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Archive by category 'Political Analysis'
Widespread protests, marches, counter-marches, blockades, and strikes continue throughout the nation, and do not show signs of diminishing. Doctors, medical students, and health workers continued to protest, entering their eighth week of strikes on Monday, May 14th. Public university students and staff as well as transportation unions joined the measures. Early in the week, the [...]
Throughout 2012, Bolivian unions, social movements, and civil organizations have staged marches, road blockades, and strikes. Following a customary pattern, the period after Carnaval (end of February) these measures have escalated, particularly around May Day, a traditional time for labor demands. Various unions and organizations reject legislation or measures implemented by the Morales administration. Most [...]
As calls mount from prominent Latin American politicians for a profound re-evaluation of international drug policy, and even a debate on the feasibility of drug decriminalization and legalization at the Summit of the Americas this weekend, Bolivia’s complex position is often misunderstood. Personal consumption decriminalized in practice Currently, personal drug possession in Bolivia does not [...]
Bolivia’s new constitution sets important precedents for indigenous autonomy. Drawing from the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the 2009 Constitution intends to grant greater self-determination to indigenous groups across the country. The 2010 Autonomy and Decentralization Framework Law outlines definitions and procedures for indigenous communities that wish to declare their [...]
A block of indigenous representatives to the Bolivian Legislative Assembly announced that they are forming a new first nations’ caucus. The news unsettled Bolivian politics, as it means that MAS will lose its guaranteed 2/3 majority rule in the Legislative Assembly. Congressman Bienvenido Zacu, a member of the newly formed caucus, explained that the new [...]
Bolivia swore in 56 new justices on January 3, 2012. Their daunting task is to reshape the face of the Bolivian judiciary in accordance with the new constitution. The president and other MAS party officials spoke with high hopes about the judges’ inauguration. President of the Legislative Assembly, Hector Arce, expressed his belief that this judiciary [...]
On November 17, Bolivia, Brazil and the United States planned to ratify agreements on a trilateral coca monitoring effort. Officials delayed signing the accord until Friday, and then postponed it indefinitely. Initially slated for March 2011, ratification of the agreement has been repeatedly delayed. Furthermore, the agreement has been converted from a trilateral accord to [...]
On October 13, the Bolivian congress approved a new law to protect the contested TIPNIS indigenous territory and national park, temporary halting construction of the planned highway. However, TIPNIS marchers, who are expected to arrive in La Paz next week after a two-month march on foot from the lowlands, reject the legislation, particularly because its [...]
On October 16, Bolivia will hold a popular vote to fill the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Tribunal, the Judiciary Council, and the National Agrarian and Environmental Tribunal. These elections are part of Bolivian judicial reform, designed to make the judicial system more representative. While critics of the MAS administration continue to question the politics behind [...]
On September 25 at 5 pm, approximately 500 Bolivian police officers tear-gassed and used excessive force against camping indigenous protestors outside of Yucumo, in Beni Department. Initial reports listed one child dead and multiple wounded,[i] although human rights groups have not confirmed any casualties. The violent police action presents the most dramatic example yet in [...]