Stories to Watch in 2005
The New Year has come to Bolivia, ushered in as usual with the annual valley-wide firework extravaganza here in Cochabamba. This is not some officially-sponsored show, but the handiwork of hundreds of families all over the city who arm themselves with the unbelievable array of explosives on sale on the street here. The “wildest name” award goes to the massive firecracker known here as a “mata suegra”, or “mother-in-law killer”. Hey, I am just reporting. A slight illness this year kept me from my annual ritual of blowing up an overripe papaya.
As the new year begins, here are some stories to keep you eye on here (and ones we’ll be writing about):
The US Squeezes Bolivia to Exempt it from the International Criminal Court: The US government is threatening to withhold tens of millions of dollars in aid if the Bolivian Congress does not pass a law exempting US soldiers, DEA agents, and others from the global treaty allowing international legal action against people accused of serious human rights crimes.
Water Revolt II: The citizens of El Alto are preparing to follow in the footsteps of Cochabamba and demand the ouster of a private water company that similarly took over the city’s public water after the World Bank demanded privatization.
Fighting the Spanish Water Giant: An international campaign against the Abengoa Corporation of Spain is demanding that the company join Bechtel in agreeing to drop its legal action against the people of Cochabamba, as a result of their local water company’s ouster in 2000.
Rewriting the Bolivian Constitution: In 2005 Bolivia will assemble a nationwide “Constituent Assembly” to rewrite the nation’s constitution, a major demand of indigenous groups and social movements.
Bolivian Children Denied Loving Families: Each year hundreds of abandoned Bolivian children are left to live their lives, needlessly, in Bolivian orphanages, for lack of adoptive parents. Yet there are hundreds of parents in the US who would eagerly adopt them. This year The Democracy Center will launch a campaign to clear away the bilateral bureaucratic obstacles that are keeping these children from having loving parents.
Stay posted to this Blog and to our newsletter for updates on all these stories.
