Bolivia Ahora

Evo Morales gaat derde jaar Plurinationale staat in met veranderingen kabinet

boliviaahora — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 23:42:07 +0000

Door: Ojalá, La Paz

Zondag 22 januari 2012 was het precies 2 jaar geleden dat de nieuwe Grondwet van Bolivia geldig werd, Bolivia een plurinationale staat werd en Evo Morales zijn tweede termijn in ging als president. Dit werd herdacht met toespraken van de president en de vicepresident, feestelijkheden én veranderingen in het kabinet.
Opvallend is de terugkeer van Juan Ramon de Quintana naar het Ministerie van de Presidencia, waar hij ookal in het eerste kabinet als rechterhand van Evo Morales opereerde. De Quintana staat bekend om zijn harde lijn, en goede relaties met de strijdkrachten.
Ook opvallend is dat er nog maar 7 vrouwen deel uitmaken van het 23 koppen tellende kabinet, waarmee Morales het 50-50 principe doorbreekt, waar hij eerder zich mee profileerde. Het aantal ministers afkomstig uit inheemse groepen en sociale bewegingen neemt ook zichtbaar af.

Het nieuwe kabinet 2012 ziet er als volgt uit:
(bron: Erbol)

David Choquehuanca (RREE)
Juan Ramón Quintana (Presidencia)
Carlos Romero (Gobierno)
Rubén Saavedra (Defensa)
Elba Caro (Planificación del desarrollo)
Luis Arce (Finanzas Públicas)
Juan José Sosa (Hidrocarburos)
Ana Morales (Desarrollo Productivo)
Arturo Sánchez Escóbar (OOPP)
Mario Virreira (Minería)
Cecilia Ayllón (Justicia)
Daniel Santalla (Trabajo)
Juan Carlos Calvimontes (Salud)
Felipe Quispe (Medio Ambiente)
Roberto Aguilar (educación)
Nemesia Achacollo (Desarrollo Rural)
Claudia Peña (Autonomías)
Nardi Suxo (Transparencia)
Pablo Grox (Culturas)
Amanda Dávila (Comunicación)

Bolivian government close to reversing TIPNIS law

boliviaahora — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 15:53:01 +0000

From: BoliviaDiary

18 January 2012
Dario Kenner, La Paz

Despite approving a law just three months ago stopping any road going through the TIPNIS national park and indigenous territory the B0livian government is on the verge of controversially continuing in its plan to build the road. The government, led by President Evo Morales, approved the law on 24 October 2011 after a two month long march of around a thousand indigenous peoples against the road arrived in La Paz (background on TIPNIS conflict including positions for and against the road).

The Plurinational Assembly (Congress and Senate) approved Law 180 on 24 October. A few days ago it was formally introduced for further discussion on the parliament´s agenda. The intention is to modify the law to build the road through the TIPNIS. It is unclear how long this process will take but it could happen soon.

Modifying the law is a very real possibility because since the 2009 general election the governing Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) party has enjoyed a two thirds majority in the Plurinational Assembly (Congress and Senate) and controls the executive branch. However, it might not be quite so straightforward because several indigenous MAS represenatives in the Congress have said they will no longer vote with the MAS.

It is no coincidence the Morales government is now attempting to reverse Law 180. A march led by indigenous communities in the south of the TIPNIS represented by CONISUR (Indigenous Council of the South) is expected to arrive in La Paz very soon. Around a thousand have marched since 20 December 2011 from the edge of the national park to demand the reversal of Law 180 and for the road to be built through the TIPNIS (for more information see Bolivia Diary article on the CONISUR march and interview with expert on TIPNIS Sarela Paz).

The current situation may come as a surprise to outside observers who thought the TIPNIS conflict had been resolved. But within Bolivia it has been very clear the conflict was not over (Indian Country- December) and the Morales government never wanted to approve the law prohibiting the road (as reported on this blog in November). Here are a few examples:

The government never ceased in its verbal attacks on the main leaders of the anti-road indigenous march.

In what can be interpreted as a form of revenge for having to approve Law 180 the MAS controlled legislature ensured the law declared all activities in the entire TIPNIS national park “untouchable”. The anti-road march did want TIPNIS to be “untouchable” in relation to the road which is why they marched. But they never wanted legislation that would stop them from continuing with sustainable management (gestión integral) of the TIPNIS (comprehensive NACLA article covers this debate). Let´s be clear: It makes no sense for the anti-road indigenous march to demand a law that would mean they could no longer “touch” their own territory and ancestral land which they live from.

Reliable sources confirmed that in November prior to the COP17 climate change negotiations in Durban President Morales gave an ultimatum to the members of the Bolivian negotiating team telling them that they had to agree to support the road through TIPNIS, or they would not be allowed to represent Bolivia at the climate summit. In recent years Bolivia has strongly defended indigenous peoples and the environment at these talks.

What will happen if Law 180 is reversed?

As well as making the TIPNIS “untouchable” Law 180 essentially ratified elements already enshrined in other legislation such as the 2009 Constitution and the Supreme Resolution in 2009 that confirmed the TIPNIS as both an indigenous territory and a national park.

