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Bolivian Workers and Peasants Flood the Streets, Demand an End to U.S. backed Dictatorship

Bolivian national strike and nationwide road blockades were called for by the Bolivian trade union center, the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB) in August.

by Adam Pedesclaux

For the past few weeks, tens of thousands have been marching, striking, and blocking traffic along many of the major highways across Bolivia. They are demanding the resignation of the coup government of Jeanine Áñez. Áñez’ fascist government has carried out cuts to social programs and privatizations, which have wrecked the national healthcare system, killing thousands. It has brutally repressed and massacred workers, peasants, and indigenous people who have stood up to defend themselves. Using the pandemic as an excuse, her government has postponed elections to maintain its grip on power.

On November 2019, with U.S. backing, Áñez’s right wing government of the rich removed the democratically elected president Evo Morales and other high ranking officials of the MAS (Movement for Socialism) party of Bolivia. The ultra-rich in Bolivia are deeply racist and want to crush the historic liberation of the Indigenous masses in Bolivia, which Morales’ party stood for. Morales’ party had also worked to guarantee universal healthcare, improve literacy, and return land to the indigenous people that had been stolen by the rich. Áñez government is attempting to reverse every last one of these progressive reforms but the trade unions, indigenous and peasant organizations in the streets are determined to fight back.

Fascist Coup in Bolivia the Work of Billionaires

Bolivia has one of the world’s largest reserves of lithium, a mineral needed for the production for batteries.

The U.S. company Tesla requires vast amounts of lithium to maintain production of its electric cars.

When it was recently reported that Tesla’s billionaire CEO, Elon Musk, might have played a role in supporting the right-wing coup in Bolivia, Musk replied: “ We will coup whoever we want! Deal with it.” These are the words of the same billionaire who called the covid lockdown “fascist,” as thousands of predominantly Black, Latinx, and Indigenous frontline workers were succumbing to the virus and who vocally opposed any government relief for workers. In moments like these, the real motives of the U.S. ruling class are revealed. We know that U.S. billionaires are conscious of their role in oppression and misery around the world, but rarely are they so frank.

The future of the world’ peoples should be in their own hands, not in the hands of billionaire creeps like Elon Musk.

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Bolivian Super Rich and U.S. Carry Out Coup Against the People

Nov. 26: New Orleans Workers Group holds a rally in solidarity with workers, peasants, Indigenous people, unions, and women’s organizations against the CIA-engineered coup in Bolivia.

New Orleans Workers Stand With Bolivian People Against Fascist U.S. Coup

The New Orleans Workers Group stands in solidarity with the workers, peasants, Indigenous people, unions and women’s organizations against the CIA-engineered coup in Bolivia carried out on behalf of the ultra rich. This anti-democratic coup is aimed at destroying the immense gains made by the Bolivian people under the leadership of Evo Morales and the Movement for Socialism (MAS). The ultra-rich in Bolivia are deeply racist and want to crush the historic liberation of the Indigenous masses in Bolivia. The rich are horrified that the oppressed, the indigenous people of Bolivia, including Morales, took their fate into their own hands.

These forces of the ultra-rich are destroying schools, burning homes, and attacking women and popular organizations. Their aim is to turn back health, education, and equality gains made in recent years. They seek to return to private profit-making vultures the vast mineral riches of Bolivia such as lithium. They seek to cut the country’s social services in order to get into the good graces of the International Monetary Fund and U.S. banks. It is total nonsense that an uprising against Morales took place on the basis of election fraud. The generals installed a president and cabinet who all hail from the non-indigenous super rich in a majority indigenous country.

This is yet another example of how even the most admirable efforts to build socialism remain vulnerable to reversal if they are confined to electoral politics. History shows us that the only way that the basis for socialism can be won is by arming the workers and peasants and getting rid of the military generals and police of the old state. We know that the Bolivian workers and peasants are up to the task.

U.S. labor unions have denounced this coup and have expressed support for Morales. These include the United Electrical Workers union, the National Nurses United and the AFL-CIO, the main union federation in the U.S. representing 12 million active and retired members.

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Bolivia: Struggle is Not Over, the Masses are Mobilizing

Nov. 12, La Paz, Bolivia: Confronting a police officer, a woman demonstrates opposition to the racist, anti-Indigenous, CIA-backed coup that forced democratically elected President Evo Morales into exile.

The right-wing, racist coup government has unleashed violent attacks on the Bolivian people. At least 31 people have been killed, mostly pro-Morales protesters. Nevertheless, the workers, indigenous, and progressive people have not backed down. Protesters have continued to fill the streets.

Indigenous women lead protests against coup in Bolivia. Many carry the Wiphala flag (above captionless photo), representing Indigenous nations of the Andes.

On November 19, mostly indigenous protesters amassed and blocked access to a major fuel plant in the town of El Alto. They created roadblocks using tires and other materials. Police and military forces descended on them, killing three and injuring 22.

Defiantly, thousands gathered around the St. Francis of Assisi church the next day to denounce the violence. Aurelio Miranda, 54, told the press, “The world must know the truth. What happened was a massacre…They used weapons like you use in war.”

All those fighting for a more just world, for indigenous and women’s rights need to show our continued solidarity in this fight. All power to the Bolivian workers and peasants!

Sign reads: “Fire the self-proclaimed President Jeanine Anez.”

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Universal Healthcare in Bolivia

The Bolivian government plans to move ahead with implementing universal healthcare in 2018. Evo Morales, president of the South American country, said that “Life is sacred and by the Political Constitution of the Plurinational State, now health is a fundamental human right, and we are going to implement this universal health insurance with the support of all the Bolivian people.”