In Bolivia, supporters of former president Evo Morales hold back soldiers

In a video broadcast by Bolivian media, a soldier claims to be taken hostage by groups from Tipnis, the indigenous territories of Chapare, where Evo Morales has his strongest political base.

Supporters of former Bolivian President Evo Morales took soldiers hostage on Friday, November 1, after seizing a barracks in the Chapare region, in central Bolivia. “Irregular armed groups” took over a barracks, “taking soldiers hostage” and grabbing “arms and ammunition”, the armed forces said in a statement.

In a video broadcast by the Bolivian press, we see 16 soldiers surrounded by peasants brandishing sticks. “The regiment of Cacique Maraza was taken by groups from Tipnis, they cut off our water and electricity, they took us hostage”says a soldier in the video. A military source, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity, affirmed for his part that a “twenty” soldiers had been taken hostage. The Tipnis are known as the indigenous territories of Chapare, where Evo Morales has his strongest political base.

Since October 14, supporters of Evo Morales have blocked the country's main roads to protest what they consider “judicial persecution” against him. The former president, who led the country from 2006 to 2019, is the target of an investigation for the alleged rape of a teenage girl during his mandates. A total of 24 blockades were reported in the country on Wednesday, most of them in the department of Cochabamba, stronghold of Evo Morales located in central Bolivia, a former coca farmer whose supporters are mainly indigenous farmers.

The former president, for his part, announced on Friday that he would begin a hunger strike to demand dialogue with the government of the current president, Luis Arce. “I am going to go on a hunger strike until the government sets up (…) discussion tables,” he told the press from the Chapare region, in the department of Cochabamba. Supporters of Evo Morales are calling for the resignation of Luis Arce, who they say is incapable of managing the economic crisis caused by a shortage of foreign currencies. On Sunday, the former Bolivian president said that “hooded men” opened fire on his vehicle and injured his driver in Cochabamba.