Democracy in Bolivia: A View from Visiting Students from the U.S.

Readers:

Twice a year a group of undergraduate students from the U.S. come to Bolivia as part of the semester abroad program sponsored by the School for International Training (SIT). Each semester I am invited by SIT to teach a half-day session and I get a chance to know some of these students. I always find them to be bright and wickedly inquisitive. They come to Bolivia for four months out of a desire to learn more about how people live here. They also come with a lot of questions about what they have heard about Bolivia before they came.

A few weeks ago a group of these students came to see me to share their observations after watching Bolivia’s Constituent Assembly in action, the elected body currently at work to draft a new national constitution. Before they came, they told me, they had heard dire warnings from the U.S. government about the deteriorating state of democracy in Bolivia. Watching that democracy in action in the city of Sucre, they told me, didn’t match what they heard. I invited them to write about that because I thought readers of this Blog might find their observations of interest. Here is what they wrote, unedited

Jim Shultz

Democracy in Bolivia

On February 27th, 2007, US State Department Director of National Intelligence, Michael McConnell, announced that democracy in Bolivia was “eroding” and “in danger.” As American university students studying culture and development in Cochabamba, Bolivia, we were compelled to react. Having arrived in January from 20 universities, each of us brought a sense of apprehension about the stability of the Bolivian state. Since then, we have been shocked to realize how our experiences have contrasted sharply with the potent rhetoric of US treatment of Bolivia.

As just one example, on January 22nd, 2007, Monte Reel of the Washington Post reported, ¨The new year nevertheless has begun with attention focused on a handful of countries where democracy is dead, dying, or in danger. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez began his term this month with a flurry of authoritarianism…..Bolivia’s Evo Morales and an ailing Fidel Castro are already in Mr. Chavez’s orbit.¨

Driven primarily by fear of the burgeoning regional power of populist president, Hugo Chavez, the US State Department and press undermine Evo Morales’ administration. Now is a time of intense political and social transformation in Bolivia; change, however, does not indicate a democracy in danger, and we have witnessed this truth firsthand.

Having recently traveled to the state capital, Sucre, we observed the proceedings of the Constituent Assembly, an electorate mandated to write the nation’s new constitution. As a result of longstanding pressure from indigenous social movements, Evo championed constitutional reform throughout his 2005 campaign trail. Shortly after his election, the Congress approved the Assembly and on July 2nd, 2006 the Bolivian people elected 255 representatives from 25 different political parties, citizen groups, and social organizations. The demographics of the Assembly’s 173 men and 82 women reflect the diverse socioeconomic makeup of South America’s most indigenous and impoverished nation. Though it would have been unthinkable just decades ago, many of Bolivia’s 32 indigenous groups are represented by constituents today.

During the first months of the Assembly’s existence, very little constructive work was accomplished due to ideological conflict and lingering prejudices. Realizing that progress was stalemated, on October 4th, Roman Loayza, a majority-party constituent, called for un abrazo de paz, an embrace of peace. Representatives who had never before cooperated in the political arena, who were raised to disrespect and mistrust one another, shared a symbolic embrace and vowed to move forward. Today, twenty-one commissions discuss the Constitution’s central themes, topics ranging from land reform to departmental autonomy to natural gas, in an effort to find common ground between diverse populations.

Many of our experiences witnessing the Assembly at work indicated the accessibility of this fundamentally democratic process. On the door of the Vision of the Country committee, an unpretentious and welcoming sign read "Estamos trabajando. Pasen por favor." (“We are working. Please come in.¨) Our group of 24 students was graciously ushered into the room, and we huddled in the back amongst others who had come to observe the discussion. Soon thereafter, the constituents distributed their personal contact information to further encourage dialogue and participation.

As they debated their conceptions of Bolivia’s future, the representatives sat at a round table. A woman clad in a traditional Quechuan pollera skirt voiced her opinion, the energy of her words bolstered by vibrant blue and purple cloth. Her ebony hair in long, thick plaits draped over the back of her chair. A mestizo man on her right, in suit and tie, listened attentively. His neatly shaven face, a much paler color, was furrowed in concentration. Their visual differences spoke volumes of the racial and class cleavages that have define the historical struggle of democracy in Bolivia. Given that just over 50 years ago, women and the indigenous majority were forbidden to vote, this political collaboration of the social hierarchy’s two extremes impressed us greatly.

Today, the Assembly continues to argue, sweat, stall, and creep towards a new democratic course for this nation. Its passionate, conflicted conversation is echoed in every level of Bolivian society. Bolivians are talking—discussing their deep disillusionment with past governments and the potential for realization of Bolivian democracy. Cities across the nation are open forums. Political graffiti of every opinion is splattered on buildings and public demonstrations commonly occur to contest political ideas. On our daily walk to school in Cochabamba, we observe graffiti both hailing Evo and saluting the notoriously bloody dictatorship of Garcia Mesa on the same brick wall.

To be clear, we understand that the Bolivian state continuously experiences distinct growing pains. This democracy is not a flawless apparatus, but many Bolivians are quick to tell you that the present moment is the most democratic in their nation's history. Today’s government faces the looming obstacles of reconstructing the constitutional foundation, navigating a regional political atmosphere wrought with tension, and improving its people’s daily lives. As it operates in a clear window of opportunity, the nation may be guided toward a stable, democratic future.

As always, the possibility exists that this window will steadily close or abruptly slam shut. Even so, given our firsthand observations, we strongly believe that the diagnosis of Bolivian democracy as “in danger” and “eroding” is preemptive and unfounded.

Written by Sydney Boling, Maggie Emmott, Shira Gordon, Katie O´Neill, Ella Scott, Destry Sibley, and Tarn Udall