Photo of Bolivian children posted to Flickr by Jerry Daykin at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdaykin/12935723/Bolivia has the second-largest natural gas reserves in South America.
It is rich in minerals.
Reportedly, the USA wants to control Bolivia and is trying to destabilise the country.
Bolivia is one of South America's poorest countries. ( BBC News - Country Profile: Bolivia)
Wealthy urban elites, mostly of Spanish ancestry, have traditionally controlled political and economic life.
The Indians (indigenous population) make up around two-thirds of the population.
President Evo Morales, an Indian, has tried to help the poor (low-income subsistence farmers, miners, small traders and artisans.)
In Bolivia, the right-wing opposition is tied to large agribusiness and gas transnationals.
The right-wing is reportedly financed by USAID, said to be a front for the CIA.
La Paz, capital of Bolivia -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:La_Paz-center.jpg
Bolivia's right wing elites have been able to gain the support of large sections of the population by:
1. Campaigning against 'La Paz centralism' (turning the regions against the capital city)
2. By supporting regional identity (turning one region against another)
3. And by outright racism (turning various groups of Indians against each other).
Full details here: Bolivia: MAS, opposition prepare for recall referendums
Photo: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:La_Paz_Bol_View.jpgEvo Morales has had a strong democratic mandate, having won almost 54% of the vote in the last election.
In May 2007, Morales nationalised the oil and gas industries saying that a greater share of the wealth they produce should go to ordinary Bolivians, rather than foreign investors.
Most of Bolivia's natural resources are found in the east of the country
In December 2007, the constituent assembly approved a new draft constitution that will give greater power to the country's poor and indigenous people.
Morales has withdrawn Bolivians from the U.S.-run School of the Americas, a military training base in Georgia that has trained many dictators and torturers.
The CIA has a long history of trying to topple people like Morales. The CIA represents the rich elite.
One can expect the CIA to try to destabilise Bolivia and topple Morales.
There have already been acts of violence and sabotage.
Several departmental (regional) governments have threatened to break away from Bolivia.
The U.S. Agency for International Development is supplying money to groups that oppose Morales. ( Why Bolivia matters)
The CIA has a long history of activity in Bolivia. Che Guevara was assassinated in Bolivia by people who were reportedly working for the CIA.
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'In the early 1960s both Conservative and Labour governments in Britain were complicit in CIA efforts to destabilise the elected government in the South American colony of British Guiana.' - International Socialism: Been here before
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