President Evo Morales and Vice President Álvaro Marcelo García Linera (both on the left) with Nicaragua's Vice President, Moses Hallesleves, Minister of Communication of Venezuela, Ernesto Villegas. Demotix. All rights reserved.
The Latin American Progressive Encounter 2015 (ELAP 2015) took place in Quito on September 29-30. Under a blazing equatorial sun, at 2,800 meters above sea level, and surrounded by volcanoes - one of them, the Cotopaxi, has been active for the last few months - the discussions were held in a calm and friendly atmosphere. Political leaders, officials and scholars attended the meeting.
Two presentations - by Atilio Borón, the Harvard-educated Argentine sociologist and political scientist, and Álvaro García Linera, vice-president of Bolivia -, stand out for their straightforward response to an issue that has become fashionable of late: the alleged "end of cycle" situation of the progressive governments in Latin America. Both speakers chose this as a starting point for their contributions, which comes to show the crucial importance the issue has at present.
