Ernesto Laclau ―Argentinean philosopher closely linked to the governments of 21st century Socialism― in his book, Populist Reason, affirms that populism is a way of constructing the political.
If we focus on Laclau’s definition, populism would be a way of granting identity to a social group, which we will call “people”, a carrier of all possible virtues, and, at the same time, creating the “anti-people”, anyone who does not accept populist postulates becomes the enemy. In short, if the people are perfection on earth, they are incapable of making mistakes. Ergo, everything you do will always be in pursuit of a “better” future.
Although many thinkers, Axel Kaizer, for example, have knocked down the fallacies and sophisms of populist discourse, since it is nothing more than a set of empty sentimentality and unrealizable proposals. However, no one has bothered to analyze who is part of the populist people, who when they enter into destabilizing action are renamed: Social Movements
Recent history, especially of Bolivia, Chile, Colombia and Ecuador, shows us that social movements are the sum of people asking for claims, in a certain sense fair, leftist idealists – those confused ones who venerate Che Guevara even without knowing him – and criminal groups, gangs, in particular.
Max Manwaring ―one of the greatest connoisseurs of the gang movement worldwide― explains the evolution of the gangs in the region. Let’s see
Gangs have evolved through three generations of development. The first generation gangs are oriented to the domination of small territories. They have unsophisticated leadership, and focus their attention on sowing fear around their closest areas (neighborhoods, communes, slums or neighborhoods)
In contrast, second generation gangs have a more centralized leadership. Likewise, members tend to focus on drug trafficking and market protection. They also operate in a broader geographic area that may include neighboring cities and other countries. The Mara Salvatrucha, Los Mongols, Los Wah Ching or Los Angeles del Infierno are examples of this type of gang.
Finally, third generation gangs develop into highly sophisticated transnational criminal organizations with ambitious political and economic agendas. In relation to this, they begin to control territories within a State (they form republiquetas). In addition, they acquire the power to blackmail and overthrow governments. This action aims to guarantee security and freedom of movement for illicit activities, including large-scale drug trafficking.
The Sao Paulo Forum meets all the requirements to be classified as a third generation gang. Since it is a transnational threat with the capacity to de jure shake the sovereignty of nations. For example, when Diosdado Cabello mentioned: “The Bolivarian breeze that runs through the region will become a hurricane”, he was declaring war on all of Latin America, just remember Chile 2019, Bolivia 2020 (the oxygen blockade), Colombia 2021 and, recently, Ecuador.
Additionally, at the end of June of this year, Marcos Valerio ―who is sentenced to 37 years in prison for bribing legislators during the government of Lula Da Silva― revealed some alleged links between the Workers Party and the First Capital Command, the most dangerous gang in Brazil. Something that would not be new, since the PCC has had a close relationship with El Socialismo del Siglo 21 since 2002.
Right now, my native Bolivia is suffering a bloodbath generated by gangs linked to drug trafficking. Things are going so badly that parliamentarians from the Movement Towards Socialism -Rolando Cuellar, specifically- accuse the leadership of their party of receiving “hot” money.
However, that would only be one of the direct relations between Evo Morales’ party and the cartels. Well, there are more than fifteen cases of MAS leaders involved in illicit businesses, including Rómer Gutiérrez and Carmen Lima Lobo (mother of one of Bolivia’s bigwigs).
In conclusion, populism is the rhetorical device used by the Sao Paulo Forum to generate bloody conflicts in our nations. It is not politics, it is a transnational crime directed from Havana.
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