That Inter-American Institute for Democracy (IID) and the Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom organize the Forum “Right and Left in the 21st Century”which takes place this Tuesday at Florida International University (FIU).
The organizers indicated that the forum is looking discuss and collect suggestions on the topicality of the terms “left and right”, which deserve diverse and different meanings in society, politics, the public and the press in different latitudes such as Europe, the United States and Latin America.
“Is there left and right? What are you? Can the concepts be standardized? Why do these terms represent different concepts in different places today? These and other questions will be answered by academics, journalists, politicians and former rulers of great repute and experience who make up the four panels of the forum,” they stated in the introduction Carlos Diaz Rosillodirector of the Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom; Thomas Regal, President of the Inter-American Institute for Democracy; Y Carlos Sanchez Berzainwhich is a frame of reference for “The question of left and right“.
“Right and left depend on time and space. You have to ask left and right when and you have to ask left and right where‘ said Sánchez Berzaín after recalling that ‘Cuba’s dictatorship is the oldest in the region and has its strong influence in Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia“.
Carlos Sanchez Berzain
The first panel entitled “Academic Right-Left Concept in the 21st Century“, counted with the participation of Maria Werlau (Cuban archive), John Anthony White (Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba) and Edward Gamarra (Professor Florida International University). The keynote speaker was Mario Ojeda Revah (Comexi, Mexico) and the moderator Richard Israel.
Ojeda Revah has provided an extensive overview of the history of the right and left from their emergence to the presentthe impact of the two great wars of the last century and how they changed the original concept.
He argued that the terrorist attacks of 2001 presented a new threat to the West that did not conform to these notions, unlike the guerrillas or terrorist groups that had emerged after the wars of the previous century.
Y concluded that we need to talk not only about left and right, but also about globalists versus patriots, internationalists versus protectionists.
The Forum “Right and Left in the 21st Century”
For his part Maria Werlau spoke of the Latin American left after the collapse of the Soviet Union and pointed to the increase in corruption and criminal activities. “The aim is to enforce poverty depending on the state. As the populist model economically self-destructs, elites depend on illegal activities,” he said.
“In addition to Venezuela, the Castrochavista Bloc includes Nicaragua, Bolivia and several Caribbean islands. He has declared friends in Mexico and Argentina‘ he continued.
And he emphasized: “In Venezuela, the Chavista mafias have committed the greatest embezzlement in history with their private planes. The elites are rich and the population lives in poverty.”
John Anthony White He focused on what he was shoutingMafia elites who, as leftists, built the mafia states of the 21st century“. He reiterated that the left’s traditional discourse is still in use, but a major change has occurred: “They are much more predatory and dangerous than the previous ones“, he explained.
decided that these elites take over the states and break the social contract. “They are not interested in whether, for example, inflation is starving the Cuban people,” he said; saying that these are “new phenomena”.
“They contradict democracy and the free market economy‘ he stressed.
Edward Gamarra He said he accepted the “challenge” to try to answer the panel’s “ambitious question” about the left and the right. “What I think is in danger today is liberalism‘ he warned; during “A political system based on tolerance and respect for the opinions of others is also at risk“.
“The building of a civic culture is in jeopardy,” he stressed.
He then referred to “deep polarization” suffered by the United States and many Latin American countries. And he analyzed: “However, this logic of polarization was also not achieved because the left was affected by the triumph of liberalism in the welfare societies“.
The forum will be held at Florida International University (Credit: Nachomartinfilms)
The second windowRight and left for the press‘, consists of Iliana Lavastida (Director of Diario Las Américas), Carlos Alberto Montaner (IID), José Manuel Rodríguez (CNN), Oscar Haza (MEGA TV), Francisco Zea (Grupo Imagen, Mexico) and Tim Padgett (National Public Radio , Latin American reports). Keynote speakers are David Webb (Sirius XM Radio/Fox News) and host Ricardo Trotti (Inter-American Press Association).
From the third panel entitled “Right and left in politics‘, will be part of María Paula Romo (former Minister of Ecuador), Beatrice Rangel (former Minister of Venezuela), Luis Galeano (exiled from Nicaragua), Patricia Bullrich (former Minister of Argentina) and Paola Holguín (Senator of Colombia). The keynote speaker will be Jorge del Castillo (former Minister of Peru) and will be moderated by Laura Furcic.
The arrival of Patricia Bullrich at the Forum (Credit: Nachomartinfilms)
Finally, from the fourth panel, “Right and left in government’, Otto Reich (US Ambassador), Simón Ferro (US Ambassador), Pedro Cateriano (former Prime Minister of Peru), Nicolás Monckerberg (former President of the Chilean Congress) and Francisco Santos (former Vice President of Colombia). The main speaker is Álvaro Uribe (former President of Colombia) and the moderator is Daniel Hadad.
The main speaker of the forum is the Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro.
The Interamerican Institute for Democracy describes itself as a non-proselytizing, pluralistic think tank made up of volunteers from around the world which examines, researches and disseminates political and economic successes that strengthen democracy and promote freedom in the region.
Y the Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom explains that it was founded at Florida International University with a mission to serve as a leading, independent, impartial think tank dedicated to informing, influencing, and inspiring current and future leaders to provide innovative, meaningful, and effective public policies to develop and implement promote individual freedom and prosperity.
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