A tank knocked down the doors of the Bolivian Executive headquarters and entered at 3:51 p.m. this Wednesday, June 26, this after Juan José Zúñigacommander general of the Bolivian Army, threatened to take over the seat of government and change the cabinet.
The attack was reported on X (formerly Twitter) by Evo Morales, former president of Bolivia, who assured that a group of snipers took the Murillo Square in La Paz.
“This seems to indicate that they prepared in advance the Coup. I ask the people with a democratic vocation to defend the Homeland from some military groups that act against democracy and the people,” he published.
What did AMLO and Sheinbaum say about the attempted Coup d’état in Bolivia?
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has shown his support for Bolivia so far in his six-year term, denounced the attack by that country’s military forces against the Government.
“We express the strongest condemnation of the attempted coup d’état in Bolivia. Our total support and endorsement to President Luis Alberto Arce, authentic democratic authority of that people and sister country”, he published in X.
Marcelo Ebrard, the next Secretary of Economy, joined the condemnation with Claudia Sheinbaum, who said: “All support and sympathy for Constitutional President Luis Arce Catacora who is facing a new coup attempt.”
Minutes later, Claudia Sheinbaum described the mobilization of soldiers through the streets of La Paz as “an attack against democracy.”
“We strongly condemn these events. Our unconditional support to President Luís Arce and his people. Our support for the Government’s positioning,” said the next president of Mexico.
These are the reactions to the attempted coup d’état in Bolivia
(EFE)
Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), stated that the group will not tolerate “no form of violation of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia”after the deployment of the military.
”The General Secretariat of the OAS condemns in the most energetic way these actions of the Bolivian armyhe must submit to civil authority as mandated by the Inter-American Democratic Charter,” Almagro stated.
Likewise, he expressed his “solidarity with the president of Bolivia, Luis Arce.”
”The international community, the OAS, the General Secretariat of the OAS, will not tolerate any form of breach of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia nor anywhere else,” he added.
On the other hand, Nicolás Maduro, president of Venezuela, said he had spoken with Luis Arce, to whom he confirmed all his support against the Coup d’état.
”I received a call from President Lucho Arce of Bolivia and (also) spoke with the leader of former President Evo Morales. “We are, from Venezuela, denouncing a coup d’état against Bolivian democracy,” said the president during an event with businessmen in the state of Lara.
Another Latin American leader who condemned the military attempt was Lula da Silva, president of Brazil, who assured that “in Latin America, coups never worked.”
Lula asked his Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira to gather information before giving a formal position of the Brazilian Government in relation to the events that are occurring in Bolivia.
“(I am a) lover” of democracy and, therefore, I defend that “democracy prevails in Latin America”.
President of Bolivia dismisses Army commander
Image taken from a publication on the X social network account of Canal BoliviaTV where the president of Bolivia, Luis Arce (c), appears in front of the commander general of the Bolivian Army, Juan José Zuñiga,
Juan José Zúñiga was relieved this Wednesday along with the other military commanders by Luis Arce, this after he commanded a group of soldiers who starred in scenes of tension at the Government headquarters in La Paz.
Arce along with his vice president David Choquehuanca remain inside the Executive headquarters and denounced them to the international community “an attempted coup d’état”.
“Here we are, the entire national government, with all its ministers, standing firm with our vice president, standing firm here in the main house to confront any coup attempt, any attempt that threatens our democracy,” said the Bolivian president.
