MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Four South American presidents call for the “second independence”

La Paz is celebrating the 200th anniversary of its first uprising against the Spanish Crown.

Calling for a second and definitive independence and criticizing United States, presidents from Bolivia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Paraguay participated in the Thursday celebrations of the 200th anniversary of the Bolivian capital La Paz uprising against the Spanish crown.

“Nothing and nobody can interrupt the road to our independence”, said Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez during the event which marks the beginning of a long calendar of bicentenary independence celebrations in the rest of Latinamerica.

“We will be independent no matter how many empires threaten us, how many bourgeois and oligarchs conspire against our peoples”, he added.

“Today our peoples of the Americas are struggling as brothers for our second and definitive independence”, said Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa.

“Presidents must endeavour with our armies, doctrines and policies, and thus cut all links with the US South Command”, underlined Bolivian president and host of the summit, Evo Morales. He added “it is not possible, it’s unbearable that the US Southern Command, that is the US Armed Forces can still direct a coup in Honduras”.

Following the ousting by the army of Honduran president Manuel Zelaya the hemisphere including President Barrack Obama administration, have demanded his reinstatement while Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pushed for the mediation in the conflict of Costa Rica.

“We’ve spoken with our brother presidents that this dependence of Latinamerican Armed Forces from the US must stop, must come to an end”, added Morales.

A more cautious Paraguayan president, and former bishop, Fernando Lugo said “we want nations that promote unity, fairness and equality among the different peoples”.

Although all Latinamerican presidents were invited only those with a most radical stance regarding relations with the United States turned up at La Paz.

Brazil was represented by Foreign Affairs minister Celso Amorim who promised that Brasilia will help Bolivia achieve its so long ambitioned economic independence.

“We are here to celebrate an important event for the Bolivian people which is looking for a new independence, an economic independence; Brazil wants to participate of that independence effort”, underlined Amorim.

However the Honduras issue was paramount in the speeches. Chavez insisted that Obama was pushed “against the wall” in having to reject the coup in Honduras because “it was orchestrated by the State Department, you can bet your head on that”.

“I believe Obama was not informed of the conspiracy; it was all the workings of the State Department” he added.

Morales also attacked the Catholic Church saying that some members of its hierarchy are “instruments of the empire” to impede the liberation of the continent’s peoples.

“When they can’t dominate the people with prayers, they call in the guns and dictatorships”, said Morales in direct reference to the Honduran church that has been calling to avoid confrontation and bloodshed.

The support for ousted Zelaya, a close ally was emphasized by the arrival to La Paz of Patricia Rodas, ex Foreign Affairs minister of the deposed president. She was flown to La Paz in Chavez presidential plane.

La Paz celebrated on Thursday the 200th anniversary of the first rebellion against the Spanish empire headed by a local patriot, in this case Pedro Domingo Murillo and which triggered independence movements in the rest of the continent in the following two years.