Obama: El discurso de Santiago de Chile
Remarks by President Obama on Latin America in Santiago, ChilePalacio de La Moneda Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile 4:27 P.M. CT        PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Muchas gracias.  Thank you so much.   (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you so much.  Thank you.  Thank you.   Please, please, everyone be seated.  Thank you.  Buenas tardes.  It is a wonderful honor to be here  in Santiago, Chile.  And I want to, first of all, thank your President,  President Pinera, for his outstanding leadership and the hospitality  that he’s extended not only to me but also to my wife, my daughters,  and, most importantly, my mother-in-law.  (Laughter.)       To the people of Santiago, to the people of Chile, thank you so  much for your wonderful welcome.  And on behalf of the people of the  United States, let me thank you for your friendship and the strong bonds  between our people.        There are several people that I just want to acknowledge very  briefly.  We have the President of the Inter-American Development Bank,  Luis Alberto Moreno, who is here.  (Applause.)  We also have Alicia  Bárcena, who is the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for  Latin America and the Caribbean.  (Applause.)        Throughout our history, this land has been called “el fin de  la tierra” — the end of the world.  But I’ve come here today because in  the 21st century this nation is a vital part of our interconnected  world.  In an age when peoples are intertwined like never before, Chile  shows that we need not be divided by race or religion or ethnic  conflict.  You’ve welcomed immigrants from every corner of the globe,  even as you celebrate a proud indigenous heritage.       At a time when people around the world are reaching for their  freedoms, Chile shows that, yes, it is possible to transition from  dictatorship to democracy — and to do so peacefully.  Indeed, our  marvelous surroundings today, just steps from where Chile lost its  democracy decades ago, is a testament to Chile’s progress and its  undying democratic spirit.       Despite barriers of distance and geography, you’ve integrated  Chile into the global economy, trading with countries all over the world  and, in this Internet age, becoming the most digitally connected  country in Latin America.       And in a world of sometimes wrenching pain — as we’re seeing  today in Japan — it is the character of this country that inspires.   “Our original guiding stars,” said Pablo Neruda, “are struggle and  hope.”  But, he added, “there is no such thing as a lone struggle, no  such thing as a lone hope.”  The Chilean people have shown this time and  again, including your recovery from the terrible earthquake here one  year ago.       Credit for Chile’s success belongs to the Chilean people, whose  courage, sacrifices and perseverance built this nation into the leader  that it is.  And we are very honored to be joined today by four leaders  who have guided this nation through years of great progress — Presidents  Aylwin, Frei, Lagos, and of course your current President Pinera.   Thank you all, to the former Presidents, for being here, as well as  President Pinera.  (Applause.)       So I could not imagine a more fitting place to discuss the new  era of partnership that the United States is pursuing not only with  Chile, but across the Americas.  And I’m grateful that we’re joined by  leaders and members of the diplomatic corps from across the region.          Within my first 100 days in office, one of my first foreign  trips as President, I traveled to Trinidad and Tobago to meet with  leaders from across the hemisphere at the Summit of the Americas.  And  there, I pledged to seek partnerships of equality and shared  responsibility, based on mutual interest and mutual respect, but also on  shared values.       Now, I know I’m not the first president from the United States  to pledge a new spirit of partnership with our Latin American neighbors.   Words are easy, and I know that there have been times where perhaps  the United States took this region for granted.       Even now, I know our headlines are often dominated by events in  other parts of the world.  But let’s never forget:  Every day, the  future is being forged by the countries and peoples of Latin America.   For Latin America is not the old stereotype of a region of — in  perpetual conflict or trapped in endless cycles of poverty.  The world  must now recognize Latin America for the dynamic and growing region that  it truly is.       Latin America is at peace.  Civil wars have ended.   Insurgencies have been pushed back.  Old border disputes have been  resolved.  In Colombia, great sacrifices by citizens and security forces  have restored a level of security not seen in decades.       And just as old conflicts have receded, so too have the  ideological battles that often fueled them — the old stale debates  between state-run economies and unbridled capitalism; between the abuses  of right-wing paramilitaries and left-wing insurgents; between those  who believe that the United States causes all the region’s problems and  those who believe that the United States ignores all the problems.   