The eastern lowlands however, which have the richest gas reserves and farmland and a freewheeling capitalist spirit, see Morales as a power-hungry autocrat with ruinous economic policies. They are especially enraged by an attempt to redistribute land and to funnel gas revenues away from the provinces and into a state pension fund for those aged over 60, seen as a populist ruse to weaken the provinces.
“If there is inflation, it is because the elderly poor are now having money to eat chicken,” one man grumbled on TV.
The recall referendum, which applied to provincial governors as well as the president, bounced two opposition leaders from office, but the governors in Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando and Tarija, flying an autonomy banner, emerged stronger. A rare meeting to try to bridge the gap between the two sides flopped. Santa Cruz Governor Ruben Costas called Morales an “assassin” and gave the green light to ramp up the province’s rebellion.
Youths waving green and white Santa Cruz flags have added insignias to the shields they use to fight riot police. Many belong to the Union Juvenil Crucenista, a pseudo-militia. To date, the rebels have not dared seize the gasfields, which would seriously escalate the conflict.
But Carlos Pablo Klinsky, an outspoken opposition leader in Santa Cruz, said events could turn bloody if Morales pushed for a referendum on the Constitution.
“People here are very angry and it would not surprise me if soon they started seizing state institutions. If the president keeps pushing his reforms, violence will get harsh, very harsh,” he said.
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