- Post-9/11, Washington sponsored four coup d'etats. Two
succeeded - mostly recently in Honduras in 2009 against Manuel Zelaya,
and in Haiti in 2004 deposing Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Two others failed
- in Venezuela in 2002 against Hugo Chavez, and on September 30 in Ecuador
against Rafael Correa - so far. Two by Bush, two by Obama with plenty of
time for more mischief before November 2012.
-
- From his record so far, expect it. He continues imperial
Iraq and Afghanistan wars and occupations. In addition, Pakistan, Yemen,
Somalia, Palestine, Lebanon, North Korea, and other countries are targeted,
besides deploying CIA and Special Forces armies into at least 75 countries
worldwide for targeted assassinations, drone attacks, and other disruptive
missions.
-
- More than ever under Bush and Obama, America rampages
globally, Ecuador's Raphael Correa lucky to survive a plot to oust (or
perhaps kill) him. September world headlines explained, including by New
York Times writer Simon Romero headlining, "Standoff in Ecuador Ends
With Leader's Rescue," saying:
-
- "Ecuadorean soldiers stormed a police hospital Thursday
night in Quito where President Rafael Correa was held by rebellious elements
of the police forces, and rescued him amid an exchange of gunfire...."
-
- AlJazeera explained more in an article headlined, "Ecuador
declares state of emergency," saying:
-
- Coup plotters shut down airports, blocked highways, burned
tires, and "rough(ed) up the president." They also took over
an airbase, parliament, and Quito streets, the pretext being a law restructuring
their benefits, despite Correa doubling police wages.
-
- In fact, Washington's fingerprints are on another attempt
against a Latin leader, some (not all) of whose policies fall short of
neoliberal extremism.
-
- A tipoff was State Department spokesman, Phillip Crowley,
saying we're "monitoring (not denouncing) the situation," much
like it refused to condemn Zelaya's ouster, instead calling on "all
political and social actors in Honduras to respect democratic norms, the
rule of law, and the tenets of the Inter-American Democratic Charter."
Most other Latin states demanded his "immediate and unconditional
return," whether or not they meant it.
-
- Washington opposes Correa for Ecuador's ties to Hugo
Chavez and Bolivarian Alliance of the Americas (ALBA) membership, a WTO/NAFTA
alternative based on principles of:
-
- -- complementarity, not competition;
-
- -- cooperation, not exploitation; and
-
- -- respect for each nation's sovereignty, free from corporate
and outside control.
-
- Though falling short of these goals, ALBA nations, in
principle, pledged:
-
- -- to benefit and empower their citizens;
-
- -- provide essential goods and services; and
-
- -- achieve real grassroots economic growth to improve
the lives of ordinary people and reduce poverty.
-
- ALBA membership, however, signals opposition to US hegemony,
especially its neoliberal model, dominance, dismissiveness, and one-way
trade deals for the Global North over the South, the curse Latin states
have endured for decades, besides earlier US-sponsored coups and belligerency.
-
- Fast Moving Developments
-
- Before his rescue, police spokesman Richard Ramirez told
AP that "the chief of the national police, Gen. Freddy Martinez, presented
Correa with his irrevocable resignation because of Thursday's events."
-
- On October 1, the Russian Information Agency, Novosti
headlined, "Ecuador in chaos as police put president in hospital,"
saying:
-
- Correa remained hospitalized....one person was killed
and dozens injured during (street) riots." After Ecuadorean military
and special police forces rescued him, Correa told the national radio in
a phone interview:
-
- "This is a coup d'etat attempt by opposition forces.
They resorted to (violence) because they will not win the election. I call
on the citizens to stay calm."
-
- After being attacked by tear gas, he was hospitalized,
then prevented from leaving when rebel police and coup supporters surrounded
the building. Inside he said, "It seems that the hospital is under
siege....(The) conspiracy (was) planned long ago," and he knows where.
He added, "I will leave (the hospital) as president, or they will
have to carry my corpse out of here."
-
- His government declared a state of emergency. Flights
from Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport were suspended, then
resumed early October 1. In addition, scattered violence and looting was
reported in several Ecuadorean cities, including the capital.
-
- Freed by soldiers, a visibly angry Correa addressed a
huge crowd of supporters from the presidential palace, saying:
-
- "Ecuadorean blood, the blood of our brothers has
been needlessly spilled. You have mobilized to support the national government....the
citizens' revolution, democracy in our fatherland. When we realized we
couldn't talk and wanted to leave, they attacked the president. They threw
tear gas at us, straight at our faces. They had to take me to the police
hospital where they held me hostage. They wouldn't let me leave. They shamed
the institution (the police). They will need to leave the ranks."
-
- While still captive, Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino
urged supporters to "walk peacefully to the hospital, where the president
is blocked by (rebel) police officers." On arriving, they shouted,
"This is not Honduras. Correa is president. Down with the coup, down
with the enemies of the people."
-
- Ecuador remains in flux. As a result, new developments
need close monitoring. Writing for the Council on Hemispheric Affairs,
Andres Ochoa said:
-
- Before the coup attempt, "Correa seemed an untouchable
figure in Ecuadorian politics. However, his presidency might very well
be defined by the outcome of this day, and his political projects may rest
on the results."
-
- A Final Comment
-
- On October 1, AFP writer Alexander Martinez headlined,
"Ecuador president rescued from police uprising," saying:
-
- Correa "made a triumphant return to the presidential
palace after loyalist troops rescued him from a police rebellion amid gunfire
and street clashes that left at least two dead" and dozens wounded.
-
- "We got him out, we got him out," Interior
Vice Minister Edwin Jarrin told AFP.
-
- "The rescue capped a dramatic day of violence and
confusion that began early Thursday" when rebel police assaulted him.
-
- After his rescue, Correa thanked the military and a police
special operations unit, saying:
-
- "If not for them, this horde of savages that wanted
to kill, that wanted blood, would have entered the hospital to look for
the president and I probably wouldn't (be) telling you this because I would
have passed on to a better life." Supporters are grateful not yet.
-
- Commenting on developments, Latin American expert James
Petras explained that Ecuador's "ELITE MILITARY" put down the
coup. In 2008, Interior Minister Gustavo Jahlk "denounced" Washington
"for subverting police."
-
- At the same time, there's "legitimate protest by
trade unions against Correa's austerity plan, which the right exploited,
seeing the pro-Correa forces divided." In addition, some NGOs and
"supposed Indian groups who tacitly supported the coup are on the
take from America's National Endowment of Democracy (NED) and USAID,"
the usual suspects with a long disruptive history throughout the region
and beyond.
-
- Their operatives weren't on the streets visibly, but
they expressed no opposition to coup plotters. Instead, "Their statement
called for the government's replacement," meaning it's Obama administration
policy - not for Correa's domestic policies, says Petras. It's for his
"ties with US arch enemy Chavez and ALBA."
-
- Events remain fluid and fast moving. Stay tuned for more
updates.
-
- Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com
and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the
Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays
at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs
are archived for easy listening.
-
- http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
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