On Wednesday, Bolivia’s army chief was arrested after deploying soldiers and tanks in front of government buildings in what President Luis Arce described as an attempted coup.
The troops and tanks moved into Plaza Murillo, a historic square housing the presidency and Congress, in the afternoon, drawing global condemnation for what was seen as an attack on democracy.
One of the tanks attempted to break through a metal door of the presidential palace.
General Juan Jose Zuniga, the now-dismissed army chief, surrounded by soldiers and eight tanks, stated that the “armed forces intend to restructure democracy, making it a true democracy and not one controlled by the same few people for 30 to 40 years.”
Shortly after, AFP reporters observed the soldiers and tanks retreating from the square, ending the uprising after about five hours.
Later that day, Zuniga was captured and forced into a police car while addressing reporters outside a military barracks, as shown on state television.
“General, you are under arrest,” Deputy Interior Minister Jhonny Aguilera informed Zuniga.
“No one can take away the democracy we have won,” President Arce declared from a balcony of the government palace, addressing hundreds of supporters.
Earlier, he had called on “the Bolivian people to organize and mobilize against the coup d’etat in favor of democracy” in a televised message alongside his ministers inside the presidential palace.
He also appointed new military leaders, dismissing Zuniga.
Just before his arrest, Zuniga told reporters that it was actually the president who instructed him to stage an uprising to create a crackdown that would make him appear strong and boost his declining approval rating.
Zuniga claimed that during a meeting on Sunday, he asked Arce, “So we bring out armored vehicles?” and the president responded, “Bring them out.” Arce’s directive was to “stage something to raise his popularity,” according to Zuniga.
Former president Evo Morales wrote on X that “a coup d’etat is brewing” and also called for a “national mobilization to defend democracy.”
Bolivia is deeply polarized after years of political instability, with internal conflict within the ruling Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) between supporters of Arce and his former mentor Morales.
Morales, Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, was very popular until he attempted to bypass the constitution and seek a fourth term in 2019. Although he won that vote, he was forced to resign amid deadly protests over alleged election fraud and fled the country, returning after Arce’s presidential victory in October 2020.
Since then, a power struggle has emerged between the two men, with Morales increasingly criticizing the government, accusing it of corruption, tolerating drug trafficking, and sidelining him politically.
Six months ago, the Constitutional Court disqualified Morales from the 2025 elections, but he is still seeking the MAS nomination. Arce has not yet announced whether he will seek re-election.
On Monday, Zuniga appeared on television and said he would arrest Morales if he tried to run for office again in 2025. “Legally he is disqualified; that man cannot be president of this country again,” he stated.
Following that interview, rumors circulated that Zuniga was on the verge of being dismissed.
The U.S. administration under Joe Biden said it was closely monitoring the situation in Bolivia and called for calm, according to a National Security Council spokesperson.
Condemnations of the troop movements came from across Latin America, with leaders from Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela calling for respect for democracy.
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed on X, “I am a lover of democracy and I want it to prevail throughout Latin America. We condemn any form of coup d’etat in Bolivia.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday also called for “respect for democracy and the rule of law,” in a message on X.
The Organization of American States (OAS) stated that the international community would “not tolerate any form of breach of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia.”