The core issue is prior consultation because it determines whether the government´s planned road can or cannot go through the TIPNIS. The objective of the process of free, prior and informed consultation is to achieve an agreement with the communities in a specific indigenous territory. However, it is too late because a contract was signed with Brazilian company OAS in 2008 and the road is already being built before consulting with the indigenous communities of the TIPNIS.

So if Law 180 is reversed the Bolivian government could go ahead with continuing to build the road (which has already begun at each end) through the TIPNIS but this would be in violation of the right to prior consultation.

The reaction by indigenous movements CIDOB and CONAMAQ as well as those sections of society who supported their march is unpredictable. CIDOB have publicly mentioned the possibility of another march. Meanwhile the coca growers – the key support base of President Morales – have threatened to start their own march if Law 180 is not modified allowing construction of the road.

If the law barring the road is reversed it may plunge Bolivia back into the political crisis experienced between August and October 2011, when the anti-road march made its way to La Paz. It remains unclear why the Bolivian government is putting so much at stake given it already passed a law barring the road.

TIMELINE

2008 – Bolivian government signs contract with Brazilian company OAS to build the road (link in Spanish to contract)

2009 – New Bolivian Constitution approved in a referendum (link to the Constitution in Spanish) enshrines indigenous peoples right to prior consultation on projects affecting their territories (Article 30, 343, 352). This right is already enshrined in interntional agreements ratified in Bolivia such as ILO Convention 169 and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

2009 – President Evo Morales gives collective land title to indigenous groups living in TIPNIS, covering 1,091,656 hectares (Supreme Resolution 230292).

June 2011- Road building begins and President Morales publicy states “Whether they want it or not, we are going to build this road“, (29 June)

August 2011 – Members of indigenous movements CIDOB and CONAMAQ begin march against the road.

September 2011 – Police repression against the march (25 September).

October 2011 – March arrives in La Paz and Morales government passes law prohibiting road.

November/December 2011 – Controversy about whether the TIPNIS is “untouchable”.

December 2011 – CONISUR pro-road march sets off from south of TIPNIS towards La Paz.

January 2012 – National Summit held by the government decides TIPNIS to reconsider road / Plurinational Assembly begins debate on modification of Law 180 / CONISUR march due to arrive in La Paz.

Conflict over TIPNIS road project continues

boliviaahora — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 13:54:59 +0000

23 November 2011,
Dario Kenner, La Paz

When the government of President Evo Morales signed off on a law on 24 October 2011 stopping any road going through the TIPNIS national park and indigenous territory it looked like a clear victory for the thousand or so marchers who had spent two gruelling months walking from Bolivia´s Amazon to La Paz. But the Morales government has made it obvious that it still wants to build the road.

TIPNIS “Untouchable”???

Since the approval of the law the debate has centred on the issue of whether the TIPNIS national park is now “untouchable” or not. This NACLA blog explores this issue. In a previous interview with MAS Senator Adolfo Mendoza, he explained that, “usually the word intangible (untouchable) affects an area of a Protected Area. But if it applies to an entire indigenous territory it could be interpreted as meaning that the indigenous peoples who live there are simply park rangers”.

Actually the marchers were always clear that their demand was against a road through their territory. At no time did they say the demand was a law that would mean they could not “touch” their own territory. What they have always stressed is gestión territorial. This concept is based on the idea of using a territory (in the case of TIPNIS also a national park) in a sustainable way.

The indigenous Yuracaré, Chiman and Moxeño communities who live inside the TIPNIS have done this for millennia (it is their ancestral land) and that is why the majority of the TIPNIS is still virtually intact. The way of life of these indigenous communities is in stark contrast to the colonisers, mainly cocaleros (coca growers), who have used slash and burn techniques in the south of the park (known as Poligono 7) leading to deforestation and even forcing indigenous communities living there to move. Such was the extent of the occupation of the south of the park it was officially separated off from what was the originally demarcated autonomous indigenous territory (TCO) (see map). Following the approval of the law the government and the indigenous marches were meant to jointly design how it would be implemented (reglamentación). However, work on this has been slow.

Investigating police violence

The marchers – members of indigenous movements CIDOB and CONAMAQ – got to La Paz on 19 October despite police repression a month earlier. A report released today by the Ombudsmen reveals ex-Interior Minister Sacha Llorenti was the “intellectual author” of the incident on 25 September – Llorenti resigned on 27 September because of the controversy over the police operation. (Ombudsmen report on the police action in Spanish). Now the question is will Llorenti face trial? Were there more “intellectual authors” apart from Llorenti?

Mobilisations to reverse the TIPNIS law

President Morales and his administration have not ceased in their verbal attacks against the marchers. It is clear the Morales government never wanted to approve the law despite the deep political crisis the TIPNIS issue caused. While the march was on its way to La Paz the accusations included that it was funded by the United States, NGOs and right-wing political parties. Three months on and the government has still not provided any evidence that any of these actors orchestrated the march, though opposition political parties certainly took advantage of the situation.

