Men loyal to Bolivia's Gen. Zúñiga entered government buildings yesterday, signaling a takeover, but the move drew swift public criticism from the recently-elected leftist President Luis Arce, former president Evo Morales and right-wingers alike, and nothing came of it. No-one was reported hurt in the fizzled coup, and Zúñiga is off to jail.
The country's army chief, Gen. Juan José Zúñiga, addressed a scrum of TV reporters from the palace, vowing to "restore democracy," replace the cabinet, and free political prisoners.
But as opposition leaders condemned the apparent coup attempt, it became clear that the coup had no meaningful political support. Arce refused to relent and named a new army commander, who immediately ordered troops to stand down, ending the rebellion after just three chaotic and head-snapping hours. Hundreds of Arce's supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.
It's complicated. Morales and Arce are from the same party, but Morales was deposed in an earlier coup and would like his old job back, while Arce now runs the party and won the election. Zúñiga appears to have tried to interpose himself as Arce's fixer, pleasing no-one, least of all him.
Since returning from exile, Morales has staged a dramatic political comeback. Threatening to challenge Arce in 2025 primaries, Morales has sparked an unprecedented rift in their ruling socialist party. … The turmoil began earlier this week, Novillo said, when Arce dismissed Zuñiga in a private meeting Tuesday over the army chief's threats to arrest Morales if he proceeded with his presidential bid in 2025. In their meeting, Novillo said that Zuñiga gave officials no indication he was preparing to seize power.
"He admitted that he had committed some excesses," Novillo said of Zuñiga. "We said goodbye in the most friendly way, with hugs. Zuñiga said that he would always be at the side of the president."
The frantic palace takeover began hours later.
No time to even fetch a lettuce.
