El Gran Cabildo Popular

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English text below…

El Gran Cabildo Popular. El Alto, Bolivia, 20 April 2008

El Alto es la ciudad ‘rebelde’ de Bolivia. Anteriormente un barrio pobre a las afueras de la ciudad de La Paz, que fue olvidado por consecutivos gobiernos hasta que se hizo demasiado grande para ser ignorado. Su población, inmigrantes Aymaras en su mayoría procedentes del Altiplano, depende de fuertes redes comunitarias en ausencia del apoyo del gobierno. El Alto es ahora una de las ciudades más grandes de Bolivia y un importante centro económico, pero su gente no ha olvidado la importancia de ser solidarios.

El 20 de abril de 2008, organizaciones comunitarias del Distrito Cuarto de El Alto convocó un Gran Cabildo Popular en protesta a los Estatutos de Autonomía propuestos por Rubén Costas, Prefecto del Departamento de Santa Cruz – parte de la ‘Media Luna’ – un grupo de departamentos orientales dirigidos por prefectos opuestos al Presidente Evo Morales. Estos Estatutos fueron vistos por muchos en El Alto y el occidente como un intento para formar un estado independiente.

El Cabildo, una mezcla entre manifestación y un mitin político, es una demostración de la solidaridad comunitaria por la que El Alto es famoso. A pesar del discurso agresivo por parte de los líderes políticos locales, quienes gritan amenazas de ‘muerte a los separatistas’ desde la pasarela, el grupo formado por 2-3.000 personas se muestra tranquilo. Los manifestantes agitan la bandera nacional boliviana y la Wipala, la bandera de las Naciones Andinas, o sostienen orgullosos los estandartes con el nombre de la vecindad a la que pertenecen, mientras niños juegan y ancianas hacen punto. Cabildos en El Alto no han sido siempre tan pacíficos; en octubre de 2003, bajo un gobierno menos tolerante a las protestas, la milicia abrió fuego a unos doscientos metros a una reunión similar. La masacre del ‘Octubre Negro’ sigue fresca en la memoria comunitaria de El Alto, y varios participantes llevan pancartas demandando que Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, presidente en aquel momento y que actualmente vive en los Estados Unidos, sea entregado a la justicia boliviana.

Entre gritos de ‘El Alto de pie, nunca de rodillas’, muñecos representando a Costas y Branko Marinkovich, el líder derechista del Comité Cívico de Santa Cruz, cuelgan de la pasarela. Los manifestantes aplauden, y luego silenciosa y espontáneamente se dispersan, volviendo orgullosos a sus vecindarios. Un grupo más ruidoso permanece. Una vez descolgados ‘Costas’ y ‘Marinkovich’ son golpeados, pateados y finalmente quemados; una forma de recordar que los Alteños se revelaron en el pasado, y que se sublevarán otra vez si las circunstancias lo requieren.

El Alto is Bolivia’s ‘rebel’ city. Formerly a slum suburb of La Paz, it was forgotten by consecutive governments until it became too big to be ignored. Its people, the vast majority Aymara migrants from the surrounding altiplano, relied on strong community networks in the absence of government support. El Alto is now Bolivia’s third largest city and an important economic centre, but its people have not forgotten the importance of solidarity.

On the 20th April 2008, community organisations in the 4th District of El Alto held a Gran Cabildo Popular in protest against the Autonomous Statutes proposed by Ruben Costas, Prefect of the eastern department of Santa Cruz – one of the ‘Media Luna’ (Half Moon) of eastern departments lead by prefects opposed to President Evo Morales. These Statutes were seen by many in El Alto and throughout the western highlands as an attempt to form a fledgling independent state.

The cabildo, a cross between a march and a grassroots political rally, is a demonstration of the community solidarity for which El Alto is renowned. Despite fighting talk from local political leaders, who shout threats of ‘death to the separatists’ from a footbridge, the 2-3,000 strong crowd is reserved. Demonstrators wave the Bolivian national flag and the checkered Wipala, the flag of Andean Nations, or stand staunchly behind banners announcing their neighbourhood association, while children play and elderly women sit knitting. Cabildos in El Alto have not always passed so peacefully; in October 2003, under a government less tolerant of protest, the military opened fire on a similar gathering a couple hundred metres down the road. The massacre of ‘Black October’ is still fresh in El Alto’s communal memory, and several demonstrators carry banners demanding that Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada, president at the time and currently living in the USA, be brought to justice in Bolivia.

