Bolivia Paralyzed by National Strike Demanding President's Resignation

Bolivia is experiencing a nationwide shutdown as an indefinite general strike enters its second week, driven by widespread opposition to President Rodrigo Paz Pereira’s neoliberal economic reforms. The strike, organized by the country’s largest labor union federation, involves teachers, farmers, indigenous groups, and miners protesting against stagnating wages, austerity measures, and the privatization of state assets. Tensions escalated in La Paz where police used tear gas against demonstrators attempting to breach the presidential palace. Protesters demand the president's resignation, a 20% wage increase, and the repeal of Law 1720, a controversial agrarian reform law feared to facilitate corporate takeover of indigenous lands. President Paz, who assumed office in November 2025 after two decades of socialist rule by the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), promised 'capitalism for all' but faces intense backlash over soaring inflation and the removal of fuel subsidies. The unrest highlights deep societal divisions regarding economic direction and indigenous rights in the South American nation.