Hundreds take to the streets of La Paz to demand that President Rodrigo Paz step down
Riot police clashed with anti-government protesters in Bolivia’s administrative capital, La Paz, on Monday. The massive rallies sparked by rising costs of living and fuel shortages escalated into calls for Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz to step down just six months after taking office.
A centrist Christian Democratic Party conservative, Paz scrapped decades-old fuel subsidies that had drained Bolivia’s foreign reserves but has so far failed to stabilize fuel supplies. Thousands of farmers, miners, teachers, laborers, and indigenous activists have spent weeks protesting over rising living costs, stagnant wages, economic instability, and alleged plans to privatize state-owned companies.
Video footage showed riot police firing tear gas as protesters hurled projectiles, firecrackers, and homemade explosives near government buildings. The footage also captured arrests and a burning vehicle.
Local media have reported that more than 100 people were arrested during the Monday unrest.
Supporters of socialist former Bolivian President Evo Morales joined the protests, marching through major streets and avenues while calling on the government to prevent what they described as US interference in the country’s internal affairs.
“The US gives Rodrigo Paz instructions, and Rodrigo Paz uses military police to carry out massacres,” Feliciano Vegamonte, leader of the Confederation of Peasant Workers said during the march, adding that “the current president has been bathed in the blood of Indigenous people.”
The political crisis in Bolivia deepened after the 2019 turmoil, when Morales was ousted following a disputed election in which he secured a highly controversial fourth consecutive term. Prior to that, he had narrowly lost a referendum on removing term limits, which at the time capped the tenure of both the president and vice president at two terms.
On Sunday, Morales supporters occupied an airport in Chimore to prevent his alleged arrest by what he described as US-backed forces. The move reportedly led to 57 arrests and came shortly after Morales claimed that Washington was planning to detain him.
More video footage captured hundreds of demonstrators loyal to Paz marching through La Paz on Monday night condemning the anti-government protests and calling on the authorities to declare a state of emergency.
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