Unrest In Bolivia Continues To Escalate

Young men carrying batons and wearing masks chanted, 'Murderess, murderess,' as they marched Arce to a platform where they cut her hair before the baying mob

Daily Mail: Bolivian mayor is dragged through the streets, covered in red paint and has her hair hacked off by furious mob who blamed her for the deaths of two opposition protesters

* Mayor Patricia Arce was dragged from the town hall in Vinto on Wednesday
* Furious masked men chanted 'Murderess, murderess' and cut off her hair
* Arce was released after four hours of degradation, the town hall was incinerated
* Bolivia has been gripped by violence since Evo Morales re-election on Oct. 20

A Bolivian mayor has been doused in red paint and had her hair hacked off by protesters who blamed her for the deaths of two opposition protesters.

Patricia Arce, of the governing Mas party, was dragged out of Vinto town hall on Wednesday and subjected to four hours of degradation in which she was made to kneel and sign her resignation.

Young men carrying batons and wearing masks chanted, 'Murderess, murderess,' as they marched Arce to a platform where they cut her hair before the baying mob.

Bolivia has been gripped by deadly protests following President Evo Morales' election victory on October 20 over claims it was rigged.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: This unrest is not going to end anytime soon.

More News On The Unrest In Bolivia

Bolivia mayor has hair forcibly cut by crowd of protesters -- BBC
Bolivia protest leader to decide timing for march to government palace -- Reuters
Bolivia protests: Student killed in clashes as pressure mounts on president to resign -- News24/AFP
Bolivia protests: Student dies after violent clashes -- DW
Bitter divides in Bolivia over president's re-election -- Al Jazeera

Unrest In Boliva -- News Updates For September 16 - 17, 2008

Indigenous supporters of Bolivia's President Evo Morales sit in front of police standing guard next to the Congress building in La Paz September 16, 2008. Bolivian troops on Tuesday arrested the opposition governor of a restive northern province blamed for a rash of killings, but President Evo Morales said he still hoped to agree shortly to formal talks with rivals. REUTERS/David Mercado (BOLIVIA)

Arrest Of Opposition Leader Endangers Fragile
Bolivia Peace Talks -- Yahoo News/AFP

LA PAZ (AFP) - Federal troops on Tuesday detained one of five rebel governors pressing Bolivia's government for autonomy, as fellow provincial leaders warned that the arrest threatened a fragile truce with La Paz.

Troops arrested Leopoldo Fernandez, governor of the restive state of Pando, and charged him in the deaths of several pro-government demonstrators who last week clashed with anti-government factions.

Fernandez, whom authorities charged with genocide, is a key player in a long-running conflict between President Evo Morales and four other rebel governors which blew up into deadly unrest, after soldiers seized control of the northern state of Pando under a martial law order.

Read more ....

More News On Bolivia

Troops arrest Bolivian governor -- BBC News
Evo Morales arrests rival and hopes for pact -- Reuters
Bolivia: Governor Accused of Genocide -- New York Times
Bolivia arrests US-backed rebel governor -- Press TV
Bolivian governor arrested -- Radio Netherlands
South American leaders support Morales -- CNN
A Crisis Highlights Divisions in Bolivia -- New York Times

My Comment: Arresting your opponents is not going to bring about peace. As readers of this blog know, I have always mentioned that Evo Morales has no interest in negotiating with the governors in those provinces that had voted overwhelming to be autonomous. Throw in racial politics and class envy, we now have an intolerable situation in the country.

Expect more conflict and violence in the months to come.

Bolivian State Set For Key Autonomy Vote

From Yahoo News:

SANTA CRUZ, Bolivia - Voters in Bolivia's largest state are likely to pass a sweeping autonomy referendum Sunday, dealing a blow to the country's leftist president and deepening an entrenched political conflict.

Santa Cruz state leaders are pushing the referendum in a bid to keep a bigger slice of the state's key natural gas revenues, while also protecting their soy plantations and cattle ranches from President Evo Morales' plan to redistribute land to the poor.

Morales says he needs a strong central government to spread Santa Cruz's wealth to the rest of South America's poorest country.

Read more ....

Update: Bolivia Region 'Chooses Autonomy' -- BBC News

Update: Santa Cruz Autonomy Vote Passes In Bolivia-- Morales Supporters Promise War -- Gateway Pundit

My Comment: I live in Quebec, Canada. We have had a separatist movement in this province for as long as I can remember. This conflict has its origins from a central government not respecting/communicating/not being sensitive/etc. to a majority of an ethnic group in this region. This lack of accommodation has brought violence, intolerance, ethnic conflict .... and while much of it is now below the surface .... it is still there.

Morales is doing the same mistake that previous Canadian and Quebec politicians did. How far this will go will be up to him.