Those are false choices, and they don’t reflect today’s realities.       Today, Latin America is democratic.  Virtually all the people  of Latin America have gone from living under dictatorships to living in  democracies.  Across the region, we see vibrant democracies, from Mexico  to Chile to Costa Rica.  We’ve seen historic peaceful transfers of  power, from El Salvador to Uruguay to Paraguay.  The work of perfecting  our democracies, of course, is never truly done, but this is the  outstanding progress that’s been made here in the Americas.       Today, Latin America is growing.   Having made tough but  necessary reforms, nations like Peru and Brazil are seeing impressive  growth.  As a result, Latin America weathered the global economic  downturn better than other regions.  Across the region, tens of millions  of people have been lifted from extreme poverty.  From Guadalajara to  Santiago to Sao Paolo, a new middle class is demanding more of  themselves and more of their governments.       Latin America is coming together to address shared challenges.   Chile, Colombia and Mexico are sharing their expertise in security with  nations in Central America.  When a coup in Honduras threatened  democratic progress, the nations of the hemisphere unanimously invoked  the Inter-American Democratic Charter, helping to lay the foundation for  the return to the rule of law.  The contributions of Latin American  countries have been critical in Haiti, as has Latin American diplomacy  in the lead up to yesterday’s election in Haiti.       And increasingly, Latin America is contributing to global  prosperity and security.  As longtime contributors to United Nations  peacekeeping missions, Latin American nations have helped to prevent  conflicts from Africa to Asia.  At the G20, nations like Mexico, Brazil,  Argentina now have a greater voice in global economic decision-making.   Under Mexican leadership, the world made progress at Cancun in our  efforts to combat climate change.  Nations like Chile have played a  leading role in strengthening civil society groups around the world.       So this is the Latin America that I see today — a region on the  move, proud of its progress, and ready to assume a greater role in  world affairs.  And for all these reasons, I believe that Latin America  is more important to the prosperity and security of the United States  than ever before.  With no other region does the United States have so  many connections.  And nowhere do we see that more than in the tens of  millions of Hispanic Americans across the United States, who enrich our  society, grow our economy and strengthen our nation every single day.                And I believe Latin America is only going to become more  important to the United States, especially to our economy.  Trade  between the United States and Latin America has surged.  We buy more of  your products, more of your goods than any other country, and we invest  more in this region than any other country.       For instance, we export more than three times as much to Latin  America as we do to China.  Our exports to this region — which are  growing faster than our exports to the rest of the world — will soon  support more than 2 million U.S. jobs.  In other words, when Latin  America is more prosperous, the United States is more prosperous.       But even more than interests, we’re bound by shared values.  In  each other’s journey we see reflections of our own.  Colonists who  broke free from empires.  Pioneers who opened new frontiers.  Citizens  who have struggled to expand our nations’ promise to all people — men  and women, white, black and brown.  We’re people of faith who must  remember that all of us — especially the most fortunate among us — must  do our part, especially for the least among us.  We’re citizens who know  that ensuring that democracies deliver for our people must be the work  of all.       This is our common history.  This is our common heritage.  We are all Americans.  Todos somos Americanos.       Across the Americas, parents want their children to be able to  run and play and know that they’ll come home safely.  Young people all  desperately want an education.  Fathers want the dignity that comes from  work, and women want the same opportunities as their husbands.   Entrepreneurs want the chance to start that new business.  And people  everywhere want to be treated with the respect to which every human  being is entitled.  These are the hopes — simple yet profound — that  beat in the hearts of millions across the Americas.       But if we’re honest, we’ll also admit that that these dreams  are still beyond the reach of too many; that progress in the Americas  has not come fast enough.  Not for the millions who endure the injustice  of extreme poverty.  Not for the children in shantytowns and the  favelas who just want the same chance as everybody else.  Not for the  communities that are caught in the brutal grips of cartels and gangs,  where the police are outgunned and too many people live in fear.       And despite this region’s democratic progress, stark  inequalities endure.  In political and economic power that is too often  concentrated in the hands of the few, instead of serving the many.  