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RHMFIUU/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL

UNCLAS LA PAZ 002501 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON BL
SUBJECT: SUCRE SOCIAL SUMMIT - MORE BOMBAST THAN TURNOUT 
 
REF: LA PAZ 2488 
 
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Summary 
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¶1.  (SBU)  Pro-government groups held their planned "Social 
Summit" on September 10 in Sucre to rally support for the 
embattled Constituent Assembly, but the gathering was a 
failure given that only twelve percent of the expected 
100,000 people attended.  Despite fiery speeches where 
participants swore to defend the Constituent Assembly to the 
death, very little violence ensued.  There was much 
rhetorical trashing of the groups, traditional opponents, 
but the media also received a lot of criticism; one speaker 
called for the media's "nationalization."  The ruling 
Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) and main opposition party 
PODEMOS continue to call for national dialogue regarding the 
new constitution, but neither appears to want to listen to 
other.  If the discourse from the Social Summit is an 
indicator of what the MAS leadership is thinking, there will 
almost certainly be violence in the next few months between 
pro- and anti-government forces.  End Summary. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
The Big Summit that Wasn't 
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¶2.  (SBU)  Starting at 9:30 AM, the Social Summit consisted 
of five hours of fiery speeches.  Pro-government (indigenous, 
labor, and coca grower) estimated at approximately 12,000 
people attended the rally.  Summit organizers had stated that 
the rally would draw 100,000 people.  The event was generally 
peaceful with no serious injuries or gross acts of violence, 
although the radical indigenous group the "Ponchos Rojos" 
(Red Ponchos) did throw firecrackers at Sucre Mayor Aydee 
Navaa's house. 
 
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The Media in the Cross-Hairs 
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¶3.  (SBU)  While the "media luna" (the lowland eastern 
departments who largely oppose the government), the Santa 
Cruz Civic Committee and the so called "oligarchs" received 
their expected bashing, the media was also a frequent target 
of rhetorical attack.  Constituent Assembly President Silvia 
Lazarte stated that the media purposefully misinforms the 
people.  Adolfo Chavez, of the indigenous group CIDOB, stated 
"When are they (the media) going to tell us the truth?"  The 
most radical anti-press statement came from Roberto Quispe, 
leader of the Red Ponchos, who called for the 
"nationalization" of the media. 
 
- - - - - - - - 
The Declaration 
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¶4.  (SBU)  Summit organizers issued a ten part declaration at 
the rally's conclusion.  Below is a paraphrased summary of 
the resolutions. 
 
Participants resolved to: 
 
1 ) Defend the Constituent Assembly with their lives. 
 
2 ) Push for moving the Constituent Assembly's working 
sessions to another site if Sucre cannot assure the safety of 
assembly delegates. 
 
3 ) Support for Constituent Assembly President Silvia 
Lazarte. 
 
4 - Reject the court's decision to overturn the MAS-led 
resolution to exclude debate over restoring Sucre as the 
country's full capital. 
 
5 ) Demand that assembly members not receive their salaries 
and per diem during the assembly's one month recess. 
 
6 ) Defend President Evo Morales' "process of change." 
 
7 ) Demand that the opening of congress and the president's 
annual report occur in a different department each year on a 
rotating basis. 
 
8 ) Denounce before the international community and human 
rights groups the aggressions and insults they have received 
(by opposition groups). 
 
9 ) Warn the "small groups of fascists" (code for the media) 
to stop misinforming the public. 
 
10 ) Declare themselves in a state of emergency to defend 
the Constituent Assembly. 
 
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Opposition Opposes Extension 
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¶5.  (SBU)  While Constituent Assembly President Silvia 
Lazarte called for a one-month recess on September 7 to 
reduce tensions and avoid conflict, the prospects for a new 
constitution increasingly look bleak.  With the Constituent 
Assembly's one-month recess to last until October 8, the 
assembly will have little more than two months to finish 
drafting a new constitution.  PODEMOS and National Unity 
(UN), the main opposition parties in the assembly and 
congress, have stated they will not approve another extension 
of the Constituent Assembly, yet all parties agree the 
December 14 deadline will almost certainly not be met.  MAS 
Senator Antonio Peredo also indicated that the his party may 
not favor an extension, stating that "this is the final 
phase" of the Constituent Assembly. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
The Government Opposes Sucre 
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¶6.  (SBU)  While President Morales' government continues to 
state it remains impartial on the issue of restoring Sucre to 
full capital status and that it does not interfere in the 
workings of the Constituent Assembly, declarations by senior 
government officials indicate otherwise.  Government 
spokesperson Alex Contreras stated on September 10, "The 
issue of the capital cannot be touched in the Constituent 
Assembly."  The government has also encouraged Silvia Lazarte 
and other MAS delegates to disregard the courts.  Contreras 
stated, "We think that the Constituent Assembly should not 
obey this resolution . . ." Contreras was referring to the 
Chuquisaca Superior Court's decision stating that Sucre's 
status should not be excluded as an item of debate before the 
Constituent Assembly. 
 
- - - - 
Comment 
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¶7.  (SBU)  Beyond rallying it's already pro-MAS base, the 
summit organizers must be disappointed by the poor turnout. 
They have correctly identified that their new constitution, 
which would enshrine their political vision, is in peril. 
The opposition now sees the very real possibility of the 
Constituent Assembly failing.  Both sides will exploit the 
one-month recess to strengthen their bases.  While MAS and 
PODEMOS still call for national dialogue regarding the new 
constitution, the discourse from the Social Summit indicates 
that MAS supporters are looking for confrontation more than 
negotiation.  End Comment. 
GOLDBERG