Bolivian 'state of siege' declared

[amyrose2712]

Source: CNN

LA PAZ, Bolivia (CNN) -- Bolivian authorities declared a state of siege to begin at midnight Friday in the eastern department of Pando, which has been the site of recent unrest.

Defense Minister Walker San Miguel and Minister of Government Alfredo Rada announced the move, which begins at midnight and lasts until 6 a.m.

Under the siege, constitutional guarantees are suspended, private vehicles without authorization are banned from the streets, groups are not allowed to meet; bars, restaurants and discos must close at midnight and residents are prohibited from carrying firearms, the officials said...

...On Tuesday, in the nerve center of Santa Cruz, mobs rampaged into the main telephone office. The office had recently been nationalized, and took control of the internal revenue and agrarian reform offices in the town center.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/12/bolivia.stateofseige/index.html

[RufusTFirefly]

1. And who's bankrolling this eastern insurrection?

Avaricious imperialist nations for 50, Alex?

[amyrose2712]

2. DING! DING! DING! n/t

[RufusTFirefly]

3. Evo might want to read up on Patrice Lumumba

This is all sounding ominously familiar. Congo's Katanga province in 1960. Bolivia's Pando province in 2008.

[High Plains]

11. I'm sure he has. You would be surprised...

...how countries that have historically been victimized by the US understand just what happened. Much more so than many Americans.

[RufusTFirefly]

38. I'm pretty sure he has too. And you're right.

Americans' ignorance of their country's own international shenanigans is shockingly widespread. Most people in this country either never learned or willfully forget what we've done.

A good introduction for those who want to learn more is Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq by Stephen Kinzer

[bemildred]

39. Socialist reforms or 'death', Bolivian president says

Almost like "Give me liberty or give me death". Wonder where he got that from?

I'll bet he reads Eduardo Galeano too.


LA PAZ (AFP) — Bolivian President Evo Morales on Saturday urged his supporters to defend his socialist reforms, which have triggered widespread unrest, or to die trying.

Speaking amid a crisis which has seen five rebel provinces reject his authority, Morales told indigenous union leaders his "democratic revolution" redefining land holdings and redistributing national wealth had to be seen through, or they should "die for the country" in the attempt.

"We have always cried 'fatherland or death'. If we don't emerge victorious, we have to die for the country and the Bolivian people," said the leftwing leader who took power as Bolivia's first indigenous president in 2006.

Bolivia's deep social and political conflict pits its poor indigenous majority, who mainly live in the Andes mountains in the west, against ethnically mixed low-lying eastern provinces where governors want autonomy and greater control over lucrative gas fields.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gcNx45ZcyMe9b7C-1HsagLoYdgDQ

[CLG_News]

12. Great post! n/t

[High Plains]

15. Well, the International Republican Institute has been busy

That's the Republican wing of the National Endowment for Democracy ("Doing openly what the CIA used to do secretly")

http://www.iri.org/lac/bolivia.asp

[Hestia]

22. and hasn't John McCain been leader of that group for the last 10 years? or is

it another CIA type of operation that I am thinking of? Sorry, just found that is Chairman of the International Republican Institute. Harold Form is in the Democratic Leadership Council. Ugh...

[bluesmail]

4. at least there was a warning > don't mess with

a BigTelecom. They cheat in their fighting. This is reminiscint of too many South American Coups. :scared:

[iconicgnom]

5. Dyncorp, Blackwater. The "new" US economy strikes again

[bemildred]

6. Ecuador, Honduras support Bolivia, Venezuela in expulsion of U.S. envoys

LIMA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Ecuador and Honduras on Friday voiced support for Bolivia and Venezuela's decision to expel U.S. ambassadors in their countries in protest of Washington's intervention in their domestic affairs.

"The president of Bolivia, Evo Morales and the president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, have enough reasons to label (as "persona non gratas") the U.S. ambassador in La Paz, Philip Goldberg, and that in Caracas, Patrick Duddy. I respect those countries' decisions and I am sure that they had their concrete and verified reasons," Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa said during his visit to Peru.

"Ecuador will make its resolutions in a sovereign way," Correa noted.

"I have to acknowledge that former U.S. ambassador to Ecuador always respected my country," the president said, adding that "if any U.S. ambassador or of any place attempts to interfere in our internal affairs or affect the country's security, he will be immediately expelled."

Correa made the remarks at a press conference at the Andean Community of Nations (CAN) that groups Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/13/content_9961571.htm

[bemildred]

7. Bolivia province under martial law

The Bolivian government says it has declared martial law in an eastern province where at least eight people have been killed in clashes between pro- and anti-government activists.

On Friday, troops took control of the airport in the capital of Pando province and fired shots to disperse protesters, according to an Associated Press report.

Earlier, Evo Morales, the president, said he had ruled out the use of force to clampdown on pro-autonomy protests that have raged across the country for several days.

