Crash Course Politics

Three weeks in country does not afford me the knowledge to give any real sense of the political climate of Ecuador. However, because I have found some stories to be inspiring I wanted to share them, especially as we work through our own political tectonic movements. Ecuador is 41% indigenous originating from the Inca Empire, 9% Afro-Ecuadorian whose ancestors were brought over as slaves and 51% mestizo (or mixed) Spanish usually with indigenous blood. The transition from pre to post Colombian times is, in broad strokes, the same guns, germs and steel tragedy that befell North America.

This messed up paradigm continued for a few centuries until a mestizo, Swiss educated doctor/lawyer/reporter named Eugenio Espejo, started a newspaper and a organizing project which eventually lead (with the work of many others) to Ecuador`s Independence from Spain in 1820. As those of us from the US know, independence doesn`t mean the country is given back to its original inhabitants, nor does it mean reparations are paid to those who were enslaved and it certainly does´t undo the tangle of cultures woven into the blood and features of the children. What it does do, is leave the country and its occupants to work out how the newly formed country will function.

Another century or so has passed with a smattering of liberal and conservative governments, a few assassinations and uprisings and we arrive (with some major information gaps) at the present moment. Rafael Correa is the president of Ecuador. Though there is an old guard of political parties similar to our own, he comes from Alliancia Pais, a relatively new and liberal party. While corruption still is pervasive and the day to day has its problems he is a popular president who is well liked by those I have spoken with. My favorite story of his presidency are his first acts as president. May this be a lesson to our future president:

What you need to know before I launch into this story is that after a terrible bought of inflation the country turned to the US dollar for stabilization and is currently running its economy in US dollars. While the stabilization is a good thing, the prices have risen far beyond what they were before (i.e. a liter of milk that was about .10cents is now closer to $3.00) and our dollar is loosing its footing in the global market. The other thing you need to know is the average monthly income is between $180-$250.

So before Correa was instated, the congress decided they needed a raise. They thought $4,000 didn`t uphold the kind of life style they desired and it was exhausting running a country, $8,000 sounded much better. The people didn`t like that and voted in Correa who didn`t like that either. His first acts were as follows:
1. Turn down the $8,000 offer, $4,000 was good enough for him.
2. Dissolve the Congress, they were wack robbers.
3. Write a law stating that nobody in public office could make more then the president.
Then he took the savings earned from downsizing the salaries and put it all towards education and health care. He then looked at the poverty line and realized that well over half the population is below it. Why?? well among other reasons, they don`t have land. So he went to all of the rich people and said `I want to buy all of that land you have on the coast. I`ll give you a fair price, what do you say?` and the rich people said, `sounds good, I have a few other homes anyway`. Then he broke up the land and sold it back to the landless people for basement prices.

If it sounds familiar, you`ve been doing a good job keeping up on your South American lefty presidents. Chavez did something similar in Venezuela, except he took the land from the rich folks. If you like the story of just taking the land, I understand that, the ancestors of many of the poor Venezuelans had rights to that land way before the rich folks stole it from them. The thing is, that when you take things from people it usually causes a storm, which from what I hear is a partial problem for Chavez. Correa has his problems too, but not like Chavez.

Back to Ecuador. People had land, public education (which you formally had to pay for) was now free but at $180 a month people couldn't meet their basic needs so he instituted a agricultural credit program. This enables people to buy seeds, housing materials, pigs, which have been described to me as better than a bank account.

In reading the newspaper and talking with various Ecuadorians I don`t get the sense that all of this makes the truly difficult social and environmental problems disappear, nor do I get the sense that this is left wing smoke and mirrors. I believe that people believe in the leadership that they voted in, and I believe that there are some radical steps being taken to alleviate problems that have saturated peoples lives for centuries. In that context, it is quite inspiring to be here. In my own life, it is important to get up every day and go to work for a place that I feel is trying to change the material conditions of peoples lives individually and systemically. But it is exhausting to feel like a drop in the ocean whose currents are doing everything they can to make you disappear. To be in a place where the tide is in your favor opens doors formally painted shut. I have come from a place that wanted to tear apart the machine and live in a state of cooperative anarchy to a place that really values great leadership. It is imperative to know that models exist a mere plane ride away.

All that being said, even if you have your mind set that Obama is your man and you are doing the requisite campaigning, I highly recommend looking into what is going on in South America and other parts of the world. Lula in Brazil has some really great agriculture programs going on, for those still hankering for a female president look at Chile`s Michelle Bachelet and Argentina`s Cristina Fernández de Kirchnerv and for a really amazing story look at Bolivia who voted in the first indigenous president, Evo Morales on the continent (along with a fantastic anti water privatization movement). Look at Venezuela for a model constitution, but I encourage you to read between the lines of the Chavez love story, for no leader is perfect and that is important too. Our culture is far too insular and it will help us develop a great list of do`s and don`ts to give to our president, congress person and local government.