In  the corruption that too often still stifles economic growth and  development, innovation and entrepreneurship.  And in some leaders who  cling to bankrupt ideologies to justify their own power and who seek to  silence their opponents because those opponents have the audacity to  demand their universal rights.  These, too, are realities that we must  face.       Of course, we are not the first generation to face these  challenges.  Fifty years ago this month, President John F. Kennedy  proposed an ambitious Alliance for Progress.  It was, even by today’s  standards, a massive investment — billions of U.S. dollars to meet the  basic needs of people across the region.  Such a program was right — it  was appropriate for that era.  But the realities of our time — and the  new capabilities and confidence of Latin America — demand something  different.       President Kennedy’s challenge endures — “to build a hemisphere  where all people can hope for a sustainable, suitable standard of  living, and all can live out their lives in dignity and in freedom.”   But half a century later, we must give meaning to this work in our own  way, in a new way.       I believe that in the Americas today, there are no senior  partners and there are no junior partners, there are only equal  partners.  Of course, equal partnerships, in turn, demands a sense of  shared responsibility.  We have obligations to each other.  And today,  the United States is working with the nations of this hemisphere to meet  our responsibilities in several key areas.       First, we’re partnering to address the concerns that people  across the Americas say they worry about the most — and that’s the  security of their families and communities.  Criminal gangs and  narco-traffickers are not only a threat to the security of our citizens.   They’re a threat to development, because they scare away investment  that economies need to prosper.  And they are a direct threat to  democracy, because they fuel the corruption that rots institutions from  within.       So with our partners from Colombia to Mexico and new regional  initiatives in Central America and the Caribbean, we’re confronting this  challenge, together, from every direction.  We’ve increased our support  — the equipment, training and technologies — that security forces,  border security and police need to keep communities safe.  We’re  improving coordination and sharing more information so that those who  traffic in drugs and in human beings have fewer places to hide.  And  we’re putting unprecedented pressure on cartel finances, including in  the United States.       But we’ll never break the grip of the cartels and the gangs  unless we also address the social and economic forces that fuel  criminality.  We need to reach at-risk youth before they turn to drugs  and crime.  So we’re joining with partners across the Americas to expand  community-based policing, strengthen juvenile justice systems, and  invest in crime and drug prevention programs.       As the nations of Central American develop a new regional  security strategy, the United States stands ready to do our part through  a new partnership that puts the focus where it should be — on the  security of citizens.  And with regional and international partners,  we’ll make sure our support is not just well-intentioned, but is  well-coordinated and well-spent.          I’ve said before and I will repeat, as President I’ve made it  clear that the United States shares and accepts our share of  responsibility for drug violence.  After all, the demand for drugs,  including in the United States, drives this crisis.  And that’s why  we’ve developed a new drug control strategy that focused on reducing the  demand for drugs through education and prevention and treatment.   And I  would point out that even during difficult fiscal times in the United  States, we’ve proposed increasing our commitment to these efforts by  some $10 billion this year alone.       We’re also doing more to stem the southbound flow of guns into  the region.  We’re screening all southbound rail cargo.  We’re seizing  many more guns bound for Mexico and we’re putting more gunrunners behind  bars.  And every gun or gunrunner that we take off the streets is one  less threat to the families and communities of the Americas.       As we work to ensure the security of our citizens, we’re  partnering in a second area — and that’s promoting prosperity and  opportunity.  I’ve been so impressed with President Pinera’s pledge to  lift everyone out of extreme poverty by 2020.  That’s an ambitious goal  and an appropriate goal.  And with this trip, I’m working to expand some  of the trade and investment that might help achieve this goal.       Across the region, we’re moving ahead with “open skies”  agreements to bring our people and businesses closer together.  We’re  moving forward with our Trans-Pacific Partnership — which includes Chile  and Peru — to create new trade opportunities in the fast-growing  markets of the Asia-Pacific.  And as I’ve directed, my administration  has intensified our efforts to move forward on trade agreements with  Panama and Colombia, consistent with our values and with our interests.       