Since the march ended the Morales government has repeatedly said that there is a demand for the road to be built. Whilst there is some support for the project, President Morales is conveniently ignoring the fact that the TIPNIS is an indigenous territory and therefore the only group that should be consulted prior to road building are the indigenous communities that hold the collective land title – as set out by international agreements ratified by Bolivia including ILO Convention 169. However, any consultation, if it were to take place, would not be prior because the contract with Brazilian company OAS was signed in 2008, and construction has already started at
Allies of the Morales government, including the cocaleros, government controlled regional and local government in Cochabamba, rural social movements (CSUTCB, Interculturales, “Bartolinas Sisa”) and some indigenous communities inside the TIPNIS (CONISUR represents 12 communities out of the 64) say they will hold a mass meeting – and potential marches – in December in Cochabamba to pressure for the TIPNIS law to be reversed. It is in this context that a few days ago a national assembly of the lowland indigenous movement CIDOB that marched for two months declared Evo Morales an “enemy” because he insists on building the road through the TIPNIS.

25 October 2011: Summaries of the speeches at the ceremony in the Presidential Palace

boliviaahora — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:58:11 +0000

(credit: Dario Kenner)

Fernando Vargas, President of the TIPNIS Subcentral

Our march was to defend Mother Earth and indigenous rights. I say to President Evo Morales Ayma he is the first defender of Mother Earth internationally, he needs to be that here. To the Ministers of the state you need to be coherent with what is said at international level.

To each marcher I say: we marched in 1990 to defend our territory and dignity (this march was fundamental to put indigenous rights on the agenda in Bolivia and one of the consequences was the recognition of the TIPNIS as an indigenous territory) and 21 years later we march to defend that territory. This is the heritage of all Bolivians and this territory fulfils environmental, economic and social functions.

The term intangibility is to defend the most fragile ecosystems in the national park, to preserve the sacred places. These scared places must be for today and always. These sacred places permit the cycles of life of the ecosystems. This is important for us to enjoy these ecosystems today and for our children and their children. This national park is for all Bolivians and as an indigenous territory is a common good for all Bolivians. But intangibility does not mean that we can´t use anything. The term intangible does not go above the right to use the territory because territory is a right where indigenous peoples can use and enjoy natural resources as is set out in the Constitution. We want to express this so the Bolivian people. Some said this term that it could not be touched.

To deputies and Senators I say we need to work together to build this country, conserving nature, ecosystems and Mother Earth. This will mean we will be able to breathe pure air and protect our water systems. This is why the Bolivian people and the people of La Paz welcomed us (last week). As the march we thank them from the bottom of our hearts. We need to build peace, humanity and the principles of this Plurinational State. The Constitution needs to be implemented. This is the only way to build this country.

Adolfo Chávez, President of lowland indigenous movement CIDOB

Thank you to all the Bolivians who supported us in defending our Casa Grande (Mother Earth). We left on 15 August from Trinidad without knowing what we find on the way to La Paz. Don´t see us as enemies, we are brothers in flesh and blood. We want to continue living in peace in our territories. We are not offensive, we are brothers. Thank you to the citizens of La Paz, all of Bolivia, and our brothers from Caranavi. We say to all Bolivians let´s continue to build this Plurinational State that is of all Bolivians. Maybe some committed mistakes but others took advantage of the march (in reference to right wing opposition political parties). Ministers you need to work in good faith alongside the indigenous peoples.

To the Commanders in Chief of the Armed Forces and Commanders in Chief of the national police: If you do not know anything about what happened (on 25 September) then this humble march has brought you masking (tape used to cover mouths of those detained) and hand cuffs. Why when everything happened did you not say immediately that you had nothing to do with this? It is easy to blame others between human beings, and those who commit errors try to justify what they did.

After 65 days of marching we will return to our native lands with the guarantee that this Plurinational State is giving us through this President and the Plurinational Assembly.

We are sure that territorial management and Buen Vivir (the model to “Live Well”) can co-habit in our territory and in all of Bolivia. It cannot be that tomorrow the leaders of the TIPNIS are in prison for what they do (for using and managing resources within the national park which depending on the interpretation of the word intangible could be seen as illegal). I hope it is not like that and it is not misinterpreted. We want to go with the hope of living with nature and our Casa Grande (Mother Earth).

We need to work together and understand each other. Here is the Confederation of Indigenous Peoples (CIDOB) with the 34 indigenous nations with CONAMAQ (highland indigenous movement). We left together (on 15 August from Trinidad) saying this Constitution, that is of all Bolivians, needs to be respected. This caused a reaction in all of Bolivia and abroad. A lot of things that were said about the march were no true and so we had to come out and use the media to say this. This is a triumph for all Bolivians, young people and the elderly. This effort is of all the Plurinational State.

October (credit: Dario Kenner)” src=”http://boliviadiary.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/evo-rally-small.jpg?w=640&h=426″ alt=”President Evo Morales at rally 12 October (credit: Dario Kenner)” width=”640″ height=”426″ />President Evo Morales at rally 12 October (credit: Dario Kenner)

[President Evo Morales signs the official papers enacting the law stopping the road through the TIPNIS]

President Evo Morales, Plurinational State of Bolivia

It is important for the indigenous brothers to reflect. In one media outlet I have heard that one female marcher when interviewed why she was there said “for the road”. Maybe it was a lack of information or a mistake, or maybe it was what she thought, or maybe she was confused but that is what was in the media.

