Women & the Bolivarian Revolution

In a moving and historic evening, a distinguished panel of Venezuelan women leaders brought the visionary realities of their Bolivarian Revolution to New York City on Jan. 24. The Alberto Lovera Bolivarian Circle hosted the event, held at the Community Church of New York.

Speakers at solidarity event for Venezuelan women’s delegation. Photo: Roberto Mercado

The speakers included women who had been in revolutionary struggle in Venezuela for over 40 years, veterans of armed struggle, student struggles and women’s struggles for equality. Speaking were Maria Leon, president of the National Institute for Women (INAMUJER); Nora Castañeda, president of the Women’s Development Bank; Ana Elisa Osorio, member of the board of directors of INAMUJER; Maria del Mar Alvarez Lovera, National Defender of Women’s Rights; Reina Arratia, member of the Presidential Commission to Prevent and Eliminate Racial Discrimination; and Doris Ace vedo, secretary general of INAMUJER.

Their presentations made clear the dramatic advances in women’s economic, legal, reproductive and educational rights and realities that Venezuela is pursuing under the leadership of President Hugo Chávez. They were introduced by activists from the U.S. progressive movement.

Welcoming the panel and the audience, Leonor C. Osorio Granado, the Consul General of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in New York, noted with pride that the current Venezuelan constitution is the first in Latin America to use non-sexist language in its entirety in order to acknowledge the needs of both women and men, girls and boys. The constitution grants full citizenship to women, full equality in employment between men and women, and deals with discrimination, sexual harassment and domestic violence against women.

In Article 88, the constitution also “recognizes housework as an economically productive activity, thus entitling housewives to social security benefits.” Article 75 declares that “family relations are based in equality of rights and duties, in solidarity, in mutual comprehension and in reciprocal respect,” in an attempt to alleviate the long, double workday of most women. (www.venezuelanalysis.com)

The president of INAMUJER, Maria Leon, stressed that the peaceful nature of the Bolivarian Revolution meant that women had been able to put their needs forward rather than make them secondary to dealing with the wounded and displaced of a violent conflict. However, she noted that Venezuelans were a “peaceful revolutionary people, but not unarmed,” and that the military forces in the country were in unity with civilian needs under President Chávez.

She said that before the revolution small groups of women were struggling for their rights, but progress was very slow. The millions of women and men in the streets during the revolution also helped create the glorious possibility of revolution in the U.S. and around the world.

Leon was introduced by Leslie Cagan, coordinator of United for Peace and Justice, a major U.S. anti-war coalition, who spoke of the urgent need to stop the war on Iraq and bring the troops home now. Monica Somocurcio, a representative from the ANSWER coalition, another major anti-war group, praised the panelists for carrying out “a heroic struggle, not just for women, but for humanity,” and she introduced Nora Castañeda, president of the Women’s Development Bank (BANMUJER).

Castañeda, an economist, pointed out that women are the poorest of the poor in the world, with perhaps 70 percent of impoverished humanity being female. Thus, she stressed, to bring down the level of poverty worldwide the needs of women must be addressed, including overall health, sexual and reproductive health, literacy and economic needs.

The bank administers both social and financial programs, on the principle of “para todo a los todos,” or a popular economy that benefits everyone. The bank gives workshops on sexual and reproductive rights and works with the Ministry of Health and the Barrio Adentro, community health clinics run by Cuban doctors. The bank also grants micro-loans to groups of women for projects that could raise the standard of living for them, their families, and the community at large.

The third panelist, Ana Alisa Osorio, a former Minister of Environment and Resources, and member of INAMUJER, was introduced by Teresa Gutierrez, a co-director of the International Action Center and member of the Troops Out Now Coalition (TONC), another major anti-war coalition.

Gutierrez welcomed the delegates and applauded the wide spectrum of U.S. political organizations and points of view represented both in the audience and on the platform. She expressed excitement that this could strengthen unity in the U.S. and increase solidarity for Venezuela’s right to build the society it desires. She also noted: “When we defend Venezuela, we also defend our beloved Cuban Revolution, and the Cuban Five, still in prison here in the U.S. We are fighting for Venezuela, for Cuba, for all of Latin America.”

