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C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 001609 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/12/23 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR PHUM KDEM BL
SUBJECT: DECEMBER ELECTIONS SHOW MAS GAINING IN OPPOSITION DEPARTMENT 
 
REF: LA PAZ 722 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: John S. Creamer, Charge, State, EXEC; REASON: 1.4(B), 
(D) 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary:  The opposition remains strong in Beni, but the 
ruling Movemiento al Socialismo (MAS) party made considerable 
inroads in the December elections.  The increase reflected the MAS' 
substantial investment in its Beni campaign, its increased appeal 
to poorer voters, and a weak opposition effort. Local opposition 
candidates believe the Morales administration may use legal action 
to prevent them from running in April local elections, while local 
ranchers fear the GOB may use land reform against its political 
opponents.  The MAS will aim to make further gains in  April.  End 
Summary. 
 
Background on Beni Department 
 
¶2. (SBU) Beni Department is in Bolivia's eastern lowlands, 
bordering Brazil, and forms part of the "Media Luna" of departments 
that has opposed the MAS and pushed for increased autonomy.  The 
economy is based on cattle, lumber, some agriculture, and 
apparently increasing drug trafficking.  In the December 6 
election, Presidential candidate Manfred Reyes Villa gained 
slightly more than 53% of the vote, while President Morales polled 
almost 38% of the vote. 
 
MAS Pressures Opposition Leaders 
 
¶3. (C) Beni Prefect (Governor) Ernesto Suarez of the opposition 
"Podemos" party told us that, while he is considering running again 
for office in April, he believes the Morales administration may try 
and use legal proceedings against him and Trinidad mayor Moises 
Shriqui to prevent them from running.  He believes the MAS intends 
to "destroy" the opposition, now that they "have it all" after 
their victory in the December 6 elections.  Suarez is also 
concerned that, once he resigns his office to begin his campaign 
(as required by Bolivian law), the MAS will assign an interim 
prefect, lessening his chances of reelection. 
 
¶4. (C) Suarez judges that, despite the MAS having put considerable 
effort into Beni prior to the last elections, they have only 
limited support.  He says the people of the department tend to 
reject central government, strongly favor autonomy, and back 
traditional political parties such as the MNR.  Still, they are 
tiring of their opposition to the MAS and the La Paz government, 
and are less likely to protest than before.  Bishop Julio Maria 
Elias also told us the MAS won't receive much support in the April 
elections in Beni, in part because local people see the MAS as a 
"transplant" from the highlands. 
 
¶5. (C) Beni Senator Fernando Romero of the MNR party (and 
previously prefect of Beni) agreed that the MAS will not have a 
strong showing in the April elections.  He expects the GOB, through 
the Instituto Nacional de Reforma Agraria (INRA) to "persecute" 
opposition politicians and large landowners in the department by 
expropriating their land.  Romero was critical of the opposition's 
lack of cohesion, describing it as a "save yourself if you can" 
attitude.  He sees German Antelo, recently elected as Senator from 
Santa Cruz, emerging as the leader of the opposition in the eastern 
departments. 
 
Ranchers Concerned Over Land Title 
 
¶6. (C) The politically influential rancher's organization 
"FEGABENI" echoed Romero's comments, telling us the MAS intends to 
wrest land from them in part due to their opposition politics.  Due 
to this uncertainty, their members are now having difficulty 
obtaining lines of credit from banks, which fear that land used as 
collateral will be expropriated.  Still, the ranchers agreed the 
MAS will be unable to win the prefecture in April's election. 
 
MAS Campaign Tactics 
 
¶7. (C) All interlocutors said the MAS had invested heavily in the 
department prior to the December 6 election.  Suarez noted the GOB 
 
had diverted financial resources away from the prefect and 
opposition mayors, managing development projects directly from La 
Paz.  Shriqui claimed the MAS spent five million dollars on its 
campaign in Beni, alleging that money from Venezuela went directly 
to pro-government municipalities.  Gary Suarez, the publisher of 
the local newspaper, said the MAS provided jobs as unskilled 
laborers to 3000 people, paying slightly more than one hundred 
dollars a month in return for votes (with the vote being verified 
through images taken by cellphone cameras in the voting booths). 
Riberalta mayor Freddy Mejia claimed the MAS encouraged people to 
migrate from Potosi, Oruro and Cochabamba to Beni to broaden its 
support.  Suarez said state-owned TV Channel 7 has a strong 
presence throughout the department, and broadcast a steady stream 
of pro-government spots. 
 
Indigenous Leader Skeptical of MAS 
 
¶8. (C) National indigenous leader Marcial Fabricano told us that 
much of the indigenous community in Beni went to MAS in the recent 
elections, in part out of sympathy for the Aymara/Quechua base of 
the MAS.  Fabricano believes that President Morales, despite his 
campaign rhetoric, has not helped indigenous groups much.  What 
actions he does take are to garner votes and gain the approval of 
the international community.  Despite requests from the MAS, 
Fabricano said he refused offers of positions in the party 
(unsurprisingly, since he was whipped by alleged MAS militants 
earlier this year; Reftel).  He noted the implementation of 
increased autonomy in Bolivia lacks structure at all levels - 
municipal, regional, and departmental. 
 
Counter Narcotics a Growing Concern 
 
¶9. (C) Suarez described an "enormous" increase in drug trafficking 
in Beni, most of it going across international borders in small 
planes.  He attributed this to greater production in the Chapare 
region, coupled with the departure of the DEA from Bolivia.  Suarez 
said  "many local and international people, including gangs, are 
involved" in the drug trade and said transit points include the 
towns of San Ramon, San Joaquin, Santa Ana, Guayaramerin, and 
Magdalena.   Local pilots are being paid 30,000 dollars to fly a 
load of cocaine across the border to Brazil, he said, and Shriqui 
claimed that as many as 70 small planes had recently arrived in 
Beni.  Romero said a common pattern is for the pilots to leave the 
Trinidad airport, fly into a dirt strip on a ranch, load up with 
drugs and then fly on to Brazil.  The mayor of the border town of 
Guayaramerin confirmed the area is a transit point for drugs, and 
said the increased Bolivian military presence in neighboring Pando 
department is pushing traffickers to operate in northern Beni. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Comment:  While the opposition remains strong in the 
Beni, the MAS made considerable inroads in the December elections, 
including winning two senate seats.  In the 2005 elections the MAS 
won only 16.5 % of the vote in Beni (about 17,000 votes), whereas 
in 2009 it received more than 37% of the vote (more than 60,000 
votes). This increase was a result of the MAS putting considerable 
resources into their Beni campaign, a weak effort by opposition 
parties, and the MAS' messages gaining traction with poorer voters. 
We expect the MAS to continue its efforts in Beni in advance of the 
April elections. 
Creamer