Nearly 200 organisations in both departments (Beni and Cochabamba regions) have asked for the road to be built including businessmen, cattle ranchers, campesinos, transport owners and other social sectors. The most interesting of which is a document from the Sécure Subcentral, the indigenous communities who live on the banks of the Sécure river. They sent a letter last week asking for the road to be built. The Indigenous Council of the South (CONISUR) have sent handwritten letters to the President and others. The first demand is the building of the road. It has many stamps on it. The second point is the building of the road. And the last point is also about the building of the road.

With all the documentation we have I am surprised when they say all of us the brothers from the TIPNIS are here. I just got a new declaration dated 4am on Monday 24 October 2011 from the communities in the south of the TIPNIS. There was an extraordinary meeting of leaders (corregidores y caciques), members of the council and grassroots of the Yuracaré indigenous community on the Isiboro river. It resolves “We are in a state 0f emergency because of the infringement of our rights and opportunity for development because of the approval of this law”. We have these documents. I want to say that the marchers must have used a lot of effort to do their march, I know what that is like because I have also marched. This is why it is not a personal interest of the national government but the demand from both these regions for the road.

Some ask what is behind this road and the contract with this company (Brazilian company OAS). Unfortunately some media outlets, like always, try to distort but they are wrong, they might or might not recognise this. I want to clarify as always there are always some political groups who want to take advantage of this. They tried but failed. I was surprised that on Wednesday or Thursday they shouted “Villarroel, Villaroel” near to the Plaza Murillo (Gualberto Villarroel was other thrown in 1946, killed and his body hung from a lamppost in the Plaza Murillo). Some said to string him up like Villaroel in the Plaza Murillo. I know these are not the sentiments of you indigenous marchers but look how they tried to take advantage of this. Some interests wanted to take advantage of this march.

Some say this is about environmentalism and development. I don´t know a lot about this but I do know the Isiboro Sécure (national park). And I want to say to you there is a lot of poverty there. I will not lie to the Bolivian people, so many brothers are abandoned, and it is because of the lack of our presence. How to solve this will always be the debate. In the cabinet even some Ministers were surprised when I told them about the situation. This is why I say some of the indigenous brothers who live inside the TIPNIS and to those who do not know but marched we are fulfilling the demands.

On the topic of intangibility don´t blame me, I did what the marchers wanted. When comrade Adolfo referred to the subject of intangibility maybe it can be interpreted in different ways, but this was not an invention of Evo Morales or the cabinet or the Plurinational Assembly. I was surprised when we called on the brothers from the Plurinational Assembly to discuss the law and there was some confusion about the term intangibility. I want to say to the comrades at the grassroots that as the law has been approved tonight now it will be enacted (signed off).

Usually when a law is approved by the Plurinational Assembly it is enacted a few days later, why delay. But because the march was arriving I waited for you to arrive before acting (on enacting a law approved last week that did not explicitly prohibit the road as the law enacted on Monday does). When you were near to La Paz I sent a letter to comrade Adolfo Chávez in case it was necessary to review the law to jointly make comments and come to an agreement. My desire was to then present this to the Plurinational Assembly. By Wednesday there was no answer.

On Thursday we called a meeting with our grassroots comrades in the Vice Presidency (building) because the Presidential Palace unfortunately does not have much space. At least 40 or 50 can participate in the Vice Presidency. We always say this. The media know when there are meetings with 40 or 50 or 60 the meeting is in the Vice Presidency. As they rejected this we tried to meet here (Presidential Palace) on Thursday evening. Unfortunately it was not possible for us to understand each other. You will know who wanted there not to be a meeting, who wanted to damage this march. I don´t think it was you brothers.

With regard to the Isiboro Sécure park our obligation as the state with all its institutions is to listen to the people. The law is enacted so a road never goes through that park and so the park is respected.

Rafael Quispe, leader of highland indigenous movement CONAMAQ reaction to President Morales speech:

What has to be said is there is a great deal of pain. In the framework of democracy there has to be respect for the elected President but there is also pain. Not just because of the attack on the 25 September but since the start of the march, during all of the march, discrimination, humiliation, phone tapping. All of this was aimed at de-legitimising many of the leaders saying they were (illegally) selling land or wood. We suffered this with neo-liberal governments, they attacked us. We were used to it because it was a neo-liberal government but not with an indigenous government.

President Evo Morales officially signs off TIPNIS law

boliviaahora — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:37:58 +0000

Posted by boliviadiary on 10/26/2011 · President Evo Morales signed off the law that prohibits building a road through the TIPNIS national park and indigenous territory. After a march by indigenous movements from Bolivia´s Amazon in opposition to the road project got to La Paz last week President Morales made the historic decision to accept their demand.

I was in Plaza Murillo (central square in La Paz) until 12am on Monday with the media and hundreds of marchers as the ceremony took place inside the Presidential Palace in front of us. The approval of this law has been heralded as the crucial act that solves the TIPNIS conflict that has polarised the country since 15 August when the indigenous march began.

However, the tone of the speeches made by both the indigenous leaders and President Morales suggest this conflict is not completely over. While the main issue of whether a road goes through the TIPNIS has been resolved for now there are wider topics that are still unresolved.

