Armed forces of Bolivia withdrew from the presidential palace in La Paz, with General Juan José Zúñiga arrested, according to Reuters. (Updated 27 June 3:52 p.m.)
On Wednesday, 26 June, military units under the command of General Juan José Zúñiga, recently stripped of his military command, gathered in the central Plaza Murillo square, where the presidential palace and Congress were located. A witness reported that an armoured vehicle rammed the door of the presidential palace and soldiers rushed inside.
President Luis Arce later criticised the attempted “coup” against the government and called for international support.
Today the country is facing an attempted coup d’état. Today the country faces once again interests so that democracy in Bolivia is cut short. The Bolivian people are summoned today. We need the Bolivian people to organize and mobilise against the coup d’état in favor of democracy.
Bolivian authorities arrested Zúñiga and took him away, although the destination was unclear. Earlier at the presidential palace, Arce appointed José Wilson Sanchez as military commander, Zúñiga’s former role. Sanchez stated:
“I order that all personnel mobilised on the streets return to their units. We entreat that the blood of our soldiers not be spilled.”
The United States stated that it was closely monitoring the situation and called for calm and restraint. In Europe, however, there seemed to be no immediate reaction. La France Insoumise (LFI) party leader and member of the French National Assembly, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, denounced the lack of response by the authorities to the coup on the X social platform.
Full solidarity with the president and legal government of Bolivia attacked by a military coup. France must speak out.
He later added:
“Coup d’état in Bolivia: reaction throughout Europe and the world. France: 0 official tweets, Macron: 0, Séjourné 0. At the time of the far-right coup against Evo Morales Macron had ‘taken note’. Suspicious.”
General election
Tensions are rising in Bolivia ahead of the 2025 general election. Former president Evo Morales plans to run against former ally Arce. The move triggered a major split in the ruling socialist party and wider political uncertainty.
According to public opinion, many do not want the return of Morales, who governed the country between 2006 and 2019. He was ousted amid mass protests and replaced by an interim conservative government. Then, Arce won an election in 2020.
Zúñiga recently stated that Morales would not be able to return as president. He also threatened to block the former president, prompting Arce to sack Zúñiga from office. On the eve of the attack on the presidential palace, Zúñiga addressed reporters in the square and cited growing discontent in the country. Landlocked Bolivia is struggling with an economic downturn due to depleted central bank reserves and pressure on the Bolivian currency as gas exports have dried up.
“The three chiefs of the armed forces have come to express our dismay. Stop destroying, stop impoverishing our country, stop humiliating our army.”
Later on Wednesday, he told reporters that Arce allegedly asked him on Sunday to “raise something up,” to boost the president’s popularity. Interior Minister Eduardo del Castillo stated later that Zúñiga was seeking popular support and that the nine people injured in the assassination attempt proved that “this was not a drill.”
Bolivia responds
Morales, head of the ruling socialist MAS party, stated that his supporters were mobilising in support of democracy.
We will not allow the armed forces to violate democracy and intimidate people.
Bolivia’s prosecutor’s office announced it would launch a criminal investigation against Zuniga and others involved in the coup attempt. Meanwhile, public support for Arce and democracy in Bolivia has come from regional leaders and beyond. Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador stated:
“We express the strongest condemnation of the attempted coup d’état in Bolivia. Our total support and support for President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora.”
Even conservative political opponents of the Bolivian government have condemned the military action, including Former Interim President of Bolivia Jeanine Áñez jailed in 2022 amid political turmoil.
I fully reject of the mobilisation of the military in the Plaza Murillo attempting to destroy constitutional order. The MAS with Arce and Evo must be got out through the vote in 2025. We Bolivians will defend democracy.
