Colombia Dares to Keep Its Own Money: A Grave Offense to Global Capital
📰 THE STORY: Bloomberg reports that the Colombian government has unveiled a draft decree aiming to cap pension funds' overseas holdings at 30%, pushing them to invest more heavily within the domestic economy. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: For decades, the Global South has been consistently pressured by institutions like the IMF and World Bank to adopt 'free market'
policies, which often involve the liberalization of capital flows. This frequently leads to domestic savings being invested abroad, fueling growth in already developed nations, rather than building local infrastructure or industries. This is a recurring pattern of resource extraction, much like the 1954 CIA coup in Guatemala, which protected corporate interests (United Fruit Company) over national
sovereignty. Double Standard: Western nations routinely implement policies designed to protect and boost their domestic economies, from agricultural subsidies to strategic industrial investments. Yet, when a country like Colombia attempts the same, it's framed as potentially 'hurting' its economy or creating 'risk' (Bloomberg's implied concern is financial 'stability'). The US, for instance, has
countless protectionist measures and incentives for domestic investment, which are never framed as undermining 'global free markets' but rather as essential for national strength. Follow the Money: The current system benefits the international financial institutions and major investment banks that manage these overseas holdings, collecting fees and diverting capital out of the Global South.