Bolivian President Evo Morales proposed talks with political foes on Monday, one day after a referendum deepened divisions that threaten to make his poor South American country ungovernable.
The US and Spain said they stood ready to facilitate the dialogue between Morales and conservative governors who are defying his socialist reforms.
Morales and four governors who have formed an opposition coalition in Bolivia’s east all emerged from the plebiscite with their mandates strongly confirmed by voters.
That result revealed a rift that has caused a crisis in the country.
It is split between the indigenous majority who mostly live in the Andes to the west and who massively back Morales, himself of Aymara Indian descent; and the relatively wealthy east, which is governed by an elite of European descent.
Morales, who won more than 60 percent of the vote according to unofficial results, told international media in La Paz that once the National Electoral Court finishes its own tally, “we will call the governors and the sectors [unions and rural workers’ groups] to dialogue.”
The court is expected to give its count of the ballots within the next 30 days.
US State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters in Washington before Morales’ statement that the US government urged both sides in Bolivia “to seize this opportunity to begin a frank dialogue to resolve outstanding issues and define a way forward that unites all Bolivians.”
He said the US “stands ready to assist” and was committed “to be a good partner in Bolivia’s journey to a more democratic, prosperous future.”
Spain, Bolivia’s former colonial master, also stepped forward with an offer of help.
“If required, the Spanish government reiterates its availability to support any effort in this direction,” a statement from the Spanish foreign ministry said.
In his post-referendum victory speech late on Sunday, Morales congratulated his foes on their wins and called on them to work with him.
But he also made it clear he felt vindicated in pushing reforms that already included taking state control of the gas and telecommunications industries.
“Your vote consolidated the process of change,” he told a crowd of cheering supporters in La Paz.
“We are here to continue recovering natural resources and the consolidation of nationalization,” he said.
His broader program is to “eradicate extreme poverty” in his country by handing the indigenous population a greater share of the land and national revenues and to enshrine his changes in a new constitution.
The governors in the low-lying eastern states of Santa Cruz, Tarija, Pando and Beni — home to Bolivia’s crucially important gas fields — have dug in their heels over those moves and responded by making a push towards autonomy, an ambition Morales has branded “illegal.”
The only way the stalemate might end was for Morales’ government to start negotiating with the governors, analysts said.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS