Presidents of Venezuela, Ecuador and Paraguay visit La Paz

July 16 is the day when, 200 years ago, La Paz joined the cry for freedom from Spain, giving way to a revolutionary wave that led to the independence of all of the current South American countries. Today, that day is remembered in La Paz, with the presence of Hugo Chavez, Rafael Correa and Paraguay’s president Lugo.

In the Villarroel square of La Paz, they are currently remembering Pedro Murillo, the independence leader who pronounced the words that have become so famous this year: “I will die but nobody will be able to put out the torch of freedom that we set alight today”. And so it was.

But 200 years later there is still a long way to go for those aspirations to become a reality. The signs of change are in the air with a new wave of democratic and progressive governments in power and united among themselves that have realigned the power relations with the US. The extent to which they are undertaking revolutionary changes as they claim is less clear. The mass of impoverished populations are still with them. Let’s hope that these governments can deliver more social justice before patience runs out.