We’re also encouraging the next generation of businesses and  entrepreneurs.  So we’ll work with the Inter-American Development bank  to increase lending.  We’ve expanded credit under a new Microfinance  Growth Fund for the Americas.  We’re supporting reforms to tax systems,  which are critical for economic growth and public investment.  We’re  creating new “Pathways to Prosperity” — microcredit, entrepreneurship  training — for those who must share in economic growth, including women  and members of Afro-Caribbean and indigenous communities.         And we’re coming together, as a hemisphere, to create clean  energy jobs and pursue more secure and sustainable energy futures.  And  if anybody doubts the urgency of climate change, they look — they should  look no further than the Americas — from the stronger storms in the  Caribbean, to glacier melt in the Andes, to the loss of forests and  farmland across the region.       Under the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas that I  proposed, countries have stepped forward, each providing leadership and  expertise.  Brazil has expertise in biofuels.  Chile in geothermal.   Mexico on energy efficiency.  El Salvador is connecting grids in Central  America to make electricity more reliable.  These are exactly the kind  of partnerships that we need — neighbors joining with neighbors to  unleash the progress that none of us can achieve alone.       It’s the same philosophy behind two additional initiatives that  I’m announcing today, which will help our countries educate and  innovate for the future.  First, we’re launching a new initiative to  harness the power of social media and online networks to help students,  scientists, academics and entrepreneurs collaborate and develop the new  ideas and products that will keep America — the Americas competitive in a  global economy.       And I’m proud to announce that the United States will work with  partners in this region, including the private sector, to increase the  number of U.S. students studying in Latin America to 100,000, and the  number of Latin America students studying in the United States to  100,000.       Staying competitive also, of course, demands that we address  immigration — an issue that evokes great passions in the United States  as well as in the Americas.  As President, I’ve made it clear that  immigration strengthens the United States.  We are a nation of  immigrants, which is why I have consistently spoken out against  anti-immigrant sentiment.  We’re also a nation of laws, which is why I  will not waver in my determination to fix our broken immigration system.   I’m committed to comprehensive reform that secures our borders,  enforces our laws and addresses the millions of undocumented workers who  are living in the shadows of the United States.       I believe, though, that this challenge will be with us for a  very long time so long as people believe that the only way to provide  for their families is to leave their families and head north.       And that’s why the United States has to continue to partner  with countries that pursue the broad-based economic growth that gives  people and nations a path out of poverty.  And that’s what we’re seeing  here in Chile.  As part of our new approach to development, we’re  working with partners, like Guatemala and El Salvador, who are committed  to building their own capacity — from helping farmers improve crop  yields to helping health care systems to deliver better care.       Which leads me to the final area where we must continue to  partner, and that’s strengthening democracy and human rights.  More than  60 years ago, our nations came together in an Organization of American  States and declared — and I quote — that “representative democracy is an  indispensable condition for the stability, peace and development of the  region.”  A decade ago, we reaffirmed this principle, with an  Inter-American Democratic Charter that stated — and I quote — “the  people of the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments  have an obligation to promote and defend it.”       Across the Americas, generations, including generations of  Chileans, have struggled and sacrificed to give meaning to these words —  ordinary men and women who dared to speak their mind; activists who  organized new movements; faith leaders who preached social justice; the  mothers of the disappeared who demanded the truth; political prisoners  who rose to become presidents; and, even now, Las Damas de Blanco, who  march in quiet dignity.       The people of the Americas have shown that there is no  substitute for democracy.  As governments, we have then an obligation to  defend what has been won.  So as we mark the 10th anniversary of the  Inter-American Democratic Charter this year, let’s reaffirm the  principles that we know to be true.       Let’s recommit to defending democracy and human rights in our  own countries by strengthening the institutions that democracy needs to  flourish — free and fair elections in which people choose their own  leaders; vibrant legislatures that provide oversight; independent  judiciaries that uphold the rule of law; a free press that promotes open  debate; professional militaries under civilian control; strong civil  societies that hold governments accountable; and governments that are  transparent and responsive to their citizens.  