BOLIVIANS Brace for Flashpoint Vote

By Marc Burleigh AFP - 1 hour 32 minutes ago

SANTA CRUZ, Bolivia (AFP) - Bolivia was Friday bracing for a weekend vote on autonomy by one of its opposition-run provinces that many fear could send the Latin American nation into violent turmoil.
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Local authorities in Santa Cruz, an eastern territory rich in natural gas that counts as the wealthiest of Bolivia's nine provinces, are widely expected to win overwhelming backing for their referendum on Sunday.

If passed, they plan to implement statutes giving them greater control over the region's finances, and the right to create their own security force.

But leftwing President Evo Morales has vowed to ignore such a result, calling it unconstitutional and a push for separatism.

Although he has backed away from an early threat to send in troops, the specter of street violence between his supporters and backers of Santa Cruz autonomy looms large.

"There is fear. Anything might happen," Mario Choquecolque, a 33-year-old indigenous man who runs a retail clothing business and who is opposed to the vote, told AFP.

"At any moment, civil war might erupt," he warned, echoing a widely held apprehension.

So far, the battle is mainly being fought out on the airwaves.

Provincial and national television networks show sparring ads, with the former calling for a "Si" (yes) vote on Sunday, and the latter declaring the referendum "illegal."

In the center of Santa Cruz residents went about their activities, but a chill of tension was felt under the bright sunlight, and police were alert.

People made comments confirming surveys suggesting as many as 70 percent of the province's 900,000 voters will back the move to autonomy.

"Autonomy is just and necessary," said Pedro Olivarez, a 58-year-old doctor.

Paola Salvatierra, an 18-year-old university student, said she was strongly in favor of a "yes" result, and said of Morales: "He's not someone who's very educated. He's not prepared to govern a nation."

The crisis has exposed many social faultlines in the country, especially the divide between the mostly poor Bolivian Indians, who make up 60 percent of the population and largely live in the Andean mountains, and the better-off inhabitants of the lowlands, many of whom have European ancestors

MORE: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20080502/tpl-bolivia-politics-vote-dd08238.html

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Ecuador Confirms Bolivia Support

Quito, May 2 (Prensa Latina) The Ecuador Constituent Assembly approved a resolution conveying full support for Bolivia and its President Evo Morales as legal and Constitutional representative.

Ecuador and Latin America that the May 4 referendum undermines the sister countrys unity and integrity.

The resolution submitted by Assembly member Paco Velasco also forecasts possible clashes and rejected a clear secessionist plot that affects democracy in Bolivia and the region.

It clearly states opposition to the vote for autonomy of Santa Cruz and calls the world, the Group of Rio and the OAS to give the Bolivian government full support.

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