Morales waits in wings as Bolivia crisis tests Trump-backed government

LA PAZ, June 19 - In the forests of Bolivia’s Chapare region, Evo Morales is watching — and waiting.

From his rural stronghold in a hidden location, the former president and leftist strongman remains a powerful force as 50 days of highway blockades by labor unions and indigenous groups have ground the country to a halt, left at least 14 people dead, and driven the center-right government of Rodrigo Paz to the brink of collapse.

In an exclusive interview over video-link, Morales told Reuters he has been in regular contact with protesters and that the surge of popular discontent on the streets has "made him think” about a return to politics, even if he says he is not actively campaigning.

The blockades have cut off key roads, leaving trucks stranded and choking fuel, food and medical supplies.

Unrest erupted initially in response to Paz’s abrupt move to slash long-standing fuel subsidies to reduce the budget deficit in the volatile lithium powerhouse amid a deepening dollar crunch and ongoing talks with the International Monetary Fund over a rescue deal.

Paz made changes to stabilize fuel prices, and reversed subsequent unpopular land reform measures, but blockades continued to spread as protests morphed into broader discontent. Unions are demanding wage hikes, the end to fuel and dollar shortages, and Paz’s resignation.

Paz, who took office in November 2025 with the backing of President Donald Trump as part of a broader strategy to increase U.S. influence in the hemisphere, has blamed Morales - a  towering figure of the left who governed for nearly 14 years -  for stoking the unrest.

Andres Arauz from the Center for Economic and Policy Research, said the government has leaned heavily on portraying Morales as the main antagonist, in a bid to distract from the social issues on the ground. Paz is "trying to spin this and frame it as political confrontation, and thus basically wait it out," he said.

Morales has a warrant out for his arrest on charges of trafficking a minor linked to allegations he fathered a child with a teenager in 2016 while president. Morales denies wrongdoing, calling the charges "fabricated" and politically motivated.

In the interview with Reuters, he denied any role instigating dissent, saying the “indigenous rebellion” was driven by economic hardship.

"In my experience as a former president, if there is a conflict, it is the fault of the state if it is a social demand," Morales said. He added Paz had made "unfulfilled commitments."

Morales' looming presence hangs over Paz’s increasingly fragile negotiations to dismantle the blockades.

Paz tried to strike a conciliatory tone as he opened talks with union leaders on Wednesday in La Paz.

"We must build the nation, but we have to build it by accepting diverse ways of thinking," he said, calling for an end to mistrust on both sides.

A CITY ON THE EDGE

In the high-altitude capital of La Paz, a siege mentality has taken hold: Restaurants sit empty, hospitals run low on medication, and supermarkets turn off the lights in sold-out meat counters.

"We feel deeply suffocated,” said Pamela Espada, a regional supermarket manager, describing how she has to fly in meat from Santa Cruz and wakes at 2 a.m. to go out to source eggs.

Soaring prices have pushed basic goods out of reach for many Bolivians, with the cost of tomatoes doubling and chicken up by 70% since the blockades began.

The impact has rippled through the city’s economy. Ernesto Olivares, head of the Gastronomic Association of La Paz, said 42% of restaurants have had to close. “The exhaustion has reached its limits,” he said. "La Paz is being held hostage by politics."

The crisis has also reached hospitals. Blockades have made medical transfers nearly impossible, leaving patients stranded without treatment.

At La Paz’s main public hospital, cancer patients and their families gathered, chanting “We want to live!”

Erika Alvarez, whose brother is battling cancer in Oruro, a mining sector about 140 miles (225 km) south of La Paz, broke down in tears. “They tell me he needs chemo, but in Oruro there is nothing, there are no medicines. With these political problems, with these blockades, I cannot bring my brother here.”

Rosario Calle, president of the Association of Cancer Patients and Families, said she knows of patients, particularly in rural areas, who have already died after failing to receive care in time.

Inside the capital, there are shortages of vital painkillers like morphine and tramadol.

“They cry out and they don't know how to soothe the pain,” Calle said. "What we want are solutions. Enough already."

Morales said he wants Paz to resign and new elections to be held. He warned the standoff could hit a breaking point if his movement is excluded from a future vote, although he stressed he did not support such escalation.

“If they don't want it with votes, it's with bullets,” he said. REUTERS