Global Voices Online

Miguel Buitrago describes Evo Morales' upcoming travel plans as social unrest continues domestically: “Morales cannot stay outside Bolivia more than 5 days, since he does not have permission of Parliament to travel, he'll go on to the South America - Africa Summit in Nigeria. His final stop will be Cuba to celebrate Fidel's birthday.”

Have you got a question for the Bolivian Ambassador to the US? Now is the time to ask it as Jim Shultz prepares for his upcoming interview.

It has now been over a year since David of Ride for Climate first set off from California to ride throughout Latin America. Here are his latest batch of photos and stories from Peru and Bolivia.

Bolivia's constituent assembly had been at a deadlock over whether votes would be decided by majority or require two-thirds. A decision was reached/imposed this past weekend, reports Miguel Centellas, Jim Shultz, and Miguel Buitrago.

Bolivia Rising translates a piece from La Razon about the political forces seeking consensus to resolve regulations for the Constituent Assembly which will rewrite the nation's constitution.

Bolivia Rising has translated an article by former Bolivian Minister for Hydrocarbons Andres Soliz Rada in which he articulates a “an indomestiza vision, which, ‘as opposed to traditional nationalism, rescues the potentials of those peoples oppressed for five centuries by internal and external colonialism, without denying, through mestizaje, Western or European contributions.'” Will Evo Morales' MAS government be able to carry through such a vision?

Miguel A. Buitrago describes the marked improvement in diplomatic relations between Bolivia and Chile despite to delicate and long-standing issues of dissension. Otra Expresión (now located here [ES]) recently cited a survey [ES] by the Chile daily El Mercurio which found that 60% of respondents favored a solution in which Bolivia gains access to the sea. 47% believe Bolivians should have access to port facilities, 13% think their neighbor should be given a strip of coastal land, while 33% of respondents say that no coastal access should be given.

Miguel Buitrago criticizes a plan by the Bolivian government to add a political layer of 42 regional subunits between the country's nine departments and 327 municipalities. Miguel Centallas, however, argues that the new subunits might actually strengthen the municipalities. The two Miguel's have a useful discussion on the issue in this comments thread.

Gretchen Gordon takes a look at Bolivia's renegotiated contracts with foreign oil companies. Miguel Buitrago, posting a graph of the new agreements, writes: “I haven't looked at it in detail, but on the fly I am thinking, if the companies agreed to this conditions, if they agreed to keep investing, and if they said this deal is benefitial for them. Also, if the deal is benefitial for Bolivia, I'd say, way to go Evo.”