By Gustavo A. Maranges

Editor’s note: This article has been lightly edited because of changes in time.                                                                     

In the civil society forums at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles in early June,  clashes between those who support the hegemonic role of the United States and those who defend the sovereignty of the Latin American peoples never ceased. The discourse of hatred towards those arbitrarily excluded by the US government prevailed. It was a scenario prepared down to the smallest detail since not only were the governments of Nicaragua, Cuba, and Venezuela excluded, but their civil society representatives.

The most visible case was the 23 Cuban artists, scientists, and social leaders whose visas were not processed to prevent them from attending the Peoples’ Summit. The objective is to make the reality of Cuba and the other states invisible, to replace it with a different one that justifies the permanent aggressions these peoples suffer. That’s why the organizers invited other political actors, disguised as civil society activists, whose speeches were not only in line with the US policy of interference but were designed in the State Department or the office of some Senators and Congressmen.

After this staging, it is understandable that what happened took both Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS) Luis Almagro by surprise. Neither was prepared to hear the truth so close.

As Blinken was pretending to give lessons on democracy and freedom of the press he crashed with two stones, two journalists who knew very well the double standards of American politicians. Both Abby Martin (The Empire Files & Media Roots News) and Eugene Puryear (Break Through News) reminded Blinken that the United States has no moral high ground to offer lessons about those issues when it turned the blind eye after the murders of journalists Sheerin Abu Akala and Yamal Khashoggi. Both were US citizens, and since the alleged perpetrators are strategic US allies, freedom of the press can wait!

On the other hand, Puryear questioned the Biden administration’s parameters for measuring democracy. He wondered how it is possible to exclude Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua because they are considered “anti-democratic countries” while inviting Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was not democratically elected and is even suspected of being linked to the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

Something similar happened to Almagro, who was unable to articulate a coherent response when a member of the audience reminded him of all the attacks against democracy and freedom of the press that he has taken part in. Among the most recent ones are the Sacaba and Senkata massacres, where 36 people were murdered for peacefully demanding the return to democracy after the coup d’état in Bolivia, with which Almagro actively collaborated.

In the same context, journalist Sebastián Moro was beaten to death in his apartment. The simple fact of exposing the truth about the human rights violations during the coup government of Jeanine Añez and the hidden powers behind the coup d’état cost him his life.

The IX Summit of the Americas was a resounding failure for Biden, and all those who believed that the important issues of the region can be solved there. However, it would be unfair not to recognize that the Summit also had a positive side: it provided the perfect excuse for more than 250 social organizations to meet in the same city to hold the real summit, the People’s Summit for Democracy. Here is where the real problems of Latin America are discussed by those who suffer the consequences, the poor and marginalized majorities of the region.

 Source: Resumen Latinoamericano – English, 06/09/22