We'll stay united until we get what we want—the president must come negotiate
En las calles de La Paz, maestros, obreros, campesinos y choferes han convertido el centro del poder boliviano en un escenario de demandas acumuladas durante años. Por tercer día consecutivo, la tensión entre el gobierno del presidente Rodrigo Paz y amplios sectores de la sociedad se expresa en barricadas, gases lacrimógenos y edificios tomados, recordándonos que cuando el diálogo se posterga, la plaza pública se convierte en el único foro disponible. La convocatoria a un diálogo nacional en Cochabamba sugiere que el Estado escucha, aunque la historia enseña que escuchar tarde tiene un costo alto.
- Cientos de maestros lanzaron petardos y dinamita contra la policía frente al palacio presidencial, y la respuesta con gases lacrimógenos dispersó la marcha sin apagar la rabia.
- Trabajadores fabriles ocuparon el Ministerio de Trabajo durante horas, exigiendo la renuncia del ministro Morales, hasta que la policía retomó el edificio y realizó arrestos.
- Bloqueos campesinos en los Andes cortaron rutas hacia la frontera peruana, golpeando el comercio regional y el tránsito internacional en un momento de por sí frágil.
- El gobierno logró desactivar parcialmente la amenaza de los choferes al garantizar diésel y compensaciones por motores dañados con gasolina contaminada distribuida por la empresa estatal.
- El canciller Aramayo insinuó ante la prensa internacional que fuerzas políticas ocultas estarían instrumentalizando las protestas, una lectura que los manifestantes rechazan como desvío de sus demandas reales.
- El diálogo convocado para el sábado en Cochabamba es la apuesta del gobierno, pero la presión en las calles no espera al calendario.
El miércoles, la Plaza Murillo de La Paz fue nuevamente escenario de enfrentamientos cuando maestros de la Confederación de Trabajadores de Educación Urbana marcharon hacia el palacio presidencial y chocaron con un cordón policial. Era el tercer día consecutivo de protestas contra el gobierno de Rodrigo Paz. Los docentes lanzaron petardos, tomates y dinamita —que detonó sin causar heridos graves— antes de ser dispersados con gases lacrimógenos.
Las demandas de los maestros son concretas: un aumento salarial del 20%, garantías contra la privatización de empresas estatales, la derogación de una polémica ley de tierras y la renuncia de la ministra de Educación, Beatriz García. Su dirigente Wilfredo Ajllahuanca fue claro: solo negociarán con el presidente en persona, no con intermediarios sin poder de decisión.
Pero el descontento desbordó a los maestros. Obreros fabriles tomaron el Ministerio de Trabajo durante horas para exigir la salida del ministro Edgar Morales, hasta que la policía recuperó el edificio con varios detenidos. Comunidades indígenas y campesinas amazónicas, presentes en La Paz desde el lunes, también reclamaban la derogación de la ley de tierras. En las carreteras andinas, la Federación Campesina Túpac Katari bloqueaba los accesos hacia la frontera con Perú.
El presidente Paz no permaneció pasivo: negoció con la Confederación de Choferes, prometió garantizar el suministro de diésel y compensar a los conductores afectados por gasolina contaminada distribuida por la estatal petrolera. Los choferes, que el día anterior habían paralizado gran parte del país, suspendieron sus amenazas de nuevas medidas.
El canciller Aramayo sugirió que actores políticos sin nombre estarían aprovechando las protestas para desestabilizar al gobierno, una lectura que los manifestantes rechazan. Paz convocó a un diálogo nacional para el sábado en Cochabamba, pero la capital seguía siendo una olla a presión: maestros, obreros, campesinos y choferes, cada uno con sus propias exigencias, todos esperando saber si el presidente está dispuesto a ceder.
On Wednesday, the streets around Plaza Murillo in La Paz erupted into confrontation as hundreds of teachers marched toward the presidential palace, only to meet a wall of police. It was the third straight day of protests against President Rodrigo Paz's government, and this time the clash was direct. Teachers from the Urban Education Workers Confederation threw firecrackers, tomatoes, and even dynamite at the police barricade—the explosives detonating without serious injury—before riot officers responded with tear gas, scattering the crowd.
