The following text was written and first published in 2016; sometimes human progress seems to go backwards. Reflecting on the last ten year’s history in Latin America in the eras of Tillerson, Pompeo, Blinken and especially Marco Rubio one realizes how reactive a dying empire can become.
South America is a very different place today then it was when I frequented the continent between the mid 80ies and late 90ies. Back then it was the US’ back-yard – no government however democratic and popular with it’s own people could survive if it didn’t have the US administration’s consent – i.e. if it didn’t apply neoliberal economic policies. The only exception which confirmed that rule was Cuba and perhaps not because the US hadn’t tried every dirty trick to rid the region of Mr Castro but precisely because “El Viejo” was neither democratic or particularly popular with his own people. Even after the cold war was finished, successive US administrations applied all their influence (using all means necessary, including violence) to keep dictators or pseudo democratic regimes in power as long as they, in turn, agreed to continue to apply the disastrous neoliberal dogma. The consequences for the vast majority of the local population were devastating – as banks and public utilities were deregulated and privatised (usually to multinationals that paid little local tax) unemployment and inequality grew. For decades the system was evidently not sustainable but the folly continued until the situation eventually imploded towards the end of the C20th. Luckily, at least for the citizens of Latin America, the US abruptly changed its geo-political priorities following 9/11 – communism (which in WASP eyes included social democracy) was no longer public enemy No1. The new enemy was now in Afghanistan – apparently, the Taliban and Al-Qaida religious fanatics, having defeated the USSR, had turned their hate to those other infidels – once their allies, paymasters and arm suppliers – the USA. Then the USA decided to topple another former ally in a geopolitically sensitive region (which just happened to have a plentiful supply of fossil fuels), Sadam Hussein.
The US has not totally abandoned its policies of interfering in the domestic politics of Latin American nations; they recently backed abortive coups in both Venezuela and Ecuador – and successful ones in Honduras in 2009 and Paraguay in 2012, however, their influence there has indisputably waned. While Latin America’s left-leaning governments have no shortage of failings, from corruption to crime they have done much to improve the lives and living standards of their peoples by reversing the neoliberal politics pursued in previous decades. Unfortunately however, the Western Media’s coverage of the area does not change; they routinely portray these democratic governments as being dictatorial while still being apologetic for past US backed regimes which had far worse human rights records – as in many other reporting world-wide this says more about the failings of our own information institutions than the subjects being analysed.
