LA PAZ — Bolivia’s political crisis intensified on Saturday as President Rodrigo Paz declared a state of emergency after weeks of anti-government protests over rising living costs brought the country’s economy to a halt.
Road blockades have caused shortages of food, fuel and medical supplies in parts of the country and ground the economy to a halt over the past 50 days.
The emergency declaration gives Paz broader constitutional tools to restore order, such as sending armed forces to clear the blockades. While the order goes into effect immediately, the president must notify Congress of the state of emergency within 24 hours of issuing the decree, which then has up to 72 hours to approve or reject the measure.
Protests, backed by workers unions, farmers and supporters of former President Evo Morales, are demanding Paz resign.
“I have arranged for the implementation of the State of Exception to free the country’s roads,” Paz said in an address to the nation. “Bolivians cannot continue to be hostages of blockades that prevent working, studying, receiving medical attention, supplying themselves, and bringing sustenance to their homes.”
The president said the move clears the way for the military and police to restore order.
Paz said the state of emergency seeks to “restore” normalcy to Bolivia, where he said “organized groups continue to use violence to paralyze the country.”
Last month, Paz signed a law allowing military forces to intervene in internal conflicts, though he previously said declaring a state of emergency would be a last option if dialogue fails.
“After exhausting all dialogue, after reaching agreements with those who had legitimate demands, and clearly identifying those who used violence to try and destabilize Bolivia, we have made the decision to enact a state of exception across all national territory,” Paz said in his address Saturday.
Centrist Paz took office seven months ago, inheriting the country’s worst economic crisis in a generation that helped propel the end of nearly two decades of leftist rule. His election marked a historic shift for the South American country, governed almost continuously since 2006 by Bolivia’s Movement to Socialism, or MAS.
Paz has sought to strengthen diplomatic ties with Washington — strained since 2009 — and in September, unveiled plans for a $1.5 billion economic cooperation deal with US officials to ensure fuel supplies.
The current unrest first erupted in May after Paz cut long-standing fuel subsidies to shrink the deficit. Bolivia’s crisis-hit economy is low on foreign currency, its once plentiful natural gas exports have plummeted, inflation is at a 40-year high, and fuel is scarce.
In addition to the president’s resignation, unions are demanding wage increases and an end to fuel and dollar shortages.
Source: Saudi Gazette