When South American independence hero Simón Bolívar united present day Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Panama into “La Gran Colombia” in 1819, he was fully aware that Latin American integration was still a long way off.
Bolívar, who came from the Spanish nobility himself, died poor and with his visionary republic in tatters.
In the 200 years since the formation of the great Colombian Republic, the unification of the continent remains as elusive as ever.
It seems logical that an area with “mutually intelligible” languages and a common religious foundation should be primed for such union. Looking at the success of the European Union, where language, history and culture have been transcended shows that continental integration is a possibility.
What initiatives exist at the moment?
Organisation of American States (OAS)The OAS describes itself as “the region’s principal multilateral forum for strengthening democracy, promoting human rights, and confronting shared problems such as poverty, terrorism, illegal drugs and corruption.”
Similar in structure to the United Nations, the OAS comprises a Secretariat and a number of specialised councils on matters of security, governance, development, finance and trade and legal matters.
The OAS most recently made significant media headlines during the military impasse between Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela, facilitating an emergency meeting of the nation’s leaders after the March incursion of Colombian armed forces into Ecuador in pursuit of guerrilla group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
Critics have often accused the OAS of being a puppet of the US administration of the day; given the US’s foreign policy misadventures in Latin America under the Monroe Doctrine and position as primary financier of the OAS these evaluations do contain some factual basis.
Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
Looking to expand upon the success (at least from an American standpoint) of the North American Free Trade Agreement that encompasses Canada, the United States and Mexico, the FTAA has been met with some resistance from the rest of the Americas.
Bolívar is tirelessly quoted as saying “The United States appear to be destined by providence to plague America with misery in the name of liberty.” This appears to be a comment that still resonates with Latin Americans, given the regularity with which it is quoted and the significant rejection of the FTAA at the last summit meeting at Mar del Plata, Argentina in 2005.
While the FTAA has never officially been “buried,” despite proclamations to that effect at the time, the follow-up meeting scheduled for 2006 never took place. At the forefront of the resistance to the FTAA were the left-leaning “pink tide” governments of Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador – and to a lesser extent Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez with Argentine footballer (and vocal critic of the FTAA)
Diego Maradona at the Mar del Plata protests which put the FTAA plans on hold indefinitely
http://www.clarin.com/diario/2005/11/04/um/fotos/chavez_tapa.jpg
Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA in Spanish)The “death” of the FTAA was counterpoised by the strengthening of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez’ pet integration project ALBA. With a series of strategic allegiances forming between relatively old allies Venezuela and Cuba and newly-elected leftist governments in Ecuador, Nicaragua and Bolivia, Chávez’ plans for a Bolivarian union of American nations seemed to be gathering momentum.
Three years later, there is evidence that such an alternative is proving attractive. Bolstered by skyrocketing oil prices, Venezuela has become a significant regional power. In early 2008 Dominican President Roosevelt Skerrit indicated his tiny Caribbean Commonwealth nation was to join ALBA, which has put the energy independence initiative Petrocaribe at its centre. As of August moderate Honduran leader Manuel Zelaya also signed up to ALBA.
Chávez’ has however faced a tumultuous year domestically. His push for constitutional reform, including an extension on his presidential term, was rejected in a poll late last year – his first significant electoral defeat. Despite overtures pledging his nation’s commitment to the project, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa is still yet to sign up to the pact.
UNASUR – MercoSUR/CANChávez’ ambitions to develop his own regional trading block also saw Venezuela withdraw in 2006 from what was then known as the Andean Community of Nations (CAN in Spanish) and embark upon a campaign to achieve full member status in the continent’s other major regional bloc MercoSUR – the Southern Cone common market.
At the time, Colombia and Peru were both negotiating bilateral Free Trade Agreements with the US, which Chávez argued as undermining the raison d’être of the Andean Community. Brazil, the economic powerhouse of the Americas, occupies a central role within MercoSUR and appears to hold the cards regarding Venezuela’s admission as a full member.
As of 2008, the two major blocs appear to be integrating, with the formation of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) following the largely symbolic “Cusco Declaration” of 2004. In May a Constitutive Treaty for the Union was signed, advancing the cause of full-scale Latin American integration. Whether it succeeds where its predecessors have failed remains to be seen.
The UNASUR nations, including observers Mexico and Panama and associated Caribbean nations.
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