The move came as Morales began talks with a commission of opposition leaders from the four eastern provinces that have led the protests against his rule.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2008/09/20089130437416350.html

[Peace Patriot]

9. This is the first I've heard of "talks"--and wouldn't you know, it's Al Jazeera.

The OAS tried to talk to these greedy, racists nuts. The Catholic bishops tried to talk to them. Morales has tried numerous times to talk to them. Everybody's tried to talk sense to the these people, and reach a compromise. Now that they've blown up a pipeline, and killed seven peasant farmers, and beaten up God knows how many, and trashed government buildings, at last there is some movement to resolve this conflict. I am very glad to hear of it. I couldn't imagine where this insurrection was heading. It is pointless. The lead instigators want to secede and take Bolivia's gas/oil resources with them. But Brazil and Argentina (Bolivia's chief gas customers) won't trade with them. They are landlocked, and have no route to sell the gas to anyone else. Morales--by nationalizing Bolivia's gas resource, and re-negotiating the contracts--has DOUBLED the gas revenues, from $1 billion to $2 billion/year. So there are plenty of gas revenues for everybody. The new constitution that is backed by the Morales government even permits semi-autonomy. Why are they rioting? Is it just Bushwhack funding and stoking of conflict?

I do think it's part of larger Bushite strategy that may not even include serious designs on Bolivia's resources or its government. For the Bushites, it may just be a diversion--a way of disabling a Venezuelan ally--and possibly a test run of the secession strategy. Ecuador's president, Rafael Correa, has stated that the Bushites have a three-country civil war strategy--in Bolivia, Ecuador and Venezuela--colluding with fascist cabals in the oil rich provinces that want to secede from the national governments. The one that is the most vulnerable is the oil rich state of Zulia, Venezuela, on the Caribbean and adjacent to Colombia (heavily militarized Bush Cartel client state). The Bushwhacks recently reconstituted the U.S. 4th Fleet in the Caribbean. And there sits one of the biggest pots of oil in the world, basically undefended (vis a vis the U.S. military)--which may be why Chavez invited Russia over for naval maneuvers in the Caribbean (as a warn-off).

The Bushwhacks, of course, hate the democracy movement in South America, and would do anything they could to damage it--and have tried lots of dirty rotten schemes to do so. But, with their plans for Iran getting checkmated, they must be getting quite desperate for more oil. Zulia must look like a "sitting duck" to them. I think that's where they're going with this. Bolivia had this weakness--the white separatists--so they exploited it. But that is not their main interest.

[AlphaCentauri]

10. Also those crazy nuts want to take pensions away from the elderly

The opposition alliance - which controls the provinces of Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando and Tarija - is demanding the return of funds raised through a tax on natural gas, which the central government currently devotes to financing a pension for all citizens over 60.

[Peace Patriot]

35. I think it's a matter of $50 million, for the pensions ($35/mo!) for the elderly poor--

but, as I said, Morales has DOUBLED the gas revenues, to $2 BILLION/year. There is plenty of gas revenue for everyone. These Bushwhackos, though, want it ALL. That is a Bushwhack characteristic. But Brazil has really put the kabosh on that. Brazil, and also Argentina--the two chief gas customers--have said that they will not trade with these secessionist states. And two days ago, Brazil as much as threatened to send troops, to support Morales' government. They will not tolerate these Bushwhacks blowing up their pipelines and overthrowing the legitimate government.

http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN1133413320080912

[EFerrari]

8. I called Boxer and Pelosi today and asked why we're supporting

white supremacists trying to destabilize Bolivian democracy. Barbara is on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and I think Nancy has some kind of job in leadership.

[mod mom]

43. The Money Party: Million Dollar Assholes: Carville, Shrum & Greenberg

Friday, April 08, 2005

Million Dollar Assholes: Carville, Shrum & Greenberg

-snip

I saw a documentary that blew me away today but I don't mean in a good way. It was called Our Brand is Crisis, about how the firm of Carville, Greenberg and Shrum (as in James Ragin' Cajun Carville and Bob $5 million man Shrum) travel around the world meddling in political situations they know little about for fun and profit when they're not busy losing Presidential elections.

The film takes place in the Bolivian election of 2002, when Carville et. al. convinced the Bolivian people they needed to elect Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada, aka Goni, an American-born candidate who speaks Spanish with an accent and who had failed miserably once before as President during the 90s. He is elected by the thinnest of margins, only to be forced to resign 14 months later amid riots that left 100 people dead.

-snip
http://firedoglake.blogspot.com/2005/04/million-dollar-assholes-carville-shrum.html

[Pterodactyl]

13. Unacceptable!

"Under the siege, constitutional guarantees are suspended, private vehicles without authorization are banned from the streets, groups are not allowed to meet; bars, restaurants and discos must close at midnight and residents are prohibited from carrying firearms, the officials said."

This is not acceptable. Bolivia is going to have to do a lot better than that if it wants to be a respectable nation and not a banana republic.

If they keep this up, watch how the terms will change from the "Bolivian government" to the "Bolivian regime".

[EFerrari]

18. Well. no. They have an armed insurrection on their hands

that you and I are paying for.

And, btw, TX is operating under about the same terms today.

[Pterodactyl]

25. ?

