Will Luis Arche Survive His Inauguration?

‘Bolivia: Attack with Explosives Against President-elect Luis Arce Denounced’, November 6, 2020, orinocotribune.com

“The spokesman for the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), Sebastián Michel, denounced this Thursday an attack against president-elect Luis Arce, employing an explosive device, at the campaign headquarters of the political group in the Sopocachi neighborhood of the Bolivian capital, La Paz.

According to the spokesman for the political group, the attack was perpetrated by a group of people who detonated a device with dynamite when a meeting was held in which the president-elect Luis Arce participated, according to a MAS press release.

“A few minutes ago we were victims of an attack by a group that left a bundle of dynamite in the tent where our own President-elect Luis Arce was having a meeting. We are very concerned about what is happening,” said the representative in an interview with Televisión Universitaria and Red Uno.” […]

“The MAS representative pointed out that the attack is part of the climate of violence promoted by sectors of the right after the electoral victory of Luis Arce. Michel specified that at the time of the attack there were meetings of those in charge of monitoring information, and of the commission working on the inauguration ceremony.

The inauguration is scheduled for Sunday, November 8, at the Bolivian Legislature, which would end almost a year of de facto dictatorship headed by Jeanine Áñez with the blessing of the United States. MAS sympathizers in social networks are warning about a possible plan promoted by the de facto government to sabotage the inauguration by promoting violence. Early Thursday authorities from the COB workers’ union invited all their members to defend the incoming MAS government and summoned its base to protect Arce’s inauguration.”

Jeanine Áñez

‘Bolivia’s President-Elect Luis Arce Attacked With Dynamite’, Nov. 6, 2020, telesurernglish.net

“The incident took place on the day in which some groups of the Bolivian far-right right began a strike in Santa Cruz in rejection of the result of the presidential elections held on Oct. 18.

In previous days, other incidents of violence and aggression against the social and union organizations that support the Socialist party were also registered. As a result of one of those attacks, mining leader Orlando Gutierrez died on October 28.

Michel strongly rejected the declarations of right-wing politicians who try to confuse the Bolivian citizens by insinuating that the Socialists would be arming popular militias.

“The government of Luis Arce will not allow any irregular armed group in Bolivia or the use of weapons,” the MAS spokesperson stressed, as local outlet EJU reported.”

‘Awesome’ would not be an over-statement, methinks…

‘The Political Dimension of Indigenous Spirituality’, by Internationalist 360° on November 6, 2020

Luis Arce and David Choquehuanca. Act of ritual in Tiwanaku.

“On November 6 (on the eve of the official swearing-in of the new government), the Aymara and Quechua communities organized and celebrated, in spite of the limitations in times of pandemic, a ceremony of purification and spiritual legitimization for the elected President of Bolivia, Luis Arce, and the Vice President, David Choquehuanca, in the magnificent sacred site of Tiwanaku. The mestizo Arce and Aymara Choquehuanca were symbolically empowered as rulers in Tiwanaku.

In the struggles of the indigenous and peasant movements of Bolivia, the practice of spiritual ceremonies is a constant that constitutes the central element of the mystique of resistance and individual and collective perseverance in the struggles.

During the government of Evo Morales, indigenous spiritual rites (integrated with Christian elements) took on a central role in the protocol of government actions, to the extent that for conservative sectors this was interpreted as the “expulsion of the Bible and the crucifixes” from the Government Palace.

This ritual epiphany in the political spaces, specifically promoted by socio-political subjects of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS), is harshly criticized by conservative Catholics and evangelicals, even by the supposed Indianists.

Conservative Christians qualify such practices as paganism, witchcraft, etc. The antimasist indianists disqualify them as pachamamismo, folklorism… One of these, in their social networks, even insulted their Aymara brothers as “ignorant” for performing and celebrating a ritual ceremony with Arce and Choquehuanca in Tiwanaku.” […]

“There is always the possibility that spirituality, whether indigenous or not, is distorted into spiritualism (ritual practice uprooted from reality and from the emancipatory struggles of peoples, manipulated by those in power). But this is not what can be seen in the case of the plural spirituality of the indigenous and peasant movements in Bolivia.”

