Morales and Costas meet face to face!

Replies: 11 - Last Post: 02-Oct-2008 06:33 Last Post By: Standanista

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Threeshire

29-Sep-2008 09:31
Posts: 380

Morales and Costas meet face to face!

... or nose to moustache.
I kid you not!
"La Paz, 28 Sep (Erbol).- El presidente Evo Morales y el prefecto opositor del departamento de Santa Cruz, Rubén Costas, se reunieron la mañana de este domingo de manera sorpresiva en la casa presidencial, ubicada en la zona San Jorge de la ciudad de La Paz.
El Jefe de Estado, durante la entrega de una cancha deportiva al Colegio Militar en la sede Gobierno, confirmó el encuentro con Costas; mientras en Cochabamba continúa el trabajo de las dos mesas del diálogo nacional que intentan encontrar soluciones, para superar la crisis política y social que vive el país.
“Delante de la comunidad internacional, iglesias y observadores del diálogo dije que quisiera conversar uno por uno con los prefectos de los departamentos. Esta mañana me reuní con el prefecto de Santa Cruz y por eso me atrasé”, dijo Morales, al indicar que recogerá las propuesta macro de desarrollo regional de las autoridades departamentales para ejecutarlas a mediano y largo plazo."
Standanista, James Brunker, Boliviabella and other SOBs (Survivors of Bolivia) will share my total surprise. Please someone confirm this is not April the First or Día de los Inocentes?
For Bolivia novices, Rubén Costas is the Prefect of Santa Cruz Department and a standard bearer for the hard-line regional autonomy movements of the "Media Luna" which, in the absence of a national opposition worth mentioning, is the main opposition to Morales. Not that Morales isn´t a hard-liner himself, so this is quite a turn-up.
There is a parallel announcement that the government and the Prefects have agreed to postpone the next plenary of the Dialogue for a week to allow the woking groups more time.

schmuck

29-Sep-2008 12:58
Posts: 468

Morales fairly pragmatic, Costas "et al" feel the cold reality of a cold shower

Standanista

29-Sep-2008 19:07
Posts: 1,058

#1: Surely Costas can afford better than Hotel Alem?

Threeshire: Are the Woking Groups some Home Counties equivalent of the Dayton Peace Accord forums?

A member of the stolen posts generation.

jamesbrunker

29-Sep-2008 22:18
Posts: 881

Interesting, especially as theres an article on the same Erbol page virtually next to the one above which starts with the following:

La Paz, 27 Sep (Erbol).- El presidente Evo Morales confesó hoy que no le interesa negociar con los prefectos opositores y que participa del diálogo nacional solamente obligado por su condición de Jefe de Estado, y reiteró que el proyecto de la Nueva Constitución Política del Estado será aprobado “por las buenas o por las malas”.

“Por la unidad del país, el proceso de cambio, por defender la democracia, tienen que entenderme, tengo que sentarme con estos señores (prefectos opositores), no quisiera yo, (pero) estoy obligado como presidente de los bolivianos”, reveló Morales, al inaugurar la reunión de emergencia de la Coordinadora Nacional para el Cambio (Conalcam) en Cochabamba.

Heres a link to the Erbol page for any Spanish speakers who are interested.

Maybe #1 is right and Evo just told Costas where to shove his autonomias. He has shown a distinct tendency to say one thing to the press, government meetings and official dialogues, and take a more radical and sometimes different line in speeches when visiting his hardcore supporters in rural communities handing out tractors, Venezuelan cheques for projects etc; though in this case could also be interepreted as appealing to them to have more patience with the dialogue (some weren't happy with the decision to temporarily lift the blockades last week). Hopefully this is a positive sign and that something productive is going on behind the scenes, neither came out of the meeting with black eyes did they?!

Threeshire

30-Sep-2008 01:45
Posts: 380

Standanista #2:
"Woking groups" - Surrey about the typing error ...

boliviabella

30-Sep-2008 14:39
Posts: 100

Four European "impartial" observers arrived today so...

Oh! And did you notice the fully armed with shot guns and dynamite PONCHOS ROJOS disappeared from Plaza San Pedro today too?

Edited by: boliviabella

schmuck

01-Oct-2008 01:44
Posts: 468

There are Five not Four, set out below:

Bolivian President Evo Morales met with a five-member European Parliament mission Monday to discuss the political and social tensions in his country.

The mission will also meet the rightist leader of the National Unity party, Samuel Doria, and leaders of other political parties.

The European mission consists of two delegates from Romania, and one each from Lithuania, Poland and France. They each represent a different department of the European Parliament.
Romanian delegate Gabriela Cretu, the first female Vice President of the European Parliament, said before the meeting that they were deeply concerned about the current situation in Bolivia.

"Concern arises when peace and understanding are threatened," she said.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who is also temporary president of the South American Union of Nations (Unasur), praised the European Union's support for Bolivia's democratic institutions in a letter, saying it is one of the proofs that the world is concerned about Bolivians' efforts to conserve democracy.

Standanista

01-Oct-2008 07:10
Posts: 1,058

More festivities at El Trujillo?

A member of the stolen posts generation.

schmuck

01-Oct-2008 09:01
Posts: 468

I think I would avoid Santa Cruz around October 26th !

Standanista

01-Oct-2008 18:27
Posts: 1,058

I think it depends on the context. If it's a re-run of the Ponchos Rojos march of last year, with the participants ferried in and out and kept in lock-down for the duration, I can't see there being major problems. With each faction seeking the moral high ground in the eyes of the international community, it's in the interests of the Media Luna to allow any parade/event behind the perimeter wire of El Trujillo (Santa Cruz's second, largely military airport) to pass off peacefully. If, on the other hand, it's an escalation of the recent cerco, with an attempt to reach the central plaza, then, as you rightly point out, schmuck, downtown Santa Cruz, at least, would be worth avoiding. Obviously, either way, it's still an upping of the ante on the part of the Government.

A member of the stolen posts generation.

Threeshire

02-Oct-2008 04:04
Posts: 380

The President is supposed to be in Santa Cruz this Friday 3 October for the anniversary of CIDOB (Confederación de Indígenas del Oriente Boliviano). This may give some clue to how things may pan out.
Standanista:
I was baffled by your first reference to "El Trujillo". Now I see you mean "El Trompillo", which is the second airfield in Santa Cruz. Your memory´s going - must be all that Foster´s Lager.

Standanista

02-Oct-2008 06:33
Posts: 1,058

The memory's definitely going, but I didn't realise that fast!

A member of the stolen posts generation.

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