And you support the curtailing of constitutional rights in favor of security?

[EFerrari]

27. When armed mobs are putting lives and property at risk,

what would you suggest?

?

[Pterodactyl]

40. OK, you win.

Let's ignore constitutional rights because of some emergency.:eyes:

[AlphaCentauri]

41. Bombing and killing sympathizers of Morales is unconstitutional

is that OK?

[Pterodactyl]

48. Of course not, but apparently you don't think Bolivians deserve constitutional protections.

Even during a war or a revolution, a government has to play by the rules. Morales is workign right our of the Bush-Blair-Putin playbook.

[Judi Lynn]

50. Where were you during discussions of US involvement in overthrowing the Bolivian government

in the 1960's, the theft of all the land many Bolivians lived upon, and the gift of that same land to imported South Africans in Hugo Banzer's attempt to create his "White Bolivia," with the assistance of Richard Nixon and the C.I.A.

Where have you been during our discussions of the water privatization riots, and the use of School of Americas snipers to kill the poor Bolivians protesting the filthy seizure of all their drinking war by American profiteers?

Yeah, you're a real champion of human rights, no doubt about it.

Time to do your homework on Bolivia.

[Pterodactyl]

52. Where was I?

Um, I hadn't been born yet during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, but thanks for your super relevant question.
===========================
OK, I give up. Seriously. The Bolivian constitution should be suspended! You're right. I'm sorry. I did my homework now and you're right. I don't know why they had that stupid piece of paper anyway, since it is just an impediment to security and victory.

I should never have questioned authority or raised my concerns. I'll just go back to being a good little internetter.

I totally agree with you now. Thanks for setting me straight. Security is more important than constitutional rights. Got it. Thanks again.

[bemildred]

53. The Bolivian Constitution is not suspended.

And Morales did not exactly invent the idea of martial law in a crisis. His is doing nothing that Lincoln would find hard to understand.

[Pterodactyl]

54. I agree with you. Totally!

[Pterodactyl]

55. Not suspended.

"Under the siege, constitutional guarantees are suspended, private vehicles without authorization are banned from the streets, groups are not allowed to meet; bars, restaurants and discos must close at midnight and residents are prohibited from carrying firearms, the officials said..."

I'm so cool with it not being suspended! I'm sure the curtailing of rights is just temporary until order is restored. Order is cool. Gotta have order. Or else people might meet with each other, criticize the government or read the wrong books. It'd be CHAOS!

[bemildred]

56. Do you know that your constitutional rights are suspended right now?

That's what the "Patriot Act" and its descendents are all about. Here in the United States? But nobody will claim the Constitution is suspended.

[Pterodactyl]

57. OK. So you think the Patriot Act was a good idea, then?

This is going round and round I'm not sure of your angle here. I strongly obejct to the Bolivian government stomping on the rights ofthe Bolivan people and what I'm sensing from you is that the ends justify the means, even if civil rights get left in the gutter. I guess we're going to just have to agree ot disagree.

[bemildred]

58. LOL.

:popcorn::popcorn:

[Pterodactyl]

59. ROTFL!

[AlphaCentauri]

64. Morales supporters are Bolivians too

[EFerrari]

44. The first duty of any government is the safety of the populace. n/t

[Pterodactyl]

47. OK, OK! They should give up freedom for security. You win.

You're right. Bolivians don't need constitutional rights or freedom of assembly or any of that. Because there is a "siege" it means that can be tossed in the garbage can.

[Judi Lynn]

49. You need to have some contact with the facts of the situation.

If you don't deal with reality, your comments are without value.

Take the time to find out what is happening. Do your homework, like the rest of us. There is an emergency situation going on there. Any fool would know it who has some idea of what is happening, what has happened. 30 people have been killed. Many were ambushed by an armed fascist "youth union." It has been termed a massacre.

Refer to bemildred's Newsweek article posted in link #16:

The government has been very pacifist and I think they don't get enough credit for that. Most governments in the world would have sent in the military in force and a lot of people would have been killed. He has been extremely restrained. He has tried to avoid violence at all costs and the opposition has been emboldened by that. They just keep escalating.

If you're not dealing with the facts, you can say anything, but it doesn't belong here, among responsible people.

[Pterodactyl]

60. So the threshold for curtailing constitutional rights is 30 people?

Glad I don't live there. The Bolivian government is becoming the evil they fear. When good resorts to evil to fight evil, how can you even tell the sides apart? They are two sides of the same coin.

[AlphaCentauri]

61. Well, here is a more close to home example

Soldiers on the street but different causes


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_Los_Angeles_riots

Riot
The riots, beginning in the evening after the verdict, peaked in intensity over the next two days, but ultimately continued for several days. Television coverage of the riots was near-continuous, including much footage from helicopter news crews. A curfew, and deployment of the National Guard began to control the situation; eventually federal troops from the 7th Infantry Division, based in Fort Ord and United States Marines from the 1st Marine Division, based in Camp Pendleton were ordered to the city to quell disorder as well.