In related news at Telesur English:

 ‘Bolivia: Arce Invites President Maduro To His Swear-in Ceremony’, Nov. 3, 2020

“After the U.S.-backed coup in Nov. 2019, the Añez regime interrupted diplomatic relations with Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Iran.

Bolivia’s President-elect Luis Arce has extended an invitation to Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro to attend his swear-in ceremony set for Nov. 8th.

The invitation comes days after the decision by the coup-born regime led by Jeanine Añez to invite Venezuelan opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido, who self-proclaimed “Interim president”.

On Tuesday, ex-President Evo Morales announced that he will return to Bolivia on Nov, 11th, that is, three days after Arce’s swear-in ceremony. The leader of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) also mentioned that he would not take any post in the new government but rather dedicate himself to the formation of political leaders.

Arce pointed out that his strategy to boost the Bolivian economy would take at least two years to yield results due to the deterioration of social and economic indicators during the Añez administration.”

‘Bolivia: Workers Union Commits To Safeguard Arce’s Swear-in Event’, Nov. 6, 2020, telesur english

Smile: ‘Iranian FM Arrives in Cuba After Completing Visit to Venezuela’, Nov. 6, 2020

“Iranian Foreign Minister Mohamad Javad Zarif has arrived in Cuba, the second stop on his Latin American tour, to address mutual interest issues. As informed this Friday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Persian Diplomacy head is already in Havana, the Cuban capital, after having finished his official visit to Venezuela.”

‘Bolivia’s Hardline Christian Govt Charged with Massacring Protesters as Morales Returns from Exile; In her last days in office, US-backed strongwoman Jeanine Añez is attempting to push through judicial reforms that could help her in the coming months should she face trial for her crimes’, by Alan Macleod, mintpressnews.com, Oct. 28, 2020 (Creative Commons)

“Almost exactly one year after he was overthrown in a U.S.-backed military coup, former Bolivian president Evo Morales is set to return to his homeland. Earlier this week, a Bolivian court threw out terrorism charges leveled by Jeanine Añez’s coup government against Morales. Today Senator-Elect Andronico Rodriguez, a senior official from the Movement to Socialism (MAS) Party, announced that he would return on November 9 [updated to Nov. 11], the day after Luis Arce is sworn in as president of the republic.

MAS won a landslide victory on October 20, receiving over 55 percent of the popular vote in a five-way election. So comprehensive was the result that the State Department felt compelled to congratulate the MAS on their victory in a “peaceful” and “credible” election, despite the fact that it supported Morales’ removal in November. As president from 2006 to 2019, Morales grew the Bolivian economy while also greatly reducing poverty, illiteracy, and hunger.

The election result was a crushing defeat for Añez, whose administration’s claims to be an interim custodian of democracy despite ruling with an iron fist, quashing dissent and massacring those protesting her rule. After postponing elections multiple times citing a public health threat from COVID-19, Añez was finally forced to concede after a weeks-long summer general strike brought Bolivia to its knees.

On Monday, the country’s legislative assembly decided to charge her and a number of other officials from her government, including the notorious Arturo Murillo, with ordering the massacres of protesters in Senkata and Sacaba. Just before those events, Añez announced that security services would be pre-exonerated of all crimes during what she called the “re-establishment of order.” Medea Benjamin reported from the scene for MintPress, describing how churches were turned into makeshift morgues, with blood running from the pews. Dozens of people were killed.” […]

Praying for another coup

“Bolivia’s far-right have not taken their fall from grace well. Luis Fernando Camacho, who received only 14 percent of the vote in the presidential election, began crying on camera at his defeat. On Monday he cried fraud again, yet few appeared to heed his calls. Many of his followers held a prayer session outside a military base in Santa Cruz, beseeching the army to intervene as it did in November. Yesterday, Colonel Esteban Arce Leon recorded a video threatening to “act” if the MAS did not “respect” the armed forces. “Democracy is still fragile, some pro-coup forces are not ready to accept the will of the Bolivian people,” remarked MintPress’ Ollie Vargas from La Paz.”

(cross-posted at caucus99percent.com; check for updates there)