VZCZCXRO8807
PP RUEHLMC
DE RUEHLP #3038/01 3202138
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 162138Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY LA PAZ
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5651
INFO RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 7280
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 4648
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 8556
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 5780
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 3000
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA 3200
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 3665
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 4991
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 5635
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 0245
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA 0675
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 LA PAZ 003038 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/07/2017 
TAGS: ECON PGOV PREL AGR AADP FAO FAS IFAD IICA BL
SUBJECT: EVO: OPPOSITION WAGING ECONOMIC WAR 
 
Classified By: Ecopol Chief Mike Hammer for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
------- 
Summary 
------- 
 
 ¶1.  (C)  President Evo Morales declared in a November 15 
speech that opposition forces are trying to sabotage his 
administration through economic means.  As a defensive 
measure in this "economic war", Morales temporarily 
eliminated the tariff on key agricultural imports, prohibited 
the exportation of wheat, rice, corn, and meat, and 
transported 15 tons of beef to La Paz from the northeast to 
distribute at below market prices.  Exporters will also now 
be required to register all sales abroad of basic 
agricultural products with the government.  The 
administration blames the opposition for "suspicious 
inflation" and economic disruptions and is trying to set 
itself up as the defender of low prices and economic 
stability.  End Summary. 
 
------------------- 
Conspiracies Abound 
------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Rather than address the economic forces that will 
likely push inflation past 12% this year, Morales prefers to 
blame the "imperialists" and "oligarchs" who are conducting 
economic warfare on his administration through "suspicious 
inflation, speculation, and the raising of prices on some 
products like flour, corn and meat."  He claims to see 
similarities in Bolivia to Isabel Allende's account of how 
the right wing, with transportation stoppages and the killing 
of cattle in the fields, destabilized the Allende Presidency 
in Chile.  He also points to Venezuela, where the private 
sector tried to topple Chavez with economic stoppages. 
According to Evo, despite calls within his party for 
increased nationalization in the transport and intermediary 
sectors, he doesn't see the need yet, but he did inform his 
ministers to prepare to confront economic stoppages. 
 
-------------- 
Measures Taken 
-------------- 
 
¶3.  (C)  Through powers granted in a series of decrees, 
government intervention in agricultural markets continues to 
expand.  First, tariffs will be eliminated on rice, corn, soy 
oil, wheat, and beef until May 2008 and exports of those same 
products will be frozen.  While this may provide temporary 
relief through imports, it is likely to have a negative 
impact on local production.  For example, rice farmers are 
now preparing for summer planting, but without tariff 
protection during the harvest season many claim to be 
contemplating cutting back on their seeded acreage.  As to 
soy producers, (the heart of political resistance in the 
agricultural sector) Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) 
executive, Maria Alejandra Molina, said that tariff 
elimination would not impact the business in a substantial 
way because the local markets are already flooded with 
contraband production. 
 
¶4.  (C)  Of greater concern to ADM was the new requirement 
that exporters register exports of basic agricultural 
products with the Ministry of Production and Small Business 
(MPM).  They saw this as yet another government hurdle to 
doing business and attempt to further control the private 
sector.   As with other recent decrees, it is currently 
difficult to say exactly what the impact will be because the 
actual procedures and norms that define the decree will not 
be issued for another month.  In defense of the measure, 
Pablo Rabczuk, the Viceminister of Exports, commented that 
the government wanted more official information in order to 
not "place at risk our food security". 
 
¶5.  (C)  Lastly, the government is casting increasing 
inflationary blame on middlemen.  Susana Rivero, the Minister 
of Rural Development, Livestock, and the Environment claims 
that there are far too many people in the food distribution 
chain.  To illustrate her point, the government shipped 15 
tons of beef to the La Paz area for distribution at cost to 
 
LA PAZ 00003038  002 OF 002 
 
 
associated butchers.  The measure was popular in the local 
market, where the reduction in price to the consumer was 
around 30%.  The government plans similar programs in 
Cochabamba and Santa Cruz over the next three weeks.  Rivero 
also foresees additional future actions and even contemplates 
creating "popular meat lockers" for a government distribution 
network. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Economic War Not Just In Agriculture 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (C)  While recent actions have centered on the 
agricultural sector, Morales may be setting himself up to use 
economic disruptions for increased intervention in the 
electricity sector as well.  Power shortages are a likelihood 
for the coming winter (June or July), and Jose LaFuente, 
General Manager at Corani Electrical Company (a subsidiary of 
Econergy, headquartered in Bolder, CO) fears that the 
government will use the shortages as an excuse to nationalize 
the business.  Unfortunately, he sees Corani as caught in a 
catch 22.  On the one hand, the government has threatened 
that if sufficient investments are not made to supply the 
market the company will be nationalized.  In fact, in a March 
meeting, Minister Villegas told Corani specifically that if 
they did not invest, the government would take control (there 
have been no government communications since, despite company 
efforts).  But on the other hand, with this threat of 
nationalization, Corani is hesitant to make any investments 
to boost energy production.  LaFuente said they "want" to 
invest, however plans for a $10-15 million dollar generator 
are on hold.  Much as rising prices provide an excuse for 
increased government interference in agriculture, blackouts 
may result in additional government intervention in the 
electrical field. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶7.  (C)  Bolivia is headed for choppy, economic waters.  Gas 
production, the backbone of much of the economy, is under 
increasing strain, inflation is headed toward a yearly total 
of over 12%, and current diesel shortages are hampering the 
summer planting season in the East.  We heard again today 
from an opposition figure that the economy is "Evo's Achilles 
heel."  In fact, the opposition is counting on economic 
troubles to erode Morales' popularity, still hovering around 
60 percent. 
 
¶8.  (C)  Morales is taking the lead by blaming the private 
sector and saying that they are out to create an economic war 
to oust him from power.  While it may not be a stretch to 
blame the opposition for the failure of the Constitutional 
Assembly and call it "political war;" it is absurd to blame 
inflation on your opponents and call it "economic war."  But, 
this message resonates with Evo's base.  Morales is a master 
at blaming others for any problem and he is now positioning 
himself to blame economic failures on the sectors of society 
which oppose his administration.  Rising economic 
difficulties are a given, who takes the blame is not. 
GOLDBERG