Fifty-three lives were lost, many of them murdered, with as many as 2,000 people injured. Estimates of the material damage done vary between about $800 million and $1 billion. Approximately 3,600 fires were set, destroying 1,100 buildings, with fire calls coming once every minute at some points. Over 10,000 people were arrested. Stores owned by Korean and other Asian immigrants were widely targeted, although stores owned by whites and African-Americans were targeted by rioters as well. Criminals used the chaos to their own benefit. Street gangs used the riot as an opportunity to settle scores with each other, and fought the police and military as well.


First day (Wednesday, April 29)
The acquittals of the four accused LAPD officers came at 3:15 p.m. local time. By 3:45, a generally peaceful crowd of more than 300 persons had appeared at the Los Angeles County Courthouse, most protesting the verdict passed down a few minutes before. Between 5 and 6 p.m., a group of two dozen officers, commanded by LAPD Lt. Michael Moulin, confronted a growing crowd at the intersection of Florence and Normandie in South Central Los Angeles. Outnumbered, these officers retreated.<10> A new group of protesters appeared at Parker Center, the LAPD's headquarters, by about 6:30 p.m., and 15 minutes later, the black crowd at Florence and Normandie had started looting, attacking vehicles and people, mainly European-Americans and Latino-Americans of white appearance.


Reginald Denny beating
At approximately 6:45 p.m., Reginald Denny, a white truck driver who stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of Florence and South Normandie Avenues, was dragged from his vehicle and severely beaten by a mob of local residents as news helicopters hovered above, recording every blow, including a concrete fragment connecting with Denny's temple and a cinder block thrown at his head as he lay unconscious in the street. The police never appeared, having been ordered to withdraw for their own safety, although several assailants (the so-called L.A. Four) were later arrested and one, Damian Williams, was sent to prison. Instead, Denny was rescued, not by police officers, but by an unarmed, African-American civilian named Bobby Green Jr who, seeing the assault live on television, rushed to the scene and drove Denny to the hospital using the victim's own truck, which carried 27 tons of sand. Denny recovered after brain surgery. Although several other motorists were brutally beaten by the same mob, due to the live coverage, Denny remains the best-known victim of the riots.


Fidel Lopez beating
At the same intersection, just minutes after Denny was rescued, another beating was captured on video tape. Fidel Lopez, a self-employed construction worker and Guatemalan immigrant, was ripped from his truck and robbed of nearly $2,000. Damian Williams smashed his forehead open with a car stereo<11> as another rioter attempted to slice his ear off. After Lopez lost consciousness, the crowd spray painted his chest, torso and genitals black.<12> Lopez survived the attack, after extensive surgery to reattach his partially severed ear and months of recovery. Rev. Bennie Newton, an African American minister who ran an inner-city ministry for troubled youth, prevented others from beating Fidel by placing himself between Fidel and his attackers and shouting "Kill him and you have to kill me, too". He was also instrumental in helping Fidel get medical aid by taking him to the hospital.

[LanternWaste]

62. Like the U.S. did in WWII?

"And you support the curtailing of constitutional rights in favor of security?"

Like the U.S. did in WWII?

[gaspee]

21. Interesting

So you support the white-separatist party that is killing people to keep control of their ability to own all the resources of the country and keep the native american population of Bolivia as peasant/slaves.

You also seem to support armed rebellion against a democratically elected government.

In other words, terrorism is AOK with you as long as the right people are the terrorists - at least that's what I'm inferring from your post.

[Pterodactyl]

24. Nope.

Even when you are fighting terrorists, you have to make sure that all people have constitutional rights. That true for the USA and it should be true for other countries, too.

In their zeal to fight evil, they must be careful not to become the evil they fear.

[Judi Lynn]

28. Take time to learn more about the subject you are discussing.

Take a look at the Newsweek article posted by bemildred in post #16. It says:

Will Morales's mandate enable him to act more forcefully toward the breakaway provinces or is he going to have to wait for the constitutional referendum in December?

I think he is going to have to do something. The government has been very pacifist and I think they don't get enough credit for that. Most governments in the world would have sent in the military in force and a lot of people would have been killed. He has been extremely restrained. He has tried to avoid violence at all costs and the opposition has been emboldened by that. They just keep escalating. Now they are taking it to a different stage and I don't know how much more the government can just try to ignore it. They really depend on these gas exports, as do Brazil and Argentina. Brazil issued a statement the other day that said they will not tolerate an interruption in the constitutional order in Bolivia. Whether that means they will send troops, I don't know.

You're attempting to sway people here who have been watching Bolivia for a vey long time.

You'll need to get more informed.

[ohio2007]

14. Bolivian Armed Forces Reject Chavez Intervention

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3485412&mesg_id=3485412

what did they know and when did they know it ?

[EFerrari]

20. Misleading headline. Chavez offered support, not intervention. n/t

[ohio2007]

30. So where does Russia stand on the issue posted by this " pro-autonomy "

of this 'south Ossettia' like region in Bolivia wanting autonomy?



