Unrest in Bolivia continues

"Leaders in five opposition-controlled states proclaimed a general strike Tuesday, paralyzing a broad swath of this deeply divided Andean nation," reports the L.A. Times' Patrick J. McDonnell.

"Clashes broke out in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, epicenter of the opposition, where anti-government protesters fought with loyalists of leftist President Evo Morales. Police fired tear gas to disperse rival groups, which exchanged fusillades of sticks and stones.

"Pro-strike activists blocked roads, and schools, shops, airports and private vehicular traffic were largely shut down in five of Bolivia's nine states, including Santa Cruz. The states are seeking greater autonomy and a bigger share of royalties from the extraction of gas and petroleum, which are drilled mostly in regions controlled by the opposition.

 

"The strike marks an escalation of the political crisis that has divided the country into two camps: for and against Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president."

Read the rest of McDonnell's dispatch from Bolivia here.

For more on Bolivia in general, click here.

-- Deborah Bonello in Mexico City