Political Situation in Bolivia??
 

I will be first to admit that I am a bit of a phillistine when it comes to world politics, though this trip is making me more appreciative of it..
but what is going on in Bolivia at the moment?
All I know is there is going to be some referendum in the eastern areas (Santa Cruz?) because they want to split, on May 4 or 6th.
Seriously, what are the rammifications of this? Not that we can fortell everything.. Will it affect tourists and travellers? I have even heard talk of civil war..
My family back home like to keep an eye on the news and think it must be pretty dangerous to stay in Bolivia but they are not here. (The unknown is always scary) They want me to get out. But I like it here. Plus my bike needs fixn..
Anybody a bit more clued up on this topic?

Santa Cruz
 

It's a classic political standoff: happens in lots of countries from time to time.
Take a look at the international news pages and you can find coverage:-
BBC NEWS | Americas | Bolivia poll sparks crisis fears

Yes, Lenin said, "You may not be interested in politics, but politics is interested in you."

I just came out of Bolivia and I must admit that I have a hard time beliving that the bolivians could gather the energy to do anything about it...

Avoid La Paz and Sucre maybe, but don't expect to run into demonstrations in small towns.

I was in Colombia and crossed the border to Ecuador, when there was a "big" political situation there. Turned out to be a couple of presidents pissing territory and a media without enough to write about.

So don't worry, IMHO.

bolivia no drama
 

i agree with peter - came out of bolivia less than a week ago and there was no hint of anything that would get in the way of travellers, despite the fact that this issue was all over the news there.

at one stage when a transport strike/truck blockade was threatened for the next day, we asked a local whether this would hassle us and he said no, probably not, given that we are not from there. though he suggested we could ride onthe railway tracks if they got in our way. were in potosì, wanting to get to sucre, and in the event it was no hassle at all. the local bloke also said there's always lots of huffing and puffing but fairly rarely much disruption.

adds to the adventure. and from what we saw, the civil war idea complete frogship.

cheers,
andy

Been in Bolivia a few months, currently just outside LaPaz. May 1 is Labor Day, and lots of people celebrating, usual explosivo's/bomba's, all seems quite normal for the moment. Not something I'd worry about either...
Lorraine

Santa Cruz
 

Came thru Bolivia last August, 2007. Even then I was surprised to see anti-Evo slogans written on the walls and demonstrations (peaceful) in the plaza about a new law that determined to restrict the status of religious organizations. You could feel the sentiment. Months ago some on this blog suggested that all Bolivia was very happy with President Morales, but what I saw in Santa Cruz begs to differ....