Bolivia’s President Denies Organizing Failed Coup
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
LA PAZ (Worthy News) – Bolivia’s embattled President Luis Arce on Thursday denied being behind an attempted coup against him to boost his popularity. He said the general who led it “acted on his own.”
In his first appearance before journalists after the apparent coup, Arce said: “I am not a politician that is going to win popularity through the blood of the people.”
Arce spoke after General Juan José Zúñiga, who entered the presidential palace a day earlier with troops and claimed Arce had asked him to carry out an attempted coup to boost his popularity.
The general made the comments following his arrest by the authorities for a coup attempt in La Paz, the capital.
The president maintained that everything “had returned to normal” in an attempt to reassure the public after troops withdrew from the area.
Late Wednesday, La Paz was facing potential bloodshed as armored vehicles crashed into the palace and troops entered the building.
“Today, the country is facing an attempted coup d’état. Today, the country faces once again interests, so democracy in Bolivia is cut short,” Arce said in comments from the presidential palace, with armed soldiers outside.
PEOPLE SUMMONED
“The Bolivian people are summoned today. We need the Bolivian people to organize and mobilize against the coup d’état in favor of democracy.”
Witnesses later saw soldiers withdraw from the square and police taking control of the plaza.
While Bolivian authorities arrested Zúñiga and took him away, Arce swore in José Wilson Sanchez as the military commander, Zuniga’s former role. He called for calm and order to be restored.
“I order that all personnel mobilized on the streets return to their units,” Sanchez said. “We entreat that the blood of our soldiers not be spilled.”
Despite confusion about the alleged coup attempt, it was unclear how former Bolivian president Evo Morales, a political rival, would react.
It was also closely watched by Christians who have in the past expressed concerns about “repressive practices against government critics and Christian leaders” under the previous president, Worthy News established.
The tensions in landlocked Bolivia, South America’s highest and most isolated country of 12 million people, were due to have regional and international implications.
The United States said it closely monitored the situation and urged calm and restraint.
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