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CONTACT: Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) Dan Beeton, 202-239-1460 |
US Should Disclose its Funding of Opposition Groups in Bolivia and Other Latin American Countries
WASHINGTON - September 12 - The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) called on the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and other agencies to release information detailing whom it is funding in Bolivia -- where violent right-wing opposition groups have wreaked havoc this week in a series of shootings, beatings, ransacking of offices, and sabotage of a natural gas pipeline -- as well as in other Latin American countries including Venezuela. Recent events suggest there may be evidence for Bolivian president Evo Morales' assertions that the U.S. Embassy is supporting groups promoting violence and seeking "autonomy" from Bolivia, and the Center called on USAID and other U.S. agencies to "come clean" in order to demonstrate the U.S. government's good faith.
"Washington has decided to keep its ties to Bolivia's opposition shrouded in secrecy, and that's not conducive to trust between the U.S. and Bolivian governments," said Mark Weisbrot, CEPR Co-Director. "If Washington has nothing to hide in terms of whom it is funding and working with in Bolivia, then it should reveal which groups those are."
In the midst of the violence and property destruction, Bolivian president Evo Morales declared U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg "persona non grata" and asked him to be expelled, suggesting he is aiding organizations behind the violence and sabotage. Despite numerous requests filed under the Freedom of Information Act, the U.S. has not turned over all the names of recipient organizations of USAID funds. Bolivia is a major recipient of USAID money, with millions of dollars sent to groups there. The U.S. also funds groups in Bolivia through the National Endowment for Democracy and related organizations.
"USAID is not supposed to be a clandestine organization, but nevertheless the U.S. government refuses to divulge which groups in Bolivia are supported with U.S. tax dollars," Weisbrot said. "By providing clandestine aid to groups that are almost certainly in the opposition, it gives the impression that the U.S. is contributing to efforts to destabilize the Bolivian government."
The U.S. Embassy in Bolivia has been implicated in a number of events that suggest it may be seeking to undermine Morales' government. In February of this year it was revealed that the Embassy had repeatedly asked Peace Corps volunteers and a Fulbright Scholar to spy on people inside Bolivia. USAID has an "Office of Transition Initiatives" operating in Bolivia, funneling millions of dollars of training and support to right-wing opposition regional governments and movements.
At least eight people were killed and dozens injured in violence Thursday, the latest in over a week of protests carried out by organized youth groups in conjunction with departmental governors and other opposition leaders that also saw them sabotage a natural gas pipeline, vandalize government offices, ransack the offices of a human rights organization, and threaten to cut off natural gas exports to neighboring Brazil and Argentina.
8 Comments so far
Show AllTHIS is what people are trying to talk about on the thread about Venezuela! It's forced capitalism, and it is disastrous--here and everywher else. At least Chavez and Morales were democratically elected.
I would just assume that every dollar appropriated for the varioud "democracy promotion" quasi US/NGO agencies are used for exactly the opposite purpose. And with all the illicit money the CIA reaps from its global drug activities, it has billions to use to undermine any country attempting to escape the clutches of the US Empire.
Agree. USAID, my ass.
Like I have been saying for years: most of what is called foreign aid, is really foreign bribery and is used to prop up regimes that are friendly to U.S. interests, no matter how egregious; and has nothing to do with freedom and Democracy!
That's because the USA has nothing to do with freedom and democracy.
This is how the corporatocracy works. This is how it will continue to work until it is destroyed. The man who told us about the corporatocracy, who has gone, sadly, rather New Agey, thinks that this system can be reformed. No it can't. He thinks that if enough of us wake up, then we can change things. Waking up isn't the issue, although people do need to wake up. I think we can take away the harsher edges of this barbaric system by resisting it. But that's all.
A lot of the people who help to run the corporatocracy and who work for the corporatocracy are quite awake. The real problem is that too many folks are willing to sell their souls for temporary gain. You can't legislate care. By all means encourage it. But I think it's a mistake to suppose that we will achieve a critical mass of caring citizens who will no longer tolerate the corporatocracy. In any case, John isn't even recommending that such a critical mass of enlightened citizens change things in any essential way. They are just supposed to emanate goodwill until everyone plays nice.
John Perkins is the man who told us about the corporatocracy. He's reduced it to just a few stuck-in-the-past CEOs and so on, who, once we've reached the critical mass of caring folks, will simply have to live with change which will happen all around them. Whether they accept it or not, That change will happen. That's the way we'll fix this screwed up, godless world. John is now trying to feed us tranquilizers.
I actually don't think we can change this world. Then again, Unlike John, I don't believe that we are God. If we are God, then we're really screwed.
not sure if this basic-math approach might work or at least shed light onto the situation. A few questions:
do we have an idea of how much total aid ( or even an approximation) the US sends to Bolivia ( or any country, for that matter).
how much = major recipient? someone must have at least a rough estimate.
Take that as X.
account for as many of the recipients as possible. I would imagine that any of the humanitarian organizations would most willingly offer up the figures.
Let that = Y
simple math- subtract Y from X.. and you have Z for covert funds.
not the ideal way to approach.. but if all sums knowable are totalled up.. and there are say, still 100 million or billion dollars unaccounted for.. then a case can be made that the US is spending 100 million or billion dollars to overthrow the legitimate bolivian government. At which point- more totals may be forthcoming... or at least that total can become the base from which some very hard questions can be asked of the US gov/ interests.. and note that these numbers don't account for private and .. not sure what to call them.. covert funds?
just a thought..
One investigator who's done a lot of work on from where and how much money is funneled into Venezuela is Eva Golinger; she has at least two books published on the subject, the most important for this topic is The Chavez Code. Here's a link to a search thread for her at venezuelanalysis.com. She has her own blog, which I've yet to explore, but likely has additional info. Following her methodology--many FOIA filings and close reading of related congressional committee hearings and bills--is probably the best approach--but it is time consuming. Here's the website related to that book.