The teachers were there because they wanted more money. The Urban Education Workers Confederation and the Bolivian Workers Central demanded a 20 percent salary increase for the year, along with promises that the government would not privatize state companies and would repeal a controversial land law. They also wanted the education minister, Beatriz García, to resign, convinced she planned reforms that would damage public education. Wilfredo Ajllahuanca, one of the teachers' leaders, made clear they would not back down: the president himself needed to come negotiate, not send spokespeople without real authority.
But the unrest extended far beyond the teachers. Factory workers occupied the Labor Ministry building for hours in what they called a symbolic takeover, demanding the resignation of Labor Minister Edgar Morales for failing to address wage complaints. Police eventually retook the building and arrested an unspecified number of protesters. Meanwhile, indigenous and peasant groups from the Amazon who had arrived in La Paz on Monday were also in the streets, pushing the same land law repeal. And on the highways, the Peasant Federation of La Paz Túpac Katari had begun blocking roads in the Andes, particularly those leading toward the Peruvian border.
President Paz was not idle. He met with leaders of the Bolivian Drivers Confederation and struck a deal: the government would ensure diesel supply to reduce the long lines at gas stations and would compensate thousands of drivers whose engines had been damaged by contaminated gasoline distributed by the state oil company. The drivers agreed to call off threatened new protests, at least for now. The previous day, they had staged a 24-hour strike across most of the country.
The government's foreign minister, Fernando Aramayo, suggested to international journalists that some of the protests were being manipulated by unnamed political figures trying to destabilize the country and reclaim lost ground. Paz had already called for a national dialogue to be held Saturday in Cochabamba, inviting various sectors to the table. Whether that meeting would ease the pressure remained unclear. What was certain was that the capital had become a pressure cooker—teachers, workers, farmers, and drivers all pushing different demands, all willing to take to the streets, all waiting to see if the president would bend.
Citas Notables
We're going to stay united and firm until we achieve our objectives, and if the president wants frank dialogue, he has to come down himself—not send spokespeople who have no power to decide.— Wilfredo Ajllahuanca, teachers' leader
There is a destabilizing attempt in some of the mobilizations, through which certain leadership figures are trying to recover political space.— Fernando Aramayo, Bolivian foreign minister
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did the teachers decide to march directly at the presidential palace? That seems like an escalation.
They'd been protesting for two days already without getting anywhere. By the third day, they needed to show they were serious—that they wouldn't just march in circles. Going for the palace itself sends a message: we're not asking anymore, we're demanding.
The dynamite is striking. Were they actually trying to hurt people, or was it more symbolic?
The source says it detonated without major consequences. It sounds like a show of force, a way to break through the barricade psychologically. But it also tells you how far the frustration had escalated. These are teachers, not revolutionaries. When teachers are throwing explosives, something has broken down.
The foreign minister's comment about destabilizing forces—is that credible, or is it the government deflecting?
It's hard to say. Multiple sectors with different demands all protesting at once could look coordinated from the outside, but it could also just be that everyone's angry at the same time. The minister doesn't name anyone, which makes it sound like speculation. But it's worth noting: when a government starts talking about hidden hands, it's usually because it feels threatened.
The drivers got a deal. Does that mean the pressure is easing?
Only for the drivers. The teachers, the workers, the farmers—they're still out there. One sector getting what it wants doesn't solve the underlying problem: people don't think they're being paid fairly, and they don't trust the government's intentions on land and state companies. The Saturday dialogue could matter, but only if the president actually shows up and listens.
What happens if Saturday doesn't work?
Then you're looking at more of this. The road blockades alone are already hurting commerce and cross-border trade. If the dialogue fails, the protests could harden into something more sustained, more organized. Right now it's still fluid—different groups, different demands. But desperation has a way of unifying people.