Bahama Times

Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Bolivia prosecutors seek to hold opposition leader in jail, protests threatened

Bolivia prosecutors seek to hold opposition leader in jail, protests threatened

Bolivian prosecutors are requesting six months of pre-trial detention for right-wing opposition Governor Luis Fernando Camacho in connection to 2019 political turmoil, state prosecutor Omar Mejillones said Thursday.
Camacho was arrested on Wednesday and taken to political capital La Paz, escalating tensions between his wealthy agricultural base in the region of Santa Cruz and the national government.

Civic groups in Santa Cruz are demanding Camacho's immediate release and have called for a general strike on Friday and for highways to be blockaded.

Prosecutors have charged Camacho with "terrorism" and are also investigating allegations including breach of duty, misuse of influence and attacks on the president and high-ranking state dignitaries, Mejillones said.

The charges are connected to the ouster of former leftist President Evo Morales in November 2019. Morales had declared victory in a disputed presidential election that would have given him a fourth straight term but ended up fleeing the country amid fiery protests, some of which were led by Camacho.

More recently, Camacho, who finished third in the 2020 presidential contest, has backed protests in Santa Cruz demanding the national government proceed with a delayed census, which would likely give his region more tax revenues and seats in Congress.

In a statement, Camacho said the accusations against him lacked truth and credibility, and his lawyer Juan Carlos Camacho said he had been "unjustly" detained.
On Thursday, Camacho's Twitter account said that authorities had prevented his lawyers from filing a constitutional recourse

to free him. A video attached to the tweet alleged his constitutional rights had been breached and that he had been "kidnapped" and taken illegally to La Paz.

Mejillones said Thursday he had "no knowledge" of the lawyers' allegations of being unable to file the recourse.

The state attorney's office has denied the arrest was either a kidnapping or politically motivated.

UNEASY CALM

Most governments across the region were largely silent on the issue Thursday, though the United States said it was aware of Camacho's arrest and monitoring developments.

"We encourage observance of international norms and reliance on democratic institutions. We urge all parties to resolve this issue peacefully and democratically," said a State Department spokesperson.

Former President Morales said on Wednesday he hoped Camacho's detention would bring justice after three years.

"Luis Fernando Camacho will answer for the coup d'etat that led to robberies, persecutions, arrests and massacres of the de facto government," Morales tweeted.

Former President Carlos Mesa, an ally of Camacho's who ran against Morales in the 2019 election, told Reuters the case stemmed from "a monumental electoral fraud carried out by Evo Morales" and that the terrorism charge "does not make any sense."

Meanwhile, a group of Bolivian lawmakers from Camacho's Creemos party sent a letter to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights calling for precautionary measures to protect Camacho's "safety and integrity."

There was an uneasy calm Thursday in Santa Cruz, where signs of damage were visible after protests Wednesday ended with the Santa Cruz prosecutor's headquarters set on fire.

Public Works Minister Edgar Montano said on Twitter his house in Santa Cruz had been set on fire and robbed. Two people were arrested in relation to the incident, Montano said, adding that Camacho and his allies would be "responsible for anything that might happen" to him or his family.

The federal prosecutor's office said it would seek the "harshest punishment" possible for those responsible for damage in Santa Cruz.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Bahama Times
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×