Bolivarianism

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Bolivarianism is a set of political doctrines that enjoys currency in parts of South America, especially Venezuela. Bolivarianism is eponymous with Simón Bolívar, the 19th century Venezuelan general and liberator who led the struggle for independence throughout much of South America. One of the main ideals of "Bolivarianism" is promoting the unification of Latin America^{[citation needed]}. The most prominent exponent and architect of modern Bolivarianism is currently Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez.

Contents 1 Components 2 Other definitions and dispute 3 Chavismo 4 Notes 5 External links 6 See also

[edit] Components

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In recent years, its most significant political manifestation is in the government of Venezuela's president Hugo Chávez, who since the beginning of his presidency has called himself a Bolivarian patriot and applied his interpretation of several of Bolívar's ideals to everyday affairs, as part of the Bolivarian Revolution. That included the 1999 Constitution, which changed Venezuela's name to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and other ideas such as the Bolivarian Schools, Bolivarian Circles, and the Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela. Often, the term Bolivarianism is used specifically to refer to Chávez's rule. The central points of Bolivarianism, as extolled by Chávez^{[citation needed]}, are:

• Venezuelan economic and political sovereignty (anti-imperialism).
• Grassroots political participation of the population via popular votes and referenda (participatory democracy).
• Economic self-sufficiency (in food, consumer durables, etc...).
• Instilling in people a national ethic of patriotic service.
• Equitable distribution of Venezuela's vast oil revenues.
• Eliminating corruption.

Chávez's version of Bolivarianism, although drawing heavily from Simón Bolívar's ideals, was also influenced by the writings of Marxist historian Federico Brito Figueroa and Argentinian political scientist Norberto Ceresole.^{[citation needed]} Chávez was also thoroughly steeped in the South American tradition of socialism and communism early in his life, such as that practiced by Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and Salvador Allende. Other key influences on Chávez's political philosophy include Ezequiel Zamora and Simón Rodríguez. This has been seen as seemingly contradictory, as Bolivar viewed himself as a supporter of free-markets and liberal rights, whilst current "Bolivarianism" includes neo-Marxist policies. Although Chávez himself refers to his ideology as Bolivarianismo ("Bolivarianism"), Chávez's supporters and opponents in Venezuela refer to themselves as being either for or against "chavismo," indicating a public perception that Chávez's political philosophy does not originate from Bolívar so much as from his own views^{[citation needed]}. Thus, Chávez supporters refer to themselves not as "Bolivarians" or "Bolivarianists," but rather as "chavistas."^{[citation needed]}

Later in his life, Chávez would acknowledge the role that democratic socialism (a form of socialism that emphasizes grassroots democratic participation) plays in Bolivarianism. For example, on January 30, 2005 at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, Chávez declared his support for democratic socialism as integral to Bolivarianism, proclaiming that humanity must embrace "a new type of socialism, a humanist one, which puts humans, and not machines or the state, ahead of everything."^[1] He later reiterated this sentiment in a February 26 speech at the 4th Summit on Social Debt held in Caracas.

[edit] Other definitions and dispute

Historically, there has been no universally accepted definition as to the proper use of the terms Bolivarianism and Bolivarian within all the countries in the region. Many different leaders, movements and parties have indistinctly used them to describe themselves throughout most of the 19th and 20th centuries.

People who have called themselves bolivarianos claim to follow the general ideology expressed in Bolívar's texts such as the Carta de Jamaica and the Discurso de Angostura. Some of Bolívar's ideas include forming a union of Latin American countries, providing public education, and enforcing sovereignty to fight against foreign invasion, which has been interpreted to include economic domination by foreign powers. An example of such a union was Gran Colombia, a block of countries consisting of Venezuela, Colombia,Panamá (part of New Granada in that time) and Ecuador.

The Colombian insurgent group FARC has, in recent years, also considered itself to be inspired by Bolívar's ideals and by his role in the 19th century independence struggle against Spain. It has also publicly declared its sympathy towards Hugo Chávez and his Bolivarian Revolution, both of which do not actively confirm or deny any involvement with the insurgent group. It is known that some individual Venezuelan bolivarianos do actively sympathize with the FARC in return, but it is not an automatic occurrence.^{[citation needed]}

A Venezuelan guerrilla organization, the Bolivarian Forces of Liberation, also espouses Bolivarianism, although it is not known if there are any ties to the Venezuelan government.

It is also worthy of notice that, while many Bolivarianists often include Brazil in their plans for unification and integration of South America, this is mostly unknown among Brazilians or widely regarded as a foreign movement, particularly due to the language difference and the fact that not all Brazilians see Brazil as a Latin American country.

[edit] Chavismo

Bolivarianism is also referred to (sometimes pejoratively by its opponents)^[2] as Chavismo or Chavezism.^[3] Adherents are referred to as chavistas.

Several political parties in Venezuela support chavismo. The main party, directly affiliated with Chávez, is the Fifth Republic Movement (Spanish: Movimiento Quinta Republica, usually referred to by the three letters, MVR). Other parties and movements supporting chavismo include Fatherland for All (Spanish: Patria Para Todos or PPT), and Tupamaros.

The left-wing Movement for Socialism (Spanish: Movimiento al Socialismo or MAS ) and Radical Cause (Spanish: Causa R) initially supported chavismo, but they have since distanced themselves from it, and now oppose it.

A 2002 article in The Boston Globe said chavismo "fueled the eruption of public fury that swept the charismatic and confrontational president back into power after a group of military officers deposed him for two days in April in favor of a businessman-president," adding that the "Chavismo phenomenon has almost religious qualities."^[4]

Writing in The Weekly Standard, Thor Halvorssen says that "At [Chavismo's] core is a far-reaching foreign policy that aims to establish a loosely aligned federation of revolutionary republics as a resistance bloc in the Americas. The Chavista worldview sees the globe as a place where the United States, Europe, and Israel must be opposed by militarized one-man regimes."^[5]

According to an article in the New York Sun, Chavezism was rejected in recent elections in Peru, Colombia and Mexico,^[6] and El Universal reports that Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva distanced himself from Chavezism, saying that Brazil is not Venezuela, and has traditional institutions.^[7]

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Karl Marx's article about Bolivar in the New American Encyclopedia 1858
• Hugo Chávez and Bolivarian Nationalism
• The Enduring Spell of Bolívar
• Chavez's Ace - Venezuelan Leader Taps Bolivar Myths, Cults
• (Mis)understanding Chavez and Venezuela in Times of Revolution

[edit] See also

Topics related to Hugo Chávez
Biography	Early life | Military career | Presidency
Political events	Coup attempt of 1992 | Coup attempt of 2002 | Recall referendum of 2004 | Putative coup attempt of 2004
Elections	Presidential election of 1998 | Presidential election of 2000 | Presidential election of 2006
Governance	Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas | Bolivarian Circles | Bolivarianism | Bolivarian Revolution | Cabinet | Chavismo | Constitution | Foreign policy
Bolivarian Missions	Barrio Adentro | Guaicaipuro | Hábitat | Identidad | Mercal | Miranda | Piar | Plan Bolivar 2000 | Ribas | Robinson | Sucre | Vuelta al Campo | Vuelvan Caras | Zamora
Reactions	Criticism | Media representation | ¿¡Revolución!? | The Revolution Will Not Be Televised | Súmate

List of political parties in Venezuela