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A death in street clashes between opposition civilians and government officials marked the beginning of a strike in the Santa Cruz region, Bolivia’s economic locomotive, to demand a new population census that updates its legislative representation and the amount of state funds it receives.
The death of Julio Pablo Taborga is the result of the violence in Puerto Quijarro, on the border with Brazil, where opponents and supporters of the Luis Arce government clashed.
The clashes occurred during the indefinite strike and the blockades initiated in the department of Santa Cruz, an opposition region that demands that the National Census, which was to be carried out in 2022, be carried out in 2023 and not in 2024 as the executive has determined.
Given the refusal of the national authorities to discuss the date of the census, the Governor of Santa Cruz, Luis Fernando Camacho, left the dialogue table.
“Personally, I am retiring, this is disrespectful to my people, it is disrespectful to the million and a half who went to the council,” said Camacho.
According to the Minister of the Presidency, Marianela Prada, it is the technical teams that must determine the date.
“We regret that these spaces for dialogue are broken in the purest style of spoiled children, that if they do not accept my proposal I will withdraw.
While the dialogue continues to stall, three opponents of the Government have been arrested for the death of the municipal employee Taborga, who, according to his brother, was forced to unblock by his bosses, sympathizers of the Government party.
Santa Cruz demands the census in 2023 because the distribution of resources and seats is at stake, and it fears that the postponement will harm this re
The representation in Congress and the state budget that each department of Bolivia receives depends on its population, which is why Santa Cruz, the most populous in the country, wants to update the census. The last one was made more than ten years ago.
The streets of Santa Cruz, with almost two million inhabitants and capital of the homonymous region, woke up empty on Saturday, with crossroads blocked with stones, sticks, rubber tires and Albiverde regional flags.
