Cochabamba, Bolivia – For nearly a month, approximately 2000 indigenous and campesino men, women and children have been marching hundreds of miles from the Amazon basin to the capital city of La Paz in the Andes. Their demand is the creation of a democratic assembly to counter the wave of neo-liberal Constitutional reforms backed by the Bolivian Government and international financial institutions.
Fearing that the widespread uprising will undermine the upcoming elections at the end of June, yesterday, parliamentarians from Bolivia’s major political parties began negotiations in an attempt to resolve the dispute.
The demonstrations were triggered by controversial constitutional reforms promoted by the Bolivian government and international financial institutions, which favor multinational corporations, to the detriment of marginalized populations and their local environments. To open the way for more sweeping economic deregulation, the reform committee is proposing the elimination of key articles of the Bolivian Constitution on respecting national heritage, public property and national economic independence. Critics maintain the reforms seek to support the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas.
An elite group of bureaucrats, some with strong ties to multinational energy corporations, crafted the reforms through a consultation process funded by the Inter-American Development Bank, United Nations Development Program, and World Bank. Bolivian NGOs have criticized the institutions for financing and guiding similar exclusionary constitutional reform processes throughout Latin America. In addition, they have denounced the influence of one individual with connections to Transredes, Enron’s subsidiary in Bolivia. Excluded indigenous, campesino, and labor organizations are outraged that none of their representatives were included in the reform committee.
“We [the indigenous peoples] are fighting for our dignity. We have determined that we ought to be part of our Constitution. After achieving a Democratic Assembly, we are going to bring together all social organizations to analyze and propose our own articles,” said indigenous leader Gualberto Aguilar.
In recent days, the marchers already made gains after the government backed down from reforms to the environment and forestry laws, supported by the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank. As the marchers advance towards La Paz, they continue to press for the dismissal of the proposed reform known as the “Agrarian Packet”. Indigenous and campesino groups argue these three reforms favor large-scale landowners and timber companies responsible for rapid deforestation, and hurt marginalized groups.
Meanwhile Bolivian NGOs have expressed alarm that government representatives are using the marchers’ demand for a democratic assembly to legitimate their own version of reforms.
