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Bolivia‘s Coup and Media Coverage
The ousting of Evo Morales by the opposition and the military was not in search of democracy.
The recent switch in power in Bolivia has resulted in the military requesting that Evo Morales step down from government due to protests that have been occurring against his leadership after the general election that took place on October 20, 2019.
As such, Morales called for new elections, which was a prime demand of the protesters in the first place, only to have the police join and also have the military of the country directly ask Morales to step down.
The transition in power that occurred was, undoubtedly, a coup d’etat, fostered by the opposition in the region and the military forces. While many have claimed that the occurrence of the resignation was not a coup, many politicians and journalists have been outspoken in their disagreements. Noam Chomsky, Rafael Correa, Jeremy Corbyn, Alberto Fernandez, and many others have expressed that what happened in Bolivia was a coup.
Once Morales resigned and was effectively forced to flee to Mexico to avoid imminent conflict and potential death, Jeanine Áñez, a right-wing politician notorious for being “fiercely anti-Morales”, assumed the presidency without holding any elections.