Crisis in Bolivia
- Bolivian Crisis in a New South America
By Benjamin Dangl : September 17, 2008
On Monday, September 15, Bolivian President Evo Morales arrived in Santiago, Chile for an emergency meeting of Latin American leaders that convened to seek a resolution to the recent conflict in Bolivia. Upon his arrival, Morales said, "I have come here to explain to the presidents of South America the civic coup d'état by Governors in some Bolivian states in recent days. This is a coup in the past few days by the leaders of some provinces, with the takeover of some institutions, the sacking and robbery of some government institutions and attempts to assault the national police and the armed forces."
- Right wing violence is shaking Bolivia
By Mike Gonzalez : September 16, 2008
Masked groups of young men smash their way into government offices, burning documents and destroying everything they can find. In the city of Santa Cruz, Amelia Dimitri, a leader of the so-called civil protest movement, allows herself to be filmed beating an unarmed indigenous woman.
- Bolivia, Venezuela, Paraguay and Argentina: threatened by the same enemy
By Guillermo Almeyra : September 16, 2008
Chávez is right, then, to say he will get involved in any armed conflict intended to topple Evo Morales's legitimate government. Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador and Peru also offered Morales their "unconditional, unlimited support", as should all Latin American governments. On behalf of Juárez and Zapata, we must demand similar support from the Mexican government.
- Bolivia arrests opposition governor on charge of genocide
September 17, 2008 - Xinhua
- South American Leaders Back Morales
September 16, 2008 - Bill Faries and Sebastian Boyd
- Venezuelan president urges Bolivian counterpart to fight on
September 16, 2008 - Xinhua
- Dominican Government declares "firm support" for Bolivia's Evo Morales
September 16, 2008 - Dominican Today
- 30 killed in Bolivia violence
September 15, 2008 - Indo-Asian News Service
- Talks aim to end Bolivia unrest
September 15, 2008 - AFP
- Bolivia government and rivals say talks pact imminent
September 15, 2008 - Eduardo Garcia and Simon Gardner
- Chile to host Bolivia crisis summit
September 14, 2008 - Aljazeera.net
- Bolivia's Morales defiant after unrest
September 13, 2008 - Simon Gardner and Carlos Quiroga
- Bolivian army says it will not tolerate radical actions, foreign interference
September 13, 2008 - Xinhua
- Bolivia declares martial law, Morales meets rival
September 13, 2008 - Simon Gardner and Marco Aquino
- From Pristina to La Paz:
Expelled US Ambassador to Bolivia had been in charge of Kosovo Secession
By Wilson García Mérida : September 13, 2008
He presented his credentials before President Evo Morales on October 13, 2006; but three months before his arrival in Bolivia, when he was still in Pristina fulfilling his role as head of the US mission in Kosovo, it was already being said that the new US ambassador designated by George Bush for this Andean country, Philip Goldberg, would come to take part in the separatist process that was being cultivated in the background to pierce the Bolivian regime.
- A Matter of Morals, Not Morales: Respect Bolivia's Democracy!
September 13, 2008 - Olivia Burlingame Goumbri
Yet again, the United States appears to be siding with violent right-wing elements to undermine a Latin American democracy.
As an American and an expert on US-Venezuela relations, the events unfolding in Bolivia are simply too familiar to escape my notice. The tactics used by opponents of President Chavez during Venezuela's short-lived coup in 2002 are currently being replicated in a "civic coup" in neighboring Bolivia that is designed to undermine the democratic government of Evo Morales.
- Bolivia: U.S. Ambassador Expelled September 11, 2008
Bolivian President Evo Morales has declared U.S. Ambassador to La Paz Philip Goldberg "persona non grata", after accusing him of aiding and abetting pro-autonomy opposition groups that are blocking highways and occupying government buildings, reducing the supply of natural gas to Brazil.
- Venezuela joins Bolivia and expels U.S. ambassador September 11, 2008
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has announced that the U.S. ambassador has 72 hours to leave Venezuela and he's recalling his ambassador from Washington. Chavez said he's asking U.S. Ambassador Patrick Duddy to leave as a means of showing solidarity with Bolivian President Evo Morales...
