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02-06-2006, 05:06 PM
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Bolivia's Morales pressured to increase coca crops
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VILLA 14 DE SEPTIEMBRE, Bolivia - The coca growers of Bolivia's tropical Chapare region helped Evo Morales win the presidency and now they want their reward: a sharp increase in the area under cultivation.
How he deals with pressure from his political base, in his political cradle, from the people he led for 18 years, is shaping up as the first big test of Morales's leadership.
The United States, by far the biggest donor to Bolivia, says that in Chapare most coca, the raw material for cocaine, ends up with drug smugglers. But poor farmers here say coca is mostly used for traditional Indian uses, from hunger depressants to protection against altitude sickness.
Morales took office as Bolivia's first Indian president on January 22. His very first official trip, six days later, was to address tens of thousands of coca farmers in the market town of Shinahota near his home village here and give thanks to a region where he drew 97 percent of the vote in the presidential elections last December.
"This was a world record in democratic elections, comrades," Morales told the crowd, "and I thank you I am the president now but I will be your comrade forever." He then went on to make announcements which clearly fell short of many of his comrades' expectations.
He named Felipe Caceres, a hotel owner, coca grower and former mayor of the town of Villa Tunari, to the new post of Vice Minister of Coca and Integral Development. The coca growers' federation had publicly urged Morales to give the job to their legal adviser, Oscar Coca.
Next, Morales said his government would respect existing agreements on the cultivation of coca for traditional use. "We will defend the cato of coca but it is important that we respect accords," he said.
This was not what many of the "cocaleros" (coca growers) had come to hear after walking for hours in the boiling sun. Their applause was polite at best.
The "cato" -- 17,222 square feet -- is the centerpiece of an October 3, 2004, agreement between the six federations of coca growers, then led by Evo Morales, and the then government of Carlos Mesa.
It ended a state of low-intensity warfare between cocaleros and U.S.-backed anti-drug units bent on eradicating all coca plantations, a policy dubbed "zero coca."
The agreement, viewed with distaste by the U.S., allotted one cato to each of 23,000 members of the six federations, pending completion of a study of the demand for legal coca consumption. Under the accord, eradication of coca plantations in excess of 7,907 acres continued in line with a 1998 law -- law #1008 -- providing harsh punishment for illegal coca and cocaine production.
COCA FOR SOFT DRINKS, TOOTHPASTE, NATURAL VIAGRA
Coca leaf is stripped from a sturdy bush that grows like weed and needs little care. In its traditional use, dating back to 2,500 years BC, coca leaves are chewed and held in a wad in the cheek as a mild stimulant,.
Alternative uses of coca leaf range from coca tea and soft drinks to toothpaste, face creams and even a natural version of the potency-enhancing drug Viagra.
Judging from conversations with Chapare coca growers and Morales's closest associates in the federation, in places difficult to find on any but the most detailed maps -- Mariscal Sucre B, Eterazama, Chipiriri, Villa Tunari -- his core constituency wants more than he has offered.
"We should have one cato per person, not per family," said Florencio Rodriguez, a seller in the bustling coca market of Villa 14 de Septiembre, Morales's home village.
"We need at least two catos" echoed Gonzales Ramirez. They were surrounded by baby-blue and baby-pink 50-pound sacks of coca leaves destined for the wholesale coca exchange in Sacaba, near the Chapare capital of Cochabamba.
"It has to be recognized that one cato is very little," said Asterio Romero, Morales's deputy as head of the six federations and now a congressional deputy. "But we know that increasing cultivation would create problems for the government. We need to wait until the study is completed."
For some, the outcome of the study -- which has not actually begun -- is a foregone conclusion.
"I'm sure it will show that there is demand for three catos," said federation leader Julio Salazar, his right cheek bulging from a wad of coca.. "Meanwhile, as painful as it is, we need to respect the (2004) agreement."
GROWERS WANT DOUBLE, TRIPLE INCREASE
Many rank-and-file members disagree. Citizens calling in to Radio Chipiriri, "the sovereign voice of the Bolivian cocalero," request action now. "The people are waiting for him (Morales) to do something," said the radio's Alieta Ortiz. "They all agree that one cato is not enough."
The issue of coca cultivation presents a delicate balancing act for Morales. Changing the 2004 accord or law 1008, as many growers demand, would put at risk aid from the United States. Ignoring his base could turn the growers against him.
Their impatience flared into action on February 1, when cocaleros surrounded two military camps used by eradication units in the Carrasco national park, an area out of bounds for coca cultivation, and took a government official hostage to press demands for the suspension of law 1008 and to voice displeasure over the appointment of Caceres instead of Coca.
The crisis was resolved peacefully within 48 hours but it showed that having a cocalero as president does not necessarily mean that conflict over coca growing has come to an end.
Despite continuing eradication and interdiction efforts by police units equipped (and partly paid) by the U.S., experts say coca grown for cocaine production now covers around 27,181 acres, more than three times the legal allotment in the Chapare.
With thousands of hectares under cultivation elsewhere, Bolivia ranks as the world's third-largest cocaine producer. But the growers here insist they have nothing to do with the drugs trade.
"What we need is an end to the Satanisation of coca growers. We are not drug traffickers, we are not criminals," said Leonilda Zurita, head of the women's federation and a close confidante of Morales.
Her battle cry during the election campaign, in her native Quechua, was "kausachum coca, wainuchum yankees" -- long live coca, death to the Yankees.
