Bolivian farmers and supporters of former president Evo Morales took to the streets of Cochabamba on Friday, rejecting the government’s latest fuel relief measures and demanding that President Rodrigo Paz reverse a sharp increase in diesel prices.
Several hundred mostly Indigenous protesters joined the demonstration, defying a state of emergency declared by Paz in June after weeks of anti-government protests.
Police did not move to disperse the crowd despite restrictions on such gatherings.
The government doubled the price of diesel for consumers buying large quantities, including farmers, from $0.80 to $1.50 per litre.
It said the increase was necessary to curb fuel smuggling to neighbouring countries, which has contributed to shortages inside Bolivia.
The latest protest came two days after the government offered some relief to small farmers.
Under the measure, they can buy up to 2,500 litres of fuel a month at the previous price of $0.80 per litre.
The concession, however, failed to satisfy protesters.
One demonstrator pulled a tractor with a rope through the streets while chanting, “No diesel, no diesel!”
Elena Aine, a 40-year-old farmer, said the higher fuel prices were pushing up the cost of basic necessities.
The protests come as Bolivia struggles with its worst economic crisis in four decades, with severe shortages of fuel and US dollars.
Paz took office last year and moved to end fuel subsidies introduced by the previous socialist government, saying they had drained the country’s foreign currency reserves.
Despite the policy change, fuel shortages persist, with queues at some petrol stations stretching for several kilometres.
Morales, Bolivia’s first Indigenous president who governed from 2006 to 2019, has emerged as one of Paz’s strongest critics.
Speaking to Red America television on Friday, Morales said the government had little future and questioned Paz’s political prospects.
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