Skepticism Prevails at Trade Talks

Distrust of President Bush, particularly in military matters, has spiked in every part of Latin America since he launched the war in Iraq. A recent survey of Latin American professionals conducted by Zogby International showed that more than 80 percent of those surveyed had a negative opinion of Bush. That poor public standing has also eroded the overall image of the United States in some Latin American countries, according to a poll released earlier this year by the Canadian polling firm GlobeScan.

Many of Bush's critics have pointed to continued U.S. involvement in the drug war in Colombia and the recent deployment of about 400 U.S. troops in Paraguay for training exercises as troubling signs.

"He's responsible for attacking other countries and the human rights violations in Iraq, Afghanistan and the jails of Guantanomo," said Adolfo Perez Esquivel, an Argentine Nobel peace laureate, who helped organize a peaceful march against Bush outside the summit Friday. "Now the U.S. is putting military troops all over South America. We must be very attentive to these things, because they have to do with the sovereignty of our people."

Concern over the perceived loss of national sovereignty has been particularly intense in the Andean region of South America, where large indigenous populations have been instrumental in street riots that toppled governments in Bolivia and Ecuador this year. Chavez's calls for more financial independence from U.S. corporate interests resonate most loudly here, where many associate multinational corporations with centuries of exploitation.

In Bolivia, Evo Morales has emerged as one of the strongest critics of Bush and free trade policies. The former head of a union of coca farmers, Morales joined Chavez in a stadium rally Friday to protest Bush and the free trade proposal Friday. Morales, the front-runner in polls ahead of the Dec. 18 presidential election, has embraced the Chavez model of a socialism free of U.S. dependence.

"We need to change the consolidation of capital that is held in just a few hands and help to distribute it more fairly," Morales said Friday while walking toward the rally among protesters shouting anti-U.S. chants. "In Bolivia, we're betting on the nationalization of the natural gas industry as a way to change ourselves from a colonial state to one that operates under a new model."

Morales said part of the model could sidestep economic relations with the United States in favor of increased trade with China. Chile and Brazil have also explored strengthening those ties, with mixed results. Brazil granted China market economy status last year, but a flood of inexpensive Chinese imports has undercut local producers, much to Lula's disappointment.

Chile, meanwhile, last week became the first Western country to sign a preliminary free trade agreement with China. But that does not mean Chile decided to follow Chavez's advice to look for socialist alternatives to U.S.-led trade deals. Before Chile inked the deal with China, the country signed a bilateral agreement with the United States.