Bolivia’s President Steps Down

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivian President Evo Morales announced his resignation Sunday under mounting pressure from the military and the public after his re-election victory triggered weeks of fraud allegations and deadly protests.

The decision came after a day of fast-moving developments, including an offer from Morales to hold a new election. The crisis deepened dramatically when the country’s military chief went on national television to call on him to step down.

“I am sending my resignation letter to the Legislative Assembly of Bolivia,” the 60-year-old socialist leader said, portraying his departure as the culmination of a “coup d’etat.”

He added: “I ask you to stop attacking the brothers and sisters, stop burning and attacking.”

Can Bolivia Chart a Sustainable Path Away From Capitalism?

As through so much of its history, the small Andean nation of Bolivia sits at the center of a whirlwind of political, social and climatological questions. Arguably, no other country thus far in the 21st century raises the question of an "exit strategy" from neoliberal capitalism more concretely, and with greater possibility and hope, than Bolivia. That hope is expressed specifically in the ruling party, MAS, or Movement Toward Socialism. The country's leader, former coca farmer and union organizer Evo Morales - South America's first indigenous leader since pre-colonial times - was overwhelmingly elected to his third term of office in 2014. Morales has broadly popularized the Quechua term pachamama, which denotes a full commitment to ecological sustainability, and public hopes remain high that he'll guide the country toward realizing that principle.

Bolivian Minister: Morales' Plane Rerouted On Suspicion Snowden On Board

VIENNA — The plane carrying Bolivian President Evo Morales was rerouted to Austria after France and Portugal refused to let it cross their airspace because of suspicions that NSA leaker Edward Snowden was on board, Bolivian officials said Tuesday.

Officials in both Austria and Bolivia said that Snowden was not on the plane, which was taking Morales home from a summit in Russia, where he had suggested that his government would be willing to consider granting asylum to the American.

Bolivian government, Indigenous communities resolve to nationalize Canadian mining company

Last week, a Bolivian farmer was killed during confrontations with police, in the context of protests against a subsidiary of the Canadian mining company South American Silver Corp. On Tuesday, the Bolivian government led by Evo Morales announced the nationalization of the Canadian company's mining project. 

South American Silver, headquartered in Vancouver, described the Mallku Khota project as "one of the world's largest undeveloped silver, indium and gallium deposits." For a detailed analysis of South American Silver's Bolivian operation, see this article published last month in The Bullet. The text that follows is a translation of the official Bolivian statement.