Bitcoin Law “Controversy”
June 8, 2021, the country of El Salvador, in a historic move, passed a bill that will make Bitcoin a legal tender by September – and some people are not pleased.
El Salvador’s passing of the bill that will make Bitcoin, one of the country’s legal tender received both praise from countless supporters of cryptocurrency, especially those who supported Bitcoin.
But as one would expect, this move also displeased people that sees cryptocurrency as a threat to the dominance of fiat currency – specifically, the dominance of the US Dollar. The World Bank for example, had rejected the request of Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, for assistance – same goes for the European Central Bank (ECB).
That said, the World Bank and European Central Bank’s response is still understandable as they had made their stance on cryptocurrency years ago.
What’s not understandable though, is the US State Department’s action.
Not long after El Salvador passed their “controversial” bill, the US State Department of State’s undersecretary met face to face with President Nayib Bukele, stating the US concern over the bill that makes Bitcoin a legal tender in his country.
During a press conference, US State Department undersecretary Victoria Nuland stated that the US has “urged” El Salvador to be “responsible” with their new Bitcoin law, and that the country must ensure that Bitcoin is “well regulated.” Below is a quote of her statement.
“I did suggest to the president that whatever El Salvador chooses to do, you ensure that it is well regulated, that it is transparent and that it is responsible, and you protect yourself against malign actors.”
Such a statement makes one wonder what will happen if El Salvador didn’t follow the US State Department undersecretary’s “advice.” Not good I’m sure.
It’s quite obvious why the US State Department was so concern with El Salvador’s new Bitcoin law. They’re worried that Bitcoin becoming a legal tender would affect the US Dollar. After all, a few months back, a report from the Deutsche Bank ranks Bitcoin third among global currencies, just below the US Dollar and the EURO.
And although the value of Bitcoin had plummeted since that report, Bitcoin still remained as the single most popular cryptocurrency which also happened to be (mostly) unregulated – a good reason to be concerned.
Hmm… so okay, the US State Department’s action might actually be understandable but still…
The US is Reaching Too Far…
The US interfering with other country’s policies is not really new as they’ve been doing it for more than a hundred years already. Using their strong economy and overwhelming military, the US would try to influence other country’s policies through bribe, intimidation, and force (if necessary).
And no, I’m not just spouting nonsense here. My country, the Philippines, used to be a US colony. For 48 years, my country was under US rule. So yes, I do know what I’m talking about.
That said, compared when my country was under Spanish and Japanese rule, the US did treat the Philippines and the Filipinos a lot better but that doesn’t mean they didn’t take advantage of us. But since this article is not about how the US treated my country when it’s still under their rule, I won’t go into further details.
But if you’re really curious how the Philippine was treated under US rule, you could always search for it online. There should be plenty of articles and video about it.
Anyways, the US State Department’s attempt of influencing El Salvador’s new Bitcoin law was kind of expected, understandable even. But it won’t change a fact that they’re overreaching their boundaries.
El Salvador is sovereign country with its own constitutions and laws, and interfering with the country’s policies is a blatant disrespect, and even disregard to this sovereignty.
So what if they decided to make Bitcoin a legal tender? Does their new law have anything to do with the US? No, it doesn’t.
The US might not like the new law but that doesn’t give them right to interfere with other country's affair. Besides, the new law was just an attempt to improve the country’s economy by trying to attract Bitcoin whales and investors to invest in the country.
I’m pretty sure that the US State Department understood this fact but that won’t stop them from doing what they have set to do using any method they deem necessary.
Crackdown and Unconventional Warfare (UW)
No one knew the result of the meeting between US State Department’s undersecretary, Victoria Nuland and El Salvador’s president Nuyib Bukele. But during a press conference, the US State Department released the names of 14 Salvadorans under the Bukele regime – naming them as “corrupt” and “undemocratic” actors.
The US State Department’s action of naming these 14 Salvadorans as “corrupt” and “undemocratic” actors made many people think that the US is cracking down on El Salvador for supporting Bitcoin. And personally, I think so too.
Before the controversial Bitcoin law was passed, the US State Department didn’t even care about these 14 Salvadorans but after the bill was passed by the El Salvadoran congress, their names and their crimes was suddenly put to light. Even a blind person could see that the US State Department was trying to force the El Salvador president’s hands.
Certainly, the US State Department could no longer do anything about the new law now that El Salvadoran congress had passed it but they sure could force President Nuyib Bukele to push for stricter regulations.
And if the El Salvadoran president declined, his country will most likely face the wrath of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). How? Through a method called the Unconventional Warfare (UW).
Unconventional Warfare doesn’t just involve fighting or war. In the case of El Salvador, their economy would be the target. The image below (an excerpt from a WiKiLeaks document) could explain more how the US could cripple El Salvador through the use of Unconventional Warfare (UW).
As you have read the US have many ways to make the president of El Salvador agree to their “request”. And In my personal opinion though, I think that President Nuyib Bukele is most likely succumb to pressure once the US and the IMF started targeting the country’s economy.
Moreover, even if the US didn’t make the lives of the El Salvadoran difficult through economic warfare, the country would still suffer economically because of their new Bitcoin law. The reason being is that majority world leaders and international banks refuse to support his new law.
Final Say
The US State Department’s response to the El Salvador’s new Bitcon law is very worrying, and could jeopardize many cryptocurrencies chance of becoming a legal tender. Most worrying though was the fact that many government bodies and international organization seemed to share the sentiments of the US government when it comes to cryptocurrency.
Honestly, I feel a little disappointed that our world leaders are so against cryptocurrencies. And from the looks of it, our dream of seeing cryptocurrency becoming mainstream will take several more years to be realized. Still, I’m hopeful that our leaders would see the light.
Anyway that’s all for now – thank you for reading, and have a nice day.
FIN~
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My other articles: https://read.cash/@beastion
El Salvador is a small country but its people have been rebels from the get-go, even before El Salvador was a country its people paid the price for freedom, the first cry for freedom from Spain was in El Salvador. The first cry for financial freedom was in El Salvador.
If the US decides to use monetary policy to force Bukele hands his own people will support him even more. Salvadorians know how the US likes to meddle with other countries' affairs and we know we are a small country so we have decided that enough is enough and that a small country will tell the US to stay away.
The US not only fears peer-to-peer currency but also fears the example that a small country will set up as an example for others to follow. There are Salvadorians tired of not being able to invest in their own country, if the IMF decides to cancel loans and affect the economy people will continue to support the president.
The US fears competition in the issue of money and they know they can't compete with something that can't be printed that is the real Bitcoin because what we know for BTC is not Bitcoin and it doesn't work either. It is Bitcoin Cash what the US should fear not Bitcoin.