[P2P-F] Fwd: [Networkedlabour] Fwd: Valparaiso, Chile: Solidarity, Resistance, Recovery

Michel Bauwens michel at p2pfoundation.net
Mon Jun 9 00:46:43 CEST 2014 

fyi

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Örsan Şenalp <orsan1234 at gmail.com>
Date: fyiSun, Jun 1, 2014 at 10:29 AM
Subject: [Networkedlabour] Fwd: Valparaiso, Chile: Solidarity, Resistance,
Recovery
To: "networkedlabour at lists.contrast.org" <networkedlabour at lists.contrast.org>,
commoning <commoning at lists.wissensallmende.de>


Commons Valpariso...

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: peter waterman <peterwaterman1936 at gmail.com>
Date: 1 June 2014 17:17
Subject: Valparaiso, Chile: Solidarity, Resistance, Recovery
To: WSFDiscuss List <WorldSocialForum-Discuss at openspaceforum.net>, Debate
is a listserve that attempts to promote information and analyses of
interest to the independent left in South and Southern Africa <
debate-list at fahamu.org>, Örsan Şenalp <orsan1234 at gmail.com>,
CRITICAL-LABOUR-STUDIES at jiscmail.ac.uk, gina vargas <ginvargas at gmail.com>




Emily Achtenberg: Solidarity, Resistance, and Recovery Z Communications
Daily Commentary

On May 24, a coalition of neighborhood groups, students, labor unions, and
other civil society organizations convened a popular assembly
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dgy6lZatuy7uxvcwv0zG51FYu-2BfOqZoT13piqPVv4kgpdYBud1rB-2BWOi50J-2BY5I9-2BE-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FYnh8ZlPaWm9zB5rIVdKC9hYRflpXRKoKaFf5WTiL-2FXaqa21LDOwfM9W7DinGUtXE0h9Cg2Pw4x401UxSH-2BfNDcz6VyuhH843UkuPShgy3HlkNpx4Oo7oYQHsMYgC786po-2FyZZTW558dDmDlTHMqYvw-3D-3D>
in Valparaíso, the major Chilean port city devastated by a raging fire last
month. Announcing their aim to develop a grassroots plan for the recovery
and reconstruction of Valparaíso, the *Coordinadora *for the Defense of
Valparaíso also demanded a temporary freeze on construction permits and the
resignation of right-wing mayor Jorge Castro.

“The destruction and abandonment of Valparaíso, of which this conflagration
is an unfortunate result, has authors who must assume [responsibility for]
the consequences of their reproachable acts and omissions,” the
Coordinadora’s statement
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dikK75h1IbUij72xXak4ydahr-2FLZBI5rxVHgYg21yGdT0hl6DW-2BAidVNCvOWMf3Qvs-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FWgGVBXIvCLXSWUoTOiWZXOUHd7urMR09P7WEK3jKNslhlP0G-2BMmxX3BQNrgAHWa6uPpDNnZPMY4dBbLxARGYqQYav52tYzCxgoJbOJhsZnjD9cNAyNrXz1etuQBrAOquBNKICOZhVKdkPG9lei6q5g-3D-3D>
reads in part. The Coordinadora blames powerful political and economic
interests for the “twin tragedies” of abandonment and real estate
speculation that are destroying Valparaíso, and wants them to be held
accountable.

The April 12 fire—the worst in Valparaíso’s history—raged for 5 days,
scorching more than four square miles of land on seven hillsides. The
conflagration destroyed 3,000 houses, killed 15 people, and left 12,000
homeless. The city remained under military control for a month.

Valparaíso, a UNESCO world heritage site, is famous for its unique
topography and architecture, characterized by brightly painted, improvised
wooden houses that climb the steep hillsides, forming a natural
amphitheater that overlooks the port. It is a city of political contrasts,
the birthplace of both Salvador Allende and Augusto Pinochet. Boasting a
strong union base that provided a bastion of popular support for Allende,
it is also the home of the Chilean navy, from which the 1973 military coup
was launched.

Today, Valparaíso is an increasingly popular elite tourist destination, as
well as a focal point for Chile’s combative student movement. Economically,
its population has one of the most unequal
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dhUj5Baz8MJO4LRK-2FQwDNgrDvwPtJiL-2BjOYgOuNPihY2BtqPr75EXFpslZdSHL-2BQw4-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2F-2BmmHvE3U6l7mzsNG3L41TvuNduI-2FjmI83hwaQkkTEY8GPCeYIdQlNc5bf1X3BZL5h5qiC9pYGNpeJA-2BugA0WCjOQ8TUY0dn2crMvPj8eff1GOu868kDZAfYCKrvQd6kUc03VdjBwb4kCAEIl694-2BBQ-3D-3D>income
distributions in Chile. Twenty-two percent of the city’s residents live
below the poverty line, compared to a national average of 14%.

