Bolivia: Legitimation Crisis and State (In)capacity

By Alice Soares Guimarães, August 2020 I n early March, the first cases of Covid-19 in Bolivia were confirmed. Shortly afterwards the government decreed a state of health emergency and adopted strict measures to avoid the spread of the virus. [1] Four months later, however, we are witnessing the increase of infections, the collapse of the health system, and a series of side effects that go beyond the health realm. Some are shared with many other countries such as the economic impacts of the quarantine on a population working mostly on the informal sector and the increase of unemployment and of gender violence, among others. However, in Bolivia the epidemic crisis also deepened an ongoing political crisis. The country is facing the pandemic in a context characterized by the broad illegitimacy of an interim, non-elected government; intense partisanship and a fierce conflict within the political system between the executive and the legislative powers; and a controversial electoral process with the final date repeatedly postponed. It is against this backdrop that the state’s actions related to the epidemic, and the reactions of other political actors and members of civil society, must be understood. The current political crisis began with the national elections last October, which were controversial from the onset due to the incumbent President Evo Morales’ decision to run for another term against the constitutionally established limits. [2] During the vote counting, accusations were made of efforts to rig the election in Morales’ favor. Over the following three weeks, violent protests spread across the country. As a report was released by the Organization of American States alleging irregularities in the electoral process, tensions escalated. Amidst mounting societal pressure, a police mutiny and the suggestion by the military that the President should resign, Morales caved in; complied and went into exile in what has been interpreted by many as a coup d’etat . The cri