Free Trade and Social Conflict in Colombia, Peru and Venezuela
Confronting U.S. Capitalism, 2000–2016
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About the Book
Foreign capital and free trade policies have provoked fierce conflicts in South America in recent years. People in Colombia and Peru engaged in often violent clashes to defend their livelihoods against the encroachments of the free market and the impositions of Wall Street. Farmers organized to save their lands from foreign mining corporations, and cities fought to save their water from contamination.
Native Americans blocked highways to preserve ancestral lands, while students paralyzed universities and called for reforms to higher education.
The shift toward socialism in Venezuela, led by President Hugo Chávez, was bitterly opposed by privileged groups.
Governments tried to quell the turmoil through repression, political maneuvering and propaganda. This book provides a dramatic account of the struggles.
About the Author(s)
Bibliographic Details
René De La Pedraja
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 352
Bibliographic Info: 7 maps, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016
pISBN: 978-0-7864-9929-8
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2640-6
Imprint: McFarland
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Preface 1
1. Venezuela: From the Fourth Republic to Hugo Chávez 3
The Failure of the Fourth Republic 3
PDVSA: A State Within a State 8
The Emergence of Hugo Chávez 11
2. Peru: The Return of Dictatorship 22
The Partnership with Vladimiro Montesinos 22
The Alberto Fujimori Dictatorship 25
The First Reelection 32
3. The United States and the Crisis in Peru 39
The Second Reelection of Alberto Fujimori 39
The Last Battle of Vladimiro Montesinos 44
The Unraveling 51
The Transition 55
4. Initial Attempts at Transformation 60
Venezuela: New Constitution and Task Forces 60
Peru: The Start of the Alejandro Toledo Presidency 68
Decentralization in Peru Under Alejandro Toledo 71
5. Venezuela: The Coup of April 2002 77
The 49 Decree Laws 77
The Coup Attempt of 11 April 2002 81
Peter the Brief 90
6. Two Decisive Turns in 2002 96
Colombia: The Rise of Álvaro Uribe Vélez 96
Peru: From the Arequipazo to the Andahuaylas Revolt 100
7. Venezuela: The Second Attempt to Overthrow Chávez 110
Missed Opportunity 110
The Petroleum Strike: December 2002–February 2003 114
8. Colombia: The Álvaro Uribe Vélez Presidency 120
The War Against Guerrillas 120
The Challenge to the Political Class 122
The Problem of the Paramilitaries 124
9. Venezuela: The Best Years of the Chávez Presidency 131
The Third Effort to Oust Chávez: The Recall Election of 2004 131
The Opposition in Disarray 136
Attempts to Transform Venezuela 141
10. Peru: Ups and Downs of the Alejandro Toledo Presidency 149
Reaching for the Sky 149
The Agony of the Alejandro Toledo Presidency 155
11. Blows Against the Left 160
Colombia: The Reelection of Álvaro Uribe Vélez 160
The 2006 Presidential Campaign in Peru 164
12. Venezuela and Peru: From Success to Setback 170
The Bolivarian Revolution: From Euphoria to Repudiation 170
Peru: From Honeymoon to Social Conflict 179
13. Peru: The Self-Destruction of the Alán García Presidency 186
New Outbreaks of Violence 186
The Scandal of the Petro Audios 190
The Final Blow: The Bagua Massacre 193
14. The Bolivarian Revolution on the Offensive, 2008–2011 203
PSUV, Nationalizations and Elections 203
2009: The Decisive Year 210
The Struggle to Safeguard Society 215
Food Scarcity and Agriculture 222
The End of the Offensive 227
15. The Álvaro Uribe Presidency in Distress 231
The Twilight of the Uribe Presidency 231
Three Scandals 236
The Third Term and the Presidential Election of 2010 245
16. Peru: The Nationalist Reaction 251
The Presidential Campaign of 2011 251
Ollanta Humala: Defining the Presidency 254
The Ongoing Struggle Over the Conga Mining Project 256
17. Transitions in Venezuela and Colombia 260
The Agony of the Hugo Chávez Presidency 261
Course Corrections in Colombia 264
18. The Closing of a Period 272
Colombia: The Struggle for Peace 272
Peru: Trapped in Conflicts 279
Venezuela: The Bolivarian Revolution on the Defensive 284
Chapter Notes 297
Annotated Bibliography 333
Index 335
