Dialogue with “El Pollo” Is a Trap

Yesterday, Mario Argollo, the national leader of the COB trade union federation, urged the government to resolve the conflict and presented a series of demands aimed at bringing peace to the country. He said that if a satisfactory response is not received, the COB will escalate its actions until president Rodrigo Paz (“El Pollo”) is ousted. Following an initial round of talks, Argollo today made the continuation of the dialogue contingent on the release of all detainees, agreeing to form a joint commission between the COB and the government to address the issue. Of course, we must fight for and demand the release of the detainees. But we must not be naive. The COB leadership has already abandoned the movement’s central demand—to oust Paz—and is not reinforcing the actions of the protesters to secure the detainees’ release. This is shameful! The COB urgently needs new leadership determined to fight until the end and strengthen the alliance between workers and peasants, rather than throwing the government a lifeline with the trap of dialogue. Immediate release of all detainees now! Out with Paz!

The COB’s policy has strengthened Paz. Time is on his side. The United States will send him US$20 million to reinforce the state apparatus, while the imperialist thieves are licking their chops over Bolivian lithium. In his first response to the COB, Paz arrogantly refused to grant amnesty to the 326 prisoners detained during the repression and demanded the lifting of the blockades.

Paz has not managed to forcibly break up a single blockade. His forces were repelled in San Julián, in El Alto, etc. However, the movement has been weakened by the COB leadership’s inability to prepare the fight, coordinate it, and chart a course for it. We are at a turning point. Now the COB leadership’s policy of conciliation emboldens the reactionaries, while deepening the internal rift within the union federation, reinforcing passivity and the division between workers and peasants, and leaving the most combative sectors isolated. The number of roadblocks has dropped to around 50. Leaders are deserting in droves. Peasant leaders, as well as leaders from the COD Santa Cruz, are meeting separately with “El Pollo.” We must expel these traitors!

The gap between the workers’ and peasants’ sectors is growing. The vanguard sectors, such as those stationed in District 8 in El Alto, remain steadfast. Today they took over the borough hall. Meanwhile, the roadblocks remain strong in Cochabamba. Although weakened, the movement has not yet exhausted its strength nor suffered a catastrophic defeat.

Some of the points the COB is putting forward to Paz for dialogue will not be accepted, such as renouncing IMF loans or putting every government decree to a public vote. The real leaders of this government are the imperialists. The COB knows this well; it views its demands as bargaining chips for negotiation. But there is strong opposition from the base of the movement, those who have a very different perspective—such as the comrades in Senkata with whom we spoke a couple of days ago. During their blockade, sustained amid cold, wind, and scorching sun, they made it clear to us that their fight to defend their living conditions and the country cannot be separated from the need to oust this government, which can do nothing but try to strictly impose the neoliberal agenda dictated by the U.S. They need leadership that is up to the task. There is no time to lose.