Latin American dictatorships are a global threat

By Carlos Sánchez Berzaín

The governments of Cuba, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua, which do not obey to any of the elemental principles of democracy, and whose sole objective is to stay in power indefinitely, and at any cost, conform a real threat for their people to whom they oppress under economic social and political crisis, that increase progressively.

The democracies in the region and in the world, that through action or inaction tolerate and coexist with these governments of the XXI Century Socialism, seem to ignore that dictatorships undermine the fundamental principles on which their own legitimate governments are founded. That is a cause of instability for democracies, therefore a global danger.

All, and each of the five dictatorships of Latin America systematically and constantly violate human rights and individual freedoms through fear, as the institutionalized mechanism of social control. Political prisoners as Leopoldo López and tens of others in Venezuela, or governor Leopoldo Fernández, General Claros, Rocabado, Veliz, Quiroga and Aranda in Bolivia, plus thousands of exiles, are just a sample.

Freedom of the press does not exist and repression to journalists and the media involve terrifying stories, as is the case of Diario El Universo in Ecuador, Bonil de cartoonist, the persecution of Janet Hinostroza and Fernando Villavicencio, who all, denounced corruption.

The state of law has been replaced by the willpower of the Castro brothers in Cuba, Chavez and Maduro in Venezuela, Correa in Ecuador, Evo Morales in Bolivia and Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua. Instead of prevailing the principle that nobody is above the law, the dictators with a presidential title; are the law. They dictate orders, sentences, condemnation and all sort of abuses, on TV and public media. The non-retroactive law to persecute political opponents and the murdering of controversial leaders are the laws of fear they imposed.

Free and fair elections, based on universal secret vote, have been substituted by fraud for perpetuity, as it’s happening in Nicaragua; it is forecasted by Morales in Bolivia; or manipulated in Venezuela by Maduro to avoid a revocation through a referendum. Opposition has been eliminated in Nicaragua; divided, subjugated, and penetrated in Ecuador and Bolivia. Limited and unrecognized is its competence in Venezuela, or just vexed, imprisoned, threatened and asphyxiated in Cuba. They allow leadership which does not threaten power. There is no division nor interdependence in public organisms of the state; prosecutors and judges are the repressive arm of the system.

We are talking about governments who are, close, involved, or tolerant with drug dealing. To the point to which today, Bolivia and Venezuela are narco-states. In Venezuela, Maduro, just named as minister to a military under drug trafficking investigation; let’s not forget about his wife’s two nephews jailed in New York for the same reason.

Let’s recall the title of Omnipotent Leader of the coca growers from Bolivia that Evo Morales holds, who at the UN stated that “the fight against drug trafficking is an instrument of submission to imperialism”.

The diplomatic suitcase with drugs from the Correa government. The Castro show off that pretended to eliminate the shadow of their drug ring involvement with the assassination of Ochoa, but without being able to erase the evidence, not to forget the close links of all the aforementioned with the FARC. Finally, the market for their product are the United States and Europe, accused by the same dictatorships of not controlling its consume.

The dictatorial model of the 21st Century, has tried to expand to Peru, Honduras, Salvador. It has lost Argentina (Kirchner), and the tolerance and patronage of Lula and Dilma in Brazil. It has intended to gain influence in the internal policy of the US, giving oil for free in The Bronx, and pressuring the Louisiana legislature.

They have successfully achieved the creation of Podemos in Spain, whose patronage has been avoided by those who are the third political force in a system they are trying to destroy.

Terrorism of Islamic origin, drug dealing linked to it, opening relationships and “businesses” by the five dictatorships with Iran and his entourage. Their position against Israel, the growing Islamic presence in Latin America are issues of concern.

The Project of the Latin American dictatorships does not go through becoming democracies and losing power. There is no “transitional” agenda which is embraced by democratic governments. The problem is that the democracies in the region and the world, who tolerate these dictatorships and accept their simulated democracy, are forgetting the danger of being the next victims, as it happened with Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua, whose leaders claimed it couldn’t happen to them because they were not like Cuba… but it happened.

When democracies coexist with dictatorships, they infringe the principles of their own legitimacy. They are undermining an enemy that even insults and demeans them. The problems caused by these dictatorships are not just for those who suffered them; they are a global threat.