Let's Get Political, Political...

You are in for a treat. Here's Kathy's perspective on Bolivian politics. HA!

Now I'm no political science major, but I was thinking I would share with you all some of the things that are happening in the country where I now reside. Most of my information has come from reading the news either here or from CBC or BBC, from conversations with a number of different people, and watching television here. It's certainly not going to be in-depth, but at least you get a little bit of an insight.

So to give you a little background, the president here is Evo Morales and he's been the president for the last 3 or so years. What makes him so unique is that he is the first indigenous president in all of South America. The majority of the population in Bolivian is indigenous with the rest of the population being Hispanic (or other immigrant people groups like Korean etc.).

Now the Hispanic population is primarily located in the southeast part of the country, in the state of Santa Cruz, where we are. There are a few indigenous people here but they are in the minority. The western part of the country is where most of the indigenous people reside, and is also where the capital of the country is, La Paz.

Morales has proposed a number of changes here in the country, but the main two have been the redistribution of wealth and land throughout the country and a more equal distribution of gas and oil revenues. Here in the state of Santa Cruz is where most of the agricultural land and natural resource wealth of the country is, hence many people here are not fond of the possible constitutional changes. The referendum vote on this new constitution is to be held in early December.

The west welcomes these changes, but the east does not. Many of the states are also demanding more autonomy from the federal government, because they want more of say on how things are handled in their own state. Right now everything is centralized and goes through La Paz, in the west. It would be kind of like all of Canada having to send their driver's license application through Ottawa.

The west, the indigenous people, the poorer people and the east, the Hispanics, the comparitively rich, both have valid points, but are having a difficult time hearing one another. Each side blocks roads, holds pro or anti-government rallies, and some government buildings have been looted and burned.

So how does that effect us in Santa Cruz? Well, as North Americans, not much. We arrived just as the protests in the city started, so we are used to hearing the fire crackers go off all throughout the night. Because of the road blockades, some products have not been able to get into Santa Cruz, gas is in short supply, and only yesterday did the airlines start flying out of Santa Cruz again. We haven't received any mail since we have arrived and we aren't exactly sure where our visa applications are, since they were sent to La Paz. As guests in this country, we have been careful to stay away from where demonstrations are taking place.

Both sides are in talks right now, trying to come to some agreements, and to end the demonstrations and protests. It'll be interesting to see how things unfold over the coming months leading up to the referedum vote.

So, that's it in a nutshell. If you are interested in learning more or following the situation, go to BBC's website, Reuters news service, or Associated Press and search for news on Bolivia.

Coming soon....

Kathy's perspective on Bolivian economy! hee hee