The clashes in Bolivia’s capital on Thursday brought a new burst of violence into a broader, fast-spreading wave of unrest that has gripped La Paz for days. Police used tear gas to disperse a crowd of miners that moved to breach the government palace, while the miners set off small dynamite charges.
The incident was the latest in a second week of nationwide unrest challenging the administration of President Rodrigo Paz, who was sworn in late last year and began a new era for the country after nearly 20 years of one-party rule. As the hours passed, the protests shifted from initial demands into increasingly overt political pressure, with miners chanting slogans calling for Paz’s resignation.
Thousands of miners came down to downtown La Paz seeking labor reforms and fuel, drawing crowds that grew as demonstrations continued through the day. The concentration of protesters in the center of the city added to the tension, with blockades and marches already paralyzing the capital in the days leading up to Thursday’s clashes.
In the run-up to the confrontation, rural schoolteachers also marched through the city center to demand higher wages, tightening the grip of the capital’s protest activity and broadening public pressure beyond mining communities. The nationwide unrest has also included a separate stream of participants—an indication that the crisis has moved from a sector-specific dispute toward a wider contest over the administration.
The latest wave initially began with farmers seeking repeal of a law that permitted land mortgaging. Although Paz signed a decree annulling the law on Wednesday night and called for an end to the unrest, demonstrations continued and spread into new areas of contention, including miners’ demands that have now put the government palace directly in the center of the confrontation.