While Chavez Loses a Stadium, Libyans Gain Many Martyrs

The support once had for Mr. Gadhafi, even from Mr. Chavez, has seemed to have dwindled over the last few short weeks. While the sign still remains on the stadium, the once proud Hugo Chavez futbol stadium in Libya was recently renamed after the first martyrs to fall in Libya’s revolution. Attempts by Mr. Chavez to broker a deal between Gadhafi’s forces and the rebels in Libya also has failed, showing that the winds of change may have caught on to Hugo Chavez’s sails and have pushed him away from any real political clout in Libya’s revolution. While Venezuela benefits from the high oil prices, the killing of civilians has blown Hugo Chavez farther away from openly supporting Col. Gadhafi.

The FT.com recently published an article on how the lack of clout Chavez has had in Libya does not reflect Latin America’s growing role as an international player in matters which once did not concern of affect the continent. Author John Paul Rathbone points out that it is not the leftist leaders who seem to be pushing Latin America’s foreign policy, but those “social-democracies” such as Brazil, Uruguay and Costa Rica that are setting the example. Those social-democracies are a reflection of how a region that was once closed to the greater political world are now forming strong relations with China and the EU, helping form support and policies for those in the Middle East and Africa and showing their position as some of the fastest growing economies in the world. Key to this international push is having the growth and investment to support their foreign policy motivations, whether it be Colombians in Afghanistan or Brazil leading the UN mission in Haiti or Mexico helping lead a global push for international environmental policy.

The rise of social-democracies and developing the region into the future BRICs and friends of BRICs has not yet reached its peak, but after generations of failed development strategies Latin America can boast its current successes while trying to turn its current growth into long term development and concrete poverty reduction. The last great economic boom in Latin America came with oil prices in the late 1970s and early 1980s that were also tied in with a greater push in foreign policy in the region. With high fuel prices in the 70s and the impression that they would stay high, Mexico pushed for a greater role in Central American affairs and closer ties with Cuba. When the oil prices crashed, along with the Mexican economy, it was difficult for Mexico to support its policy position and it had to pay interest on not only US loans, but also for trying to counterbalance the US in the region. While the Latin American economic boom will not last forever and large structural reforms are needed for long term growth, the policies of social democracies may only have a great effect on other developing economies by giving a map for growth and reducing inequities to its global neighbours.

Care must be taken by Brazilian President Dilma and the social-democracies as a situation may arise where backing the wrong dictator in the Middle East or abroad might turn support for an Iran into a Chavez-Libya situation where Latin American nations might be tainted by the human rights abuses committed by the killing of protestors. While the world has egg on their face for supporting Gadhafi, there is the opportunity to direct all support for the people of the Middle East, and not their current tyrant. The US and Europe will have to justify why their weapons and money are used to hit at the rebels today in Libya as you read this, but Latin America has the opportunity to turn its social democracy into a balanced foreign policy that can truly mediate for the good of the citizens in all nations, and not simply for the sake of their governments. Every 25 years it seems that Latin America has the opportunity to make its mark on world affairs, we will have to see how successful this opportunity becomes with the support of the successful social democratic movements in the region presenting their own policy revolution worldwide