Four states in open revolt against an overhaul to the Constitution by Bolivian President Evo Morales and his pro-indigenous allies declared their intention to create independent regional governments.
A 130-member assembly in the eastern opposition stronghold of Santa Cruz on Thursday approved an "autonomy statute" under which the state would hold on to nearly two-thirds of the tax revenues it currently turns over to central authorities.
Among measures contemplated in the statute is a police force for Santa Cruz, a lowland state that is Bolivia's wealthiest. Local leaders say they'll seek a state referendum in coming months to approve it.
The other states which said they would approve regional charters by today were Beni, Pando and Tarija, which with Santa Cruz represent some 35 percent of Bolivia's more than 8.5 million people. They said their statutes would be similar to Santa Cruz's but did not immediately provide details.
Morales' government called on its supporters to turn out today en masse in Santa Cruz, the eponymous capital of the eastern state, to protest the autonomy move.
Pro-autonomy civic leaders plan to present the statute to the public also today in the city, where protesters have in recent weeks tried to take over national government tax offices.
A standoff between pro- and anti-Morales forces has become increasingly tense since a rump assembly of Morales allies approved in two votes a draft constitution that would establish a multiethnic state with self-governing regions for indigenous groups.
The charter, which Bolivia's voters must approve in referendums to be held sometime next year, would shift more power to central authorities at the expense of the country's nine states.
The most adversely affected would be Santa Cruz, its leaders say. The state is the most prosperous in South America's poorest country, with major agribusinesses including extensive soy farms.
Morales' core support comes from the poor, indigenous majority that lives primarily in arid Andean highlands.
The country's first indigenous president, Morales considered his December 2005 election victory a mandate to reverse what he considers centuries of discrimination by a European-descended elite.
Vice President Alvaro Garcia, addressing leaders of the revolting states on national television Thursday, called on the scores of opposition members engaged in hunger strikes to cease them. He said he feared "a catastrophic standoff" had been reached in a power struggle of unforeseeable consequences.
The Morales government sent 400 police reinforcements to Santa Cruz this week, but denied sending soldiers.
Archeologists in Peru on Thursday said they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, revealing the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas. “What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman,” archeologist David Palomino said. The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for more than 30 years until becoming an archeological site in the 1990s. Palomino said the carefully preserved remains, dating to 3,000BC, contained skin, part of the
‘WATER WARFARE’: A Pakistani official called India’s suspension of a 65-year-old treaty on the sharing of waters from the Indus River ‘a cowardly, illegal move’ Pakistan yesterday canceled visas for Indian nationals, closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or operated airlines, and suspended all trade with India, including to and from any third country. The retaliatory measures follow India’s decision to suspend visas for Pakistani nationals in the aftermath of a deadly attack by shooters in Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The rare attack on civilians shocked and outraged India and prompted calls for action against their country’s archenemy, Pakistan. New Delhi did not publicly produce evidence connecting the attack to its neighbor, but said it had “cross-border” links to Pakistan. Pakistan denied any connection to
TRUMP EFFECT: The win capped one of the most dramatic turnarounds in Canadian political history after the Conservatives had led the Liberals by more than 20 points Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday pledged to win US President Donald Trump’s trade war after winning Canada’s election and leading his Liberal Party to another term in power. Following a campaign dominated by Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, Carney promised to chart “a new path forward” in a world “fundamentally changed” by a US that is newly hostile to free trade. “We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” said Carney, who led the central banks of Canada and the UK before entering politics earlier this year. “We will win this trade war and
Armed with 4,000 eggs and a truckload of sugar and cream, French pastry chefs on Wednesday completed a 121.8m-long strawberry cake that they have claimed is the world’s longest ever made. Youssef El Gatou brought together 20 chefs to make the 1.2 tonne masterpiece that took a week to complete and was set out on tables in an ice rink in the Paris suburb town of Argenteuil for residents to inspect. The effort overtook a 100.48m-long strawberry cake made in the Italian town of San Mauro Torinese in 2019. El Gatou’s cake also used 350kg of strawberries, 150kg of sugar and 415kg of