Like most South American cities, Valparaíso’s development patterns reflect
its rigid class divisions, with the wealthy occupying the coastal flatlands
in the center and impoverished families spreading out over the heights on
the northern and southern periphery. The areas most affected by the fire
were poor hillside communities, settled by urban migrant families through a
continuing process of land takeovers that has occurred since the early
1970s. Reportedly, Valparaíso—Chile’s third largest metropolitan region—has
the largest number
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dhUj5Baz8MJO4LRK-2FQwDNgrDvwPtJiL-2BjOYgOuNPihY2BtqPr75EXFpslZdSHL-2BQw4-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FV6CTZ5lc9AjIlwBE7tyq7vfOr-2FdBODOgynbAYR4Hch4WIEvcRt3nYTcCtyszi8qMbLQtDc3U11Yh2F2quqiguPmY-2F7WkBSjnaFkBZERR2U8lcWMAyKeMpZKPyqFGetbbF1qY5utn2hOxunTEGpWThg-3D-3D>
of *campamentos *(informal settlements) in the country.

According to a recent government survey
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dg4zrpjrkGdfieV1gDOrSVTiTkHj6KQ1W1PyoW-2F4VgIKRfznrXVnDQfJMq7D2Ry4PM-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FV-2BmDFQAeRuN-2FQZXUGaCK84sHAzayQqxo7uyrGnYgtF-2Bd6DTLFFXGd-2BT-2FefCF-2FnIGgfjkcJpAYc0UGum-2Fb4085BNZCfcxYFpAfbM4FjHkKJNjO0pxYFWCOixFhKz-2FSwNj3pQUUJic7qzkfZAMgu-2FmHQ-3D-3D>of
nine campamentos that were completely destroyed by the fire, 83% of the
affected resident households are headed by women, most of whom work in the
informal sector as street vendors or carton recyclers. Sixty percent of the
population is under the age of 30. Many displaced families lack formal
title to their land, potentially compromising their eligibility for
government rehousing and rebuilding subsidies. As a result, they have
chosen to remain camped out amidst the charred remnants of their homes
rather than relocate to temporary government shelters and risk permanent
eviction.

To be sure, fires—fanned by strong coastal summer winds and spreading
quickly over difficult-to-access hillsides—have plagued Valparaíso
throughout its history. In recent years, prolonged drought and unseasonably
high temperatures associated with climate change have exacerbated the risks
of these natural conditions. But, as Sebastián Gray
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dgJ6gbOW0AnH7AfOS1ISdn3L2scvLp0eKZFUdD8amZqIya4vjSoFPk0pXm5OIwX-2F6A-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FDN85qMwgGCO2uN22zxZkF7VBlPGrobEUOQbyZZykHRbK-2F70WtdJdKKP853Q6SDB0cCKy-2BHI8ZvKkyy80zAvUbbp-2BlGnEUgA-2BQJlT7UiDbuy8UkLLWEXLdpgX-2FJ4OBLPDAkDk68WzXLkKZ1i6pCexuA-3D-3D>,
president of Chile’s College of Architects, notes, the recent fire also
represents a colossal political failure of the state in terms of urban
planning, design, infrastructure, public services, and regulation. “The
fire is the result of a complete lack of [governmental] responsibility that
has accumulated over the past 40 years, as the city has grown,” Gray
charges.

Apart from regularizing some land titles, according to Gray, the city has
done little to address the problems caused by unregulated peripheral
growth. It has not discouraged settlements in the most precarious zones, or
redesigned narrow, winding hillside streets to accommodate emergency
vehicles. It has abandoned the water supply system invented by
Valaparaíso’s firefighters and municipal workers 100 years ago, which
utilized a large hilltop reservoir for storage (the reservoir is finally
now being renovated). The lack of working fire hydrants and water supply
sources on the hilltops was a principal abetting cause of the fire.

