A new military academy has been established in the Bolivian town of Warnes, with a mandate to combat US, “imperial oppression,” in the words of the nation’s president.
Inaugurating the academy, President Evo Morales said, “while the empire’s military schools teach how to dominate the world, this school will help us learn to free ourselves from imperial oppression. We will be a school for the defence of the people, and not the empire,” consistently referring to the US as an ‘empire.’
Local press reports indicate the government’s intention is that graduation from the new academy and possession of its ‘anti-imperialism’ degree will be an essential prerequisite for promotion to the rank of captain in the Bolivian Armed Forces.
Former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez originated the idea of such an academy and allocated funds to its building prior to his death in 2013. The new Bolivian school would appear to be intended to rival the US School of the Americas in Ft. Benning, GA/USA, which provides military training for personnel in US-friendly Latin American nations. “The School of Anti-Imperialism is a school that seeks to preserve life, unlike the School of the Americas, which brainwashed military officers into believing that the enemy was our people,” Defence Minister Reymi Ferreira said during the opening ceremony.
The school will commence operations with approx. 100 students, and will be open to officers from other Latin American countries.
Inaugurating the academy, President Evo Morales said, “while the empire’s military schools teach how to dominate the world, this school will help us learn to free ourselves from imperial oppression. We will be a school for the defence of the people, and not the empire,” consistently referring to the US as an ‘empire.’
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| Bolivian President Evo Morales wants to free his country from imperial oppression. |
Local press reports indicate the government’s intention is that graduation from the new academy and possession of its ‘anti-imperialism’ degree will be an essential prerequisite for promotion to the rank of captain in the Bolivian Armed Forces.
Former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez originated the idea of such an academy and allocated funds to its building prior to his death in 2013. The new Bolivian school would appear to be intended to rival the US School of the Americas in Ft. Benning, GA/USA, which provides military training for personnel in US-friendly Latin American nations. “The School of Anti-Imperialism is a school that seeks to preserve life, unlike the School of the Americas, which brainwashed military officers into believing that the enemy was our people,” Defence Minister Reymi Ferreira said during the opening ceremony.
The school will commence operations with approx. 100 students, and will be open to officers from other Latin American countries.