One example is the fallout from the police repression of the indigenous march on 25 September when it was nearly 300km from La Paz. Indigenous leaders Fernando Vargas (President of the TIPNIS Subcentral) and Adolfo Chávez (President of lowlands indigenous social movement CIDOB) were very critical of the lack of justice and of the Morales government for not taking responsibility for what happened. After 4 weeks we still do not know who gave the order despite Vice President Álvaro García Linera saying the government knew who gave the order but could not reveal who it was.

Today the majority of the indigenous marchers left La Paz today to go back to their communities. Over the next few weeks the impacts of the Bolivian government’s decision to not build the road will become clearer. It will take time to fully understand the new political landscape but what is certain is Bolivia´s social movements (whether pro the MAS government or not) will be mobilising again soon to pressure for their demands to be met.

Evo Morales: De snelweg zal niet door TIPNIS gaan

boliviaahora — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 15:59:45 +0000

Tijdens een persconferentie op vrijdag 21 oktober kondigde president Evo Morales aan dat de geplande snelweg niet door het nationale park en inheems territorium Isiboro Securé (TIPNIS) zal gaan. Hij maakte deze belofte concreet door het in het Parlament goedgekeurde wetsvoorstel over Tipnis te reformuleren in deze termen. Nu zal maandag het parlement over deze reformulering stemmen, maar aangezien 2/3 van de parlementsleden van de partij MAS zijn, is het zo goed als zeker dat hier geen obstakels meer zullen zijn.

Ondertussen vindt er nu dialoog plaats tussen een delegatie van de inheemse mars en President Evo Morales over de andere 15 punten waarvoor gemarcheerd is. Eén van de agenda punten is de situatie van de slachtoffers van het politiegeweld op 25 september. Zo´n vijftig van hen bevinden zich nog altijd in verschillende ziekenhuizen, anderen hebben blijvend letsel opgelopen en daarbij komt de psychologische schade met name voor de kinderen die bij het geweld aanwezig waren en in sommige gevallen direct getroffen zijn.

FOTOS INTOCHT INHEEMSE MARS IN LA PAZ

boliviaahora — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:21:24 +0000

TIPNIS march in La Paz – still no dialogue with Bolivian government

boliviaahora — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 15:07:00 +0000

20 October 2011

Dario Kenner, La Paz

Daily updates on TIPNIS conflict at Twitter: @dariokenner

I left the Plaza Murillo (main square in La Paz) at 11.30pm where the situation had finally calmed down after hours of tension and some clashes. There is still no dialogue between the Bolivian government led by President Evo Morales and the indigenous marchers who oppose the building of a road through the indigenous territory and national park called TIPNIS.

When indigenous movements CIDOB and CONAMAQ got to La Paz after a 500+ kilometre trek that took two months the plan was to begin dialogue with President Morales to resolve the TIPNIS conflict that has polarised Bolivia. The arrival of the march yesterday was spectacular as tens of thousands of people welcomed them to the city. But then things started to go wrong.

Attempts to start dialogue

Since the TIPNIS march arrived the Bolivian government has made a series of mistakes which have damaged its popularity and provoked the marchers. President Morales offended the march by not making an appearance yesterday. It is still not clear why but it did not contribute to an atmosphere of trust and respect.

Yesterday evening around a hundred marchers decided to hold a vigil in the Plaza Murillo until the government began dialogue. The government ordered the police not to let more marchers into the square. What really angered people was that the police for a while did not let residents of La Paz pass food and blankets to those inside the square.

Then this morning the game of cat and mouse began about where dialogue would begin between the indigenous march and the President. The TIPNIS march was convinced the meeting would happen in the Presidential Palace and say this is what Morales promised. The government gave what can only be described as a very strange excuse for why this was not possible. It turns out the Presidential Palace is being renovated. The leaders of the TIPNIS march said this was a ridiculous reason not to meet in the Palace and that they had slept in much worse conditions on their two month march. President Morales waited in the building of the Vice Presidency two blocks away at 10.30am but the marchers did not go as they said dialogue must be in the Palace.

While it looks like there is no difference between meeting in the Presidential Palace or the Vice Presidency actually there is. The indigenous marchers inside Plaza Murillo did not want to leave because they predicted the police would not let them back in. This was true as the police surrounded the square and did not let more marchers in (more on this below). For the marchers it is important to be in Plaza Murillo as a way to pressure the Morales government. Indeed Morales has used these exact same tactics in the past so he knows how important constant mobilisation and pressure is. The other reason is that the Presidential Palace and Plaza Murillo are the symbolic centres of political power in Bolivia. The marchers did not go all the way from the Amazon to the highlands to then be told they would meet somewhere else.

Inside the Plaza Murillo

I got in around 5.30pm after convincing the police to let me pass. In front of the entrance of the Presidential palace there was a line of around 50 marchers waiting to get in. The government had invited 20 representatives of the march to dialogue at 6pm. After waiting around an hour and a half the commission of 50 marches gave up. The government was firm the invitation was for 20 marchers and there was not space for the entire commission.