Mounting combustible garbage in the ravines, due to the city’s failure to
provide adequate hillside trash collection services, also fueled the fire’s
rapid spread. Valparaíso residents blame Mayor Castro for failing to
protest when ex-president Sebastián Piñera cancelled
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dgAtznFxEXYMPgcoW6-2BM5Rnn00M8fDBuQFSfzZqA6ozafXvCwtGdM-2FJbhuCVM48oAI-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FJDwuQLvrOEQtEd4pL40wv2LO5AItXxIM3DaBxAq1IkWhwnVzkE1ULvWNx9-2BOSJ37xD1esqfYsPfw-2FXSBYbjao33pxJVG2nT-2F-2FEwLdGtYID9H8owYxmXP-2BUzNG7gQYshM-2FqGEmt-2BZ09FgSlNNi4JzIA-3D-3D>
national funding for a ravine cleanup program several years ago. According
to Gray, over the years the Chilean state has increasingly abandoned its
municipalities to fend for themselves, leading to extreme disparities in
the level of services provided by rich and poor cities. Historically,
despite its strategic importance as a port city, Valparaíso has been
cash-strapped—in part because the port does not pay
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dgJ6gbOW0AnH7AfOS1ISdn3L2scvLp0eKZFUdD8amZqIya4vjSoFPk0pXm5OIwX-2F6A-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FgxHe3KLg-2BPxxpZCAsmFalAtu4U27Q0kxkaqalBfg8aLg7TqTyDswhK-2B51KNPgLdXCpjHY4GaGZSfiyxFDiSXxd8RXYb8URX6XvBol-2FPsPYyMQFefQVQiWsaqAohFNIlpJMNSrrbpzlVtnTI4aRxNsA-3D-3D>
for its use of city services and the costs it imposes on the municipality.

While ignoring the needs of Valparaíso’s poorest residents, the city’s
political and economic elites have encouraged downtown redevelopment
projects like the Barón Mall
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2djqmhJB3dgy5zcB393j-2Fdqe9MI8B0aLSsD454ok7PmtzXgS-2BhTjm17wii1Vh5AuU3Y-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2F8fyG9S0pDTOF-2BoUn6OkGmdGTWArmoKHXJsQJg2DwYX3uEEP9gFvCsSRFoGdoKKILApG-2BiKIluowsS-2FMVJo4t2IiFqXG8kIwVVFoWhPWytYyLv-2Bm3SiLe-2FDtKRc-2BgIhgRB2oc77cnAQU9M21upawJUw-3D-3D>,
a massive harbor-side shopping center with superstores and hotels now under
construction by a private company on land acquired (cheaply) from the port.
The national Housing Ministry is slated to provide more than $21 million in
subsidies to the project. Although UNESCO recently warned that the
development could jeopardize Valparaíso’s status as a world heritage site,
both municipal and national authorities have vowed to proceed with it.

Meanwhile, the government’s post-disaster response has been widely
criticized as inadequate, disorganized, and delayed. Mayor Castro provoked
his own political firestorm by responding
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2djrbNvFtUkf-2BsJbSQRKTXESP-2BLjN0z5TLglqOzit3ED12ldFJ5FvLMFKYu9PEcWQQA-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FHnUFSWiv7ImAt9TUC6wF-2F5AkBxXo3WZFYQHSmEf88HF6z7og3ibZjcJ8nhBbU-2FUGibUmFUWELoxxhyGOJV2ZAKVKLEYLXVp4X7lR8oVmtlCYr4nfj3Xm84D622PjtGgrg-2F9N9txJ-2FAtWx6PS4unGEQ-3D-3D>
to an irate fire victim, “Who invited you to live here?” At least one group
of displaced residents has threatened to go on hunger strike in protest.

In stark contrast to the failures of the state, Valparaíso’s fire victims
have experienced an unprecedented outpouring of solidarity and support from
civil society organizations. Thousands of volunteers have been mobilized by
labor unions, community organizations, local soccer clubs, and, especially,
student groups, to assist families with day-to-day survival, cleanup, and
rebuilding activities.

