Attempted coup in Bolivia confirmed; Luis Arce calls on people to mobilize

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced “irregular mobilizations by some units of the Bolivian Army” and called for respect for democracy, sparking fears of a coup in the country, as television images showed the deployment of uniformed personnel and armored military vehicles in front of the Government Palace in La Paz.

Former Bolivian president Evo Morales, also in a message on

Television images showed several armored military vehicles and a group of soldiers in front of the government headquarters, who later entered the palace after forcing entry.

The anti-democratic uprising of some units of the Bolivian Army only deserves the strongest repudiation.

My unconditional support for President Luis Arce and I call for the firm defense of democracy. Let us not allow the will of the people to be overwhelmed. Force… pic.twitter.com/20lbVoCji4

— Alberto Fernández (@alferdez) June 26, 2024

The General Commander of the Army, Juan José Zúñiga, present in the same Plaza Murillo confirmed the mobilization of uniformed personnel and said: “We are upset by the outrage that exists, enough is enough.” Without giving more details of what he was referring to, he spoke on television about “attacks on democracy,” that “there will soon be a change of cabinet” and that, “for now,” he recognizes President Arce as commander in chief of the Forces. Armed.

The Bolivian Government Palace was guarded by police units, while President Arce was inside along with the Minister of Government, Eduardo del Castillo.

Arce was later seen in television images confronting Zúñiga in the palace hallway. “I am his captain and I order him to withdraw his soldiers and I will not allow this insubordination,” the president told the Army commander.

In a national message broadcast live, the Bolivian president insisted on calling for democracy with the support of social organizations. “We cannot allow coup attempts to take the lives of Bolivians once again,” he rejected.

He asked the people to mobilize against the military deployment. “We salute social organizations and cordially invite them to once again show the path of democracy,” he encouraged.

Previously, the Minister of the Presidency, María Nela Prada, denounced that it was an attempted coup d’état. “Plaza Murillo has been taken by the military and tanks. It is an attempted coup d’état. The people are on alert to defend democracy,” she told Red Uno channel.

Zúñiga later spoke amid the deployment of soldiers in Murillo Square, whose access was blocked, and denounced that “an elite has taken over power, the State.”

He said the Armed Forces want to restructure democracy and called for the freedom of all political prisoners, mentioning former interim president Jeanine Añez and Luis Fernando Camacho, governor of the wealthy province of Santa Cruz, both in prison. “It cannot be that subordinates are imprisoned for having followed orders,” in relation to the trial and convictions against military leaders who participated in the 2019 political crisis that led to the resignation of President Evo Morales (2006-2019).

“We want to establish democracy… The army has the balls to look after the future of our children,” stressed the military commander, referring to the fatigue of the uniformed personnel with the decisions of the political class. The lists of promotions in the Army are still pending approval by the legislature, amid the disputes between the sectors of the ruling party.

The day before, Commander Zúñiga said in a televised interview that if former president Evo Morales maintained his intentions to run for president again, they could arrest him.

Supporters of the president gathered in the square and shouted slogans in his favor such as “Lucho, you are not alone” or “Rifle, shrapnel, the people will not be silent.” The military fired tear gas to disperse them.

The Central Obrera Boliviana (COB), the workers’ union, declared a general strike and called for “mobilizations” of the workers.

The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States condemned what happened in Bolivia and called on the Army to submit to “legitimately elected civil power.”

Luis Almagro condemns the attempted coup d’état in Bolivia

Luis Almagro, Secretary General of the OAS, spoke out from Asunción and rejected the situation: “The international community, the OAS and the General Secretariat of the OAS will not tolerate any form of violation of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia, or anywhere else.”

For his part, Chilean President Gabriel Boric condemned the military action in a message on X and expressed his concern about the situation in Bolivia. “We strongly condemn the unacceptable forceful action by a sector of the army of that country,” he said.

Paraguayan President Santiago Peña also expressed his support for the Bolivian government: “We strongly call for respect for democracy and the rule of law.”