Bolivia 'Water War' - Part 4

The events of the water war in Cochabamba are well know worldwide – what happened afterward not so much. As an outside observer, it is easy to approve of the social movement in Cochabamba and how the people managed to resist the private companies. But by looking closer in what happened after the water war, it turns out that things are not simply black and white in regards to water privatization. In fact, in comparison to the Bolivian cities La Paz and El Alto, where water supply is privatized, Cochabamba is doing worse.

Even though the water prices decreased after Bechtel left the city, they are still above average. The change of the total water coverage rate is very distinct, particularly for the poorest people. The decrease for the lowest quintile from 63.3% in 1996 to 25.9% in 2005 is dramatic. In addition, from 2001 to 2005, the average water capita expenditure increased for the poor and decreased for the upper class. These numbers clearly indicate that there has been no positive development or reduction in poverty in the city after the anti-privatization of the water supply in 2000 (Hailu 2012).

It is expected that private water supply is set up faster than a community-owned water governance. It is the proficiency of private companies to provide access to water - they have money and know-how to do so. Whereas on the other side, a water governance based on social justice still needs to be framed. This is the problem in Cochabamba since the end of the 'water war'. The leaders of the social movement have the 'water as common good' approach in mind, but the external circumstances make it difficult to act upon the approach. As mentioned above, the Cochabamba elite would not cooperate, and corruption even within the SEMAPA would garner little support from the local population. That, in turn, makes the Andean communities go back to their tradition of self-help (Bakker 2010:169).

Fabricant comes to the conclusion that international human rights laws have to be adapted; otherwise, state regulation and service delivery will always determine water justice. In addition, one has to wait if the organizations will be able to “build a water management system that is truly based upon the principles of social justice and equality” (2013:138; 143).

Bakker, Karen. Privatizing Water. Governance Failure and the World's Urban Water Crisis. Cornell University Press: Ithaca and London. 2010. Print.

Fabricant, Nicole; Hicks, Kathryn. Bolivia's Next Water War. Historicizing the Struggles over Access to Water Resources in the Twenty-First Century. In: Radical History Review. Issue 116. Spring 2013. MARHO:The Radical Historians' Organization. PDF.

Hailu, Degol; Guerreiro Osorio, Rafael; Tsukada, Raquel. Privatization and Renationaliztion: What Went Wrong in Bolivia's Water Sector? In: World Development. Vol. 40, No. 12. Elsevier: Amsterdam. 2012. PDF. pp. 2564-2577.

Bolivia 'Water War' - Part 3

 

Even though there were various actors involved in the conflict, it all came down to two contradictory fronts: the ones that wanted to treat water as an economic good and the others that emphasized the sacred value of water and regarded access to it as a human right without monetary cost.

The Bolivian government and the private corporations Bechtel and Aguas del Tunari acted under the assumption that water is a commodity. They saw a market-based water sector reform as the only way to face the water crisis (Bakker 2010:2). Following the framework of 'green neoliberalism', they adopted the idea that “corporate management can improve service and enhance conservation of scarce resources, while bringing in healthy profits” (Fabricant 2013:132). The idea behind their action was not necessarily to take care of the lower class citizen, but to push the Bolivian economy. They wanted to ensure more market competition and, therefore, increase wealth in the country and solve environmental problems. They believed market power would balance the demand and supply of water on its own – something that the government had 'failed' to achieve.

On the other side, the Bolivian citizen and their various protest groups were committed to the 'water as common good' approach that emphasized its environmental and social value. Especially, the indigenous population of the Andean highlands was certain that water is sacred (Bakker 2010:167). In their eyes, the privatization process gave economic elites illegitimate control over water, which is such an essential part of human life. According to the Bolivian citizen, privatization went against water equity (fairness in pricing and access to services) (Bakker 2010:140). They accused Bechtel and Aguas del Tunari of not acting in favor of the citizen but for the company's stockholders. Behind the specific protests against the water privatization in Cochabamba stood also a general distrust of the 'neo-liberal turn' in the country and its assumed economic oppression. Oscar Olivera, one of the spokespersons for the Coordinator for the Defense of Water and Life, said in an interview: “We want democracy. We want a government that takes our opinion seriously. We want a government that doesn't just take into account the interests of international financiers and their neoliberal agenda” (Multinational Monitor 2000:19).

