge transfer or money transfer). CCI and FONCRESOL work under a solidarity partnership model. I also like to put international development work into this perspective, but I often wonder if it is possible for such a relationship to exist when CCI and myself are from ‘the North’ and inevitably bring with us our Western thinking/identity as hard as we may try to ditch it. It’s not even just that as Northerners we may have a hard time accepting that our way isn’t necessarily the right way, but it’s also that sometimes when you come from such a position of privilege you are viewed as the expert even though you’re not and don’t want to be. It has been ingrained worldwide that the North is ‘the first world’ and that the South is ‘the third world’ and so trying to shed those notions in order to reach a new development model (North-South solidarity) involves a huge paradigm shift on both sides.

While conducting focus groups with some of FONCRESOL’s rural clients I discovered that very few people save. I believe that everyone can save money regardless of income and that saving is an important step towards expanding one’s economic base, which is the goal of microfinance. Speaking with rural clients however, I began to question if that really is or should be the goal of microfinance. Everyone I spoke to was grateful to have the extra cash flow provided by their microcredit with FONCRESOL and they told me that they don’t save because ‘el dinero siempre tiene que trabajar’ (money always needs to be working). They don't see savings as making good use of their money; they are more inclined to invest it in capital for their farms or small businesses, even if those businesses aren’t especially profitable. Upon hearing this my gut instinct was to come up with ways to change this type of thinking, but then I had to take a step back and wonder if it was really so problematic. Everyone seemed happy living at the level they were living at and they were mostly concerned with sustaining themselves, their families and their businesses. In my head however, I kept thinking: ‘well, you can do more, you can save, you can grow!’ That’s when I noticed my North American roots shining through.
The accumulation of assets and wealth is a Western concept that associates one’s betterment with simply having more. Most development models (because they come from the North) are based on this type of thinking, but increased consumption doesn’t necessarily mean ‘development’ or ‘progress’. Look at the Western world right now- it’s a mess. Overconsumption has created many problems and so promoting capitalistic development tools to those who need to ‘catch up’ may not be the answer. There are a finite number of resources in the world; everyone can’t live the way we live. In order to achieve economic justice some people will unfortunately have to come down a few notches. I’m not trying to say that I don’t think the people of Chuqui Chuqui deserve more or need more, but sometimes I feel guilty promoting a consumption-based way of life, especially if that is not even their traditional way of thinking.

My thoughts concerning the urban clients are less conflicted, although I’m not quite sure why... I think it’s because in the cities, traditions and native culture have already begun to fade. Having said that, maybe it’s somewhat patronizing or unrealistic to suggest that traditional cultures need to be preserved (as if to suggest they're not allowed to change- they need to uphold their National Geographic image). Mario Vargas Llosa, in his The Culture of Liberty, refutes the argument that globalization is an evil force by reminding us that cultures have never been static, hermetically sealed entities. They have always been ebbing and flowing since the beginning of time, so how is it any different now? He argues that the changes we are seeing in the world aren’t always a result of globalization, sometimes it’s just modernization, which may not be such a bad thing. I see what he’s saying, but another part of me struggles to understand why ‘modernization’ and ‘progress’ always has to come at the expense of the poor.

Back to solidarity. The definition of solidarity can be somewhat ambiguous, but to me it means working in partnership towards a common goal. It means listening to both sides and sharing knowledge, skills and resources. It can be difficult sometimes because your view of ‘progress’ or ‘development’ may be different from whomever you’re working with, but your job as an ally is to accept and work with those views. For instance, if I were to work with a community that really wanted to learn English, but I felt imperialistic teaching them English, I would still probably do it because it is the language of the world and I would understand that they want to be able to communicate on a larger scale. The same goes for the work I’m doing now. Microfinance is a development tool that falls perfectly in place with the current neo-liberal market system and although I am not a proponent of this system and I believe that it should be changed, for now I am going to do what I can to help people 'play the game'. The game that we (developed nations) created and now master.

$$bLiNG bLiNg$$ money ain't a thang?