Then at 8pm in the entrance to the Presidential Palace we were given copies of a letter sent from Minister of the Presidency Carlos Romero to the leadership of the TIPNIS march. The letter said the government would guarantee the entrance of 20 representatives and other members of the TIPNIS march who were outside the Plaza Murillo (the letter does not state a maximum number) to enter the Presidential Palace at 9pm.

Around half an hour later Fernando Vargas, President of the TIPNIS Subcentral (groups together the majority of the indigenous communities inside the TIPNIS) gave the official response. Vargas said the condition to begin dialogue was to let the hundreds of TIPNIS marchers blocked by police outside the square to join them by 8am tomorrow morning. He also called on all Bolivians, especially from El Alto and La Paz, to come to Plaza Murillo to pressure the government to enter into dialogue and prevent a road going through the TIPNIS.

Fernando Vargas, President of TIPNIS Subcentral, gives press conference (credit: Dario Kenner)

Just after 9pm President Morales held a press conference where he commented he felt the marchers did not want to dialogue because he waited twice for them but they didn´t turn up. Morales said the marchers needed to sort out their internal issues such as ever changing demands to allow up to 100 marches into the Presidential Palace or for huge screens to be setup in the square to show any meetings live. The indigenous leaders watching the press conference on the screen in a TV van were not impressed.

Indigenous leaders watch President Morales press conference (credit: Dario Kenner)

Then it looked like nothing else was going to happen and the indigenous marchers were getting ready to sleep in the freezing cold. Suddenly riot police were running to the corner of the square where the Presidential Palace is. The TIPNIS marchers and people from La Paz blocked by the police were trying to get in to the square.

TIPNIS marchers blocked from entering Plaza Murillo (credit: Dario Kenner)

As we heard the shouts and saw the teargas the marchers inside the Plaza Murillo rushed to the corner to try and facilitate the entrance of those outside. The police moved quickly to stop this happening and there were scuffles and pepper spray. Later an eyewitness with those outside told me it has been young people who had provoked the police and that the TIPNIS marchers tried to stop them. It is still not completely clear what happened but the police used teargas and there are three reported injured (two police, one marcher).

The TIPNIS marchers inside the square swamped a riot van that tried to go down to where the people outside the square were trying to force their way in. The van was forced to turn around as people shouted “no more repression”. Things calmed down after that but you could feel the tension and anger of the marchers who have already suffered police violence on the 25 September.

Riot police in front of Presidential palace (credit: Dario Kenner)

Riot police positioned themselves in the corner of the square and soon the situation calmed down. The indigenous marchers went back to the centre of Plaza Murillo. I was next to Adolfo Chávez, President of the CIDOB, while he debated on live TV with Interior Minister Wilfredo Chávez. Adolfo Chávez was visible angry while he asked the Interior Minister to answer “just be sincere with the Bolivian people, will the road go through the TIPNIS or not?”. He tried to stay calm while Wilfredo Chávez repeatedly said on live TV that the marchers did not want dialogue just after the clashes with the police. In the end they both agreed dialogue was the way forward.

Tomorrow will be a crucial day. Hopefully the dialogue will start. Could all of this had been more straight forward if the Bolivian government had show clear political will to start a dialogue instead of repeatedly provoking the TIPNIS march? While it is understandable the government wants to hold a meeting in private (and not live on big screens in Plaza Murillo) the argument there was not enough space inside the Presidential Palace is weak. In addition the clashes between police and those trying to get into the square were unnecessary. The hundreds of TIPNIS marchers inside the square are peaceful so would it really make that much difference to allow in more marchers? Tomorrow there will potentially be mobilisations in support of the TIPNIS marchers. Depending on how big they are the Bolivian government might be forced to lift the police block of the Plaza Murillo. It is true the leadership of the TIPNIS march also needs to be open to dialogue but the provocations yesterday and today (along with the constant accusations during the entire time of the march since 15 August) only entrench their positions even more. In this delicate political situation the Morales government cannot afford many more mistakes.

Brief aan Ambassadeur Bolivia

boliviaahora — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:59:00 +0000

De volgende brief is op 19 oktober overhandigd aan ambassadeur Roberto Calzadilla, vertegenwoordiger van Bolivia in Nederland.

Verschillende organisaties en individuen hebben deze ondertekend.

Amsterdam, maandag 17 oktober 2011

Aan:

Dhr. Roberto Calzadilla

Ambassadeur van de Plurinationale Staat Bolivia

Nassaulaan 5

2514 JS Den Haag

Nederland

Geachte Ambassadeur,

Als ondergetekende organisaties en individuele personen die uit solidariteit betrokken zijn bij de sociale strijd en de processen van verandering in Bolivia, Latijns-Amerika en de rest van de wereld, voelen wij ons genoodzaakt om ons uit te spreken tegen de onaanvaardbare gebeurtenissen die hebben plaatsgevonden onder het gezag van de Boliviaanse regering.

We spreken onze afkeer uit over de verschillende mensenrechten schendingen die de inheemse bevolking, georganiseerd in de VIII Inheemse Mars voor TIPNIS, de afgelopen weken heeft moeten verduren. Op zondag 25 september zijn deze uitgemond in een gewelddadige interventie van de politie waarbij buitensporig en onmenselijk geweld is gebruikt. Honderden demonstranten zijn onwillekeurig opgepakt, anderen zagen zich genoodzaakt om de bossen in te vluchten en verschillende kinderen werden gescheiden van hun moeders.

