BOLIVIA: PRESIDENTIAL DELEGATION ATTENDS MORALES

C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 000027 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/01/27 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PHUM PINR OVIP ODIP BL SUBJECT: BOLIVIA: PRESIDENTIAL DELEGATION ATTENDS MORALES INAUGURATION REF: 10 LA PAZ 21 DERIVED FROM: DSCG 05-1 B, D ¶1. (C) Summary: Presidential delegation members Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, U/S for Global Affairs Maria Otero, and Charge attended President Evo Morales' traditional and official inauguration ceremonies on January 21 and 22, respectively. The delegation met with FM Choquehuanca (reftel) January 21 and held a successful press conference reiterating our desire to improve bilateral relations and clarifying the nature of US assistance in Haiti. After the official inauguration ceremony, the delegation had a brief but cordial exchange with Morales. In speeches, both Morales and Vice President Garcia Linera declared their commitment to socialist policies and rehashed old charges of "North American imperialism." End summary. January 21 - "Spiritual" Inauguration in Tiwanaku ¶2. (U) The presidential delegation to President Evo Morales' inauguration, including Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and U/S for Global Affairs Maria Otero, arrived in Bolivia the morning of January 21. The delegation departed almost immediately for a traditional inauguration ceremony held in Tiwanaku. (Note: A UNESCO World Heritage site, Tiwanaku was the religious and political center of the ancient Tiwanaku civilization, and is today a center of national pride and Aymara cultural identity. Morales, who first held a similar ceremony here in January 2006, is of Aymara heritage. End note.) ¶3. (U) After participating in a ceremony honoring Mother Earth and indigenous ancestors, Morales was crowned the country's spiritual leader. In a 40-minute speech following the ceremony, Morales hailed the reformation of the "colonial" republic as a "plurinational" state: "Today the colonial state has left, and a plurinational state has arrived. We had to wait 180 years to re-found Bolivia and guarantee a state where all have the same rights... The countries of the world have decided to dignify themselves and liberate themselves from North American imperialism." Meeting with FM Choquehuanca, Press Conference ¶4. (C) As reported reftel, the delegation met after the Tiwanaku ceremony with FM David Choquehuanca to reiterate the USG's desire to improve bilateral relations. Choquehuanca was receptive and pledged to submit written comments on the previous framework agreement draft as a precursor to further discussions. U/S Otero reviewed the USG's role in Haiti aid and reconstruction efforts, emphasizing that the USG was working under the aegis of the UN, in coordination with other countries, and at the request of the Haitian government. ¶5. (U) After meeting with Choquehuanca, Sec. Solis and U/S Otero met with press in the Foreign Ministry. In widely reported remarks, Sec. Solis called it "an honor" to attend inauguration proceedings and communicated President Obama's "great respect for Bolivia's rich history," adding that "our relationship with Bolivia is very important." "President Obama is doing everything possible to change the discourse of yesteryear and for this reason he asked me to come, celebrate with you, and increase dialogue and communication between our countries." Solis pledged to "continue the work of building ties... as independent nations, under the principal of respect and in a mutual search for a more just, democratic, and peaceful world." ¶6. (U) U/S Otero, responding to remarks by President Morales a day earlier that he would ask the UN to hold an emergency meeting to "repudiate and reject the military occupation by the U.S. in Haiti," said she would prefer to focus on alleviating the suffering of Haitian rather than politicize the humanitarian catastrophe. "It is important that all countries collaborate and respond to aid the Haitian people in emerging from such a difficult situation." Otero stressed that the U.S. was not acting unilaterally, but was responding to a petition by the Haitian government and working in concert with the United Nations and other countries. January 22 - Official Inauguration Ceremonies ¶7. (U) The delegation attended Morales' official inauguration ceremony January 22 in the assembly room of the Plurinational Assembly (Congress). In addition to the delegation, Crown Prince Felipe of Asturias and Presidents Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Fernando Lugo of Paraguay, Rafael Correa of Ecuador, and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela were present. ¶8. (U) In their speeches, Morales and Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera pledged to move the country toward "communitarian socialism" and away from the "true enemy of capitalism." Garcia Linera called for three steps: first, an active process led by the country's social movements to guarantee equal rights for all Bolivians; second, a system of autonomies to decentralize power "but with the State in every centimeter to ensure power is distributed democratically;" and third, an "integrated" economic system featuring a "strong State presence." "It is impossible that the State execute every part of the economic spectrum, but the State has to lead the economy in strategic areas that generate surpluses so as to distribute these surpluses to the other productive sectors. If we do not, the surplus will be taken by the foreign powers again, as they have done for 180 years... The State will be the central [economic] axis, like a gravitational center, that articulates the rest of the economy." ¶9. (U) Morales began his acceptance speech by hailing the achievements of his first administration, including overall economic growth, reduction in external debt, increase in the number and amount of direct cash transfers to Bolivians in need, and growth in the supply of basic services and educational infrastructure. Morales sprinkled his speech with accounts of alleged U.S. interference in Bolivia's internal affairs, and called for the U.S. to limit its "attacks" on Bolivia and on Morales himself. "[I hope] the U.S. Embassy will not issue prohibitions again and try to tell us with which countries we can have relations... [The U.S. Embassy says it wants good relations] but they say you can not have relations with Cuba, Venezuela, or Iran. I tell you, now more than ever, we will strengthen our relations with these three countries." Still, Morales' attacks on the U.S. were less than five minutes of his two hour long address. Presidential Lunch ¶10. (U) After the inauguration ceremony, Morales and Garcia Linera hosted a large luncheon, including the delegation members. Sec. Solis, U/S Otero, and Charge met briefly with President Morales, who was courteous and responsive, while Vice President Garcia Linera declined to meet the delegation. (Note: The delegation, along with other visiting delegations, had been scheduled to meet Morales before the official inauguration ceremony as part of a receiving line, but GOB protocol announced the event's cancelation just before it was to take place. Instead, Morales received only heads of state and the Colombian vice-president. End note.) Delegation Departure - January 23 ¶11. (U) The delegation departed early morning on Saturday, January ¶23. ¶12. (U) Neither Sec. Solis nor U/S Otero cleared this cable. Creamer