By Raul Cienfuegos
MELBOURNE — US Latin America analyst James Petras spoke here on January 12 about the "pillage" of Latin America by the imperialist powers of North America and Europe. Petras is a professor of sociology at the State University of New York and the author of many articles and 35 books on Latin America.
Petras argued that prominent revolutionary organisations, such as El Salvador's Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front and Nicaragua's Sandinistas, have moved to the right during the 1990s. "These ex-leftists frequently resort to a kind of intellectual posturing in which they label the earlier positions as 'conservative', 'outmoded' and 'orthodox', and present themselves as the up-to-date, renovated, modern, post-something, democratic left", he argued.
He also spoke optimistically of a new wave in the Latin American revolution, particularly led by peasant and popular movements.
"While most publicists, journalists, government and World Bank officials, and academics either celebrate or bemoan the triumph of neo-liberalism, a vast movement of opposition is growing that, in time, could challenge the dominance of the whole free-market power structure", Petras said. "As yet, this new oppositional force is only loosely associated, appearing in forums, seminars and international gatherings, but it has solid roots in a number of countries and is extending its support from specific regions and classes to the construction of a national counter-hegemonic bloc."
The new wave of revolutionary groups includes the landless peasant movement of Brazil, the Zapatistas in Chiapas, Mexico, and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP).
The situation in Colombia was the subject of in-depth analysis at a Democratic Socialist Party forum held here on January 19. DSP Melbourne secretary Jorge Jorquera, recently returned from Latin America, spoke of the progress of the Latin American popular movements, particularly of the FARC-EP.
Lynda Hansen reports from Brisbane that 40 people attended a January 17 Green Left Weekly forum, sponsored by the Committee in Solidarity with Latin America and the Caribbean, with Petras at the Miscellaneous Workers Union building there. Petras encouraged local Latin America solidarity groups to step up their activities in support of the new popular movements.