We betuigen onze algehele steun aan de eis van de VIII Inheemse Mars voor TIPNIS en eisen dat het wettelijke recht gerespecteerd wordt van de inheemse bevolking, de legitieme eigenaren van het Inheemse Territorium en het Nationale Park Isiboro Securé, om van te voren geraadpleegd te worden over de door Brazilië gefinancierde snelweg, die hun territorium zou doorkruizen en het op een onomkeerbare manier zou vernietigen. We zijn verontwaardigd over de manier waarop President Morales en de ministers in hun uitspraken en hun acties de beste bondgenoten van de transnationale bedrijven zijn geworden, en van hun uitbreidingsproject die de Amazone zal reduceren tot een inter-oceanische verbinding om de primaire grondstoffen van het continent te exporteren.

We willen benadrukken dat de protestmars een legitieme, historische en legale manier van actievoeren is in Bolivia. Wij vinden dat het toegepaste geweld op geen enkele manier te rechtvaardigen is. De arrogante en autoritaire reacties tegen de VIII Inheemse Mars voor TIPNIS, herhaaldelijk uitgesproken door de minister en door President Morales zelf, laten het dubbele discours zien van een regering die zowel op nationaal als op international niveau beweert Moeder Aarde en de rechten van de Inheemse, Autochtone en Boerenbevolking te verdedigen.

Daarom vragen we dringend:

Het faciliteren van het werk en de aanwezigheid van nationale en internationale mensenrechtenorganisaties in het gebied. Dit met het doel te voorzien in alle basisbenodigdheden van de inheemse deelnemers aan de mars en om het onderzoek naar de gebeurde feiten te versnellen.

2. De naleving van de inheemse rechten vastgelegd in de Grondwet van Bolivia, de Conventie 169 van de ILO en de Verklaring van Verenigde Naties inzake de Rechten van Inheemse Volkeren, die is vastgelegd in de Boliviaanse wet (wet nr. 3760 van 7 november 2007), in het bijzonder het recht op een een voorafgaande, vrije en geïnformeerde raadpleging.

3. Een nationaal debat in het kader van een democratisch, transparant en participatieve dialoog, om alternatieven te vinden voor de overgang van het extravistische ontwikkelingsmodel naar een ander beleid wat coherent en consequent is met paradigma van ‘El Buen Vivir’.

Wij vragen u in uw rol als ambassadeur van de Plurinationale Staat Bolivia in Nederland, dat u deze brief en de dringende eisen met spoed aan President Evo Morales doet toekomen. We hopen, van uw kant, een snelle bevestiging van de levering.

Getekend door de volgende organisaties:

Ojalá, Organización Autónoma por América Latina - Amsterdam – Holanda
Fondo de Solidaridad X-Y – Amsterdam – Holanda
Transnational Institute (TNI) – Amsterdam – Holanda
Kritische Studenten Utrecht – Utrecht – Holanda
Basta! Debat Utrecht – Utrecht – Holanda
Organisatie Latijns Amerika Activiteiten (OLAA) – Amsterdam – Holanda

Contact:

Latijnsamerika Solidariteitscollectief Ojalá
Marius van Bouwdijk Bastiaansestraat 32
1054 SP Amsterdam
Email: tipnisnl@gmail.com

En de volgende personen:

Ton Salman (Amsterdam, Holanda), Marten van den Berge (Amsterdam, Holanda), Pablo Eppelin (Amsterdam, Holanda), Marjolein van de Water (Amsterdam, Holanda), Lorenzo Pellegrini (La Haya, Holanda), Alba Sueiro (Amsterdam, Holanda), Peter Gelauff (Amsterdam, Holanda), Anna Ensing (Amsterdam, Holanda), Christian Schramm (Amsterdam, Holanda), Ineke Kraus (Amsterdam, Holanda), Moritz Tenthoff (Bogota, Colombia), Maurino Alarcón (Ámsterdam, Holanda), Janneke Prins (Haarlem, Holanda), Ilona Hartlief (Amsterdam, Holanda), Joanna Cabello (Amsterdam, Holanda), Pien Metaal (Amsterdam, Holanda), Jeremy Crowlesmith (Utrecht, Holanda), Leida Rijnhout (Bruselas, Belgica), Bincho Alarcon (Huizen, Holanda), Tsjêbbe de Vries (Kranenburg, Alemania), Frans Bronkhorst (Utrecht, Holanda), Laurie IJzerman (Delf, Holanda), Sanne van den Berge (Amsterdam, Holanda), Berber Hartman (Amsterdam, Holanda), Carlos Morales (Nijmegen, Holanda), Simon Rasing (Utrecht, Holanda), Luca Tasciotti (La Haya, Holanda), Murat Arsel (La Haya, Holanda), Bertine Sian (Bemmel, Holanda), Gerben Gerbrandij (Ambato, Ecuador), Irene Bloemen (Ambato, Ecuador), Marielle Doms (Sortland, Noruega), Zuzana Kiripolska (Sortland, Noruega), David Bijl (Bodegraven, Holanda), Guus Geurts (Ámsterdam, Holanda), Wietse Langedijk (Ámsterdam, Holanda), Tomas Rios (Amsterdam, Holanda), Sylvia van den Berg-Ortega (Utrecht, Holanda), Adele Lebano (Haarlem, Holanda), Rob Brouwer (Amsterdam, Holanda), Brid Brennan (Haarlem, Holanda).

