Bolivia: Social organisations reject attempts at coup and announce mobilizations in defence of democracy

Representatives of various social organisations of workers, campesinos, miners, factory workers, parents, parliamentarians and other sectors from all across the country rejected on Sunday the attempt to carry out a coup, denouncing in the last few hours as being promoted by political groups that have infiltrated the mutiny of low-ranking police officers and announced that they will defend democracy and the process of change led by President Evo Morales.Different social organisations surprisingly showed up at the installations of Radio Patria Nueva and Bolivia TV in La Paz, concerned by the attempts to break the constitutional order.“After having called a meeting we have declared ourselves in a state of emergency and are announcing a permanent mobilization starting tomorrow (Monday) in defence of the process of change” announced the executive secretary of the United Union Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia (CSUTCB), Roberto Coraite.He said that faced with the current situation, they will not remain “with their arms crossed” and announced a permanent vigil to defend democracy and guarantee the continuity of the constitutional government of President Evo Morales.“Therefore, the conditions are there to support this process in a unanimous and firm manner, we are prepared to take up certain defense strategies against this attempted coup” he argued.For his part, the executive secretary of the Union Federation of Mine Workers of Bolivia (FSTMB), Roberto Perez, said “we will not allow atrocities to be perpetrated by a small group of oligarchs in this country.”The executive secretary of the organisation Juana Azurduy de Padilla, Maxima Apaza, said that the police officer’s demands were just, as the president himself noted in ordering that these demands be attended to, but said her organisation does not accept the form in which they have are making their demands.In this context, she affirmed that as social organisations, they are “obliged” to defend the process of change and will not allow the same thing to happen as what is occurring in Paraguay, where radical groups removed President Fernando Lugo in a political trial deemed as a congressional coup.The executive secretary of the Federation of Women of El Alto, Mercedes Marquez, also assured that this sector “will not allow anyone to undermine the president” and democracy.The executive secretary of the Federation of Neighbourhood Councils of La Paz, Jaime Vera, also presented himself at the studios of Radio Patria Nueva, to announce that this entity has declared itself in a state of emergency in the face of attempts to destabilise the government and denounced the presence of infiltrators in the police protest “organised by Juan del Granado, head of the Movement of Those Without Fear, by Samuel Doria Medina, head of National Unity, and Guadalupe Cardenas, the supposed representative of the police officer’s wives.”“I am sure that they want to fuse this mobilization with the arrival of the TIPNIS (Isiboro-Secure Indigenous Territory and National Park) march, which is on route to the government headquarters in defense of their territory and against the consultation process” he added.

Panfilo Guzman, from the United Federation of Campesinos from Tarija, added that this government was the only one to attend to the problems of the poor, which is why this federation will defend the process of change from their communities and across the country.

The vice-president of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS), Concepcion Ortiz announced a mobilization for next Monday in defense of the process of change, together with organisations that will arrive from outside the country.“We are grateful for the support of other countries that are arriving for this mobilization in rejection of the attempted coup, reject the attitude of the police officer and denounce that the right is intervening in this conflict” she said.

Representatives from neighbourhood councils, parents associations and other women’s and worker’s organisations made similar announcements.

Sections of the police rejected the 8 point agreement signed by their representatives with the government and decided to remain in mutiny in a protest that was denounced by the government has creating the scene for a coup.