A woman shouts slogans announcing she sells orange juice next to graffiti reading in Spanish: "Evo Murderer."

groups backed by local governors seizing control of government offices and airports and threatening to shut off a gas pipeline that feeds strategic fields in Argentina and Brazil.

On Tuesday, in the nerve center of Santa Cruz, mobs rampaged into the main telephone office. The office had recently been nationalized
snip
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/12/bolivia.stateofseige/index.html

not fair comparison I suppose since the death toll from govt forces on the repressed locals is only double digits.

[Judi Lynn]

32. The people who were killed were ambushed, and pro-government. Did you not take time to read

the articles? Getting a grasp of the information can only help.

No time like the present.

[EFerrari]

33. What does Russia have to do with this?

Is it your opinion that the inditos of Bolivia can't run their own country or what?

[Judi Lynn]

34. More on the violence you want to share with DU'ers:

September 10, 2008
Elite backlash

-excerpt from Bolpress-

~snip~
Students and activists of the {neo-fascist} group the Santa Cruz Youth Union (UCJ) and shock groups of thugs paid by the business-led civic movement from Santa Cruz attacked on Tuesday offices of Internal Revenue, the National Institute of Land Reform (INRA) and the National Company of Telecommunications (ENTEL).

The vandals stole computers, televisions, telephone equipment and other public goods, and burnt furniture and documentation. They beat conscripts and police guarding the State properties with sticks. After destroying public entities that had been taken over by the State recently, the fascist groups burnt the offices of the human rights organization, Centre for Juridical and Social Studies (CEJIS). In addition they burnt installations of Radio Patria Nueva, attacked offices of the State television company Channel Seven in Santa Cruz and robbed equipment. They forced Radio Alternativa to suspend broadcasts and intimidated other media that are not aligned to the movement for elite-led autonomy, in scenes reminiscent of the previous week in Cobija, where four radio broadcasters had to stop their work in order to protect the safety of their journalists.

They have installed a type of “regional and civic terrorism in four regional departments in order to take hostage the people’s voice and the free ability to express one’s opinions,” lamented the Presidential Minister Juan Ramon Quintana. The curious fact is that the National Association of Press (ANP), a strong defender of private media, has not said a single word in defense of “freedom of expression” in the light of these events.

The Defence Minister Walker San Miguel praised the restraint of the soldiers and police who faced off vandals “without firing a bullet” even at risk to their own personal security, conscious that the ultra-right are looking for deaths and wounded for political manipulation. More:
http://www.nickbuxton.info/bolivia/2008/09/elite-backlash.html#more

This article was written several days BEFORE the opposition thugs ambushed indigenous people and slaughtered them with sub-machine guns.

[AlphaCentauri]

42. When President Mikheil Saakashvili order to kill Russian Soldiers serving as peace keepers

that is one of the differences
the others would be Race and Gas.
Also Morales did not order to bomb Santa Cruz

[bemildred]

16. Revolt of the Rich

Relations between Bolivia's President, Evo Morales, and the country's wealthy easterners were tense from the start. Since Morales's election in 2005, the eastern provinces, known as the "Media Luna," or half moon, which have grown rich on natural gas, have fought bitterly over a new constitution that would redistribute some of that wealth to the western provinces. The opposition has requently waged disruptive strikes. Protests began to take a more violent turn after Morales trounced the opposition in last month's recall election. This week at least eight Bolivians were killed in clashes. Opposition groups blew up part of a natural gas pipeline and vandalized government offices, causing millions of dollars worth of damage. They have also succeeded in disrupting trade with Brazil and Argentina, which rely on Bolivia's natural gas.

Relations between Bolivia and the United States have quickly deteriorated as well. Bolivia expelled U.S. ambassador Philip Goldberg for "conspiring against democracy" and in response the Bush administration sent the Bolivian ambassador in Washington packing. In a show of support, Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's president and staunch Evo ally, ejected the American envoy from Caracas. On Friday, Morales sent troops into the eastern provinces to restore order. To find out where it's all headed, Newsweek's Michael Miller talked with economist and Bolivia expert Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C. Excerpts:

Newsweek: How serious is the fallout between the United States and Bolivia?

Weisbrot: I think it's serious. I think that this thing was coming for a long time. There had been a number of incidents. There was the incident with the Peace Corps and the Fulbright scholar . And then there are the meetings between the ambassador and the opposition. Obviously he's the ambassador: he should meet with everybody. But the way he did and the timing of it was considered unfriendly. I think you have a bigger structural problem, which is that you have USAID funding groups in Bolivia but they won't disclose who they are. They are doing this now in Venezuela too. These are polarized countries. So on that basis both of these governments just assume that Washington is doing what it has always done, which is to fund the people that they are sympathetic to.

How much influence do eastern Bolivia's large estate owners have? What kind of pressure do opposition groups exert in Bolivia?

