The political situation in Bolivia has been instable for a long time, but like a volcano it is grumbling louder these days and I fear an eruption.
I am no expert but a simplistic explanation is that the poor have had enough of being taken advantage of by the rich. Bolivia is one of the poorest countries in South America. Incidentally it is supposedly the largest coca producers in the world . It has few exploited natural resources. Mines have been mechanised or shut down, depriving many of their livelyhood. Natural resources such as natural gas and water have been privatized and sold to European companies that only care about making a profit and not providing a service to all.
The poor have started protesting by converging on the capital La Paz and by putting up road blocks (called bloqueos), to the point that the city in under siege and beginning to be running out of food, water and gas. The general strike has paralysed all transport. The president has resigned….again! The people want an election. And I want my daughter back home. The international airlines have stopped their service and besides the roads to the airport are blocked. Attempts to get out resemble the great escape. I am powerless on the other side of the “wall”…. listening to alarmist news reports… waiting….