It will take place at the Montevideo Colloquium on South American Integration, a conclave ahead of the retreat that Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva invited his continental counterparts to in Brasilia on May 30.
The forum opened last night and former Uruguayan President José Mujica called for regional unity in tackling global issues where other power blocs have the advantage.
Unions, people’s organizations and political parties must be integrated, he reflected and took a critical view of the disintegration of the Union of South American Nations, which was being promoted at the time by progressive Latin American governments.
He contrasted how the Group of Seven (G-7) makes decisions to their advantage while the South Americans disagree on important issues for their development.
Mujica pointed out that the lack of unions is undermining the continent’s efforts to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The colloquium is still running today, but before that it is about “Integration from a business perspective and scientific-technical cooperation”.
Other topics of discussion are “The world of work in the South American integration” and “Political institutions of the new South American integration”.
International analysts, researchers, business people and political scientists will be among the speakers at the event, which will culminate in a conversation with the Brazilian Presidential Advisor Celso Amorín.
A statement is expected to be passed and sent to President Lula for consideration at the leaders’ meeting in Brasilia.
“It seems important to me to create a space for meeting, getting to know each other, dialogue and reflection, which you aptly called ‘retirement,'” Mujica wrote in a previous letter to the Brazilian head of state.
The letter emphasizes that it is necessary to build proximity in our region in order to make our voice heard internationally.
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