Diplomats build people-to-people friendship

On March 17, a diplomatic delegation from the Bolivarian Government of Vene zuela attended a public reception at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This visit to Boston and other major cities is of crucial importance as a goodwill gesture from the Venezuelan government to the peoples of the United States. Its goal is to thwart the vicious campaign of the Bush administration against Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and to strengthen ties with other countries.

Bernardo Álvarez, Venezuela’s ambassador to the United States.

The delegation included Caracas Metropolitan Mayor Juan Barreto, who won his post in local elections held last October; María Pilar Hernández, vice minister for North American (Canada and the U.S.) Affairs; and Bernardo Álvarez, Venezuela’s ambassador to the United States. Venezuelan consuls from several U.S. cities and Puerto Rico were also present, as were consuls in Boston from Ecuador, Spain, Mexico, Portugal, Japan and El Salvador.

North American Affairs Vice Minister María Pilar Hernández.

Martín Pacheco, Venezuelan consul in Boston, introduced the forum, stating its goal of “attaining mutual understanding [between Venezuela and the U.S.].”

In a moving message of solidarity, Félix Arroyo, a Puerto Rican councilmember at large in Boston, remarked that “The process that the Venezuelan people are developing is one that involves all of us. In it is defined the future of Latin America.”

Ambassador Álvarez explained that the idea of this visit developed to inaugurate a new CITGO sign, a Boston landmark. The CITGO oil company is largely owned by Venezuela. He stated what all the speakers stressed during the evening, the need for better relations between the U.S. and Venezuela.

“We want to start a long and productive relation with the city of Boston,” Álvarez said. “We want to have concrete actions, programs regarding health, housing, regarding not only things that we can get here, but also things that we can bring from Venezuela to the city.

“We truly believe that in the essence, the people of this country have the same dreams and goals that we are trying to achieve in Venezuela,” he added.

‘An example to the world’

North American Affairs Vice Minister María Pilar Hernández spoke with the passion that the people in Venezuela have when they explain their revolution to foreigners: “I am proud of my country and its people, for whom I work. … At this moment, 17 million compatriots who never had the opportunity to receive health care service are receiving care by doctors in their own homes. We are proud of having provided literacy to 1.2 million people last year.”

Hernández, who had been speaking in Spanish, quickly switched to English when she was made aware that the simultaneous translation was not working.

“With humility I say that Venezuela now is a very good example for the world, we can show that social programs are not incompatible with economic development. Last year the GDP increased 17.3 percent, a record in Venezuela, Latin America and the world.

“We put people, especially the poor people first. And now we are more committed to the people because they want to be better. This is difficult to understand for some people. That is why we have to talk. And that is the reason I am trying with a very bad English to speak to you in English, because we want to understand you and we hope you will understand us.”

Caracas Mayor Juan Barreto explained the process taking place in his city: “From the Metro politan government of Caracas we are constructing a project for the progressive but continued transfer of power to the people.”

This is a significant step, taking into consideration that until Barreto’s victory last October, Caracas’ Metropolitan mayor was strongly with the opposition and used the Metropolitan police against the pro-Chávez population.

Neighborhood ‘People’s Power’

Barreto described how organizations at the neighborhood level called Boards of People’s Power allow local discussions of each neighborhood’s social, economic and political problems.

Every community is organized according to its specific needs. Barreto gave the example of the peasants’ land committees (CT) and the urban land committees (CTU) in the cities. Each of the 5,200 poor neighborhoods in Caracas has a CTU. From these CTUs arise health committees that work together with doctors and are responsible for visiting every household to track each resident’s health. Barreto says this has enabled the government to establish a good relationship with the people.

This research provided the basis for the “misiones” — projects of literacy, education, health and job development.

Larger or smaller assemblies, depending on the size of the neighborhood, take place where all the structures—health committees, technical boards, land committees, job committees and so on—meet to discuss their problems. This gathering constitutes what they call Houses of People’s Power. The houses then elect the Board of People’s Power. Barreto said jokingly: “Some people like the word ‘people’ and the word ‘power’ but do not like when both words go together.”

“In these boards,” Barreto continued, “the people discuss the community’s problems but also plan, project and carry out. They control the budget and take action so that the problems get solved. This is what we call a participatory and protagonist democracy of co-responsibility. We hope that the exercise of this new democracy is not threatening to anyone.”

He ended with an appeal to those present: “I invite all of you to help us build, brick by brick, a bridge of solidarity between Venezuela and the United States.”

MIT, the Western Hemisphere Project, CITGO, the Boston MLK Bolivarian Circle, the Venezuelan Embassy and the Venezuelan Consulate in Boston hosted the event.

Bolivarian Circle director Jorge Marin thanked organizations and individuals for their support in the work on behalf of Venezuela, among them the Tech Exchange, the International Action Center, Hands off Venezuela, and especially “Venezuelans, U. S. citizens and the school bus drivers’ union for a sizable donation for the flood victims.” Venezuela was hit with torrential rains in December.