# Bolivia's richest province seeks autonomy, raising fear of political crisis



## Mike Baker (2 May 2008)

LINK



> SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA , Bolivia — This divided country faces a constitutional crisis Sunday when its richest and second most-populous province votes whether to declare itself autonomous from President Evo Morales's national government, a referendum the president has called illegal.
> 
> If the referendum passes, as polls show it overwhelmingly will, leaders of Santa Cruz province say they'll elect a state legislature, organize local police and otherwise set up a government equivalent to that of a U.S. state.
> 
> ...


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## the 48th regulator (18 May 2008)

decoy said:
			
		

> Morales will prevail...




Why?

dileas

tess


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## tomahawk6 (18 May 2008)

Morales is a marxist and is dragging the country in a direction that many dont want to gne can hope that this move will begin Morales' downfall. We dont need an AQ penetration of Latin America sponsored by Hugo.
The US would be doing the people of Venezuela and the region a favor by dropping a JDAM on Hugo's bedroom.


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## the 48th regulator (18 May 2008)

decoy said:
			
		

> So what if he is a Marxist? The vast majority of Bolivians support Morales and VOTED FOR HIM in a DEMOCRACY. It's the mixed/light skinned European elite MINORITY that don't support him. Morales was democratically elected by the indigenous people of Bolivia...why would you advocate anti-democratic forces breaking up the only chance the indigenous majority have had to have their voices heard? Bolivia has been dragged down by decades of structural adjustment programs...Morales is the voice of the indigenous poor that make up most of Bolivia's population...



So then you agree with his policy with regards to the "Cocaleros"?

Interesting, what are your thoughts on the Taliban and the Poppy harvest?

Dileas

Tess


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## Sythen (18 May 2008)

> The vast majority of Bolivians support Morales and VOTED FOR HIM in a DEMOCRACY. It's the mixed/light skinned European elite MINORITY...



Then why are 4 provinces, including one that makes up a quarter of the population trying to gain autonomy?



> Autonomy advocates, including Santa Cruz business leaders, denied that they wanted to secede and insisted that their goal is modernizing an overly centralized government. Three other eastern Bolivian provinces, Beni, Pando and Tarija, also are planning to hold autonomy votes in coming weeks, and leaders in two others, Cochabamba and Chuquisaca, are also advocating autonomy. Only three provinces have resisted the idea.


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## the 48th regulator (18 May 2008)

decoy said:
			
		

> The populations in these provinces are diverse, and there's nothing in this article that gives a disaggregated breakdown of who is actually supporting the push for autonomy. Also, Pando and Beni do not produce natural gas, but have interests tied to Tarija and Santa Cruz, as pipelines pass through P&B and they gain transfers from those pipes. Santa Cruz department is not a monolith either, even if it does contain 1/4 of Bolivia's pop...there is a great divide between the urban and rural populations. Most of the autonomous movement is centred in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the capital of Santa Cruz (and the richest in Bolivia) - and not surprisingly, this is the wealthiest and whitest area. The REST of Santa Cruz department (i.e. the rural outlying areas) is populated by Guarani and Aymara indigenous peoples that do not participate in the autonomous movement. The Guarani peoples of the Tarija province are also largely marginalized from the autonomy debate.
> 
> Also, the previous government under Carlos Mesa bowed to Santa Cruz’s demand for a referendum on autonomy. However, in October 2005, when the national referendum was held, it was overwhelmingly defeated, as was a second referendum in July of 2006.
> 
> It's a complicated issue....



You never answered 





			
				decoy said:
			
		

> The populations in these provinces are diverse, and there's nothing in this article that gives a disaggregated breakdown of who is actually supporting the push for autonomy. Also, Pando and Beni do not produce natural gas, but have interests tied to Tarija and Santa Cruz, as pipelines pass through P&B and they gain transfers from those pipes. Santa Cruz department is not a monolith either, even if it does contain 1/4 of Bolivia's pop...there is a great divide between the urban and rural populations. Most of the autonomous movement is centred in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the capital of Santa Cruz (and the richest in Bolivia) - and not surprisingly, this is the wealthiest and whitest area. The REST of Santa Cruz department (i.e. the rural outlying areas) is populated by Guarani and Aymara indigenous peoples that do not participate in the autonomous movement. The Guarani peoples of the Tarija province are also largely marginalized from the autonomy debate.
> 
> Also, the previous government under Carlos Mesa bowed to Santa Cruz’s demand for a referendum on autonomy. However, in October 2005, when the national referendum was held, it was overwhelmingly defeated, as was a second referendum in July of 2006.
> 
> It's a complicated issue....



I still await your answer with regards to Morales being the leader of the Cocaleros, and the relevent comparison to the crops in the taliban held regions of Afghanistan.

What is the difference?

dileas

tess


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## Mike Baker (2 Jun 2008)

Two more states in Bolivia vote for autonomy



> LA PAZ, Bolivia (CNN) -- People in two Bolivian states celebrated what they viewed as a victory Sunday night in referendums on autonomy from the central government.
> 
> The autonomy measure passed with 89 percent of the vote in the state of Beni and 85 percent of the vote in the state of Pando, according to initial exit polls.
> 
> ...


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