"Most Bolivians Earn Less Than $2 A Day. Plainly That's Not Enough."

Christian Aid News, Spring 2006

In November 2005, the actor Damian Lewis -- best known for his work in Band Of Brothers, The Forsyte Saga and recently in BBC1 dramas Much Ado About Nothing and Friends And Crocodiles -- travelled to Bolivia for Christian Aid. Ahead of the World Trade Organisation talks in Hong Kong, Damian was there to see for himself the effects of privatisation and liberalisation of services on the poorest country in South America. He reported on what he saw for BBC Breakfast and Radio 5 Live and debated the issues raised with Neil Kinnock and William Hague on BBC2's The Daily Politics. His trip is also featured in the April issue of Marie Claire. Here is his personal account of the visit.

"It was an extraordinary time to be in Bolivia, and not just because of the WTO talks. It was two or three weeks before the election, and there was a lot of talk about Evo Morales, who has now become the first indigenous president in Bolivia's history.

"I was taken to see the work of three Christian Aid partners, who, between them, campaign against water privatisation and the sale of Bolivia's gas resources, and support small-scale agricultural projects.

"There were many fascinating people I met in the week I was there: politicians, activists, campaigners, farmers, gas and oil workers, ordinary men and women. Three stand out.

"First was a woman called Maxima Cari, who was remarkable -- although there was actually nothing remarkable about the way she lived. She was a mother having to provide water for her three children by drawing it from a well eight metres deep. If you've travelled much in the Third World -- and I taught in Soweto when I was 20 -- you will have seen poverty. But it was the reasons why she was unable to access clean water that appalled me.

"Since the water system was privatised in El Alto (the area of the capital La Paz where Maxima lives), the contractor has made it cripplingly expensive to access the water mains. To get connected costs about US$445 -- the equivalent of someone in Britain paying £10,000. The water companies are not prepared to extend their water system at a fair price, or even an affordable one.

"And it's just impossible for people like Maxima to get connected at the rate they do charge. That's why I had to watch her digging with her own bare hands to get a supply of filthy, muddy water which then affects the health of her children. And she's only a mile away from people who do have access to clean water. ...

"Another character was Carlos Rojas, one of the leading figures in a neighbourhood association called Fejuve. He told me about the gas riots in October 2003, and the water protest in January of last year. Seeing his commitment and fervour made me realise how representative of the Bolivian people he is. They have become politicised. Their neighbourhood associations are very well organised, good at mobilizing their communities and very democratically run.

"It's important that Bolivians start to benefit more from their own gas reserves. Bolivians should be able to get gas at local prices. It's absurd that the multinationals are able to charge international export prices to the local population. These firms pay little tax and sell on the resources internationally.

"The third person who made a particular impression on me was Abraham Mamani. He was a farmer out on the high plains who fed his family with the milk and cheese he produced himself, and he also had a trout farm. I got up at six in the morning to milk one of his cows. It was like grappling with a giant Wall's sausage. He should be getting more for his milk, but he has to sell to a multinational which has a monopoly on the market and hasn't raised prices for years. I found myself wondering whether I'd enjoy his lifestyle, milking my cows at six every morning. But of course, that's nonsense. I'd last about a week. ...

"The three stories are different. Nonetheless, the clear exploitation of Bolivians by multinational companies for profit seemed to be a constant. Most Bolivians earn less than US$2 a day. Plainly, that's not enough.

"The outcome of the WTO talks was disappointingly inconclusive. There was not enough movement on trade to help many of the world's least developed countries.

"What's fascinating about Evo Morales being elected president is that things may change for Bolivia in the future. But I was not there campaigning for him, and I have no idea whether he will run the country successfully. I went to see the effects in Bolivia of the free-market economic model that the world believes is the best way to bring people out of poverty. And in certain instances, I saw that it simply wasn't working."

Caption: Damian overlooking the Bolivian capital, La Paz, and visiting a school.

Caption: Maxima Cari and her three children.