President Evo Morales Riding High Despite Protests by Bolivia's Doctors, Transport Operators.
| Autor | Gaudin, Andres |
Since late last year, when Bolivia's constitutional authority took the surprising step of allowing President Evo Morales to seek reelection (NotiSur, Dec. 15, 2017), the political right has made a concerted effort to damage the leader's image.
To do so, the opposition is banking on direct action by certain middle class and business-sector groups, specifically doctors and transport operators. In the case of the former, who launched a month-and-a-half-long strike last November, the actions put the health of the population at risk.
Morales, in the meantime, is well positioned to win the 2019 election and thus continue leading the country until 2025. A poll published Jan. 20 by the opposition daily El Deber showed that eight out of 10 Bolivians support his government's policies. The country's economic indicators are positive as well. And in October, his reelection bid could get a final boost from the Netherlands-based International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is scheduled to rule on Bolivia's historic maritime dispute with Chile, an issue that unifies Bolivian citizens across party lines (NotiSur, July 28, 2017).
The Morales administration and the governing Movimiento al Socialismo (Movement for Socialism, MAS) party anticipate that the ruling will be favorable and will give the country sovereign access to the ocean after 135 years of being landlocked.
Bonos' and other beneficial programs
The nationwide doctors' strike began Nov. 22 and lasted 47 days, until Jan. 8. Backed by university students and health care workers from both state hospitals and private clinics, physicians initiated the work stoppage to challenge new medical malpractice rules (Article 205 of the country's updated criminal code) and to protest a presidential decree establishing an oversight body--the Autoridad de Fiscalizacion y Control del Sistema Nacional de Salud--to regulate the health care system with regards to issues like cost and quality.
"Medical malpractice is penalized the world over with professional disqualification, fines, and even jail time. But unlike in other countries and in other criminal codes--including the old Bolivian criminal code--Article 205 takes special care [to protect medical practitioners] from excesses," Health Minister Ariana Campero said in defense of the new rules. "The text clearly states that in cases where there's a proven lack of technical resources, meaning medications, equipment, or other basic inputs, doctors are exempted from...
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