Armored vehicles rammed the gates of Bolivia’s presidential palace on Wednesday as a senior government official warned of an attempted coup. President Luis Arce said the “irregular” deployment of troops was taking place in the capital.
A video broadcast on Bolivian television shows Mr. Arce confronting the army’s commander general, Juan José Zúñiga, in the palace corridor. “I am your captain and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination!” Mr. Arce shouted.
“The country is facing a coup attempt. Here we are, standing firm in Casa Grande, to face any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organize themselves,” he also said.
Before entering the government building, Mr. Zúñiga told the journalists present that although he recognizes “for now” President Arce as commander in chief, there “will surely soon be a new Cabinet of Ministers; our country, our state cannot continue like this.”
“The armed forces are trying to restructure democracy, to make it a real democracy. Not that of a few, not that of a few masters who have ruled the country for 30 or 40 years,” declared General Juan José Zuniga, surrounded by soldiers in front of the presidential headquarters where several armored vehicles have taken up positions.
María Nela Prada, Bolivia’s minister of the presidency and senior official, said soldiers and tanks were seizing the square, calling the situation an “attempted coup.”
“The people are on alert to defend democracy,” she told local TV channel Red Uno.
In a message on his X account, Luis Arce called for “respect for democracy”. This happened as Bolivian television showed two tanks and a number of men in military uniforms in front of the government palace.
Former Bolivian President Evo Morales, also in a message on
The incident sparked a wave of outrage from other regional leaders, including the Organization of American States; Gabriel Boric, president of neighboring Chile; the leader of Honduras and former Bolivian leaders.
Internationally, the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, also reacted to the situation, calling for “respect for democracy and the rule of law” in Bolivia.
“Spain strongly condemns the military movements in Bolivia. We send our support and solidarity to the Bolivian government and its people and we call for respect for democracy and the rule of law,” Pedro Sánchez said on the social network X.
The United States, for its part, says it is monitoring the situation “closely” and is calling for calm, according to a White House spokesperson.
Bolivia, a country of 12 million people, has seen intensifying protests in recent months over the precipitous decline of its economy, which has gone from one of the continent’s most dynamic two decades ago to the one of the most affected by the crisis.
The country has also witnessed a high-profile rift at the highest levels of the ruling party. Mr. Arce and his former ally, left-wing icon and former president Morales, are fighting for the future of the Bolivian Movement for Socialism, known by its Spanish acronym MAS, ahead of the 2025 elections.
With Agence France-Presse