 

Bakker, Karen. Privatizing Water. Governance Failure and the World's Urban Water Crisis. Cornell University Press: Ithaca and London. 2010. Print.

Fabricant, Nicole; Hicks, Kathryn. Bolivia's Next Water War. Historicizing the Struggles over Access to Water Resources in the Twenty-First Century. In: Radical History Review. Issue 116. Spring 2013. MARHO:The Radical Historians' Organization. PDF.

Multinational Monitor. The Fight for Water and Democracy. An Interview with Oscar Olivera. Essential Information: Washington, DC. June 2000. PDF. pp. 15-19.

Bolivia 'Water War' - Part 2

The conflict over water in Bolivia is a conflict in which corporations fight against citizen:

“Cochabama is a semidesert region, water is scarce and precious. The World Bank recommended privatization of Cochabamba's municipal water supply company through a concession to International Water, a subsidiary of Bechtel. On October 1999, the Drinking Water and Sanitation Law was passed, ending government subsidies and allowing privatization.”

“In a city where the minimum wage is less than $100 a month, water bills reached $20 a month.”

“In January 2000, a citizen's alliance called The Coalition in Defense of Water and Life was formed. The alliance shut down the city for four days through mass mobilization.”

“The protesters issued the Cochabamba Declaration, calling for the protection of universal water rights.”

“In April 2000, the government tried to silence the water protests through martial law. Activists were arrested, protesters killed, and the media censored. Finally on April 10, 2000, the people won. Aguas del Tunari and Bechtel left Bolivia and the government was forced to revoke its hated water privatization legislation.”

Shiva, Vandana. Water Wars. Privatization, Pollution, and Profit. Cambrigde: South End Press. 2002. Print.

Bolivia 'Water War' - Part 1

In 2000, a private company took over the water system of Cochabamba, Bolivia. The price for water increased dramatically – thousands of families had to spend up to half of their monthly income to pay for the water. The people went on the street, demanding the termination of the water contract. In the end, the protesters won and their water rights were restored. (Source)

I will refer to the conflict in Bolivia as a 'water war', because this expression is mostly used in this context. But I don't think it was a real war, it was 'only' a conflict in my eyes. I recently wrote a research paper about the failed water privatization in Cochabamba. I have decided to publish part of my results in future blog entries.

Movie: Blue Gold

The movie 'Blue Gold' came out in 2008 and is based on the book Blue Gold: The Right to Stop the Corporate Theft of the World’s Water by Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke.It won many awards.

On the official homepage of 'Blue Gold' you can find a YouTube link to watch the full movie online. 

On the homepage, the film makers introduce into the topic with this statement:

"In every corner of the globe, we are polluting, diverting, pumping, and wasting our limited supply of fresh water at an expediential level as population and technology grows. The rampant overdevelopment of agriculture, housing and industry increase the demands for fresh water well beyond the finite supply, resulting in the desertification of the earth.

Corporate giants force developing countries to privatize their water supply for profit. Wall Street investors target desalination and mass bulk water export schemes. Corrupt governments use water for economic and political gain. Military control of water emerges and a new geo-political map and power structure forms, setting the stage for world water wars.

We follow numerous worldwide examples of people fighting for their basic right to water, from court cases to violent revolutions to U.N. conventions to revised constitutions to local protests at grade schools. As Maude Barlow proclaims, “This is our revolution, this is our war”. A line is crossed as water becomes a commodity. Will we survive?"

Israel Water Crisis - Part 3

This UNICEF video and the following, gives insight in the water situation in the Gaza stripe.

Source

Israel Water Crisis - Part 2

Water Conflict between Israel, Jordan and Palestina:

There is a lack of fresh water in all three countries. The sea of Galilee is the primary source of surface water in the region. 

Israel pumps water out of the lake to supply the dry south of the country with fresh water. 

