ALBA Heads of State sign Bicentenary Manifesto of Caracas http://www.pr-inside.com/alba-heads-of-state-sign-bicentenary-r1843325.htm

Heads of State belonging to the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) ended their summit in Caracas with the signing of the Bicentenary Manifesto of Caracas.As host, President Chavez read the document, declaring in his introduction that Independence is not just political but also economic, technological and scientific.ALBA has called on the economic council to draw up a sovereignty and economic independence proposal so as to build productive and complementary companies ending in an industrialization project in the regional block.

The President also referred to the almost forgotten Community of Latin American & Caribbean States (Celac), vilified by US State Department. The new organization was created during a meeting in Mexico of the Rio Group and was at first slammed by the "powers that be" as an attempt to set up a parallel Organization of American States (OAS) without the USA or Canada. Venezuela will host Celac's first summit meeting on July 5, 2011.

Chavez accused the USA of trying to scuttle the summit.Colombia is one of the countries opposing the new regional body along with the Chile.Another clause in the Manifesto announced that ALBA's economic council must propose a plan within 30 days to accelerate the implementation of the Sucre currency that will dictate trade exchanges among members and lift the ALBA Bank on to a superior level to make an impact on each country's economic life.

The political council has been urged to draw a document suggesting ways, a methodology and timetable to advance the union of efforts to defend sovereignty, as well tackle political and media campaigns the (US) empire sets up against ALBA nations.