Amid cries of ‘El Alto de pie, nunca de rodillas’ (El Alto on its feet, never on its knees), figures representing Costas and Branko Marinkovich, the leader of Santa Cruz’s right-wing Civic Committee, are hanged from the footbridge. The crowd applauds, and then silently and spontaneously disperses, neighbours marching proudly back to their barrios. A more boisterous group remains. Costas and Marinkovich are cut down, kicked and beaten, and set on fire; a physical reminder that Alteños have risen up in the past, and will rise up again should the circumstances require.

Api, the tastiest way of keeping warm in the Altiplano

Cuando los termómetros están bajo cero y el aire se vuelve escarcha en el Altiplano boliviano, es la hora de tomar Api con Buñuelos. Api es una bebida tradicional hecha de la mezcla de dos tipos de maíz y que se toma bien caliente. Indispensable para la preparación del api es el maíz morado, que una vez molido se diluye en agua fría y se cocina durante 15 minutos junto con azúcar, piel de limón y naranja, canela y clavo de olor. De esto obtendremos un denso jugo que se mezclara con otro hecho de maíz blanco y preparado en la misma forma. A la hora de servir primero se pondrá el jugo de maíz blanco en el vaso, y después, el de maíz morado, en la misma proporción. Es importante hacerlo en este orden para que se note la diferencia de colores.

Este jugo caliente se sirve con buñuelos – un tipo de rosco frito – cubiertos de miel caliente. Así con un vaso calentito de api y unos deliciosos buñuelos por unos minutos el frío desaparece de tu cuerpo y tu corazón.

Qué llegue el frío! Qué llegue la nieve! A mi no me importa… yo tengo mi api preparado, listo para degustar su delicado y dulce sabor.

When the thermometer falls below zero and there’s a frost in the air on the Bolivian Altiplano, it’s time for Api con Buñuelos. Api is a traditional drink, made of a mix of two different types of maize, which is always served piping hot. Fundamental for the preparation of Api is purple maize which, once ground into a powder, is diluted with cold water, mixed with sugar, orange and lemon peel, cinnamon and cloves, and left to simmer for 15 minutes. This is added to a broth of white maize, prepared in the same way. When serving, the white maize must be poured into the glass first, and then the purple – combined in this order, the different colours remain distinguishable.

The hot broth is served with buñuelos – a sort of fried doughnut – covered in warm honey. With a glass of steaming api and a stack of delicious buñuelos, the cold of the Altiplano disappears from your body and your heart for a few minutes.

Bring on the cold! Bring on the snow. I don’t mind… I’ve got my api and I’m ready to enjoy its sweet and delicate flavour.

4 May, Referendum Day Santa Cruz

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The audio is in Spanish. See below for an English translation.

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referendumblokscript-mp3

Santa Cruz, the largest and wealthiest department in Bolivia, voted yesterday in a controversial referendum to ratify the statutes that will be the basis for governing the department as an autonomous region.

Bolivia’s leftist central government says that the poll, called by the Prefect of Santa Cruz, a fierce opponent of President Evo Morales, is unconstitutional and divisive.

On the eve of the referendum, communities loyal to the President blockaded main routes into the capital of Santa Cruz, refusing to let the Departmental Electoral Commission access the towns in the North and West of the province.

Despite confusion about the legality of the referendum, Cruzeños turned out in their thousands to vote in polling stations across the department.

Voting was largely peaceful throughout the day in most of the region. However, in the impoverished outlying suburbs of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the departmental capital, two deaths were reported after skirmishes broke out between members of the Union Juvenil Cruzeñista, a group loyal to the Prefect, and local residents, largely poor immigrants from the Bolivian highlands who oppose the Autonomous Statutes.

Last night, as tensions simmered in the suburbs, there was an atmosphere of celebration in the main square of Santa Cruz de la Sierra. However, controversy remains. The Prefect of Santa Cruz, Ruben Costas, has claimed an overwhelming victory, with 85% voting in favour of the Statutes, while President Morales has dismissed this as not taking into account an estimated 40% abstention rate.

What is clear is that the people of Santa Cruz have expressed their desire greater autonomy. Whether the Autonomous Statutes ratified in today’s referendum will yield meaningful change, or, as critics fear, will simply exchange a centralist national government for an equally centralist departmental authority, remain to be seen.

Journey to Santa Cruz

On the bus to Santa Cruz. We were on our way to document the referendum that would ratify the department’s controversial Autonomous Statutes, held on May 4th. We arrived in the middle of a storm… political as well as pluvial, as President Evo Morales had rejected the Statutes as illegal and unconstitutional, and warned that the Statutes proposed by Santa Cruz’ ruling elite were really an attempt to form an independent state. Experts on both sides of the political divide warned that conflict was likely.