• Nationalization of Bolivia’s hydrocarbon reserves
  
  
• The holding of a Constituent Assembly
  
  
• The expulsion of the energy multinationals from the country
  
  
• "NO" - to the unilateral referendum in the departments of Santa Cruz and Tarija, where most of the gas reserves are located to avoid the dismemberment of Bolivia.

After more than two weeks of protests, there is no sign that the government is going to back down and no indication that the institutions of the country are collapsing. We are reaching a deadlocked situation since there is too much at stake for the ruling classes, the multinationals, the constitutionality of the nation and US geostrategic and economic interests. If this popular protest succeeds, it will be another nail in the coffin for US hegemony and the global corporate empire in South America.

South American presidents like Bucaram, Mahaud and Gutiérrez in Ecuador; De la Rua in Argentina and Sánchez de Lozada in Bolivia have fallen in recent years due to mass popular protests. They did not have the mettle to stand up to what is presently occurring on the streets of La Paz. How then is President Mesa surviving similar protests with an additional challenge: contending with a well organized peoples' movement replete with massive road blocks which place a vice on commerce and the work of government. President Mesa has stood up to this before - earlier this year and survived. It looks as though he may survive again as "protest fatigue" may eventually set in as the situation turns into a war of attrition in Bolivia.

But this deception appears to have strengthened the resolve of the protesters who have occupied oil wells of BP in the north of Santa Cruz province and blocked the sending of fuel tankers to La Paz at the Senkata distribution depot in El Alto. At the time of writing seven of the nine departments that make up Bolivia are blocked by protesters all waving the same flag:

"NATIONALIZATION OF OIL AND GAS"

The Church is encouraging the protesters to disperse and asking the institutions to put their faith in the calling of the Constituent Assembly and the referendum in Santa Cruz and Tarija. With this attitude, the Church is supporting the Santa Cruz and Tarija oligarchy as it has traditionally done since the arrival of the Cross in South America during the Spanish conquest.

This appeal is aimed at the reformists and those who believe that reforms are the same as revolution in the moderate sectors of the popular movements.

This crusade launched by the Catholic Church is being preached from the pulpits, across the nation asking the population to live in peace and "unite the rich and the poor". The message of the "crusade" is being broadcast and written about in the mass media as well as the alternative media, so as to end the road blocks and reach a truce between the sectors in conflict. Food and fuel shortages will soon be critical. This stance by the Catholic Church is no surprise as it has historically backed the "exploiting classes" and their penchant for supporting US imperialism to line their own pockets as "pawns of the empire" at the expense of the economically oppressed majority.

In other words "reformism" is at work here, trying to undermine the revolutionary progress made by the people who are living on US$1 – US$2 per day by "promises of a peaceful solution". Despite the virtual deadlock, if the popular and revolutionary sectors of the people heed this call, the best they can hope for is some sort of "reform" to the Hydrocarbon Law and not much else.

In a nutshell, if the people demobilize now, the pressure will be eased and the state structures will remain intact. If a revolutionary movement is to succeed, it is necessary to implement structural changes in state and society and this cannot be achieved if the ruling classes and their historical dominance is not broken. This does not have to happen by violent means. It can take place via a democratic instrument such as a Constituent Assembly as it did in Venezuela. If the oligarchy is not broken, we can look forward to more cyclic uprising by the masses because they have seen what a united people can accomplish.

The threat to the established order is the unity of purpose shown by the vanguard of the popular sector. This includes the Bolivian Trade Union Movement; the Miners and Teachers Federations - both from urban and rural areas; citizens’ movements from La Paz and el Alto and the radicalized movements of workers, farmers and the poor from the marginalized neighborhoods. The Catholic Church and the state institutions have no other option to break this unity since it will lead to a collapse of the State and question the traditional political order. The fact that the Church has now officially thrown in with the state will also expose religion as a tool of oligarchy to many.

Through my contacts in Bolivia and having seen many interviews on TV here in Venezuela, broadcast from the streets of La Paz, it is abundantly clear that this is not just a "gas war" but an all out assault on the neoliberal model of domination imposed by the US government, the global corporate empire and their faithless, unpatriotic sell-out-the-homeland traitors from the local bourgeoisie. The revolutionary vanguard of the Bolivian people is more than 100% clear on this matter and thus there is no turning back, even if the army intervenes.

The protests have also been inflamed by information leaking out that the energy reserves are legally in the hands of the multinationals such as Repsol, Petrobras, Total, Enron, Shell, British Petroleum amongst others and neither Congress or the Senate can do anything to reverse this situation….or so they say.

The Movement to Socialism (MAS) leader and deputy Evo Morales’ has stood forthright to back the Constituent Assembly, but he has been criticized by popular leaders in El Alto as their main objective is the nationalization of the natural gas resources. Reports from *Argenpress indicate that there is "insurrection in the air" with protesters saying that they will face the tanks if the army intervenes.

The outcome will be a clear defeat for the revolutionary movements in Bolivia if they demobilize at the behest of the "crusade" launched by the Catholic Church. Some reformist crumbs will be thrown from the table and the impetus behind this revolutionary onslaught will be lost.

When we talk about Reforms versus Revolution, the aim is not to accept palliatives and keep the traditional order intact, but to break its hold by transforming state structures and the feudal and capitalist practices that have succeeded in creating rampant poverty in all Latin American nations since the "Discovery" in 1492. People power or participation is taking place in Bolivia and this will lead to greater self esteem and self worth – two essential elements in a revolutionary situation.

Revolution's first step in Bolivia will be to gain control of the oil and gas reserves from the multinationals and nationalize these resources for all the Bolivian people. If this cannot be achieved legally, the present situation has all the ingredients for the installations to be taken by force. The next step will be a Constituent Assembly in an effort to seek a democratic solution to this impasse as was successfully done in Venezuela in 1999.

This avoids violence but threatens many traditional economic and power interests. On the other hand, if there exists a nationwide protests and the country grinds to a halt, who is really in charge?

How this situation will unwind in Bolivia is not clear at this point in time, but if the people remain in the streets, it will not be resolved in favor of the multinationals, the global corporate empire or the local oligarchy.

*www.argenpress.info

© Copyright 2005 by AxisofLogic.com