EVO TO INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY: OPPOSITION TO BLAME

C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 003188

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/05/2017
TAGS: ECON PGOV PREL BL
SUBJECT: EVO TO INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY: OPPOSITION TO BLAME


Classified By: ADCM Mike Hammer for reasons 1.4 b,d


1. (C) Summary: President Evo Morales and his Movement
Toward Socialism (MAS) government is actively trying to
project to the international community that the opposition is
to blame for the violent political situation in Bolivia. The
government is seeking to discredit the visit of four
opposition prefects to the OAS and UN, claiming that it was
orchestrated by MAS nemesis former President "Goni" Sanchez
de Lozada and is further evidence that the "empire," i.e. the
United States, is siding with the opposition. Meanwhile, Evo
is still determined to push through the MAS constitution.
End summary.

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Evo Meets Latin American Ambassadors
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2. (C) Following last week's meeting with EU diplomats,
President Evo Morales invited Latin American ambassadors in
La Paz to meet with him December 4 to discuss the situation
in Bolivia. Press reports cite the Latin American
Ambassadors' concern and support for institutionality and
democracy in Bolivia, while our contacts say they felt the
meeting was a photo-op on Evo's part, a chance to show that
the Bolivian government is reaching out to the international
community. Evo recounted claims that the MAS tried to
negotiate with the opposition but that the opposition was
intent on blocking the MAS's program for change. According
to the Mexican Ambassador, Evo said, "No matter what the
cost, we're going to have a new constitution." During the
meeting, the Argentine Ambassador echoed the November 30th
Mercosur statement which declared support for the Bolivian
institutional regime and rejected any "attempt to weaken the
stability of the government and bodies elected by the
people," a statement that Brazilian contacts told us "can be
viewed as supporting the Bolivian government."

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Prefects (State Governors) in the United States
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3. (C) Meanwhile, Evo and the MAS are claiming that the visit
of four opposition prefects to the United States to meet with
the OAS and the United Nations is another example of the
"empire's" support for the opposition; the government is also
linking the opposition prefects with former president "Goni"
Sanchez de Lozada and former U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia
Manuel Rocha. (Comment: State news outlet ABI released a
timeline of alleged Rocha activities when he was Ambassador
to Bolivia and against Evo since retiring. End comment.)
Minister of the Presidency Juan Ramon Quintana gave a press
conference to denounce the actions of the prefects and
suggest that the visit was coordinated by former career
diplomat and Bolivian ambassador (under Goni) Jaime Aparicio.
Quintana accused the prefects of having "strange" contacts
with the former government minister and with Goni's
son-in-law.


4. (C) A meeting of prefects called by Evo during the absence
of the four opposition prefects was attended by only two MAS
prefects (from Oruro and Potosi.) The meeting will be
rescheduled: Evo publicly reminded the four traveling
prefects that "the problems are here, in Bolivia, and not in
the United States."

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Chiefs of Mission Meeting
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5. (C) In a separate meeting chaired by the Dean of the
Diplomatic Corp, the Papal Nuncio, for chiefs of mission in
La Paz, the Cuban ambassador successfully thwarted attempts
to discuss the current political situation, arguing that the
subject was inappropriate for the group and should instead be
addressed bilaterally. The Cuban ambassador also criticized
participants for wanting to update emergency preparedness
measures, arguing that it would send the wrong message. The
Cuban then noted that he himself has stocked up because, "if
there is confrontation, it will be bad." Some participants
took this statement to be more threat than warning.

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Lula and Bachelet Visits Postponed
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6. (C) The Brazilian Ambassador has confirmed to us that
President Lula's visit to Bolivia has been postponed until
December 16-17. December 16 will be a bilateral visit, while
Chile's President Bachelet has apparently also rescheduled in
order to participate on the 17th. Contacts in the Brazilian
embassy are sticking to their talking points that the delay
is for domestic Brazilian reasons.

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Comment
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7. (C) Evo has publicly invited international human rights
organizations to observe the Bolivian investigation into the
three recent deaths of protesters in Sucre, but continues to
reject international mediation in the current crisis. While
Evo pushes forward with his constitution, he seems intent on
trying to convince the international community that it is the
opposition who is to blame for any violence and that the
United States is conspiring against him. In fact, in a paid
radio spot airing December 5, the Bolivian government accused
the "oligarchy, the prefects and opposition Media Luna civic
groups of trying to block progress in the Constituent
Assembly with the support of the American Embassy."
URS