April 30, 2001
Breaking
News...
Narco News 2001
Bolivian
Unions Unite with Coca Growers
General
Strike!
Set
to Begin Tuesday, May 1 and go on Indefinitely
11:22 a.m., Monday, April 30, 2001
By French Press Agency
(AFP)
Translated by The Narco
News Bulletin
The
Bolivian Central Union (COB, in its
Spanish acronym) on Monday ratified its decision, beginning on
May 1st, International Workers Day, to begin a general strike
for an undetermined period of time to demand official attention
at its 15-point petition, its leader Alberto Camacho announced
this morning.
"Until the government (of President
Hugo Banzer) effectively meets our demands the decision to convene
a National STrike will be maintained," said Camacho, who
had announced the adoption of this strategy on Monday.
The decision was ratified in spite of the renewal of negotiations
between the government and the trade organizations in conflict,
including the coca growers leader Evo Morales, whose union has
blocked the principal highway in Bolivia for six days in opposition
to the anti-drug policies out of the capital of La Paz.
Camacho expressed hope for the results
that could be arrived at during the meeting to be held this Monday
in the seat of the Bolivian Congress.
Various unions affiliated with the COB,
including the retirees and the coca growers, are represented
in the meeting to seek solutions to the climate of social protests
that shake the nation.
Detained by its own internal conflicts,
the Central Union intends to recuperate its leadership that for
two decades made it an effective representative of Civil Society,
as well as its influence in regional politics. (AFP)
Developing...
Workers,
Farmers and Journalists Unite!