Evo Morales – Bolivia’s Obama

Dubbed ‘the son of the people,’ Evo Morales was elected last week to a second term as Bolivia’s president. This is a real achievement by Bolivian standards – the country saw five different leaders in the five years preceding him.

He must be doing something right, but he has his work cut out. Bolivia is still reeling from its colonial days, and the division between its indigenous people and European descendents has deepened since Morales took office.

Despite being rich in natural resources, Bolivia is still one of South America’s poorest nations.

When Evo Morales was first elected in 2005, it represented a radical change in the country's history. An Aymara Indian, Morales is the first indigenous president.

He’s also the first president democratically re-elected in two successive terms, improving his victory margin from 53% to 63%. This is despite his first term being dogged with hostility from the US, and his controversial policies attracting assassination plots and separatist threats.

Social changes

He cemented support by doing something that politicians usually find hard to do – he fulfilled his election promises. His government developed social policies that won it the unwavering gratitude of its people, including:

- A family allowance given to more than a million children

- A universal pension program for all Bolivians over the age of 60 who lack any other source of income

- A payment to pregnant mothers

- Eradicating illiteracy – more than a million and a half people learnt to read and write in two years. The United Nations body, UNESCO, has since declared Bolivia free of illiteracy

All extraordinary achievements for a country with a history of crippling poverty and oppression at the hands of its rich.

Constitution

Morales and his government re-wrote the constitution amidst strong opposition from the country’s elite. One of the changes made it possible for Morales to be re-elected beyond one term. Other changes (see below) meant he maintained huge support from the country’s indigenous people.

Resources

Bolivia has the second largest natural gas reserves in South America. While free-market reforms implemented in the mid-1980s allowed the country’s economy to grow fairly steadily, they failed to substantially reduce the country’s poverty.

Private ownership of the resource contributed to the country’s civil unrest. Natural gas fields are concentrated in the wealthier eastern provinces and controlled by businessmen with strong ties to the developed world. Such inequality led to violent protests and civil war became a looming threat.

Enter Evo Morales.

Within months of taking office, he put the energy industry under government control. He ordered the military to occupy energy fields around the country and gave foreign companies 180 days to sell at least 51% of their holding and renegotiate existing contracts with the government, or leave.

In July this year, the country's oil and gas sector became fully government owned. Critics say the move has put off all important foreign investors. But Morales insists it’ll make Bolivia richer, and give them more political leverage abroad.

He plans to invest US$5 billion over the next five years in oil and gas explorations, operations and distribution.

Indigenous people

The new constitution gave Bolivia’s indigenous people power and identity after years of harsh discrimination. They now have more authority over investment in natural resources in their territories. Traditional religions and practices are now formally recognised and protected.

They were also given the opportunity to govern themselves. Soon after he came to power, Morales set out conditions so Indian communities to hold votes on autonomy (self-government with respect to local or internal affairs).

U-turn policies

Yes, Morales has certainly made many friends, but he’s not without his share of enemies. His Movement Toward Socialism party won two-thirds of the seats in both houses of Congress.

That leaves his divided conservative opposition with little power to oppose his reforms during his five-year second term. And so far, his policies haven’t exactly favoured the upper classes.

The polarisation of the country is becoming more apparent. There have been violent anti-government protests in the wealthy, opposition-controlled eastern regions.

But Morales is not deterred, he’s vowed to continue increasing state control over the economy and further strengthen political power for indigenous groups.

So the tables are turning and it’s the Indian communities and Bolivia’s poor who are the beneficiaries. It seems the glory days for the elite are well and truly over.

By Charlotte Whale