Quite a bit. That's what this conflict is really about. You have the most concentrated land ownership in almost the entire world in Bolivia, with around two thirds of the land owned by six tenths of one percent―not even one percent―of the landowners. Obviously Evo Morales ran on a platform of land reform. He is not talking about confiscating huge amounts of land, but there is going to be some redistribution. There is the hydrocarbon revenue, which goes disproportionately to the Media Luna states with the opposition governors. So those are the two big economic reasons for this conflict.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/158825

[Judi Lynn]

23. Surprising, and GREAT seeing this article actually published by Newsweek!

More from your link:

How does this tie into the recent recall election in Bolivia? Wasn't that election meant to resolve this impasse between the Morales government and the opposition provinces?

It did show some things. First of all, Morales got 67 percent of the vote, which is as big as you get in politics in the world without fixing the election. And the other thing it showed is if you look at the Media Luna provinces, while it's true that the opposition won, the vote for Morales also went up enormously as compared to what he got in 2005. So his support, his mandate, really increased quite a bit since the 2005 election. What you are seeing right now is that the people who could not win anything at the ballot box are trying to use other means. They are cutting off the gas, which is very serious.

What are the financial consequences of opposition groups disrupting Bolivia's natural gas pipeline?

It's huge. It's more of a problem for Brazil than it is for Bolivia: they get half their gas from Bolivia and more than half in the industrial region of Sao Paolo. For Bolivia it is quite a lot of money. It is a $100 million estimated just to fix and $8 million per day of revenue lost as well. But it is even worse than that because the opposition can really sabotage the whole economy. Everything that the government is doing in terms of the next five years as far as extending gas supply to Brazil and Argentina, if Bolivia can't be a reliable gas supplier then those countries are going to have to look elsewhere. So it is a form of serious sabotage. The is calling it "terrorism."

Will Morales's mandate enable him to act more forcefully toward the breakaway provinces or is he going to have to wait for the constitutional referendum in December?

I think he is going to have to do something. The government has been very pacifist and I think they don't get enough credit for that. Most governments in the world would have sent in the military in force and a lot of people would have been killed. He has been extremely restrained. He has tried to avoid violence at all costs and the opposition has been emboldened by that. They just keep escalating. Now they are taking it to a different stage and I don't know how much more the government can just try to ignore it. They really depend on these gas exports, as do Brazil and Argentina. Brazil issued a statement the other day that said they will not tolerate an interruption in the constitutional order in Bolivia. Whether that means they will send troops, I don't know.

Thanks for posting this.

[bemildred]

31. It being in Newsweak was interesting.

I am starting to think of the recent dustup in Georgia, as in the Bushites encouraging their little foreign friends to bite off more than they can chew. I suspect that none of Argentina, Chile, Brazil, or the Bolivian military are going to be willing to put up with any resort to violence by the "rebels" - or whatever they ought to be called here - and with the new government of Paraguay, they are sort of surrounded. But it's still early to tell how it's going to go.

[happydreams]

51. "The rich are revolting! The rich are revolting". ...I agree, ...

as in :puke:

[CatholicEdHead]

17. I guess BushCo needs to correct Latin American before January

These old Cold War proxy wars get so old. Some people are so stuck in the past.

[bemildred]

19. Chile to Call Summit to Discuss Bolivian Crisis, Bachelet Says

Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- The 12-member Union of South American Nations will hold an emergency meeting in Santiago on Sept. 15 to discuss the constitutional crisis unfolding in Bolivia.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet confirmed the meeting of the group, known as Unasur, today in Santiago, according to a statement on the government Web site. Chile currently holds the first rotating presidency of Unasur, which was founded in May of this year.

Political disputes between Bolivian President Evo Morales and regional leaders over a new constitution and energy tax revenue left at least nine people dead in the northern region of Pando this week. The group offered to cooperate with Morales's government in its ``effort to identify and implement paths of dialogue,'' it said in a statement yesterday.

``I decided yesterday to call an emergency meeting to see how, from Unasur, we can have a positive and constructive attitude, which will allow us to bring the sides together, to seek support for the efforts of the Bolivian people and of the Bolivian government to head towards a guarantee of their democratic process and stability and peace in Bolivia,'' Bachelet said today, according to the statement.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aVwCHlBs0tyY&refer=news

[Peace Patriot]

36. Well, that's interesting--UNASUR's entry into the Bush-instigated mess in Bolivia.

I imagine that the Bush junta is hanging up the OAS, which should be acting more vigorously in this situation. I remember there was a four-hour meeting on a proposal to create a new OAS without the U.S.--proposed by Nicaragua, at a meeting of Latin American countries, Spain and Portugal, in South America (Chile?) a while back. They had to call a meeting of the Rio Group--Latin American crisis group, no U.S.--to address the U.S./Colombian bombing/raid against Ecuador earlier this year. But now they have a new institution, UNASUR--the South American "Common Market" (at which Brazil has proposed a common defense as well--neither thing--neither the market nor the defense--to include the U.S.). This will be an important test case for UNASUR's ability to use its economic/political clout to succeed where others have failed, in the Bolivian situation. It may be that the Bush-backed white separatist scheme in Bolivia is simply unfeasible. Brazil and Argentina won't trade with these separatists. There is no easy way for the Bush junta to get military support into the white separatists, since Paraguay elected a leftist president this year (who wants the U.S. military out of his country). And so it might be rather easy to solve, with a little more pressure from Brazil and Argentina. The white racists are nuts, and are carrying out a Bushwhack chaos scheme that is not in their own interests. They--along with the U.S./Bush ambassador Philip Goldberg--have made themselves 'persona non grata" in South America.