Last week I launched the market research phase of my project- which really just means that I began surveying FONCRESOL clients. I like to use the term ‘market research’ though because I secretly fantasize about being a big-time corporate executive and because I believe it is the right approach to use for the type of analysis I am trying to do. FONCRESOL, and all NGO’s for that matter, need to think of themselves as businesses because they are indeed organizations offering a service to consumers and therefore they should be very concerned with understanding what their clients want. Many NGO’s however, tend to be very product driven- they focus more on the service they deliver and less on understanding their clients’ needs and wants. I am not saying that NGO’s arbitrarily invent social services to offer, but I do think that sometimes after a while the initial mandate gets lost and organizations start to forget why they are doing what they are doing. Meanwhile, although it pains me to admit it, the corporate world has really nailed getting into consumers' heads and understanding their clients. In fact they’ve achieved this to such a freaky extent that iTunes can now read my mind and recommend music that I actually like and subsequently end up buying…

Last week I began using FONCRESOL’s caja communales (communal banks) as focus groups to probe clients about some of their feelings, attitudes and habits concerning money. Most groups were very quiet at the beginning of our discussions, but by the end everyone was participating and sometimes getting really fired up about the questions. Some examples of the types of questions I ask are: How do you feel when you have money? How do you feel when you don’t have money? Has anyone ever taught you how to manage your money? What do you think is the most important thing that everyone should know about money? Do you save your money? If so, do you use a savings account? If not, would you save if you could? What would you save for? Do you keep a budget at home and in your business? How many microfinance organizations do you work with? Why do you work with more than one? Etc. etc.

My findings so far have been that very few people keep a personal spending budget, no one has ever been taught money management skills, no one saves their money and most of FONCRESOL’s clients have at least 2 other loans with other NGO’s. When I asked why no one saves most people just said that it was impossible given their current financial situation. A surprising number of people said that they used to save, but they are no longer able to due to dramatic increases in the cost of living that have occurred since the Morales government has come into power. Previous to these conversations I was unaware that Bolivia had seen such a substantial change in the economy since the Morales government. At the same time, I need to remember that I am in Sucre, which isn’t known for being a MAS lovefest... I don’t really know what to make of these complaints because I have no way of knowing if prices have simply gone up because that’s what happens over the course of time (my Mom used to buy hot dogs for 10 cents) or if it is a result of the worldwide financial crunch or if the Morales government is in fact guilty of financial mismanagement.

I have been speaking with FONCRESOL’s rural and urban clients and there is a surprisingly amount of variance between the two groups. In the rural zone the problem of over indebtedness isn’t as prevalent as it is among urban clients, which is primarily due to the lack of service in the rural areas. Also, there were way fewer general complaints from rural clients than from urban clients. Urban clients went on about how disorganized their fellow group members are and how the loan amounts are too small. I’m pretty sure this has to do with how over saturated the microfinance market is in the urban zones. The growing availability of loans have made clients less responsible with their borrowing habits and more impatient.

These pictures and the ones of the señoras above are taken from a caja I visited outside of Sucre.

I had a question fired back at me during one of these chats, which was whether or not Canada (and other countries) were going to start decreasing their financial aid to Bolivia because of the MAS government. Luckily, I was able to answer that with a firm ‘no’ because the only country that really has anything against the Morales government is the United States and they have already severed most of their ties with Bolivia and vice versa. One thing I’m not so sure about though, but that I chose not bring up with our clients, is how the global economic crisis is going to affect Bolivia and more importantly whether or not it will affect the micro-economy and it’s microenterprises. My guess is that the crisis will hit Bolivia eventually, maybe not as fiercely as other parts of the world because the economy isn’t that tied to the United States, but there will surely be effects. Many people in the field of microfinance (specifically in Bolivia) are expecting that the number of people living on less than $1/day will likely increase over the next few years and that more people will be looking to access microfinance services. Sadly, this increase in demand will not be met by an increase in supply. Instead, as funds shrink in North America and Europe the amount of money NGO’s have access to will also shrink. As a result loans will get smaller and interest rates will have to increase to accommodate the large administration costs involved with processing so many small loans. This is a shame for many obvious reasons, but especially because microfinance institutions, like FONCRESOL, have worked for years to get their interest rates as low as possible and now these efforts will be erased.

Newscasters, journalists and politicians are often quick to use the word crisis. There was the oil crisis, the food crisis, the housing crisis, the climate crisis and Mexico even had a tortilla crisis. The funny thing is, although we don’t hear about those crises anymore, they still exist and they have all contributed to the economic crisis we are faced with today. Our refusal to act upon problems that have existed for years has brought this all upon ourselves. So as governments start to moan and whine about having to clean up the messy economy, we have to be careful that they don’t start using these ‘hard times’ to justify cutting corners around money allocated to social services and international aid. Harper has already been accused of using the recession to legitimize the slashing of government spending that isn’t aligned with his neo-conservative agenda. Real solutions need to start happening fast and I don’t think that saving the people and institutions that provoked these problems is the right idea. Nor do I think doing nothing is the right idea- Yes, I’m looking at you Harper...
I guess when parliament gets back from their vacation we will have a better idea of what he has up his sleeve and lets hope that it’s a least something. Even one of those funny, long, multicolored handkerchiefs that magicians use would be better than what he’s been serving up lately.