Bolivia protests escalate as U.S. backs Paz government
by Mar Puig · UPIMay 18 (UPI) -- The United States expressed support for Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz as the country entered a third consecutive week of protests, road blockades and political tensions that have caused food, medicine and fuel shortages in several regions.
In a statement published on X, the State Department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs strongly criticized what it described as actions aimed at destabilizing Bolivia's democratically elected government.
"We condemn all actions aimed at destabilizing the democratically elected government of Rodrigo Paz Pereira," the office said.
The U.S. statement came after Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay and Peru issued a joint declaration Friday rejecting "all actions aimed at destabilizing the democratic order" in Bolivia, according to Infobae.
Bolivia's crisis began with protests led by labor unions and peasant organizations demanding wage increases and repeal of a law linked to agrarian property reforms. As the days passed, some demonstrations evolved into direct calls for Paz's resignation.
Twenty-two active road blockades were reported across the country Monday, including 15 in the department of La Paz, the region most affected, the state-run Bolivian Highway Administration saud.
Bolivian newspaper Diario Potosí also reported blockades in Oruro, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, while new indefinite protests were expected to begin Tuesday in the department of Chuquisaca.
The disruptions are affecting ground transportation, food distribution and industrial activity in different regions, while shortages and rising prices continue to worsen in La Paz.
At the same time, supporters of former President Evo Morales were marching toward La Paz from the town of Caracollo, about 118 miles from the capital, demanding respect for the Constitution and an end to judicial proceedings against the former leader, according to Diario Potosí.
Tensions escalated last week when cooperative miners clashed with police in downtown La Paz, using dynamite during protests linked to labor demands, Infobae reported.
The government later reached a temporary agreement with mining leaders that partially eased the conflict.
Bolivian authorities accused some protest groups of receiving financing from drug trafficking networks and blamed Morales for encouraging multiple centers of unrest, according to Bolivian newspaper Opinión.
"Bolivians must know that there is a macabre plan underway that will fail. ... Drug trafficking financing is behind these leaders," presidential spokesman José Luis Gálvez said.
Gálvez said political interests linked to Morales were behind the protests and that the mobilized groups were attempting to "take by force" what they failed to obtain "at the ballot box."
During the weekend, joint operations by police and the Armed Forces attempted to clear highways to allow food and medical supplies through "humanitarian corridors," Infobae reported. However, several blockades were reinstalled shortly afterward.
Bolivia's Ombudsman's Office reported that the operations left at least 57 people detained and five injured.