The actually more feasible Bushwhack plan of attacking Venezuela from the north, with a fascist secessionist coup in the oil rich state of Zulia, Venezuela, on the Caribbean--supported by the U.S. 4th Fleet and the hostile Colombian military and its death squads (next door to Zulia), may--if it unfolds--be a more difficult test for UNASUR. Bolivia is land-locked, surrounded by leftist democracies. Zulia is wide open to attack (which is likely why Chavez invited Russia to naval maneuvers in the Caribbean--as a warning off). If the Bush junta grabs Zulia, South America will really have to pull together, in a very strong way, to get it back.

The Bushwhacks may have in mind creating a leftist-free zone in the Caribbean/Central America, to "circle the wagons" against the coming powerhouse of the South American "Common Market," led by leftist (social justice, majorityist, democratic) governments. Zulia's oil would give the Bushwhacks a powerful tool with which to keep left-leaning countries like Honduras and
Guatemala in line, to prevent the election of leftists in El Salvador and Panama, to punish leftist governments like Nicaragua, to punish Cuba (cut off low-cost oil shipments), etc. The Bushwhacks would also thus gain fascist/Corpo hegemony over the whole upper hump of South America (Colombia, northern Venezuela), posing a threat to Ecuador (south border of Colombia) and to all. Another reason for Brazil's proposal of a common defense, and Chavez's invitation to the Russians. To Bushites, South America must look like a whole lot--and I mean a whole--of basically undefended oil. The only thing between them and the oil is democracy and its cooperative economic/political action.

[bemildred]

37. I think you've got it.

:thumbsup:

[Peace Patriot]

45. I should add that this is why the Bushwhacks/Corpos have to demonize Chavez

as a "dictator"--a baseless charge. No evidence for it at all--and, in addition to the FACTS about Chavez and his government, which overwhelmingly contradict the charge of "dictator, other leaders strongly support Chavez and are allied with him (Lula da Silva, the Kirchners, Vasquez, Correa, Morales, Lugo, Ortega) and all L/A leaders (except Colombia) strongly oppose U.S.-Bush meddling in Venezuela and other countries. So the Bushwhacks have tried to solve this problem--that the only thing standing between them and South America's oil is democracy--by baldfaced lying and slander--and this kind of intense psyops/disinformation is generally a preliminary to war.

They have to portray Chavez as a "dictator" to justify aggression against Venezuela. And they have tried to extend this epithet to Rafael Correa (Ecuador) and Evo Morales (Bolivia) as well. It just gets ridiculous. These are VERY democratic leaders--and the LEAST dictatorial leaders in the world. Their election has been a triumph for democracy. We should be lavishing the voters and citizens of Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia with praise for this great achievement. Instead, the nastiness and vitriol from the Bushwhacks and Corpos and collusive so-called Democrats never ends.

They have also tried to portray Chavez as a "terrorist lover" (--a psyops hit on Correa as well) as corrupt (their absurd "suitcase full of money" caper out of Miami--also a hit on the Kirchners), and as somehow pro-drug trade. The irony, of course, is that Bush's pals in Colombia are the true terrorists of the continent (over 40 union leaders murdered this year alone, by the Colombian "security" forces/death squads), its government and military are rife with drug trafficking and corruption, and they are the least democratic government in Latin America. And clearly Bush's funded and trained proxies in Bolivia are terrorists. They just machine-gunned 15 peasant farmers, and blew up a gas pipeline, in their out of control rioting and mayhem in Bolivia's eastern provinces.

The Bushwhacks certainly have political/economic motives in lying about Chavez and others. Their bullshit doesn't wash in South America. The South Americans know better. So it is really aimed at us, for one thing--to put us to sleep while they do their dirty work (--although, with Diebold & brethren, they really don't have to worry any more about not getting elected). It may also be aimed at the EU and the UK, which have a more favorable opinion of democracy in South America. But the intensity of the lies, over time--and never more so than recently--is very, very worrisome, as to Bushwhack outright military aggression.

It's very important, therefore, that South America pull together, and, first of all, solve this crisis in Bolivia. South America has lots of oil. They are militarily vulnerable. The people of the U.S. have no power to stop another Oil War (which will, in any case, probably be some sneaky shit like they've tried to pull in Bolivia--a fascist secessionist scheme, trying to make it look like an "independence" or "autonomy" movement). The political/economic unity of South America--and, to whatever extent possible, of the Central American/Caribbean region, in solidarity with them--is their only real defense. Democracy is a very strong passion. Ordinary people do amazing things in defense of democracy. That is their bulwark. And I think it will hold.

