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Original article: Rodrigo Paz contra las cuerdas: Bolivia suma más de 40 días de protestas, 79 bloqueos y crisis de abastecimiento

Rodrigo Paz is facing a critical situation as Bolivia endures more than 40 days of continuous multisectoral protests and 79 blockades disrupting the main national routes. Opposition groups, including the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB), farmers, and transport workers, have united in their demands for the right-wing leader’s resignation due to the neoliberal adjustments implemented by his administration, while the supply crisis strikes the country’s most vulnerable families.

In just seven months, Paz’s government has sparked a severe social and economic crisis, prompting public workers, miners, and grassroots organizations to submit a list of over a hundred demands that include salary increases, opposition to privatizations, and a widespread condemnation of “state abandonment.” They also argue that under the pretense of revitalizing the economy and reforming the state, Paz is pushing through a package of 10 laws that favor transnational companies and negatively impact citizens’ living conditions.

The conflict map indicates a nation where key routes are heavily restricted, affecting both economic and social stability. According to an official report from the Administradora Boliviana de Carreteras (ABC), 22 blockades are concentrated in Cochabamba and 19 in La Paz, the department housing the government seat. Potosí has 15 active blockades, Chuquisaca reports 10, and in Santa Cruz, the San Julián route remains closed, which is crucial for access to Beni. These blockades hinder the transport of food, medical oxygen, fuel, and medications, turning every road into an internal border.

The supply shortage is no longer a warning; it is an everyday reality. In La Paz, public transportation operates on a minimal basis due to the lack of fuel. Dozens of drivers are sleeping outdoors near gas stations, taking turns to secure a few liters of diesel or gasoline. In wholesale markets, the price of whole chickens has skyrocketed to 120 bolivianos (17 dollars), an exorbitant price for many families. The Empresa de Apoyo a la Producción de Alimentos (Emapa) had to close two of its branches for emergency inventory checks, an unusual move that underscores the collapse of the supply chain, as reported by TeleSUR:

Law Enabling Paz to Declare State of Emergency

In response to the escalating situation, Rodrigo Paz enacted the controversial Law 1740 on Monday, which grants the executive the authority to declare a State of Emergency to “ensure the security of the state” in three scenarios: external threat, internal turmoil, or natural disaster.

In this context, the right-wing leader asserted that “narcoterrorist” groups are driving the protests demanding his resignation, warning that “their days are numbered” due to this law, which will allow him, among other things, to deploy military forces to intervene in protests and blockades, and restrict freedoms of assembly and movement.

In light of this, opposition figures critiqued the enactment, arguing that it undermines democratic principles and human rights protections, as noted by indigenous leader and former president Evo Morales.

Although social pressure compels the government to seek a negotiated solution, business leaders, unions, and local authorities have formally requested the immediate declaration of a State of Emergency. This extreme measure—allowing the militarization of critical points and the forceful removal of blockades—is viewed as a prelude to institutional breakdown.

As Bolivian families face a geographical blockade preventing access to essential resources, the regional community watches with concern. The political crisis in the Andean nation threatens to disrupt international trade flows and signals democratic fragility in the Global South. Both grassroots movements and observers agree on one point: restoring peaceful dialogue channels is urgently needed to prevent historically marginalized populations from becoming even more vulnerable.

In the midst of popular rebellion, Rodrigo Paz’s government hangs by a thread, and each day of protests adds another link to a crisis that is already irreversible.

La entrada Rodrigo Paz in Crisis: Bolivia Faces Over 40 Days of Unrest, 79 Blockades, and Supply Shortages se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.