About twenty-five persons, representing different organizations, met shortly after 6:00 this evening at Liberty Hall to hear presentations from the Venezuelan Mission to Belize. Present from the Mission were Venezuelan Ambassador to Belize, His Excellency, Omar Valdiviso; First Secretary, Gabriel Sanchez, and other support staff. The Venezuelans were on hand to introduce the “Bolivarian Alternatives for the Peoples of Our America,” (ALBA) to the Belize social organizations, which included the Black Cross Nurses and the UNIA.
Emerson Guild, a social activist and the vice president of the Belize Branch of the UNIA, delivered the opening remarks. Guild said that he is just beginning to understand the scope of Bolivarian social politics. “Today we can look outside of this building and see the state of liberty in our country, it is not acceptable. “
He continued saying, “Normally we are ill equipped to access the information that pertains to our liberty. The Venezuelans have set an example for us….The message that Venezuela sends out internationally is that people come first. They use the programs that they have, Petro-Caribe, ALBA and other programs that they have put in place.”
Ambassador Valdiviso told the gathering that ALBA “is a proposal that we have been developing for young people.” The Venezuelan representative to Belize went on to explain that his country does not agree with the United States’ free trade, “because it amounts to imperialism and servitude. President Hugo Chavez made the proposals of ALBA to the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. It is promoted by Venezuela and Cuba. “
“The proposal basically says that people should not be exploited. They can progress and be free,” The Ambassador Valdiviso declared.
Following the Ambassador’s presentation, this was delivered in Spanish and translated by his First Secretary, Gabriel Sanchez; it was Sanchez’s turn to make a presentation on the ALBA proposals.
Sanchez’s presentation was done with the aid of a slide show, which he used to meticulously explain the significance of ALBA.
The handout document that explains in detail what ALBA is all about states that: “President Hugo Chavez signed the initial agreement for ALBA on December 14, 2004. The countries that have signed on to ALBA so far include: Bolivia, in April 2006, Nicaragua, in November 2007, Dominica, January 2008, and Honduras, in August 2008.
Observer countries are not called observers. The Venezuelans refer to them as guests. These “guests” are Uruguay, Ecuador, Haiti, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and The Grenadines.
ALBA is a proposal for the integration that makes emphasis on combating poverty and social exclusion based on the principles of cooperation and solidarity, to correct the disparities that disadvantage weak countries from highly develop countries, respect and self-determination of peoples, who choose their way of life and their political models.”
Under the ALBA model, instead of transnational companies, the proposal calls for the creation of Grandnational Companies. “Grandnational Companies must share the new ALBA logic of union and integration, joined to the strategic objective of this unionist project and become fundamental economic instruments for creating a wide area of fair trade in LATIN aMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN.”.”