[roody]

26. Call for Bolivia

We are writing with grave concern about an emerging conflict in South America´s poorest nation, Bolivia and we need you to take immediate action. Bolivia is facing a critical moment in which the survival of a new era of hope is gravely threatened. After suffering decades of military dictatorships followed by years of economic dictatorship, Bolivia heralded in a new moment of dignity with the election of its first indigenous president, Evo Morales. However, just one month after a recall referendum gave Morales 67% of the vote, Bolivia's secessionist movement has unleashed unprecedented violence throughout the country. After three days of riots, 8 people have died, several government institutions have been destroyed and Bolivia´s gas pipeline has suffered millions of dollars in damage. OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza has called for the violent actions of opposition groups to end.
Citing involvement with the opposition movement, Bolivia´s president Morales declared US Ambassador to Bolivia, Phillip Goldberg, persona non grata and asked him to leave the country. Among Ambassador Goldberg´s closest friends are Croatian businessmen in the city of Santa Cruz who lead the city´s powerful separatist movement. Washington responded by asking Bolivia´s ambassador to return to his country.
South America´s presidents have united their voices in declaring support for Bolivia´s democracy and Evo Morales. Yesterday Venezuela in solidarity with Bolivia asked the US Ambassador to leave the country and recalled their ambassador from the United States. Venezuela is also citing US involvement in recent destabilization attempts in Venezuela. Unfortunately, as we know too well form our campaign to close the SOA/WHINSEC, the US has a long history of US intervention in the region.
Morales has called for restraint by the military, a markedly different response from that of Bolivia´s military dictatorships. SOA Watch founder, Fr. Roy Bourgeois was one of the many recipients of the torture and random detention which was commonplace under the dictatorship of General Hugo Banzer, an SOA graduate. Thousands of Bolivians were tortured and hundreds disappeared under the following Garcia Meza dictatorship leading military command were SOA graduates. Last year President Morales announced his decision that Bolivian troops would no longer train at the SOA/WHINSEC. Venezuela was the first to make this announcement in 2004, and since then a total of 5 countries have followed step.
We urge you to take immediate action. Please call the White House with the message, please stop interfering in Bolivia and other Latin American Democracies. Please call the capital switch board and ask for your Senators and House Members and ask them to immediately investigate if the White House is trying to destabilize the democracies of Bolivia and Venezuela.
White House to reach the President [phone]
Capitol Switchboard to reach your Senate or House Member [phone]
In Hope,
April, Mike, Pablo, Pam, Hendrik, Roy, Lisa and Eric
SOA Watch
www.soaw.org

[Judi Lynn]

29. My god, had no idea Fr. Roy Bourgeois was imprisoned and tortured by US planted dictator Hugo Banzer

He was a vicious, filthy monster who left dead bodies in both his runs in office.

This blast of facts is very helpful. Thank you.

Hope _Bush will fail in all his attempts to harm South America. You may remember how well he went over when he tried to tour South America, and divide and conquer a year ago or so. He was unwanted in every single country, and citizens poured into the streets even in Colombia to protest his evil presence.

As you may have seen at the time, and mentioned in Peace Patriot's writing, wherever he went on that trip, he met leaders who pushed away his attempts to influence their relationships with Chavez. He was actually scolded by Calderon, and Lula and Kirchner both firmly refused to bow to his pressure to turn away from the Venezuelan President.

[gtar100]

46. "Washington" is acting like a spoiled, little brat

"Citing involvement with the opposition movement, Bolivia´s president Morales declared US Ambassador to Bolivia, Phillip Goldberg, persona non grata and asked him to leave the country. Among Ambassador Goldberg´s closest friends are Croatian businessmen in the city of Santa Cruz who lead the city´s powerful separatist movement. Washington responded by asking Bolivia´s ambassador to return to his country."

The *ush administration has no class, no statesmanship, no maturity. A bunch of whiners who throw tantrums when they don't get their way. Politics, and international politics in particular, in the United States under republican rule unfortunately falls to the lowest level of intelligence. I am always amazed at the republicans I know who are otherwise very kind and decent people. If they would for one minute take their eyes off the carrots dangled in front of them (aka "lower taxes", "smaller government"), they just might see the horror they are supporting with their unquestioning allegiance.

The situation in Bolivia may be similar to what we will face if Obama wins - our own American brand of nuts resorting to violence because they didn't get what they wanted. On the other hand, if mccain wins*, only our sinking into economic depression and several years of fascist dictatorship will awaken us to revolt against the criminals who have taken over our government, our media, our military, our social institutions, and our money. That *is* the story of civilizations throughout history after all, isn't it?

-
*(and it's not mccain I'm worried about. He's been provided a vp candidate that would gladly poison him once they're in office.)

[AlphaCentauri]

63. Reporters Without Borders urges president and opposition prefects to restore calm after ten day

Reporters Without Borders, a worldwide organisation that defends press freedom, is pleased to note that President Evo Morales’ offer of talks has finally been accepted by opposition prefects after ten days of violence that has left at least 20 dead in the departments calling for autonomy and led to martial law being declared in Cobija, capital of Pando.

http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=28550