Self-Destructive Disinformation
The conspiratorial statements by Bolivian President Luis Arce about the alleged “lithium coup” represent a subjugation of Bolivian state policy to gringo fantasies about the “anti-imperialist” struggle.
In his most famous text, Towards a History of the National-Popular in Bolivia, René Zavaleta Mercado advanced the thesis that the country’s political caste failed historically to develop Bolivia because they believed in European fantasies about the fate of nations. Thus, in a self-destructive way, politicians depreciated the national reality and the Bolivian people in favor of foreign illusions. Today, the Bolivian government continues with repetition of the same error, although Zavaleta Mercado’s Marxist thought is now appreciated by pro-government intellectuals of the Movement towards Socialism (MAS) political party.
Bolivian authorities are falling for the fantasies of conspiracy theories coming from abroad, that Zavaleta was so concerned about. Recently in Mexico, President Luis Arce affirmed that Evo Morales was overthrown in a coup motivated by the economic control of lithium and with the participation of the American company Tesla. The statement followed the summons by Foreign Minister Rogelio Mayta of the British ambassador to explain alleged participation by his country in the so-called “lithium coup.” This disinformation promoted by the authorities is a clear example of the self-destructive illusions that Zavaleta Mercado warned about.
The adoption of this conspiracy theory by the Arce government is worrying not only because of its falsehood, but also because it is unnecessary for the country’s international politics. It has only served to lose credibility, while creating conflicts and international tensions that did not exist. Both president Arce and vice-president Choquehuanca recognized during their electoral campaign the error of having nominated Evo Morales for a fourth unconstitutional term. Now they cling to fantasies.
The conspiracy theory of the “lithium coup” was invented by outside observers who sought to justify the “coup” narrative in favor of Morales. It was first created in 2019, from the American news site Common Dreams, then in 2020 with reactions to a sarcastic tweet from Telsa’s Elon Musk, and now in 2021 with a report from Great Britain from the website of low-prestige Declassified UK. Each new conspiratorial explanation of a supposed “lithium coup” is incoherent with respect to the previous one, but what is consistent is total ignorance about local lithium politics in the Salar de Uyuni.
The Declassified UK report by Matt Kennard, which does not mention the contract signed by Evo Morales with the German company ACI Systems to exploit lithium deposits of Uyuni for 70 years, nor the protests and demands of the local Civic Committee of Potosí about said agreement, maintains that the British embassy participated in the “coup” citing some initiatives of Britain concerning Bolivian lithium, but they do not mention that the initiatives actually began in 2015, during the government of Evo Morales.
While the Declassified UK report is founded on ignorance and speculation, its political uses are evident. Misión Verdad, a news agency of the Venezuelan government, took the time to translate and disseminate the report in the region. In January 2021, another conspiratorial report by Declassified UK was used by the government of Nicolás Maduro to censor journalists in the country as alleged agents of imperialism. The Armed Forces directly threatened journalists through Twitter, in a country condemned by the United Nations for the use of torture and forced disappearances against opponents.
The conspiratorial statements by Arce and Mayta about the alleged “lithium coup” represent a subjugation of Bolivian state policy to gringo fantasies about the “anti-imperialist” struggle, which link opposition to the hegemony of the United States to support for dictatorial governments.
In the last decade, various news sites have proliferated that spread disinformation favorable to authoritarian governments. The most notorious is the American site Grayzone News, which openly defends the repressive policies of authoritarian governments such as Russia, Syria, Nicaragua, Venezuela and China. More recently, they have defended China’s genocidal policies against the Uyghur people. The site’s report defending the Chinese government was co-written with journalist Gareth Porter, who denied the existence of the Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia in the 1970s.
Grayzone founder Max Blumenthal exemplifies the cynical ironies of this new breed of “anti-imperialist” activist. While he defends any government that opposes the United States, regardless of its human rights policies, he cannot help but also be the son of Sidney Blumenthal, great propagandist of former US President Bill Clinton. They are resentful children of the Western political class. It is an adolescent anti-imperialism.
In 2020, Blumenthal and company came to Bolivia as “electoral observers” to support the MAS electoral campaign. For these gringo observers, Bolivia is just a toy in their imaginary “anti-imperialist” struggle, while enjoying their privileges within said empire.
Subordinate to these gringo fantasies, Bolivia is positioned in a simplistic mentality typical of the Cold War, in which there are only two opposite fates for the nations of the world, to be for or against the United States. For these observers, the self-determination of non-Western peoples is fully subject to the “anti-imperialist” cause, regardless of the cost. It is “anti-imperialism” in name only.
Zavaleta Mercado said that the Bolivian political caste was blind to its real position within the world system, lost in foreign fantasies. Thus, they reproduced the dependency of the country again and again. What today we call extractivism.
It is worth asking the question: How does the conspiracy theory of the “lithium coup” help Bolivia? Making believe that the country was about to industrialize lithium, when there are still no proven techniques to extract it at a competitive price, nor has the government been able to successfully negotiate its exploitation with the all local actors involved. The discourse of the lithium coup is clearly for export.
Zavaleta Mercado’s lesson is that Bolivia can only advance based on knowledge of itself, not serving the desires or interests of others.
Devin Beaulieu is an anthropologist and resides in Bolivia.
Originally published in Spanish in Brújula Digital.