- Washington expels Bolivian envoy September 12, 2008
The US says it is expelling Bolivia's envoy in Washington, a day after the US ambassador was told to leave Bolivia.
- Honduras in diplomatic snub to U.S. over Bolivia September 12, 2008
- In solidarity, Honduras takes action against U.S. envoy September 12, 2008
Honduras has postponed the accreditation of the U.S. ambassador, expressing solidarity with Bolivia's complaint that a U.S. ambassador there incited violent protests.
- U.S., Latin American diplomatic disputes escalate September 13, 2008
The U.S. also formally expelled Venezuela's ambassador, a move that was purely for show, as Chávez had already recalled his envoy.
- Nicaragua's Ortega says no meeting with Bush September 14, 2008
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega says he will reject an invitation to meet with President Bush out of "solidarity" with Bolivia in its diplomatic spat with Washington.
- Bolivia In Crisis
August 21, 2008 - Council on Hemispheric Affairs
The contentious August 10 recall vote appears to have done little to quell the political tension that has pushed Bolivia to the brink of outright violence. Although Morales' overwhelming 68 percent win indicates broad national support for his reformist agenda, opposition leaders in four of the country's nine departmental prefectures also maintained their posts.
- Polarizing Bolivia: Santa Cruz Votes for Autonomy
May 09, 2008 - Benjamin Dangl
...various aspects of the autonomy vote weaken its legitimacy. The Bolivian Electoral Court, the Organization of American States, the European Union, Bolivian President Evo Morales and other South American leaders have stated that the vote is illegal. The national average for voter abstention in Bolivian elections is 20-22%. In the Santa Cruz referendum on May 4th, the rate of abstention was 39%. This abstention percentage added to the number of "No" votes means that at least 50% of Santa Cruz voters did not support the autonomy statute, according to Bolpress.
- U.S. is Promoting Secession in Bolivia
May 06, 2008 - Nikolas Kozloff
Fundamentally, the Santa Cruz imbroglio is a struggle over oil and gas. The mixed race elite in the lowlands wants more local control over the resources while Morales, who has the support of indigenous peoples in the highlands, wants the wealthier eastern regions to contribute more to the poorer west.
- Undermining Bolivia
February, 2008 - Benjamin Dangl
Declassified documents and interviews on the ground in Bolivia prove that the Bush Administration is using U.S. taxpayers' money to undermine the Morales government and coopt the country's dynamic social movements–just as it has tried to do recently in Venezuela and traditionally throughout Latin America.
- Bolivia's deepening crisis
January 11, 2008 - Tom Lewis, coauthor with Oscar Olivera
How significant the new constitution will prove to be is still a huge question. Some provisions represent important reforms. The draft constitution gives the state more control over natural resources and the economy, expands departmental and indigenous autonomy, and recognizes to a greater extent the procedures and decisions of indigenous justice systems. At the same time, however, the document allows for a mixed economy in which private, public and communal forms of property are all protected.
- Break up of Bolivia planned by bosses
December 17, 2007 - Mike Gonzalez
Ever since Evo Morales was elected to the presidency of Bolivia in late 2005, the country has lived through permanent tensions. It was only to be expected. Morales was carried to power by a movement that, in the six previous years, had got rid of three presidents in the battle to control Bolivia's natural resources.
- Bolivia moves toward new constitution
December 15, 2007 - Gloria La Riva
- VIDEO: The President of Bolivia Evo Morales on 'The Daily Show'
October 03, 2007 - The Daily Show
- Bolivia's Evo Morales Wins Hearts and Minds in US
October 01, 2007 - Deborah James and Medea Benjamin
Now having been elected to office, they have a clear mandate based on the urgent needs of the majority: to organize a Constitutional Assembly to rewrite the Constitution (controversial with the traditional elites, but well on its way), engage in a comprehensive program of land reform and decriminalize the production of coca for domestic use (in progress), and reclaim control over the oil and gas industries (mission accomplished.)
