Neoliberalism and Latin America: Puerto Rico's Workers' Fight Back Martha's update on Argentina reminded me of Puerto Rico's workers recent response to privatization. Last July 11, tens of thousands of telephone company workers converged on the island's capital to protest the local colonial government's decision to sell the Puerto Rico Telephone Co. Contrary to the experience of other Latin American countries' the island's phone company was bought from ITT in 1974 when it became a public corporation. Since then, and despite earlier attempts (1990) to sell the public enterprise the phone company has become a profitable enterprise More than a million and a half Puerto Ricans have phones, Puerto Rico has the highest rate of Internet users in Latin America, extensive and modern fiber optic lines, cell phones, beepers etc. From 1993 to 1996 profits increased 33% for a total of more than a $1 billion dollars. However, blinded by the rush toward "free markets" the island's colonial government seems to believe that selling the island's national resources will aid in leveraging statehood for Puerto Rico as well as subsidize the deficit of other failed privatization efforts. All major labor federations have supported the call of phone workers to stop the "sellout" and have promised another national strike similar to one that brought the 1990 attempt to sell the public corporation process to a halt. As Puerto Rico prepares to "commemorate" 100 years of colonialism in 1998, the phone privatization process has also served as a catalyst for the island's nationalist and socialist forces that support Puerto Rican independence. The major left and nationalist forces have called for a national effort to stop the sale. Recently, the Machetero Guerrilla Army which since its dramatic attacks during the 1980s (including the bombing of several U.S. Air Force Corsair planes, FBI offices) has not conducted military operations, warned that it would retaliate if the sale was finalized. Victor M. Rodriguez Irvine, CA
[PEN-L:11629] Neoliberalism, Privatization: Puerto Rico
by way of [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Raymond Chase) Wed, 6 Aug 1997 10:58:36 -0700 (PDT)