Osorio pointed out that a central problem for Venezuela was that it had inherited “social debt” from the previous centuries of exploitation of its people. She emphasized that the goal was “a society built on revolutionary ethics” and on the principle of “equality in diversity,” rather than on a “First World model.” The Venezuelan constitution grants all rights, including the right to return to their lands, to the country’s Indigenous peoples, and a mass campaign, Mission Guaicaipuro, was set up to focus on their needs.

The needs and knowledge of Indigenous people are incorporated in other mass campaigns. For instance, Mission Robinson, which virtually eliminated illiteracy in 2005, including women, who made up 65 percent of those unable to read and write, used bilingual educational materials in Spanish and in Indigenous languages. Health initiatives in the countryside incorporate Indigenous medical knowledge; teams of nurses are recruited who blend modern and traditional medical practices developed over thousands of years.

Hye-Jung Park of the Korean Action Network for Unification and the Congress for Korean Unification spoke passionately of the hope the Bolivarian Revolution has aroused among women all over the world who struggle against war, displacement, poverty, hunger and AIDS. “Women together—mothers, lesbians, housewives and workers—nurture this hope. Let us struggle together for solidarity, let us not let go of each other’s hands,” she said.

She introduced Maria del Mar Alvarez Lovera, National Defender of Women’s Rights, who spoke with sadness of the many Venezuelans killed, tortured and disappeared under the 40 years of U.S.-supported “so-called democracy” that preceded the current revolution. She said that the job of INAMUJER is to make this secret history known to the younger generation, as part of fighting against domestic violence. In addition, the women’s institute conducts classes in all communities to educate people that domestic violence is not the fault of women, and to render legal assistance in the court system to women who have been assaulted.

Nieves Ayres of La Pena del Bronx and Women Workers for Peace acknowledged the unnumbered and unacknowledged women who had been tortured or killed as they resisted, from Puerto Rico to Pales tine to Chile. She spoke of the need for a revolution to begin “in our own households.”

She introduced Reina Arratia, member of the Presidential Commission to Prevent and Eliminate Racial Discrimination, who said with great emotion that “Black women, Indigenous women, all women have been given hope by the Bolivarian Revolution,” so much so that during the hours of the attempted coup against Chávez in 2002, engineered by the U.S., she felt “like my life was over.” Instead, with the return of Chávez, hope was restored to women like her, of African descent, a large portion of whom are in poverty but who are now participating in the transforming process of political struggle. She noted that before President Chávez no woman of African descent had ever been part of any international Venezuelan delegation, as she was able to do.

The final speaker, Doris Acevedo, secretary general of INAMUJER concentrating in health and labor research, was introduced by Dr. Andree-Nicola McLaughlin, founder of the Black Women’s Institute and Dr. Betty Shabazz Chair in Social Jus tice at Medgar Evers College. Dr. McLaugh lin noted the contrast between the government of Venezuela and that of the U.S. in relation to the needs of their people. She pointed out that New York City was experiencing the highest rate of homelessness since the Great Depression, and spoke of the “naked racism and classism” that were rampant after Hurricane Katrina. She spoke of the need to end the U.S. war on Iraq and said: “To have peace, we need true freedom. To have freedom, we need social justice. And to have justice, we need revolution.”

Acevedo said one of the key campaigns of INAMUJER is for women to attain 50 percent of the positions in the National Electoral Commission, the National Assembly, governorships and other popular vote positions. Currently only 12 percent of the deputies in the National Assembly are women.

However, since the new constitution, women “have played key roles, both in government and NGOs, in drafting, advancing and reforming a wide array of legislation in diverse fields, including but not limited to health care, education, the environment, land reforms, Indigenous rights, and reproductive rights. Partici pation by women in civil society has been instrumental in carrying out public campaigns to increase awareness of women’s issues and creating programs for women.”

Acevedo then appealed to the audience, saying, “We need your help, your solidarity. This is a struggle of the Americas—north, central, south—all the Americas—with women at the forefront in the streets.” She ended, “A revolution is not a revolution of speeches. It is a revolution of action. We are permanent workers in struggle and we want your solidarity. From you to us, and us to you!”

Just before a reception with music provided by the women’s drum group, Las Yaya, there was an emotional culmination to the evening.

William Camacaro of the Alberto Lovera Circulo Bolivariano stepped forward with a plaque for Maria del Mar Alvarez Lovera, who had been married to the martyred freedom fighter for whom the group is named. She read the inscription aloud, ending with the words, “Alberto Lovera. Still with us!”