For the past 30 years, executive positions have been held by about a dozen parties, while many more parties have had some level of influence in Parliament.

However, the parties of the club of the 6 most influential parties have been responsible for over 80% of executive decisions for the past 30 years, and were the dominant legislative force while Parliament governed without a budget for 15 years.

Currently, the club of 6 also represent the main parties opposing judicial, financial and public sector reforms for the sake of preserving their rent and powerbase.

It therefore seems natural for a wide consensus to have emerged on the “club of 6”. The “club of 6” is a label that helped focus the energy of the thawra towards challenging the remaining pillars of the current political status quo.

While this labeling helps simplify thawra positions, it is important to be able to differentiate between identity labels and political behaviors.

Being flexible with labels allows people the chance to redefine themselves. The forms and properties of a sentient object can sometimes follow changes in identity labels.

Many members of the cartel will realistically never be able to reform, because their DNA, raison d’être, modus operandi and interests run contrary to the enactment of these reforms.

If individuals or parties willingly submit themselves to justice, remove their immunity, and challenge the financial, administrative, security and sectarian status quo, then by definition, they become revolutionaries, since they are opposing the current state of affairs.

Being part of the cartel or against it is a matter based on actions, not on talk, bloodline or external labels.

Many leaders of revolutions for independence in Latin America were ethnic Spaniards who switched from being pro-Spain royalists to nationalist leaders. Their previous political allegiances were irrelevant to their legitimacy, since their actions spoke for themselves.

Continuing to build consensus based on objective criteria like in the Engineers Syndicate elections rather than rigid labeling, should act as a template for the continued growth and convergence of the thawra coalition.