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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE July 12, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| December 9, 2004 |
Buenos Aires, Argentina |
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| The brightly painted houses in La Boca |
Buenos Aires is situated on the Western bank of the Rio de la Plata, an immense estuary formed by the confluence of the Parana and Uruguay rivers. Capital to the eighth largest country in the world and the center of all Argentine political, economic, social and cultural life, this city boasts an array of delights from picturesque cottages and street performances of tango, majestic colonial architecture and parks. However there is much more than European heritage to the Argentine capital. Peace Boat participants were taken on an exposure tour of the city to witness the aftermath of a collapsed economy trying to rebuild itself. |
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| The “Madres” at Plaza de Mayo |
The day started off with a visit to the central Plaza de Mayo, where the weekly gathering of the “Madres” takes place. The “Madres” are victims of a period in Argentine history known as the years of the Dirty War. Between 1976 and 1983 the country was run by a military dictatorship which mercilessly eradicated any opposition to the government. 30,000 people “disappeared” in that time and have not been seen since. The mothers of these missing people still live in hope and stand united in public vigil once a week, thus bringing public attention and notoriety to their cause. The strength and solidarity of these women is awe-inspiring. |
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| A typical Tango street performance |
Once one of the most flourishing Latin American countries it is hard to comprehend the dramatic way in which the Argentine economy had plummeted. Home to an abundance of natural resources, a highly educated populace and seen in the early 1990s as an example of economic success by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, how did Argentina find itself in the largest loan repayment default in history? Imposed neo-liberal policies, structural adjustment programmes and political corruption were the main reasons for this economic disaster, explained Martin Bergel. |
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| Graffiti on the walls of a bank, stating that banks are thieves |
Martin Bergel is an historian at the University of Buenos Aires. He came onboard from Rio do Janeiro to Buenos Aires to give background information on the economic crisis that hit Argentina in December 2001. However the main focus of his lectures and tour was to show the people’s reaction to this chaotic situation. Following the initial collapse of the country’s economic, political and social structures, the disgruntled populace took to the streets. In the space of a few days, people could no longer access their funds and were therefore forced to seek other ways of surviving without money. This gave birth to a huge three-tiered social movement: radical left wing revolt, moderate socialist activists and economically independent communities. It is the latter which shows the birth of a positive from a negative situation. |
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| Peace Boat presenting a banner to celebrate the end of the school’s first academic year |
MTDs (Movimiento de Trabajadores Desocupados or Movement of Unemployed Workers) are small gatherings of families who refuse to be financially controlled by the state once again. In 2002 groups of people came together to share their wares and skills, starting a system of barter and non-monetary trade as opposed to the capitalist system they had been brought up with. As a consequence they realized how much aggression and greed capitalism and neo-liberalism had brought to their country. Peace Boat participants visited the MTD community in the Matanza district of Buenos Aires and were amazed at the autonomous success of the projects and innovative ideas of the people within the community. By working together, they have already managed to open their own publishing house, publish two books and open a school, which educates both the local children and their parents. |
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| Che Guevarra, a national symbol of everlasting hope for the socialist movement |
Over the past few years there has also been a movement to save factories from bankruptcy. Peace Boat visited the IMPA (the Argentine industries of metals and plastics), one of the 200 recovered factories of Buenos Aires. They were shown how 130 of the 3000 redundant workers occupy the factory in 1998 at a moment when owners had been disengaging progressively from their responsibility. The workers, motivated by the real need of preserving their employment in the context of a general economic degradation, created a cooperative and resume the production by their only means and know-how. The factory, in spite of the urgent need for financial investment, has been running well, providing stable and reasonable incomes for the workers and their families over the past 7 years.
The older Japanese participants were able to empathize with the plight of the Argentinean people in the face of economic disaster, as they experienced a very similar situation post World War II. They were able to relate and compare these two economic crisis and learn that lack of capitalism does not mean poverty.
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| A giant puppet show on the effects of global warming, directed by Malia Burkhart |
During Peace Boat’s two-day visit to Buenos Aires, the conference of parties of the Convention of Climate Change (COP10) was taking place to discuss the various mechanisms of the Kyoto protocol. In order to express support of the Kyoto process, Peace Boat, together with international NGO Friends of the Earth organization, gave an open air public event at Plaza Italia, addressing the subject of global warming and climate change. A giant sized puppet show, slide show, music and dance performances as well as statements from both organizations were the main features of the event. |
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| Minoru Shizuka and Ken Rhodes with their home made bamboo boat, with the message “What can 6.5 billion people do? 6.5 billion drops of water make an ocean of change”. |
Peace Boat’s statement was loosely based on the folktale of the hummingbird and the words of Severn Suzuki, daughter of the Canadian environmentalist, David Suzuki. The story of the hummingbird demonstrates that just by carrying a little water in his beak, the hummingbird is trying, bit by bit, to extinguish a fire. The message is that we can all reduce environmental destruction and global warming by doing whatever we can, however big or small. |
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