- Bush Squares Off with Bolivia and Venezuela over Hemispheric Model
May 29, 2006 - Roger Burbach
George W. Bush has come out with harsh words for the governments of Bolivia and Venzeuela. "Let me just put it bluntly - I'm concerned about the erosion of democracy in the countries you mentioned," Bush said in response to a question put to him about Venezuela and Bolivia. "I am going to continue to remind our hemisphere that respect for property rights and human rights is essential for all countries," he added.
- Bolivia's Nationalization of Oil and Gas
May 12, 2006 - Carin Zissis
On his hundredth day in office, Bolivian President Evo Morales moved to nationalize his nation's oil and gas reserves, ordering the military to occupy Bolivia's gas fields and giving foreign investors a six-month deadline to comply with demands or leave. The May 1 directive set off tensions in the region and beyond, particularly for foreign investors in Brazil, Spain, and Argentina.
- Morales Serves Notice of the New Latin America
May 04, 2006 - Roger Burbach
- Bolivia's Nationalization of Gas!
May 03, 2006 - Jeffery R. Webber
Monday, May 1, 2006, amidst celebrations and marches commemorating the day of the working class internationally, the Bolivian government nationalized the country's hydrocarbons sector (natural gas and oil). With presidential supreme decree 28701 -- named Heroes of Chaco in memory of the overwhelmingly indigenous Bolivian soldiers who died in defense of oil reserves in Bolivia's Chaco War with Paraguay in the 1930s--Evo Morales reversed the privatization of hydrocarbons instituted in 1996 by then-president Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada.
- The Crisis in Bolivia
June 14, 2005 - Richard Gott
When the Spanish conquistadores arrived in the mid 16th century on the immense plains of the bleak plateau that forms the westerly part of what is now Bolivia, they paused for a while at a settlement not far from the rim of a great canyon. At 12,000 feet they found it too cold, and they made their permanent base in the relative shelter of the slopes below and founded the city of La Paz.
- For Bolivia, Neoliberalism is Not an Option
June 09, 2005 - Gretchen Gordon
- The IMF and the Bolivian Crisis
October 15, 2003 - Tom Kruse
The current crisis in Bolivia is social, economic and political. Socially, despite improvement in service coverage, poverty and vulnerability have been increasing. The vulnerability of families to shocks and displacement, especially among the rural poor, has worsened dramatically. Economically, growth has been poor, and accompanied by growing structural unemployment and underemployment. Over 7 of 10 new jobs created in the past 15 years have been in the "informal" sector. And politically, Bolivia faces a dramatic crisis: as never before, governments and the "political class" - as it is referred to here - face a deep crisis of legitimacy.
- Across the Americas, Indigenous Peoples Make Themselves Heard
October 19, 2003 - Hector Tobar
- Bolivian Government Falling Apart
October 17, 2003 - Benjamin Dangl
After a more than a month of intense protests against the exportation of Bolivia's gas to the US through a Chilean port, many protesting sectors are focusing their demands solely on the resignation of their president, Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada.
- Q & A on Bolivia
October 17, 2003 - Justin Podur
What are the immediate roots of the current crisis?
The crisis is being called the 'Gas War'. It began with the government's plan for a $5.2 billion dollar natural gas pipeline project, controlled by a consortium of multinational energy companies including Repsol/YPF SA, British Gas (UK), Pan American Energy, BP PLC (UK), and Bridas Corporation (Argentina). This project was to export Bolivia's natural gas to the United States, via Chile.
What is the role of the United States?
The United States is backing Goni, who has accepted US drug war policies and IMF economic prescriptions wholeheartedly. Goni is a multi-millionaire with diverse mining and business interests and a long history in Bolivian politics (president between 1993-1997, for example, presiding over various privatizations). He is famous for speaking Spanish with a thick American accent and is known as 'the gringo'.
- Working-Class Revolt In Bolivia
February 14, 2003 - Forrest Hylton
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