At the end of the 18th century, England was the most powerful nation in the world, equipped with an invincible navy which nobody dared challenge. When the representatives of the thirteen North American colonies met for the first time to reject the new customs proposals received from the motherland, they never imagined the consequences of their actions. This was a historic crossroads and the decision of that generation defined the destiny of the United States of America. This was not an isolated incident. History is full of situations like this. Each period of profound crisis gave way to a new form of world order, old colonies emerged as powerful nations, while invincible empires declined to the status of colonies. These are times of risks and possibilities. Not every crisis generates such possibilities. We have to see whether or not the current crisis, which has hardly been initiated, will bring our destiny into question. The strategy of the United States for our continent imposes the construction of the FTAA. They are attempting to expand and radicalise the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In practice, the FTAA will make it possible to totally de-regulate all of the Latin American economies and consequently dissolve their role as sovereign states. If the FTAA is viable, what will Brazil´s destiny be? It can definitely be stated that our economy is orientated towards a central economic matrix, we are lacking our own funds, without an autonomous political economy and subordinated to external forces for decisions regarding our legal system. In other words, we fit perfectly into the classic definition of a colony. Nation or colony? Caio Prado Junior taught us that all populations evolve, have great foresight and a definite sense of history. In our case, we were born as a colony and our sense of the future has arisen from the capacity to change this ´non nation´ into a true nation. Therefore we are experiencing a crisis of destiny. Our ability to impede the FTAA in the following years depends on the role we play in this new period of history. This is our great challenge: To construct a powerful mass movement that makes the FTAA non-viable. It will not be an easy task. We have to be aware and to mobilise and organise thousands of grassroots activists in the coming years. The national plebiscite has hardly begun. It will be a key teaching instrument with which to insert the population into the centre of the debate. Every activist can set up a ballot box and collect votes. Everybody can participate. It will be a unique opportunity to awaken anti-imperialistic consciousness, to organise grassroots activists and debate with the population the necessity to construct an alternative. The fight against the FTAA demands patience and boldness and will possibly be the most important victory for the Brazilian population yet: Our second and definitive independence. * Ricardo Gebrim is a member of the National Co-ordination for the Referendum Movement. MST Informa
Volume 1 – Number 18
Sunday, 4th August 2002