Copyright 2006 ******* News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures
Bolivia's Morales pressured to increase coca crops
*******
VILLA 14 DE SEPTIEMBRE, Bolivia - The coca growers of Bolivia's tropical Chapare region helped Evo Morales win the presidency and now they want their reward: a sharp increase in the area under cultivation.
How he deals with pressure from his political base, in his political cradle, from the people he led for 18 years, is shaping up as the first big test of Morales's leadership.
The United States, by far the biggest donor to Bolivia, says that in Chapare most coca, the raw material for cocaine, ends up with drug smugglers. But poor farmers here say coca is mostly used for traditional Indian uses, from hunger depressants to protection against altitude sickness.
Morales took office as Bolivia's first Indian president on January 22. His very first official trip, six days later, was to address tens of thousands of coca farmers in the market town of Shinahota near his home village here and give thanks to a region where he drew 97 percent of the vote in the presidential elections last December.
"This was a world record in democratic elections, comrades," Morales told the crowd, "and I thank you I am the president now but I will be your comrade forever." He then went on to make announcements which clearly fell short of many of his comrades' expectations.
He named Felipe Caceres, a hotel owner, coca grower and former mayor of the town of Villa Tunari, to the new post of Vice Minister of Coca and Integral Development. The coca growers' federation had publicly urged Morales to give the job to their legal adviser, Oscar Coca.
Next, Morales said his government would respect existing agreements on the cultivation of coca for traditional use. "We will defend the cato of coca but it is important that we respect accords," he said.
This was not what many of the "cocaleros" (coca growers) had come to hear after walking for hours in the boiling sun. Their applause was polite at best.
The "cato" -- 17,222 square feet -- is the centerpiece of an October 3, 2004, agreement between the six federations of coca growers, then led by Evo Morales, and the then government of Carlos Mesa.
It ended a state of low-intensity warfare between cocaleros and U.S.-backed anti-drug units bent on eradicating all coca plantations, a policy dubbed "zero coca."
The agreement, viewed with distaste by the U.S., allotted one cato to each of 23,000 members of the six federations, pending completion of a study of the demand for legal coca consumption. Under the accord, eradication of coca plantations in excess of 7,907 acres continued in line with a 1998 law -- law #1008 -- providing harsh punishment for illegal coca and cocaine production.
COCA FOR SOFT DRINKS, TOOTHPASTE, NATURAL VIAGRA
Coca leaf is stripped from a sturdy bush that grows like weed and needs little care. In its traditional use, dating back to 2,500 years BC, coca leaves are chewed and held in a wad in the cheek as a mild stimulant,.
Alternative uses of coca leaf range from coca tea and soft drinks to toothpaste, face creams and even a natural version of the potency-enhancing drug Viagra.
Judging from conversations with Chapare coca growers and Morales's closest associates in the federation, in places difficult to find on any but the most detailed maps -- Mariscal Sucre B, Eterazama, Chipiriri, Villa Tunari -- his core constituency wants more than he has offered.
"We should have one cato per person, not per family," said Florencio Rodriguez, a seller in the bustling coca market of Villa 14 de Septiembre, Morales's home village.
"We need at least two catos" echoed Gonzales Ramirez. They were surrounded by baby-blue and baby-pink 50-pound sacks of coca leaves destined for the wholesale coca exchange in Sacaba, near the Chapare capital of Cochabamba.
"It has to be recognized that one cato is very little," said Asterio Romero, Morales's deputy as head of the six federations and now a congressional deputy. "But we know that increasing cultivation would create problems for the government. We need to wait until the study is completed."
For some, the outcome of the study -- which has not actually begun -- is a foregone conclusion.
"I'm sure it will show that there is demand for three catos," said federation leader Julio Salazar, his right cheek bulging from a wad of coca.. "Meanwhile, as painful as it is, we need to respect the (2004) agreement."
GROWERS WANT DOUBLE, TRIPLE INCREASE
Many rank-and-file members disagree. Citizens calling in to Radio Chipiriri, "the sovereign voice of the Bolivian cocalero," request action now. "The people are waiting for him (Morales) to do something," said the radio's Alieta Ortiz. "They all agree that one cato is not enough."
The issue of coca cultivation presents a delicate balancing act for Morales. Changing the 2004 accord or law 1008, as many growers demand, would put at risk aid from the United States. Ignoring his base could turn the growers against him.
Their impatience flared into action on February 1, when cocaleros surrounded two military camps used by eradication units in the Carrasco national park, an area out of bounds for coca cultivation, and took a government official hostage to press demands for the suspension of law 1008 and to voice displeasure over the appointment of Caceres instead of Coca.
The crisis was resolved peacefully within 48 hours but it showed that having a cocalero as president does not necessarily mean that conflict over coca growing has come to an end.
Despite continuing eradication and interdiction efforts by police units equipped (and partly paid) by the U.S., experts say coca grown for cocaine production now covers around 27,181 acres, more than three times the legal allotment in the Chapare.
With thousands of hectares under cultivation elsewhere, Bolivia ranks as the world's third-largest cocaine producer. But the growers here insist they have nothing to do with the drugs trade.
"What we need is an end to the Satanisation of coca growers. We are not drug traffickers, we are not criminals," said Leonilda Zurita, head of the women's federation and a close confidante of Morales.
Her battle cry during the election campaign, in her native Quechua, was "kausachum coca, wainuchum yankees" -- long live coca, death to the Yankees.
Copyright 2006 ******* News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures