Another New Gas and Oil Brief: "What They Are Saying"

Dear Readers,

Since the Bolivian government's May 1 decree seeking to recover public control over the country's gas and oil reserves (and even before the decree) The Democracy Center gas and oil research team – Aaron Luoma and Gretchen Gordon – have prepared a series of briefing papers to help citizens and journalists worldwide understand the confusing dance of Bolivian gas and oil politics.

So far this has included:

Oil and Gas Policy in Bolivia - Post Election Update, April 6, 2006
Review of the May 1 Gas Decree – A policy analysis of the decree
Review of Foreign Media Coverage of the Decree - A look at what the press had to say

Today we add a new briefing paper to the series, A Summary of Initial Commentary on the May 1st Decree, which looks at what a wide variety of actors have had to say about Bolivia's new oil and gas policy – the Bolivian government, its domestic political opposition, think tanks from all sides, foreign governments, the oil companies and others. Looking at these comments together provides a real sense of the debate at hand, not just in Bolivia but also around the globe, as poor nations seek to get a fair cut of the barrel.

The index to all the briefing papers can be found here, including links to new Spanish translations of the policy analysis of the decree and the media coverage brief.

As always, we look forward to your comments.