Bolivia: What was the “coup attempt” that President Arce denounced after the military took over the center of La Paz and entered the government headquarters

Bolivia faced several hours of uncertainty this Wednesday after a group of soldiers mobilized in the center of La Paz, in what President Luis Arce described as an attempted “coup.”

Soldiers and military vehicles took control of Plaza Murillo, in La Paz, for a few hours, and entered the Quemado Palace, the former headquarters of the government led by General Juan José Zúñiga, who was dismissed this Tuesday as head of the Bolivian Army for some statements he made about former president Evo Morales.

After the military action began, President Arce gave a televised speech surrounded by members of his cabinet in which he called on the people to unite and said: “We are determined to counter any coup attempt”,

“We want to urge everyone to defend democracy and here we are in Casa Grande with the entire cabinet, with our social organizations. We salute you, the social organizations, and we warmly invite you to show the Bolivian people once again what democracy is,” he said, imperative.

Soldiers and military vehicles that took control of Plaza Murillo He began his retreat a few minutes later.

Zuniga had previously told the press that there was a “mobilization of all military units” because of the “state of the country”,

“We are listening to the call of the people. Because for many years, an oligarchy has taken charge of the country. The owners of the state, the tyrants are in the different structures of the state, destroying the homeland. The armed forces intend to reconstitute democracy,” declared Zuniga, who said he demands the release of “all political prisoners.”

Photos on social networks later showed Arce standing in front of Zuniga inside the Quemado palace, ordering the withdrawal of troops, which They entered the building by breaking down the door with an armoured vehicle.

Later, in a televised ceremony from the Casa Grande del Pueblo, the current seat of the Bolivian government, Arce appointed new military leaders, including General José Wilson Sánchez, who assumed general command of the army.

After taking the oath, the soldier declared: “Nobody wants to see the image we are seeing on the streets. That is why now, as commander… I ask, I command, I order, that all personnel mobilized on the streets must return to their units,

While the event was taking place at the government headquarters, members of the military who had converged on the center of La Paz began leaving Plaza Murillo.

Once the troops had withdrawn, Luis Arce moves to the presidential balcony And in front of the crowd he thanked the citizens who had gathered.

“With you, with the people, we will never give up. No one can take away the democracy we won in elections and with the blood of the Bolivian people,” Arce said.

After the Bolivian Attorney General’s Office issued an arrest warrant against Juan José Zúñiga, he was taken into custody. At the time of his arrest, Military man accuses Luis Arce of attempting coup “To increase their popularity.”

“I met with the president on Sunday at La Salle School and the president told me that ‘the situation is very bad, this week is going to be serious.’ So it is necessary to prepare something to increase my popularity,” Zuniga said on camera at the time of his arrest.

The general continued to describe his alleged conversation with Arce, in which he asked her if they should “remove the armored vehicle?” and she replied in the affirmative: “Take it out.” According to Zúñiga, preparations for the mobilization of military vehicles began that same night.

Before they took him into custody, Zúñiga assured that it was a “self-coup”.

Later, authorities announced the arrest of a second man involved in Wednesday’s events, former Bolivian Navy commander Juan Arnáez Salvador.

Former President Evo Morales – leader of the ruling Movement Towards Socialism party – explained what happened this Wednesday “A coup” Ongoing.

“At this time, troops of the armed forces and tanks are deployed in Plaza Murillo. An emergency meeting has been called with combat uniforms at the Army General Staff in Miraflores at 3:00 p.m.,” he wrote in X.

Notably, Juan José Zúñiga was dismissed as army chief on Tuesday after making statements against Morales and saying that “he can no longer be president of this country,” in reference to the former president’s aspirations to run for office again.

“where appropriate I will not allow you to trample on the ConstitutionZúñiga said in a televised interview that it was disobeying the mandate of the people, asserting that the armed forces were “the armed arm of the people, the armed arm of the country” and threatening to arrest Morales.

Arce and Morales, once allies, persist a political confrontation In recent months, the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) party has been in the news for its future and the former president’s attempt to seek a new mandate.

In various public statements, Arce said he was the target of a “soft coup” aimed at “shortening his mandate” and which would be backed by Morales’ followers.

In turn, the former president has denounced that Arce wants to undermine his aspirations for a new presidential candidacy by taking over the leadership of the MAS.

Morales left power in 2019 after a military coup following the first round of presidential elections. He then left the country with Mexico’s support, but returned when Arce returned MAS to power.

In parallel, Bolivia is facing a severe economic crisis due to fuel shortages and a lack of foreign currency. This has led to union mobilization for which Arce blames Morales.

Several Latin American presidents condemned the military’s action against the Bolivian government this Wednesday.

“We strongly condemn the attempted coup in Bolivia. We extend our full support and endorsement to President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora, the people and the authentic democratic authority of that brotherly country,” the President said. Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

Gustavo PetroPresident of Colombiaexpressed “total rejection of the military coup in Bolivia”.

“I invite all Bolivians to democratic resistance. Latin America must unite in favor of democracy. The Colombian embassy must grant asylum to those persecuted. There will be no diplomatic relations between Colombia and the dictatorship.”

President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, He said: “Brazil’s position is clear. I am a lover of democracy and want it to prevail throughout Latin America. We condemn any type of coup in Bolivia and reaffirm our commitment to the people and democracy of our brotherly country under the presidency of Luis Arce.”

Meanwhile, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro wrote on his X account: “On behalf of Venezuela we condemn and strongly reject Attempted coup against Bolivia’s democracy; “The forces that have betrayed their oath of loyalty have laid siege to the Presidential Palace in La Paz.”

“We join CELAC’s call to strongly condemn the fascism of President Xiomara Castro that seeks to subvert the legitimate democracy of Bolivia’s Plurinational State,” the President said.

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