Palestina is cut from the sea of Galilee and the Jordan river. The people have to rely on ground water and on additional water supply, which is provided by Israel. This gives Israel direct control over how much water Palestina gets.

In Jordan people have access to water only once a week.

West Bank Water Conflict:

Even though there should be enough aquifer in the region to supply water, Palestinien missmanagement led to water shortage. This is why Palestina is dependend on Israel in terms of water. 10% of the population have to buy water from water trucks, which are run by Israeli water companies.

Israel Water Crisis – Part 1

This video has a very dramatic undertone, but it gives a first insight in what is happening in Israel.

• The sea of Galilee is drying up
• Jordan River is drying up
• sea water is poisoning underground aquifers 
  
  
  This has consequences for farmers as well as citizens in bigger cities.

Source

As the following video indicates, on top of the above mentioned problems, the nation has been suffering from drought for the last couple of years, so there is even less water available. The Israli population has to lower its water consumption.

Maude Barlow: Do You Foresee Wars Over Water?

In this video Maude Barlow answers the question if she foresees war over water. She is the National Chairperson of the Council of Canadians and Senior Advisor on Water to the President of  the United Nations General Assembly. 

She says that struggles over water are already happening on different scales: between people, between states, between nations. Moreover, big cooperation seem to play a key role in the disputes. For example, she names Bechtel in Bolivia and Nestle in The Philippines.

I find her observation that the struggles will be between those of us who believe in water as a public service, who see it as a human right, and those who treat it is a commodity interesting.

Disputes over water are also likely to happen within the United States, as she talks about several states that already argue over water.

The Difference Between War and Conflict 2.0

I found an other differentiation between war and conflict on the website differencebetween.com.

In brief:

Difference Between War and Conflict

• War is intentional, disclosed, wide spread and long duration armed conflict between countries.

• War requires mobilization of troops and use of arms and ammunition to destroy enemy targets.

• Conflict is disagreement between parties where parties perceive threat to their interests and needs

• Conflict can be between individuals, communities, or even countries

• There are mechanisms to resolve conflicts but when they fail, conflicts can give rise to full scal wars (when involving countries)

Read more: http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-war-and-vs-conflict/#ixzz2kwJgl39r

The Difference Between War and Conflict

At the beginning of this blog I raised the question if there will be war over water one day. This question implies that up to now there haven't been any wars over water. Nevertheless water war is a common term. I think it is important in this context to distinguish between the terms. When can one talk about war? What is the difference between a war and an (armed) conflict? It is important to know this to rate disputes about water.

The free dictionary defines “war” as:

a. A state of open, armed, often prolonged conflict carried on between nations, states, or parties.

b. The period of such conflict. 
c. The techniques and procedures of war; military science.

When I type in “armed conflict” the dictionary redirects me to “war”.

The site also defines “conflict” as:

1. A state of open, often prolonged fighting; a battle or war.
2. A state of disharmony between incompatible or antithetical persons, ideas, or interests; a clash

It is difficult to see the differences between war and conflict within these definitions. A war is armed. A conflict maybe not? But a conflict can be war.

I am wondering what are right evidences to measure war. The number of people killed? The weapon used? The period of time?

Water Wars 1: Scarcity - Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

Quotes from the video:

“What if the next war is not fought over geopolitical dominance or ideology? What if the next war is a desperate struggle over water?”

→ In this context I am wondering what exactly is the difference between war and conflict. Has there been real wars over water or “only” conflicts? Where is the boundary?

“Today, water scarcity is common in some of the political most unstable regions. Water crisis are ongoing in the Middle Eastern, North African and South Asian countries, such as Israel, Egypt, Pakistan.”

→ I will do some research on the conflicts in Israel, Egypt or Pakistan.

“Some institutions argue that privatization may be the best way for developing countries to require the infrastructure necessary to supply clean water. This approach has mixed results, leading to social unrest in the local because the population can not afford the prices set by private utility companies.”

→ Why are there local oppositions against water privatization? What is the story behind this?

In the next day I will try to find some answers to the questions the YouTube video raises.