A group of Republican congressmen asked Joe Biden sanction the Government of Bolivia for undermining the rule of law and committing serious violations of human rights. In the letter they denounce the arrests of opposition leaders in which due process and the right to a fair trial have been violated.
“It is in the national interest of the United States to ensure that Bolivia respects the rule of law and upholds the human rights of its own people. Therefore, we request the timely imposition of sanctions, as authorized by Section 7031(c) of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 against all Bolivian citizens responsible for these gross human rights violations”, says the letter signed by Republicans Marco Rubio, Carlos Gimenez, Rick Scott, María Elvira Salazar, Bill Cassidy and Mario Diaz-Balart.
In the document dated March 24 and addressed to the US president, the congressmen denounce the sentence against the former Bolivian president Jeanine Añez to ten years in prison for “resolutions contrary to the constitution” and “breach of duties” related to his assumption of the presidency in 2019, despite the ruling of the Plurinational Constitutional Court that endorsed his assumption of the Presidency.
In addition, they condemned the arrests of Luis Camachogovernor of Santa Cruz and former presidential candidate, on terrorism charges for his participation in protests against the “fraudulent victory” of Evo Morales in the 2019 Bolivian elections, and Marco Pumari, Camacho’s running mate, who was arrested for similar charges.
“In response to these arrests, both the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights issued statements stressing the importance of adhering to the rule of law and ensuring due process and transparency in all legal proceedings and condemning this ‘intense use of power?’ court to prosecute the free expression of thought and the arbitrary deprivation of liberty of people for political reasons in the region,’” the letter says.
The Republican congressmen add in the letter: “The absence of a robust opposition, civil society and independent media in Bolivia provides an open door for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and other authoritarian regimes to further impose their strategic interests on the South American country and the region.. The Bolivian people should be able to rigorously assess and debate the merits of investment proposals that the CCP would prefer to negotiate behind closed doors. As such, it is imperative that the United States hold accountable Bolivian human rights violators who violate the fundamental freedoms of Bolivian opposition candidates and their supporters.”
On March 21, the United States Government published a report on human rights practices in the year 2022 in Bolivia. The document lists arbitrary arrests, torture, concern for the independence of justice and restrictions on freedom of expression.
“Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: torture and cases of trafficking or cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment by government officials; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrests or detentions; serious problems of judicial independence; restrictions on freedom of expression and the media, including violence against journalists by state security forces and censorship; substantial interference with freedom of assembly; serious government corruption; lack of investigation and accountability for gender violence; and existence of the worst forms of child labor”, the report states.
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