Bolivian Regime Threatens to Imprison Lawmakers, Officials

Bolivia's de facto regime threatened on Saturday to imprison lawmakers in the framework of the ultimatum issued by the military command for the Legislative Assembly to approve a series of promotions in the military.

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Bolivia: Armed Forces Threaten Senate and Demand Promotions

TeleSUR correspondent in La Paz, Freddy Morales, reported in a message posted on his Twitter account that the de facto government minister, Arturo Murillo, "supports and joins the threats from the High Command of the FFAA against the Senate."

He recalled that last Thursday the military commanders went to the Legislative headquarters and “gave (an) ultimatum to be approved for promotions. Murillo threatens to imprison legislators. "

In statements to the Bolivian media, Murillo maintained that the Legislative Assembly "is committing a serious crime, they have breached their duties ... they only have to approve promotions, they do not have to review anything, only approve."

The legislators “must know that they are feasible to a trial for breach of duties, and they have jail. Be careful, the senators do not have diplomatic immunity, be careful that tomorrow they are in jail and that they say it is political persecution, ”said the de facto government official.

Last Thursday, the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces (FF.AA.), General Sergio Orellana, threatened the legislative with an ultimatum, saying that “we are going to wait the following week for the Assembly to ratify the promotions of the military. If we receive a negative response, we will proceed as established by our regulations."

Omar Paul Aguilar, senator of the Movement to Socialism (MAS), with a majority in Congress, recalled that the Bolivian Constitution stipulates that promotions must be debated by the Senate, which has the power to approve or reject military applications.

Aguilar affirmed that the promotions, proposed by the de facto government, respond to the need to protect the Armed Forces politically and legally. before the investigations of the massacres produced in the Sacaba, Ovejuyo and Senkata regions, on November 15, 2019.

On the internet there were various reactions, such as that of the user identified as @ GiovannaZeball4 who assured in a tweet: “this scoundrel has lost his mind the state prosecutor has to prosecute this ball of corrupt people. #DictaduraEnBolivia ”.