Econoticias Bolivia (October 17): Carlos Mesa, New prisoner of the palace

[Jack Rabbit]

From Econoticias Bolivia (La Paz)
Dated Friday October 17
English translation by Latinsol from ZNet
Posted Wednesday October 22

Carlos Mesa, New prisoner of the palace

The new President of Bolivia, Carlos Mesa Gisbert, was until recently, a declared "fan of Goni", a fervent admirer of Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada. He admired Goni's intelligence, his political ability, his capacity to invent and recreate neoliberal policies. Today, he must administer the disaster left by the millionaire, who after attempting to drawn the protest of the poor on blood, has escaped on a helicopter from the fury of the greatest civil up-rising of South America.
It is not a happy day for him, despite being minutes from the Congress of the Republic placing the presidential sash on him. He seems overwhelmed. He is very lonely, has no political party nor a social movement to support him. In the end, nobody trusts him. Nor even the United States Embassy, which only at the last minute and with much reticence has given him the ok to govern or, at least, enough support so that he does not fall right away.
David Greenlee, the Ambassador, had an emergency meeting with him last night, after being convinced that keeping Goni would be to loose it all. With apprehension has accepted Mesa, but it hurts him that Mesa is so weak, so easy to be intimidated, so inexperienced.
Mesa has been a successful journalist and historian. He has made a fortune with his TV channel. He is a millionaire who admirers neoliberalism. Before the Auditor General's office has declared that he has at 53 years of age a fortune of one and a half million dollars, much too much, in a country where a third of the population goes hungry and another third barely has for the most essential diet.
In popular areas he either has followers nor sympathizers. His unfulfilled promises about effectively fighting the extensive public corruption and his silence before the massacre of so many Bolivians (over 70) has cost him to loose the scarce support he had before the people, especially in the unions and the poorest of the population. Many believe, they are sure, that there is not a great difference between him and Goni.

Read more.

A pessimistic look at the coming days in Bolivia from a progressive South American journal.

Origninal Spanish language piece: Carlos Mesa, el nuevo prisionero del palacio.