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DE RUEHLP #1537 1561201
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P 051201Z JUN 07
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UNCLAS LA PAZ 001537 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON BL
SUBJECT: MORALES LASHES OUT AGAINST CAPITALISM AND THE 
MEDIA. 
 
¶1. SUMMARY: The Fifth World Encounter of the Network in 
Defense of Humanity was held May 22-25 in Cochabamba, 
Bolivia. Bolivian President Evo Morales opened the gathering 
of leftist intellectuals and artists with a fiery speech that 
condemned capitalism as the "worst enemy of humanity." His 
hot-tempered speech set the tone for the rest of the summit. 
Not surprisingly, the event's most notable participants were 
from Cuba, Ecuador, and Venezuela, although there were over 
100 attendees from 26 countries. END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. The "World Encounter" May 22-25 in Cochabamba focused on 
the impact of media. Morales, however, used the opportunity 
to accuse capitalism as the enemy of humankind, saying that 
"capitalism brings egotism, individualism, and poverty, 
capitalism brings war, capitalism and imperialism are 
nourished and fed by war." Culture Ministers Abel Prieto of 
Cuba, Francisco Sesto of Venezuela, and Antonio Preciado of 
Ecuador applauded Morales' analysis. 
 
¶3. Morales extended this tone to the summit's main theme, 
media. He told reporters that he "considers media outlets as 
the primary obstacles and source of resistance to the process 
of change." Arguing that media is the result of capital 
concentrated in the hands of a few, he stated that it does 
not serve the people of Bolivia. 
 
¶4. Cuban Minister of Culture Abel Prieto warned that media 
owners who lie should be sentenced to life in prison. 
Striking a similar tone as Morales, he claimed that 
mainstream media ignores the genuine culture of Latin America 
and is only an expression "hegemonic" interests. To counter 
the "hegemonic" influences, the Bolivian, Cuban, and 
Venezuelan governments signed a joint agreement to create an 
observatory that will monitor communications. In addition to 
the observatory, Prieto announced that the three countries 
will establish a tribunal to judge against those who are 
responsible for lies propelled by the media. Ironically, 
participants applauded these pronouncements as steps towards 
the "democratization" of media. 
 
¶5. COMMENT: Whenever Morales appears in public accompanied by 
Cuban and Venezuelan officials, his rhetoric runs hot. It 
remains to be seen just how far Morales is poised to follow 
his mentor Hugo Chavez in pursuing the media. In fact, on May 
26, Morales avoided commenting on RCTV, by stating, "We have 
never thought about shutting down channels, as some have 
distorted, as some media outlets always distort." END 
COMMENT. 
URS