Bolivia´s Internal Strife

  When people think of Bolivia, I believe that they often think of drugs and unstable governments.  I have already discussed the drugs.  How about the government?  Well, Bolivia is experiencing a relatively stable period despite the communist graffiti we encountered.  People still hate the military for its roles in coups over the past decades that have sent the economy spiraling downward.  One college student with whom we talked said that the high paid military ¨suck the blood¨ of the country.  When referring to the government procurement of a castle that was sold a number of years ago to the military, the government ¨took it back from them.¨ This concept of the government being an entity separate enough from the military to warrant it taking something was somewhat foreign to me.  But, then again, a country with three separate army groups that do not specialize in different types of war is also foreign to me and it feels slightly dangerous (there are three armies in Bolivia, one that works for and protects each government branch including the executive, legislative, and judicial branch).  Unrest is just beneath the surface in Bolivia.  It is never a good circumstance when the politicians in a country are also the richest people in the country...nepotism and bribery are always close at hand.  Bloody protests just a few years ago killed three students who were angry that the capital of the executive and legislative branches of the government were being moved from the historic (and beautiful) capital city of Sucre to the business capital of La Paz.  However, just like the university whose law school once was home to priests converting indigenous people to Christianity, and then a torturous prison for enemies of the state, and now a learned hall of juris prudence, Bolivia is fully capable of great changes.  Hopefully this period of peace will turn to one of prosperity and herald stability for a country wracked with the pains of poor governance for so long.

Historic Sucre.