José Manuel Bóbeda | Foreign policy and parliamentary diplomacy as means of resolving conflicts for the establishment of peace.

[Greeting in Guarani] The translation in the language that colonized us is: From the Paraguayan homeland I bring you, from the bottom of that land, a hug and a handshake! To symbolize the indissoluble union of our peoples in these modern times. Thank you very much.

What a pleasure to be here and what honor for me, for my family, for my country, to represent the people on this wonderful occasion, full of feelings, of beautiful people, who manifest that solidarity and harmony that characterizes us humble beings externally, patriots!

And you will say: why is a soldier here giving foreign policy, development, plans to carry out in his execution actions that can benefit the decent living of all the people?

I did not forget any authority, dear Gabriela. It is an honor for me to be here, and also to our Ambassador Gil and all the panelists.

What a wonderful example we can have in our own CUMIPAZ. This is a very important factor that we have to take into account. This organization went to each region, to each country, to each location, to establish the points to take into account to form and organize with permanent objectives, and to arrive at what we are here: a wonderful meeting; In Guarani it is called an aty porã.

And once and twice and three times coming and going. That's why I, my dear son, William Paras and your dear wife, Mrs. Kárita, also have a place in our hearts, among those who truly love you.

The success is due to the whole team, and I will ... take it as an introduction at this time so ... this time so difficult; But let's open our hearts and listen to me, I am a representative of the Guarani race; I am the mixture of the Spanish captain with an indigenous woman, a beautiful Guaraní woman; and as the companion of Peru said: for the blood runs me, for the crimson blood, of fuchsia color, the Guarani blood runs through me.

That's why I dare, as a staff officer, a cavalry officer, come to talk about these topics in these very important issues, taking as an example our organization, of which I am a messenger of peace, fortunately and by God's grace, a few years ago: I have the opportunity to talk about issues related to legislative policy and the other levels, in a harmonious confrontation of ideas, in a debate that usually involves controversies, we usually arrive at conclusions that may be valid for the happiness of our people.

We, in the Republic of Paraguay, in the Congress of the Republic, have integrated commissions like the Organization of American States, the United Nations, Parlasur, Unasur, ParlAmericas, Parlatino, commissions of friendship among all, almost all the countries of the world; We are simple, but we also put our grain of sand.

Speaking about politics and speaking about the continuation of the events in which we reject so much, which is war, armed struggle, that causes death, that causes terror ... We vote for life, we vote for life and the Paraguayan people is determined to overcome these adversities and fight against the bandits with dignity; because we do not treat as guerrilleros those who are kidnapping our families in the north of the Republic, we treat them like bandits, and so they will be treated. They do not have an idea of ​​taking the Government of the Republic with a sound ideology, which can strengthen the well-being of the people, but rather creating chaos, strengthening the thugs, thus propitiating the fall of the Government, which generally also has its problems that have to be solved daily.

We have the concurrence of almost all countries in the world with embassies and we have good relations; the legislative draws laws and we have the coordination and integration of advisory committees between the executive and the legislative, and between the justice and the legislative. That everything by constitution is in charge of the vice president of the Republic.

The executive power in the person of his excellence, the President of the Republic, is responsible for foreign policy, as well as in almost all countries and with the national Constitution.

This Constitution was sanctioned on June 20, 1992, after coming from a long suffering, we would say, from where our freedoms were restricted, our human rights; nowadays we can talk at least, we can criticize ourselves, even offend us, and the press doing its own also to be able to sell more and sell more; and we, the ones who give him the pleasure and the satisfaction of being put on his plans, in his reports.

The land and the man: that is the goal of all policy, to coordinate all the effort to achieve a dignified life. The treatment of waste, organic and inorganic waste, is very important. In the Republic of Paraguay we have a serious problem with that; but I want to give an example, no more,; and thanks to the advice of a doctor specializing in foreign relations, he told me that ... he reminded me that ... and I wanted him to mention that the recycling of garbage today is in Paris: one hundred and fifty members of an orchestra that is ... whose instruments are made of waste. A can of meat there is on a violin, a can of powdered milk too. Anyway it is to urge people to take advantage of all this to improve life and dignify the people.

Diplomacy in the Republic of Paraguay… since long ago we had the satisfaction in times of the dictator, Dr. Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, to receive Gervasio Artigas, an oriental caudillo; and he has gone to the interior of the Republic and has taught people to write, to read, to live as people having the conditions of cleanliness, to live as a person must truly live; there in the region of Curuguaty, in a section of the Republic, everything is Gervasio Artigas, Thirty-three Orientals, and in short, he taught us a lot; and with a lot of affection I remember it now.

Likewise, the wise Bonpland, who has given much, and even with the help of the natives, of us, has also discovered the benefits of the grass, vegetation, remedies of the herbs, such as the ka'a he'ẽ [caá jeé], which is the stevia, which is now being planted all over the world, and this is a native of the Republic of Paraguay, of its red, beautiful land, with a lot of nutrients.

That culture of rural medicine, we would say, is important because it gives us our identity. We do not reject modern medicine or state-of-the-art technology, absolutely, but that is a capital importance that is taken into account.

