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Bolivian Leader Warns U.S. on Free Trade
I guess he doesnât want any:If Latin American opponents of Washingtonâs free trade policies join forces, they could deal the United States a blow as serious as its loss in the Vietnam War, Bolivian opposition leader Evo Morales said Thursday. Geezz, canât we just get over Vietnam already? "Urgent action is important," Morales told leaders of social movements from across the Americas at a gathering here attended by President Fidel Castro. Morales called on the leaders to come together in regional unity and "create people power." "Very soon we could celebrate in Latin America another Vietnam for the United States," Morales said. Morales, a former presidential candidate and now a congressman, is considered a top leader of regional opposition to free-trade policies that have expanded across Latin America in recent years. The leader of Boliviaâs Indian coca-leaf farmers was at the forefront of protests that toppled President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada in mid-October after the president promoted a plan to export Boliviaâs natural gas. Ahhhh, a light dawns. Heâs the head of the coke lobby. Morales on Wednesday repeated his earlier calls for an "alternative summit" by Castro and presidents Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil when heads of state from Spanish- and Portuguese speaking nations gather in Bolivia in mid-November for the annual Ibero-American Summit. That should be a fun meeting. Posted by: Steve 2003-10-31 |
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