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Tuesday, 13 March 2007 15:37 |
By JIM GENARO
After discussing the links between Mexicoís poverty and the countryís economic ties to the U.S. at UNC Ashevilleís Humanities Lecture Hall on March 6, activist and educator Manuel Palma answered questions from the audience on a variety of topics related to his native Mexico.
The presentation was sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Western North Carolina as part of its Great Decisions 2007 lecture series.
ìYou
seem to be equating the problems in Mexico with NAFTA,î a man noted,
referring to the 1994 treaty that dropped trade barriers between the
U.S. and Mexico. ìBut the coming of NAFTA happened to coincide with the
explosion of the economies of China and India, both of which sucked off
a lot more manufacturing jobs than NAFTA.î
ìThat is true,î
Palma acknowledged. ìThe reason I talk about NAFTA is (because of) what
is happening today with the tortilla prices.î
He said that
Mexican poverty, as exemplified by the current row over the increase in
tortilla prices, is directly related to the rising levels of imports
from the U.S. that have come as a result of NAFTA.
The man
continued to press his point, however, asking ìIs not the problem with
the tortilla prices that the corn is being sucked away for use in
ethanol?î
Palma replied
that different types of corn are used for food and industrial purposes,
but added that industrial corn cultivation has contributed to rising
prices.
ìI know that
corn produced in the U.S. receives subsidies from the U.S. government,î
another man said. He asked whether Mexico subsidizes agriculture as
well.
During the 1990s, the Mexican government did protect farmers there through price controls and subsidies, Palma answered.
However, that
all came to an end when the World Bank dictated a number of policies
that the country had to follow as part of a repayment plan for loans it
had taken out, he added. Among these policies was the elimination of
all farming subsidies.
ìWhat was interesting to see in Mexico was the way that cut happened in a few years,î Palma noted.
ìNow that
President Bush has ëliberatedí Iraq, heís gone to Latin America to
improve them,î a woman in the audience said. ìHow do you think the
independent press in Mexico will view that visit?î
Palma responded that this was a big issue among the Mexican media.
ìWe are not Bushís best friend after Iraq,î he told her.
He noted that the countryís former president, Vicente Fox, was a good friend of Bushís, who was much aligned with his policies.
However, Foxís domestic agenda had been built largely around immigration reform.
ìWhen 9/11 happened and then Iraq, that was completely forgotten,î Palma said.
Now there is growing opposition in Mexico to NAFTA and the war in Iraq, he added.
A man then
offered his view that Mexico and the U.S. enjoy a symbiotic economic
relationship through immigration. While employers in the U.S. benefit
from the large, cheap labor pool provided by Mexican immigrants, those
workers then send money back home to support their families, the man
said.
ìWhat do you see
as a solution in terms of policy ... that recognizes the mutual
benefits, but also recognizes the dignity of the migrants that come
here?î the man asked.
Palma agreed
with the manís assessment, noting that a number of building projects in
Mexico have been financed with money sent home from the U.S.
However, some in
Mexico have started to voice ìconcerns that the second generation of
Mexicans are staying in the U.S. ... and not sending money back,î he
said.
In terms of
policy, Palma recommended ìcomprehensive immigration reform,î whereby
ìimmigrants will have enough legal resources to say ëHere I am ó Iím
not going to be abused by my boss ... Iím not going to be robbed on my
way back to Mexico.íî
A woman who said
she had recently visited Guatemala noted that during her trip she saw
ìhuge areas of land being devoted to agriculture that benefits only the
U.S.î
She asked if that was happening in Mexico as well.
Palma answered that it is, and that this has had a devastating environmental effect on the country.
In one formerly
fertile area on the west coast of the country ó a section that had once
been touted as the site of ìMexicoís Green Revolutionî ó monoculture
and other industrial farming practices had completely destroyed the
soil in only a couple of decades, he said.
ìItís
interesting to see how the transnationals played a major role there,î
Palma added. ìIt is a fact that all this area is an ecological
disaster.î
ìWhat, from
Mexicoís own resources, can they do to solve their own problems?î a man
asked. ìIf you were king, what would you do?î
Palma said that
Mexico should embrace a ìcreative globalizationî by cultivating organic
farming and indigenous crops ó rather than monoculture.
He then jokingly thanked the man for giving him the opportunity to be king.
Following up on
the previous questioner, another man asked, ìWhat do you think the U.S.
might do to help Mexico solve its problems?î
ìIím just an immigrant!î Palma joked, prompting laughter from the audience.
He went on to
say that economic disparity in Mexico is a serious problem for both
countries ó and that the disparity there is reaching the levels that it
was at during the Mexican Revolution.
ìIím sure the U.S. can aim to change that.î
ìAre you suggesting we should invade?î a man asked, prompting more laughter.
Palma then cited
a 20-year-old study that asked Mexicans whether they would prefer to be
part of the U.S. A majority in the countryís more affluent north said
they would.
A man asked about the drug trade coming out of Mexico in to the U.S.
Palma said this was ìone of the big challenges of this new presidency.î
Drug dealers ìcan buy any policeman in Mexico,î he noted. ìThe truth is, these people are evil ... We need the help of the U.S.î
A woman then
offered her own opinion of the situation. ìUntil the U.S. recognizes
that our destiny is inextricably linked with Mexico .... the problems
are not going to stop,î she told the audience.
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