Communal cooking facilities
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dhHnZbOQufOPORSpphi5IbAWZwmgTXt-2F0qkZh7dLDv47VlTnI0YVubkMvCPYrkLNOU-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FFEUQ4xFKX4kvCpT4aDlcfeCtOVi7zUtMUoEej3oFlgTWric6xmHgKoElFKTEhx-2BWRJLCrQy2WExTypHSRfEChfC9tAZjPsPDTGbOx6nXpjGjT0dTl3wKZztlbp6vjTwcEOCQq3oB3IXrtX7VWG2QNw-3D-3D>(reminiscent
of “*Las Ollas Comunas*”—the “common pot” soup kitchens from the
dictatorship era) have been established in affected neighborhoods by youth
and worker organizations, spawned by a social media campaign labeled “*Una
Cuadra, Una Cocina*” (“one block, one kitchen”). Local agricultural
suppliers have donated truckloads of produce. Students
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2dgXL2TxRv2XszgXpKVSmzBiEtTW-2FeZC-2FhtcIaExG6Z-2BV9Tbm6KlF2643cTLe4I2e8o-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2FtzQO2RAES5pwhk-2F7atK5cOgX4J3SvFHOEUN4upgjonYebktxcPZw4cxPevxYJ9R084pu-2BRlCVyajwu0rsLx7NlSV9meDEFHdtvcLC7WWKSoPBiQeRrAj2-2FZddnF7YOMlAg-2BB50bxrD24E7PBvN-2FHig-3D-3D>at
three universities launched a “solidarity strike” to demand time away from
classes for volunteer work. These community-led and self-managed relief
efforts have proved to be much more successful than the state’s formal
disaster response.

Similar to the links forged between Occupy activists and communities
decimated by Hurricane Sandy, these alliances have now given rise to a
nascent community-based reconstruction planning initiative. In both
situations, daunting challenges and questions remain. Should residents be
allowed (or entitled) to return and rebuild on precarious sites that pose a
continuing environmental risk? Can a disparate grassroots coalition born of
disaster maintain sufficient unity and political leverage to affect the
outcome of a protracted reconstruction planning process? From New York City
to Valparaíso, whether an urban catastrophe can become an opportunity for
progressive change remains to be seen.

*Emily Achtenberg is an urban planner and the author of NACLA’s *Rebel
Currents* blog, covering Latin American social movements and progressive
governments (nacla.org/blog/rebel-currents
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=9PHos1J7-2FD2Lw6jereECeNLGs3ocss1O2kcgD4VkZGzNB08H5a0-2F7oLbRs6XGH5XMznf-2Bp5RNoDiodwPt5x0EXI-2FwbZm8IcPDUsUohss2difp9UUfYal7qn-2B0uNjfg9BOmCHJPu8UQSlRa1JNUU6O-2B3D9B-2F-2FgAuTVXbznbXhN68-3D_N4B-2Bv1F4-2F1jAyC0cyQWlK1j-2FodWP3k-2B9nh5nJdNMXaLjdw0-2FdEWiT0vnL2i1yOw-2F7RYkETDHqzOnSxdCI06i-2BP-2Fv1vy59w8WLU8aqGGedQVNtDlKzXsvO4D30LAT64iz0REJwNXk81kQkoY3PCEeBAsJUqILlQVVgqgRpyzr-2F8nldsAwgtbKX30IRG-2BpWBf7V6aJPTcJruI1WbQkjeGj5Q-3D-3D>).*
 --

   1. *EBook, November 2012: Recovering Internationalism
   <http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/recovering_internationalism/>.  [A
   compilation of papers from the new millenium. Now free in two download
   formats] <http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/world_social_forum/>
   <http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/world_social_forum/>*
   2.
*EBook (co-editor), February 2013: World Social Forum: Critical
   Explorations http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/world_social_forum/
   <http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/world_social_forum/> *
   3. *Interface Journal Special (co-editor), November 2012: For the Global
   Emancipation of Labour <http://www.interfacejournal.net/current/>*
   4. *Blog: http://www.unionbook.org/profile/peterwaterman.
   <http://www.unionbook.org/profile/peterwaterman.> *
   5. *Interface Journal Special (Co-Editor) Social Movement
   Internationalisms. See Call for Papers <http://www.interfacejournal.net/>,
   (Deadline: May 1, 2014). *
   6.
*Needed: a Global Labour Charter Movement (2005-Now!)
   <http://interfacejournal.nuim.ie/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Interface-1-2-pp255-262-Waterman.pdf>*
   7. *Under, Against, Beyond: Labour and Social Movements Confront a
   Globalised, Informatised Capitalism
   <http://www.into-ebooks.com/book/under-against-beyond/>(2011) Almost 1,000
   pages of Working Papers, free, from the 1980 <1980>'s-90's.*
   8. *Google Scholar Citation Index:*
    *http://scholar.google.com.pe/citations?user=e0e6Qa4AAAAJ
   <http://scholar.google.com.pe/citations?user=e0e6Qa4AAAAJ> *


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