Bolivia President Rodrigo Paz faces mass protests over wages and fuel policy

Since early May 2024, Bolivia’s centre‑right president Rodrigo Paz Pereyra has been besieged by a wave of protests led by the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB), the country’s largest trade‑union federation. Demonstrators in La Paz and the neighboring city of El Alto have escalated their demands from a 20 % wage increase to calls for Paz’s resignation, accusing his administration of siding with eastern business interests.

The unrest coincides with a deepening economic crisis: fuel subsidies were removed, causing gasoline prices to jump 86 % and diesel 163 %, and a later scandal over low‑quality “trash gasoline” damaged many vehicles and forced the fuel minister’s resignation. A controversial land‑credit law (Law 1720) that threatened small‑holder farms also triggered a peaceful march from the Brazil‑Peru border to the capital, prompting Paz to repeal the measure.

The president has defended his actions as fiscally necessary, citing a lack of liquidity and inflation, while the COB labels the government’s response as a “sedicious attempt” to force him out. The situation underscores a volatile mix of political opposition, labour unrest, and economic hardship in Bolivia.