The delegation, which included national deputy Juan Marino (Union for the Homeland) and legislator Vanina Biasi (Left Front), traveled on an official invitation to participate in the Plurinational Assembly and entered the country legally through Santa Cruz with all necessary paperwork in order.

Marino reported that the procedure constituted an «irregularity» that involved improper treatment of the international delegation. He detailed that they were confined to a holding area without any formal communication from Bolivian officials.

Through his social media, he indicated that immigration agents confiscated his official diplomatic passport and that an inspector openly acknowledged a bureaucratic error originating from the controls in Santa Cruz.

The parliamentarian confirmed that the conflict took on an immediate diplomatic character, with the direct intervention of the Argentine Embassy.

Despite attempts at dialogue between the two nations, the parliamentarian noted that the Bolivian Foreign Ministry definitively prohibited the entry of the entire delegation, reaffirming the retention and subsequent expulsion from the territory.

According to reports from TeleSUR, former Argentine deputy Mercedes Trimarchi described the action as a direct display of the violent and repressive attitude of Rodrigo Paz’s government, holding the right-wing leader responsible for the expulsion of the mission members. The activist emphasized that the delegation had already met all the migratory requirements to enter Bolivia.

Moreover, she stressed that the primary goal of the delegation was to expose the serious abuses against human rights occurring in Bolivia and reaffirmed the group’s solidarity with the multisector mobilizations that have remained active in the streets for over 40 days as part of the popular uprising demanding Paz’s resignation.

The context of the expulsion occurs amidst rising social tension, where the Bolivian Workers’ Central evaluates the possibility of accepting mediation by the Catholic Church and the Ombudsman to open a direct negotiation table with the government. This decision arises after the impossibility of holding a National Assembly of leaders over the weekend, coinciding with ongoing protests and roadblocks.

As noted by the cited outlet, the president of the Union for the Homeland bloc in the Argentine Lower House, Germán Martínez, demanded that consular authorities ensure the freedom and physical integrity of the parliamentarian, while the so-called International Mission of human rights observers condemned the Bolivian action as a «dictatorial measure.» The organization warned that this action tramples on the fundamental rights of people to be observed and audited, especially in a context where allegations of human rights violations necessitate impartial international oversight.

La entrada Rodrigo Paz Shuts Out Human Rights Observers: Expels Mission Investigating Repression Claims se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.