These two articles show Bolivia’s struggle to maintain its sovereignty under the government of Pres. Evo Morales. The first article describes the perverse relationship of “give and take” with the United States government on the coca production.

An interview with Pres. Morales himself, the second article describes the efforts of an indigenous majority to be represented in government for the first time in history.

Despite the vote of Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United States against indigenous people’s rights to promote, develop and maintain their institutional structures and their customs (United Nations General Assembly Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Article 34), Bolivia’s government is determined to work for the right to land and self-determination.

Bolivian Is an Uneasy Ally as U.S. Presses Drug War

Bolivian President Evo Morales on Indigenous Rights, Climate Change, Iraq, Establishing Diplomatic Relations with Iran, Che Guevara’s Legacy and More