Bolivian death toll exceeds 60

2003-10-14 20:01

La Pax - A bloody conflict pitting the Bolivian government against workers and farmers opposed to a plan to sell gas abroad has claimed another 28 lives, pushing the death toll to 63 since protests began a month ago.

Press reports on Tuesday said that Monday had been the bloodiest day with 28 people killed and scores wounded as protesters clashed with police and ransacked shops and other buildings in the mountain cities of El Alto and the nearby capital La Paz.

The situation was tense on Tuesday as a standoff between protesters armed with sticks and stones and security forces continued in several main squares in La Paz. Activists once again were taking to the streets in defiance of the military and police orders to re-establish order.

Protesters late on Monday set fire to a building in downtown La Paz after noticing a sniper inside who had apparently shot at a child.

The headquarters of a ruling government coalition party, the New Republican Force (NRF), in the working-class district of San Pedro were set ablaze, destroying everything inside.

Another mob set fire to an army truck when soldiers were attacking peasant farmers on a march.

Dropping gas plan

Activists have started bonfires all over El Alto as a way to counteract clouds of tear gas used by police to disperse protesters.

Although President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada announced on Monday that there would be no new exports of natural gas until a referendum is carried out before year's end, protest marches continued.

The president announced he was dropping the gas plan after Sunday's deadly clashes in El Alto, where hundreds of miners and workers had gathered to march on the capital. At least 26 people were killed on that day.

Angry citizens originally opposed to the plan to sell gas to the United States piped through a Chilean port, now have focused on the demand that Sanchez de Lozada, who took office in August last year, step down.

However, Sanchez de Lozada, who also served as president from 1993 to 1997, has been defiant, insisting in a message to the nation Monday that he would not resign, and the "seditious would be defeated".

This is the second time Sanchez de Lozada has faced violent unrest this year. In February, he tried to enact a budget bill that included a sharp salary tax that sparked riots among police who clashed with the military. At least 33 people were killed in that wave of unrest.

Wave of resignations

In the most recent unrest, protesters oppose the gas plan because of a long-standing animosity toward Chile and the perception that it would be another way to strip Bolivia of its natural resources for the benefit of rich international interests.

After the weekend bloodshed, Bolivian Vice President Carlos Mesa announced he was breaking with the president although he clarified he was not quitting his job. The NFR's congressional bloc also withdrew from the government until Sanchez de Lozada resigns.

Sustainable Development Minister Jorge Torres also resigned, arguing "insurmountable differences" with the president that came to light over the way he has dealt with dramatic events in recent days.

Miners in Oruro province announced they would take over mining firms owned by the wealthy Sanchez de Lozada, who was educated in the United States and speaks Spanish with a strong US accent.

Coca-growers leader and lawmaker Evo Morales, who was Sanchez de Lozada's rival in a congressional vote for president last year, warned Bolivia was on the verge of civil war and said only the president's resignation would solve the crisis.

- SAPA