74 lines
3.2 KiB
Markdown
74 lines
3.2 KiB
Markdown
**FEJUVE (Federación de Juntas Vecinales de El Alto)** or '''Federation
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of Neighborhood Councils-El Alto '''is a
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[federation](Confederation "wikilink") of [popular
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assemblies](Democratic_Assembly "wikilink") in the city of El Alto,
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[Bolivia](Plurinational_State_of_Bolivia "wikilink") in a [dual
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power](Dual_Power "wikilink") situation with the
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[state](State_\(Polity\) "wikilink").
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## History
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The first assembly was created in 1957 and was based off the traditional
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[democratic](Democracy "wikilink") practices of the [Aymara
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people](Aymaran_People "wikilink") and the need to respond to widespread
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poverty, corruption and [violence](violence "wikilink") throughout
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Bolivia and El Alto. FEJUVE itself was created in 1979 after a mass
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meeting of neighborhood councils decided to create a federation. Since
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then, FEJUVE has grown to be on par with the city government.\[1\]
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## Decision-Making
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Assemblies have around 200 members that meet once a month and make
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decisions through discussion and [consensus](consensus "wikilink").
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Political party leaders, merchants, real estate speculators, and those
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who collaborated with past dictatorships are not allowed to be delegates
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between councils. The councils have been successful in blocking the
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Bolivian government's plan to [privatize](Privatization "wikilink")
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natural [gas](Gas_War_\(Bolivia\) "wikilink") and [water
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reserves](Water_War_\(Bolivia\) "wikilink"), introduce new
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[taxes](Taxation "wikilink") and have been successful in creating the
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cities first public [university](university "wikilink").\[2\]
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## Economy
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The economy of Fejuve strongly resembles
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[mutualism](mutualism "wikilink") in that there is a high degree of
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[workers' control](Workers'_Self-Management "wikilink") and [common
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ownership](Commons "wikilink") while operating in a [market
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economy](Market_Economy "wikilink"). Councils are also able to pull
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together resources to build parks, [schools](Education "wikilink"),
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[clinics](Healthcare "wikilink"), [housing](housing "wikilink"),
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[cooperatives](cooperatives "wikilink") and install
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[water](water "wikilink") connections, sewerage outlets,
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[electrical](Electricity "wikilink") cables and [garbage collection
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services](Waste "wikilink") to fill the hole that the state and [private
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sector](Capitalism "wikilink") have left.\[3\]
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## Crime
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In response to the violence and corruption of the police, Fejuve has
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created a system of [restorative
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justice](Restorative_Justice "wikilink") rooted in traditional Aymaran
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customs. Assemblies act as mediators between minor disputes with
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neighbours and communities form collective self-defense groups which are
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known to execute thieves, rapists and murders whilst hanging dolls
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outside of the houses of victims as a warning to any future
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attackers.\[4\]
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## See Also
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- SEMAPA
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- Coordinora
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## References
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<references />
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1. [Raúl Zibechi](Raúl_Zibechi "wikilink")(2009) [Dispersing Power:
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Social Movements as Anti-State Forces. AK
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Press](Dispersing_Power:_Social_Movements_as_Anti-State_Forces._AK_Press "wikilink")
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2. [Peter Gelderloos](Peter_Gelderloos "wikilink") (2010) [Anarchy
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Works](Anarchy_Works "wikilink")
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3. Emily Achtenberg (2004) "Community Organizing and Rebellion:
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Neighborhood Councils in El Alto, Bolivia"
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4. |