Bolivia Today: 50 Active Blockades and Financial Relief Measures
Bolivia marks 47 days of conflict with 50 blockade points affecting fuel supply and employment across five departments. While mobilized sectors radicalize their measures on strategic routes, financial authorities have enabled mechanisms to reschedule bank debts. The shortage of supplies is already causing factory workers to be sent home on forced vacations or unpaid leave.
Currently, the departments of La Paz and Cochabamba are the most critical points of the protests, with 19 and 17 blockades respectively, according to the Bolivian Highway Administration (ABC). The road closures have left approximately 1,000 fuel tankers stranded, worsening shortages nationwide. In the Tropics region, groups of cocaleros (coca leaf growers) have radicalized their stance by digging ditches on alternative roads to prevent trucks from passing. In response to this situation, various transport unions have issued ultimatums to the Government to guarantee free circulation.
In the economic sphere, the Financial System Supervisory Authority (ASFI) clarified that citizens affected by the crisis have the right to request the refinancing or rescheduling of their loans. This benefit allows banks to evaluate each case to alleviate the financial burden on customers without the need for new regulations. However, the industrial sector reports direct damage: due to the lack of materials caused by road closures, many companies affiliated with the Bolivian Workers' Center (COB) are forcing their employees to take vacations or unpaid leave.
In other security news, authorities in Yapacaní preventively detained a driver who was illegally transporting 730 liters of gasoline. On the other hand, a slight relief in supply was recorded in Sucre with the arrival of more than 30 trucks carrying potatoes and vegetables to local markets from the provinces and Potosí.
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