The VII Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) left not only promises and optimistic speeches, but also harsh criticism. The President of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, warned this Tuesday in Buenos Aires, Argentina that “in order for these forums to survive, they must not have the character of a club of ideological friends”.
“Furthermore, the strength of this organization, this forum, will lie in its diversity and in change and change,” stressed the President, who was involved in a dispute with Cuban ruler Miguel Díaz at the previous summit. Canel to tell you a fragment of the musical theme Patria y Vida that became the anthem of the popular protests of July 2021.
On that occasion, while not alluding to the island, he called for no “semiplegic vision” and pointed out that at the meeting there were countries “that do not respect democracy, institutions or human rights”. clear reference to the regimes of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, the latter two without the presence of their rulers at the summit.
“I have heard speeches that I agree almost completely, speeches that I share half of, and speeches that I almost share nothing with.” If the ideology of one side changes or switches to another, the forums disappear”.
“I’ve heard speeches that I agree almost completely, speeches that I agree half of, and speeches that I almost don’t agree with.”
Celac, which has lost momentum in recent years, is attempting with this summit to revitalize its agenda and push ahead with some regional initiatives ranging from finance to migration. To realize these plans, the hopes of its members are pinned above all on the alliances that can reach Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Colombia, the continent’s heavyweights.
Criticism of authoritarian regimes was also heard in the voice of Chilean President Gabriel Boric, who on Tuesday called for the release of “opponents who are still being detained unworthy” in Nicaragua and assured Peru needed a “change of course”. given the “unacceptable” violence of the past month.
“We cannot be indifferent when today in our sister nation of Peru, people who take to the streets demanding what they think is fair end up being shot by whoever is supposed to be defending them,” Boric told the bloc’s plenum.
The Chilean President, who is making his debut in a CELAC conclave after taking power a year ago, stressed “the urgent need for a change of course in Peru.
“The balance left by the path of repression and violence that followed former President Pedro Castillo’s failed self-coup is unacceptable,” he added.
In his speech on Tuesday, Gabriel Boric called for the release of the “opponents who are still being detained in an unworthy manner” in Nicaragua
Boric, who since taking power has sharply criticized the authoritarian regimes in the region without directly alluding to Cuba, and who therefore many analysts regard him as a benchmark for the new Latin American left, also spoke of the crisis in Venezuela and called for the return of the South American left country “in multinational forums”.
The only reference to the island was made to mention what he believed to be the futility of the US embargo: “The policy of exclusion offers no authentic or lasting results. Such is the history of our Latin America and the Caribbean, with the shameful United States blockade of Cuba and more recently Venezuela.”
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel dedicated part of his speech precisely to the United States embargo, when he “thanked this community and its member states for their strong call for Cuba to be removed from this list [de patrocinadores del terrorismo] and the blockade will be lifted,” he claimed.
In his words, Díaz-Canel took the opportunity to close ranks with Nicolás Maduro, who was absent from the meeting, and showed “the strongest solidarity with the legitimate governments of Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia, which face ongoing attempts at destabilization”.
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