Bolivia's new constitution is born into a chaotic climate

Material from our regional editor for South America, Cristiano de Sa Fagundes.

The Bolivian assembly approved a new constitution, which grants more power to President Evo Morales on Sunday. The approval was controversial, to say the least. There was an opposition boycott in the assembly, with only 164 out of 255 deputies present for the vote. What's more, the underlying tensions between supporters of Morales and mestizo Bolivians - who consider themselves descendants of Europeans - still run deep. In the run-up to Sunday's vote, there were violent protests in the central Bolivian city of Sucre, in which at least three people were killed. The extent of the violence can be seen in this video, filmed in Sucre on Nov. 23, where the constituent assembly had been meeting. We see opposition supporters tackling the police, and later, a policeman finds himself surrounded by rioters after his motorbike breaks down.

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The video was filmed by Paul van Hooff, a Dutch freelance journalist, and posted on 23 November 2007.

The riots continue through the night


© Paul van Hooff

 

Portrait de Paul van Hooff

Paul van Hooff

  • Journalist and traveller

Police flee the city


© Paul van Hooff

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