Why the World Should Pay Attention to Bolivia’s Presidential Election
By Jhanisse Vaca Daza
The fires that ravaged the Chiquitano dry forest of Bolivia may cause President Evo Morales’ hopes of a fourth term to go up in smoke. Sunday’s election provides an opportunity for Bolivians to express their opposition to the Morales government and rid the world of an authoritarian ruler.
Since early July, the Chiquitano — a forest that is home to more than 500 unique species and over 100,000 indigenous peoples, and is the origin point of the Amazon river — has lost more than 4 million hectares to fires. And Bolivians frustrations with their leader’s role in those fires, as well as his increasingly authoritarian rule, are boiling over.
Opposition to Morales’ rule has grown in recent years as he becomes more authoritarian. In 2016, Bolivians voted “no” on a referendum that would have allowed him to amend the constitution so he could run for a fourth term. In 2018, when Morales decided to ignore the referendum results and run yet again, thousands of Bolivians poured into the streets in protest.
He reacted to these protests by doubling down on the government repression of dissident voices. In recent years, Morales’ administration has persecuted activists and anyone else opposing the “interests of the state,” and the harassment of journalists has become commonplace.
Morales’ poor environmental policies are partly responsible for the crisis facing the ecosystem connecting South America’s two largest biomes, the Amazon and the Gran Chaco. Shortly before the first reports of fires, Morales unilaterally passed Supreme Decree 3973, which legalized the expansion of agro-cattle territory by “controlled fires.” This decree expanded on previous policies that resulted in an increase in deforestation by 350,000 hectares per year starting in 2016. When the fires began to burn out of control, Morales refused to acknowledge their severity for several weeks.
Morales’ handling of the forest fires coincides with his current priority: winning his third, illegal reelection on October 20. Morales has been aggressively courting votes from key sectors: the agro-cattle industry in Santa Cruz and his small farmer base.
Earlier this year, Morales signed an agreement to export Bolivian beef to China, which he promoted as a boon for the agro-cattle industry. In order to meet the terms of the agreement, farmers needed additional territory, prompting Morales to push through the controlled fire decree.
At the same time, Morales’ administration has been granting land packages in Santa Cruz to small farmers, who traditionally clear the land using fires. Activists have argued that Morales is using the land package deal to move members of his base to electoral districts he might otherwise lose.
The discontent of Bolivians has been channeled through “cabildos,” massive peaceful demonstrations recognized by Bolivia’s constitution to demand change in public policy. These cabildos have demanded the annulment of Morales’ anti-environmental laws and declared civil disobedience against Morales’ illegal candidacy in the upcoming elections. Cabildos were held in six of the nine main cities of Bolivia: Santa Cruz, Tarija, La Paz, Cochabamba, Oruro, and Potosi. The movement I am a part of, Standing Rivers, has actively participated in the cabildos to help channel people’s anger into creative, nonviolent action.
Local media have reported that over a million protesters filled the streets during the first cabildo on October 4 in Santa Cruz. Likewise, the indigenous march led by the Chiquitano nation, the one most affected by the fires, arrived to Santa Cruz on October 17 to demand a trial to hold the Morales government responsible for the devastation caused by the fires.
If democracy and human rights are further compromised, Bolivia could become the next Venezuela. The presidential election on October 20 is a critical opportunity to remove Morales from power and restore justice in Bolivia. Our planet cannot afford another authoritarian leader who remains in power at the expense of the natural world.
Jhanisse Vaca Daza is founding member of Standing Rivers (Rios de Pie), a nonviolent, pro-democracy movement in Bolivia, and was the inaugural Freedom Fellow at the Human Rights Foundation.
