Development: On 12 October there were massive turn-outs at rallies called by President Evo Morales in the capital, La Paz, and across the country to mark the ‘Day of Decolonization’, in honour of the indigenous community and in support of ‘the process of change’ begun by his government.
Significance: The turn-out included social sectors, trade unions, peasants, professional and intellectuals aligned with the ruling Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) as well as some indigenous groups. This shows that while a dispute over the proposed construction of a road through an indigenous territory has proved costly to the government in terms of its indigenous backing, Morales still retains considerable support from other traditional sectors.
Key points:
• The government claimed that 500,000 people turned up in La Paz alone, although the local press put it at tens of thousands.
• The rallies show the recent divisions that have appeared within Morales’s traditional support base. These are most marked between the ‘campesino’ movement, which includes the likes of the Confederación Sindical Unica de Trabajadores Campesinos de Bolivia (CSUTCB), and the main indigenous groups. The two key indigenous organisations - the lowlands-based Confederación de Pueblos Indígenas de Bolivia (Cidob) and the highlands-based Consejo Nacional de Ayllus y Markas del Qullasuyu (Conamaq)- are leading a march in protest at the construction of the road.
• Rafael Quispe, the leader of Conamaq, recently declared the end of the so-called “Pacto de Unidad” (unity pact) that brought together the ‘campesino’ movement and indigenous groups prior to Morales’ ascension of the presidency in 2006 and which proved instrumental in helping to draw up the new (2009) constitution.