Inheemse mars komt aan in La Paz

boliviaahora — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:45:07 +0000

Suzanne Kruyt, La Paz, 19 oktober 2011

Na 64 dagen, meer dan 800 kilometers en vele ontberingen zijn op 19 oktober zo´n 2000 inheemse mannen, vrouwen en kinderen aangekomen in La Paz. Daar werd de inheemse mars tegen de snelweg in het inheemse gebied en nationaal park Isiboro Securé (TIPNIS) onder luid applaus en steunbetuigingen onthaald door de stedelijke bevolking. De gewelddadige onderdrukking van de mars op 25 september heeft tot veel weestand en protest geleid in Bolivia en de marcherende groepen kunnen op steeds meer respect en steun rekenen. De breuk tussen de inheemse volkeren en de partij MAS wordt steeds dieper.

Na de gewelddadige interventie van de politie (zie: artikel) vonden er in heel Bolivia protesten plaats. Uiteindelijk traden er een aantal betrokken ministers af en kondigde Evo Morales een referendum aan over de snelweg in Tipnis. Voor de inheemse mars werd hiermee echter nog altijd niet tegegemoet gekomen aan hun platform van 16 eisen. Volgens de Grondwet hebben zij als inheemse volkeren recht op een goed geïnformeerde raadpleging (consulta) voordat er een infrastructuur project wordt ingezet in hun grondgebied. Het voorstel van Evo Morales voor een referendum aan de hele bevolking van de twee departamenten Beni en Cochabamba, in deze fase van het project, wanneer de contracten al getekend zijn en een deel van de weg al is aangelegd, gaat volledig voorbij aan dit recht. In het parlement werd er een wet aangenomen over TIPNIS, maar opnieuw werd deze niet gebaseerd op de eisen van de mars.

Bovendien is er veel kritiek gekomen op met het braziliaanse bedrijf OAS afgesloten contract in 2008. Volgens een vroegere directeur van de nationale snelwegen dienst, José Maria Bakovic dienst bedragen de overeengekomen kosten veel meer van wat normaal zou zijn in deze omstandigheden en werden bovendien gangbare procedures achterwegen gelaten. De rol en het economisch belang van Brazilië, die ook de lening verschaft voor de snelweg, worden hiermee steeds meer zichtbaar.

Door deze laatste ontwikkelingen is het conflict inmiddels de belangen van slechts de inheemse volkeren overstegen en vertegenwoordigt steeds meer een algemeen ongenoegen over de huidige koers van de regering van Evo Morales. De steun aan de mars is na de repressie sterk toegenomen. Tijdens het laatste traject werden de inheemse marcheerders in verschillende dorpen warm onthaald, met name in de Yungas regio tussen het amazone gebied en de altiplanos van de Andes. Maar de intocht in La Paz was het absolute hoogtepunt. Na het laatste en moeilijkste deel van de tocht, waar een bergpas van meer dan 4200 meter moest worden gepasseerd, kwam de mars op 19 oktober La Paz binnenlopen. De bevolking was massaal uitgelopen om ze met gejuich en applaus te ontvangen. De universiteit UMSA liep mee in de mars en vele scholen stonden langs de kant van de weg met teksten die de bescherming van TIPNIS eisten. De marcherende mannen, vrouwen en kinderen, waren zichtbaar uitgeput maar ontroerd door het onthaal in de hoofdstad.

Bij aankomst op het Plaza San Fransisco in het centrum van de stad, werd een mis opgedragen aan de mars en spraken verschillende inheemse leiders de menigte toe. Eén van hen, Celso Padilla, gaf een indrukwekkende getuigenis over het politiegeweld van 25 september waar hij een breuk in zijn rugwervels aan overhield. Ook vertelden de leiders over de angst die heerste om de mars voort te zetten. De inheemse organisaties zijn een juridisch proces begonnen tegen de verantwoordelijke autoriteiten, waaronder president Evo Morales. Bovendien kondigde de inheemse parlementariërs die via de MAS gekozen waren in 2009, aan zich per direct af te scheiden van deze partij en hun eigen agenda te volgen.

Het onbegrip en de frustatie over de houding van Evo Morales, die gedurende de 64 dagen nooit de dialoog met de mars is aangegaan en nu ook niet aanwezig was in La Paz om de mars te ontvangen, is groot. Desondanks maakten de leiders duidelijk dat deze mars nooit bedoeld is om de president af te zetten, maar wel om te eisen dat hij de verdediging van de rechten van de Moeder Aarde en van de Inheemse Volkeren, waar hij op het internationale toneel de mond vol van heeft, in eigen land waar maakt. De mars zal in La Paz blijven totdat hun eisen worden ingewilligd, met name een wet die zonder meer alle plannen met betrekking tot een snelweg in het park annuleert en uitsluit voor de toekomst.