Coca and the 'Axis of Good'
Evo Morales, the first ever indigenous Bolivian president; an honest, incorruptible politician with an urgent desire to improve the lot of his people, refuses to cut down on the production of coca (the raw material for making cocaine).
"The fight for coca symbolises our fight for freedom," he says. "Coca growers will continue to grow coca. There will never be zero coca."
"You have to realise that, for us, the coca leaf is not cocaine and as such growing coca is not narco-trafficking," he says. "Neither is chewing coca nor making products from it that are separate from narcotics. The coca leaf has had an important role to play in our culture for thousands of years. It is used in many rituals. If, for example, you want to ask someone to marry you, you carry a coca leaf to them. It plays an important role in many aspects of life."
"To the Amerindians, Mama Coca is the daughter of Pachamama, the earth mother. "Before you go to work, especially in agriculture, you will chew some coca leaf," Morales continues. "After lunch, after a nap, you might have some. If you drive long distances for your work, you will chew it to help you stay awake. During the night, you will see police officers on patrol with their cheeks full of coca leaves."
"It is used as tea to combat altitude sickness and made into herbal remedies, including cough mixtures, for a variety of ailments. In the past, popes have used it, kings of Spain, Fidel Castro. In your culture, you might have a cocktail or a glass of wine when we would chew some coca. During the republican era, miners used coca to work harder to send more tin to the US."
Only a couple of years ago, their crops were faced with eradication under a zero-tolerance policy intended to mollify the United States. The US has been spending an average of $150m a year on coca eradication.
Morales said he would be a "nightmare" for the US. During visits to his leftwing political heroes, Cuba's Fidel Castro and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, he poked fun at George Bush, announcing that he and his friends were the new "Axis of Good".
Morales has outlawed corruption in a traditionally corrupt society: he halved his salary on taking office so he could employ more teachers.
"The fight for coca symbolises our fight for freedom," he says. "Coca growers will continue to grow coca. There will never be zero coca."
"You have to realise that, for us, the coca leaf is not cocaine and as such growing coca is not narco-trafficking," he says. "Neither is chewing coca nor making products from it that are separate from narcotics. The coca leaf has had an important role to play in our culture for thousands of years. It is used in many rituals. If, for example, you want to ask someone to marry you, you carry a coca leaf to them. It plays an important role in many aspects of life."
"To the Amerindians, Mama Coca is the daughter of Pachamama, the earth mother. "Before you go to work, especially in agriculture, you will chew some coca leaf," Morales continues. "After lunch, after a nap, you might have some. If you drive long distances for your work, you will chew it to help you stay awake. During the night, you will see police officers on patrol with their cheeks full of coca leaves."
"It is used as tea to combat altitude sickness and made into herbal remedies, including cough mixtures, for a variety of ailments. In the past, popes have used it, kings of Spain, Fidel Castro. In your culture, you might have a cocktail or a glass of wine when we would chew some coca. During the republican era, miners used coca to work harder to send more tin to the US."
Only a couple of years ago, their crops were faced with eradication under a zero-tolerance policy intended to mollify the United States. The US has been spending an average of $150m a year on coca eradication.
Morales said he would be a "nightmare" for the US. During visits to his leftwing political heroes, Cuba's Fidel Castro and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, he poked fun at George Bush, announcing that he and his friends were the new "Axis of Good".
Morales has outlawed corruption in a traditionally corrupt society: he halved his salary on taking office so he could employ more teachers.
posted by deCinabre at 11:46 AM
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