Chaos and violence in Bolivia: the Government ordered the release of pickets with military and police after 11 days of cuts

The operation, called “Humanitarian corridor”mobilizes some 2,500 police officers and 1,000 soldiers since this morning, the commanders of the Police, Mirko Sokol, and the Armed Forces, Víctor Hugo Balderrama, who are accompanying the movement, separately informed the media.

Sokol maintained that the operation has “the sole purpose of freeing” the routes “and allowing food, medicine, ambulances, (medicinal) oxygen to enter” the city of La Paz, the seat of the Government and the national Legislature, also allowing “tourists who are stranded in different sectors (…) to return to their countries.”

The police chief urged those mobilized on the roads “to give up attitudes” and to “peacefully unblock” the routes. “We are not going to confront, in any way, simply do the job that corresponds to us of unblocking the roads, guaranteeing free circulation and ensuring the most fundamental values ​​that are established in the Constitution,” he said.

Sokol indicated that at the national level there are 50 “active” blockade points and that the main routes of the department of La Paz, the most affected by the road closures that began on May 6, will be intervened.

Among the routes that will be cleared are the one that goes to the Andean region of Oruro and connects with central and eastern Bolivia, one of the routes to Peru through the tourist town of Copacabana, on the shores of Lake Titicaca that both countries share, and a road in the south of the Government headquarters, he said.

For his part, Balderrama pointed out that the Police are “on the front line” and that the military attends the operation “as a support element for any situation.” Furthermore, he assured that the military is not “carrying weapons or lethal weapons,” only “chemical agents if it is necessary to use them.”

The Bolivian Workers’ Central (COB) and the Federation of Peasants of La Paz “Tupac Katari” are calling for Paz’s resignation with street protests and road blockades, considering that he cannot solve the country’s conflicts.

However, at noon this Saturday there were some routes freed. Soldiers with shovels removed the mounds of earth that the protesters had placed on the asphalt strip.

But the blockades also persisted in El Alto and La Paz. Protesters obstruct traffic on Juan Pablo II Avenue, while security forces fired tear gas.

Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay and Peru signed a joint document to express their “concern about the humanitarian situation in Bolivia, as a result of the protests and road blockades that have led to a shortage of food and essential supplies for the population.”

“We reject any action aimed at destabilizing the democratic order and altering the institutionality of the constitutional Government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, democratically elected in the General Elections held in 2025,” warned the eight countries that signed the statement.

In the midst of this conflictive situation, the Government of Javier Milei decided this Saturday to send, at the request of its Bolivian colleague, “a Hercules C-130 plane from the Argentine Air Force to carry out air bridges for the transportation of food” that is produced in different locations in Bolivia.

Minutes before 10 in the morning, the Argentine plane was about to land in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.

In addition, a march of hundreds of followers of former President Evo Morales (2006-2019) is approaching the Government Headquarters, where they plan to arrive on Monday to demand the president’s resignation.

The blockades have been concentrated mainly in La Paz, which prevents land transit to the interior of the country, Chile and Peru, causing shortages of food, fuel and medical supplies such as oxygen for hospitals in that city and neighboring El Alto.

According to the Government, as a result of the blockades, three people have died so far, including a citizen of Belize, who were not able to receive timely medical attention.

The Ombudsman’s Office and the Catholic Church asked on Friday that “humanitarian corridors” be opened to “guarantee the unrestricted passage of ambulances, medicines, food and fuel” and urged the authorities to generate “spaces for effective dialogue” with those mobilized.

The Government has denounced a “macabre plan” supposedly designed by Morales to “break the constitutional order” and that is allegedly “financed” by drug trafficking, which the former president rejected.

Eight countries issued a joint statement on the situation in Bolivia in support of President Rodrigo Paz Pereira.

“The undersigned countries express our concern about the humanitarian situation in Bolivia, as a result of the protests and road blockades that have led to a shortage of food and essential supplies for the population,” begins the statement signed by Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay and Peru.

“In this framework, we reject any action aimed at destabilizing the democratic order and altering the institutionality of the constitutional Government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, democratically elected in the General Elections held in 2025,” they stressed.

“In this sense, we reiterate our solidarity with the Bolivian Government and people and urge all political and social actors to channel their differences, prioritizing dialogue, respect for institutions and the preservation of social peace,” he concluded.

Once published, Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno shared it and added: “Support for the institutions and democratic order in Bolivia continues to gain support from friendly countries in the region.”

With information from the EFE agency