Unifor Letter to Canada's Foreign Minister Re: Condemning the Military Coup and Respecting Democracy in Bolivia
Dear Minister Champagne:
Unifor strongly condemns the military coup in
Bolivia that saw the recent ousting of
democratically elected President Evo Morales.
We are dismayed that the Canadian Federal
government has chosen to support the interim
leadership of Jeanine Áñez Chávez -- a
representative from a party that received only
four per cent of the vote in the latest October
elections, and whose support is derived largely
from the backing of the Bolivian police and
military. We are also troubled given Áñez's
hostile and discriminatory anti-Indigenous
remarks, especially in a country where more than
half the population is Indigenous.
As Bolivia's first Indigenous President, Morales
made significant progressive economic and social
policy changes that have resulted in strong
economic growth, drastic reduction in rates of
poverty and overall improvements of human rights.
However, we have seen how actions of independent
states with socialist policies often provoke the
ire of corporate interests and Western countries
such as the United States, which has a long
history of Latin and South American government
intervention and ousting democratically elected
leaders by way of violent military coups.
We are now once again witnessing waves of
violence and atrocities rock Bolivia, along with
deaths of protesters who are resisting the
usurpation of their democratic process. With Áñez
recently making changes to allow security forces
to be protected from prosecution in order to quell
protests, we will only see a further escalation of
state violence and repression. By not condemning
these actions as a coup -- actions contrary to the
fundamental principles of democracy -- Canada is
complicit in these human rights violations.
In an effort to understand the current and
evolving situation, Unifor dispatched its Director
of International Department, Mohamad Alsadi, to
Mexico City in order to meet with President
Morales directly. This meeting helped to solidify
our support and solidarity with the people of
Bolivia.
Unifor urges the Federal government to publicly
condemn the coup and reject Áñez's illegitimate
interim position. We demand the safe passage and
return of Evo Morales to his home country, and to
let Bolivians exercise their own democratic right
in choosing a government through a new round of
elections -- elections Morales himself initially
agreed to before being forced into exile. We also
encourage you to visit and dialogue with Evo
Morales directly, as we have done, to receive a
firsthand account on what has transpired in
Bolivia and areas in which Canada can provide
support. Canada cannot proclaim to support
democracy while also enabling a repressive
military dictatorship to unfold and go
unchallenged. We trust you and your government
will reverse course and stand by the people of
Bolivia.
Please also see these links to statements from
other like-minded organizations:
https://www.ituc-csi.org/Bolivia-crisis-must-be-settled-at-the-ballot-box
http://www.industriall-union.org/industriall-condemns-the-coup-in-bolivia
https://www.ueunion.org/statement/2019/ue-condemns-coup-in-bolivia
Sincerely,
Jerry Dias
National President
cc: The Right Honourable Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau
This article was published in
Volume 49 Number 29 - November 30, 2019
Article Link:
Unifor Letter to Canada's Foreign Minister Re: Condemning the Military Coup and Respecting Democracy in Bolivia
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
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