Another issue, I can also tell you, is the self-determination of peoples. Paraguay respects absolutely and does not criticize, in any way, the action that a certain people may have, self-determination, freedom, we vote for absolute freedom. Could it be that my voice was the one ...? [Speaker is referring to a sound produced in the room]

I am regulating myself, I confess that I am regulating myself, because in twenty minutes something so important ..., I can also sketch in a synoptic picture, in an external oral manifestation, I can say; I'm not going to do that here, to send the party to gather difficult terms, because all those who passed until now, these magnificent speakers, I was left with natural fear; the task of the brave is to overcome the fear and I believe myself brave now, because who would say that their legs did not tremble by being here; the even most learned person, and the most manly, and the most female, would have shaking ankles, at least, because it is a very big emotion; I am a soldier and I am a leader, and I have led the troops.

I want to tell you even, a little anecdote as well, which was – had, an international repercussion, the revolution, which was the epilogue to the most legendary aspirations of the people to live freely:

On February 2, 1989 the dictatorship fell, and I was a soldier, commander of a base of fire, was a major of the General Staff, we used a cavalry regiment and we took the dictator out. Unfortunately, many people died. Thomas Jefferson said that democracy is a tree that is watered with the blood of martyrs. Hopefully it will not be watered more with the blood of martyrs, we are living well now, I hope there are no more dead people; but let us touch land!

"War is the continuation of policy by other means," said Marshal Clausewitz, and there is war all day, now we are at war. There is a character in North Korea that is threatening the world. I hope he does not want to start an atomic bomb, because that ... someone said, an exhibitor said, a colleague who ... an exhibitor yesterday, that until 2050 we can foresee our resources, including our bank deposits we have to take out; and that also enters into the previous, foreign policy, because there are some who have accounts in the Cayman Islands and company.

So in relationships, the relationship must be integral. In Switzerland, a deposit… already people know who it’s about, etc., etc. Previously it was simply was not, the evaders… and the people have to interact, it is an axiom of ours, of our people, that we have to interact to reach the goal; And with a good face, with good spirit, with a positive attitude, as my old colleague said yesterday, with a lot of spirit, that the positive attitude is a sine qua non condition to be successful.

With people that smell like that, things that we already know that it is, smelly things, it does not go; it must be discarded, it must be ... it is an annoyance for the soul; you have to "discard the noisy" as a poem said, Desiderata. Discard. Positive attitude. How happy, how happy one feels! And that is external relationship too, let's not talk about politics.

I think we're already ... Unfortunately I did not finish my introduction, but ... Right? Because you have to give the incentive first to the audience. I still have some very important minutes, still abundant, and I was half committing later.

You have to touch land! And let's stop negative thoughts. The president of the International Monetary Fund said, a few days ago in a statement, that retirees are an annoyance to the economy, they have to die four years after they retire already, because they are a problem for the economy. Imagine what a razor-sharp blade she has.

I debated in the Congress of the Paraguayan nation with force and vehemence: What does one do gymnastics for? Why does one compete? Why does one take care of diet, does not drink alcohol, does not smoke? ... (Oh! A little memory there).

And now I'm also getting ... relaxed, in riding we say "relaxing the jaw.” The horse when it starts to relax, feels happy, moves its ears, moves its tail, begins to jog in its position, in short, starts feeling like family and things are coming out. Unfortunately we are subject to a time and we cannot ... but that's life, that's right.

I feel happy, I feel honored! Here I have compatriots who are watching me and they are going to lower my cane later: "You did not prepare, Colonel", they are going to tell me; but they're going to kiss me. And I feel affection, love, because we Paraguayans are romantics, romantics at all costs; that's why our women love us, our family loves us; that is why, because we are sincere, we have that of our original peoples, that we ... I am an exponent of that, with honor; we have the sincerity in the marrow of our bones, in our DNA there is sincerity, loyalty; we hate betrayal. But unfortunately in each group there is always a traitor, don’t remember ... remember Efialtes, the traitor who betrayed Leonidas in the passage of Thermopylae, for example.

So then, I'll conclude by giving... [words in Guaraní]

Thank you very much (my legs stopped shaking).

MODERATOR

Thank you very much to the senator. I will follow your steps and I will pass to Hebrew.

[...] The first speaker kept the time, and all the speakers asked me: "How much time do I have?" This reminds me: I once had a presentation at the university, and I asked, "How much time do I have?" Then one of the students answered: "You have all the time you want. We leave in half an hour." Well…

Here I want to present the second speaker, the honorable Senator Homer Antonio Menacho Soria, has done his higher studies in Economics, at the State University of San Simon, in the city of Cochabamba, Bolivia; Diploma in Municipalities of the Private University of Bolivia (UPB); and he completed an Master’s in Business Administration.

Among the public positions he held are, among the most important: Head of the Organizational Development Unit, Head of Planning in the Old Prefecture of Pando; He was also a consultant for important organizations such as CEPAD Center for Participation and Sustainable Human Development.