Articles and notes about Bolivia.
Four days separate the State Department sanction against Roger Mariaca, accused of protecting drug trafficking, from his arrest and permanent removal by the Bolivian Assembly. In between, Rodrigo Paz’s government changed the law, 14 people were arrested and foreign officials appeared inside the legislature.
Bolivia’s President Rodrigo Paz declared a national state of emergency on Saturday due to the worsening climate conditions in the country, according to Brasil 247. The measure will allow the government to expand the availability of financial resources and mobilize rescue teams to assist populations in the most affected areas.
Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz signed a decree on Saturday declaring a national state of emergency to address the effects of El Niño, calling for further deployments of rescue teams in areas of the country hard hit by flooding and drought, according to Al Jazeera. The drought affects 78,000 families in six of Bolivia’s nine departments and has led to the loss of more than 75,000 cattle, according to a government report released this week.
Donald Trump’s administration revoked the visas of 61 people linked to Bolivia and Colombia, including officials and former members of both countries’ governments, according to G1. In Bolivia, the restrictions targeted 15 politicians and their close relatives, including lawmakers, judges, prosecutors and former members of security and investigation agencies.
Police in Bolivia arrested Attorney General Roger Mariaca and 13 other people accused of protecting drug traffickers days after the United States imposed visa restrictions on Mariaca over corruption allegations, according to The Washington Post. The US State Department said Mariaca received “bribes to facilitate drug trafficking and help violent criminals evade justice”, according to CBS News/AFP.
The government of Donald Trump revoked the visas of 27 current and former Latin American officials and their family members from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, according to G1. According to the American State Department, the measures involve officials from those countries and are part of an offensive against corruption and drug trafficking. The Associated Press reported that the US revoked the visas of Bolivia's chief prosecutor and other Latin American officials, in a text republished by Gate News.