This is what makes a  democracy.       And just as we defend democracy and human rights within our  borders, let’s recommit to defending them across our hemisphere.  I  understand, every nation will follow its own path.  No nation should  impose its will on another.  But surely we can agree that democracy is  about more than majority rule, that simply holding power does not give a  leader the right to suppress the rights of others, and that leaders  must maintain power through consent, and not coercion.  We have to speak  out when we see those principles violated.       Let’s never waver in our support for the rights of people to  determine their own future — and, yes, that includes the people of Cuba.   Since taking office, I’ve announced the most significant changes to my  nation’s policy towards Cuba in decades.  I’ve made it possible for  Cuban Americans to visit and support their families in Cuba.  We’re  allowing Americans to send remittances that bring some economic hope for  people across Cuba, as well as more independence from Cuban  authorities.       Going forward, we’ll continue to seek ways to increase the  independence of the Cuban people, who I believe are entitled to the same  freedom and liberty as everyone else in this hemisphere.  I will make  this effort to try to break out of this history that’s now lasted for  longer than I’ve been alive.       But Cuban authorities must take some meaningful actions to  respect the basic rights of their own people — not because the United  States insists upon it, but because the people of Cuba deserve it, no  less than the people of the United States or Chile or Brazil or any  other country deserve it.       The lessons of Latin America, I believe, can be a guide — a  guide for people around the world who are beginning their own journeys  toward democracy.  There is no one model for democratic transitions.   But as this region knows, successful transitions do have certain  ingredients.  The moral force of nonviolence.  Dialogue that’s open and  inclusive.  The protection of basic rights, such as peaceful expression  and assembly.  Accountability for past wrongs.  And matching political  reform with economic reform, because democracy must meet the basic needs  and aspirations of people.       With decades of experience, there’s so much Latin America can  now share — how to build political parties and organize free elections;  how to ensure peaceful transfers of power; how to navigate the winding  paths of reform and reconciliation.  And when the inevitable setbacks  occur, you can remind people to never lose sight of those guiding stars  of which Pablo Neruda spoke — struggle, but also hope.         Security for our citizens.  Trade and development that creates  jobs, prosperity and a clean energy future.  Standing up for democracy  and human rights.  These are the partnerships that we can forge together  — here in the Americas but also around the world.  And if anyone doubts  whether this region has the capacity to meet these challenges, they  need to only remember what happened here in Chile only a few months ago.       Their resolve and faith inspired the world — “Los Treinta y  Tres.”  I don’t need to tell you the story.  You know it well.  But it’s  worth remembering how this entire nation came together, across  government, civilian and military, national and local; across the  private sector, with large companies and small shopkeepers donating  supplies; and across every segment of Chilean society, people came  together to sustain those men down below and their families up at Camp  Esperanza.  It was a miraculous rescue.  It was a tribute to Chilean  leadership.  And when, finally, Luis Urzua emerged, he spoke for an  entire nation when he said, “I am proud to be Chilean.”       Yet something else happened in those two months.  The people  and governments of Latin America came together to stand with a neighbor  in need.  And with a Latin American country in the lead, the world was  proud to play a supporting role — sending workers from the United States  and Canada, rescue equipment from Europe, communications gear from  Asia.  And as the miners were lifted to safety, for those joyous  reunions, it was a truly global movement, watched and celebrated by more  than a billion people.       If ever we needed a reminder of the humanity and the hopes that  we share, that moment in the desert was such.  When a country like  Chile puts its mind to it, there’s nothing you can’t do.  When countries  across Latin America come together and focus on a common goal, when the  United States and others in the world do our part, there’s nothing we  can’t accomplish together.       And that is our vision of the Americas.  This is the progress  we can achieve together.  This is the spirit of partnership and equality  to which the United States is committed.  I am confident that, working  together, there is nothing we cannot achieve.  Thank you very much.   Muchas gracias.  END           4:59 P.M. CTSource: White House