Summit of the Peoples of Latin America, the Carribbean and Europe

Columban Sister Mary Neylon (left) sent the following account of the Summit:

From May 13 to 16, 2008 the National University of Engineering in Lima was the centre of much activity...conferences, music, dancing and great solidarity… amongst the 3000 plus participants at the Summit of the Peoples of Latin America, the Carribbean and Europe, entitled ‘Enlazando Alternativas’, or ‘Making alternative Links’.

Lima was chosen because it was here that  the Governments of the two Regions were holding their Summit aimed at greater ‘integration’ between the two Regions…but one based on Neoliberal Free Trade and with better facilities for Transnational companies to extract the natural resources of Latin America.

The Summit of the Peoples had a very different agenda…the rights of the   marginalised communities and the action of European Transnational companies operating in Latin America.

The Inauguration ceremony included a two hour ritual prepared by representatives from Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and Colombia.  Based on the Andean cosmovision of the connection between all of creation, and the respect and gratitude which we owe to the ‘Pachamama’ or ‘Mother Earth’, it set the tone for the Peoples' Summit.

In simultaneous workshops the many aspects of an alternative model of ‘integration’ were teased out- Native Peoples and their economic, social and cultural rights; Work, trade unions etc.;Youth forum;  Womens' forum¡ Migration-emigration;  Natural Resources-water, biodiversity, agriculture, food, land rights climate warming, mines etc. Running through all were the concerns of gender justice, democracy,  Transnationals, and the importance of the economy of ‘caring’ as against an economy of   the ‘market’.

It was hard to decide on which to participate, so I choose  the Womens’ Forum which looked at ways in which  the neoliberal chain  of production has  increased the oppression and sexual division of labour for women in Latin America. For example, women are concentrated in certain branches of the  agrobusiness, like the production of esparragos in Ica, Peru (where they must work for 10 hours daily for 19 soles-that is about 7 dollars), the production of fruit in Chile, flowers in Colombia, nuts in Bolivia. Also, in the textile industry women form 70% of the labour force, working 10 to 12 hours daily  with very low wages.  Because of these conditions there has been an increase in   migration to the cities,  where young girls undertake domestic work,  often suffering sexual and other abuses. Trafficking of women to Europe and elsewhere has become a dollar earner for big business. 

At the same time as the workshops, the Tribunal of the Peoples heard the testimonies of  more than 20 cases of abuse by transnational companies operating in Latin America, and on which the Judges passed  a moral and ethical verdict of condemnation, and appealed to the respective governments to apply stricter laws of protection of the rights of people and of the  environment.

On a lighter tone, there was great cheering for the President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, who first  came  to the Peoples Summit  for a game of football (scoring a goal!),  and later to express his solidarity. All hoped he would have a positive influence at the  official Summit!

 The closing ceremony on the fourth day was a very colourful and joyful one, and with a great spirit of celebration and solidarity. and an expressed commitment to continue the work for an alternative way of life, and a more human and just ‘Integration’. 

For me, it was a wonderful and empowering  experience.

Mary Neylon