The Government of Bolivia presented this Thursday 17 soldiers who allegedly participated in the “Coup attempt” against Luis Arce and stated that he is behind several fugitives who planned and executed these actions under the orders of the dismissed military chief Juan José Zúñiga.
“A total of 17 people have been arrested for attempting to carry out a coup d’état“, declared the Minister of Government (Interior), Eduardo del Castillo, in a press conference in which he exhibited the detainees.
Del Castillo presented an organizational chart in which the participation of several soldiers was established, including some in passive service, who planned “since the month of May” the intervention in Plaza Murillo, in La Paz, headquarters of the Executive and Legislative.
He explained that these soldiers were part of a plan made up of four groups. One of “preparation and planning“, another of “organization and coordination“, of “exercise and strength” and “consolidation of power”.
The minister emphasized that the leader of the takeover was Zuñiga and that the “articulator“was also the dismissed and detained commander of the Navy Juan Arnez, supported by a civilian considered to be one of the”ideologues” of the plan.
Precisely this last person, at the time of his presentation to the media, said that he declared himself “dry hunger strike” because supposedly they had “violated“his rights and he was not allowed to defend himself.
Del Castillo said that among those investigated and detained is the commander of the Colorado Regiment of Bolivia, the military division in charge of presidential security.
In addition to the person in charge of the Viacha barracks, a municipality near La Paz, from where the armoured vehicles that took over Plaza Murillo the day before left on Sunday, and the head of the barracks in the rural town of Achacachi who was to provide the weapons to carry out the operation.
The internal intelligence work that did not detect the military action and the role of the former commander in chief of the Armed Forces “These are aspects that are being investigated”, mentioned the minister.
More arrests announced
Del Castillo said that “the main goal” from his office and the Police is “the arrest of all members” of the group that “planned the commission of the coup d’état.”
Among those wanted are three retired military personnel and an Army major, who was accused of coordinating the actions at the headquarters of the Executive and Legislative branches.
The minister said that the inclusion of the criminal type of “destruction and deterioration of state property“for the use of the tank that knocked down the gate of the Government Palace, which adds to other charges such as armed uprising, attack against the president and terrorism.
On Wednesday afternoon, Bolivia experienced hours of anxiety when a group of heavily armed soldiers took over the square and deployed tanks, under the orders of Zuñiga.
Before his arrest, the former military chief declared to the media that he was seeking “rebuild democracy“and that his first action would be to free the”political prisoners”.
Arce immediately relieved the entire military high command and then the uniformed men left the square amid insults, blows and reproaches from hundreds of government officials and supporters who celebrated that the president resisted a “Coup attempt”.
The international community condemned these events, while the opposition and supporters of former President Evo Morales (2006-2019) stated that it was a “self-coup” planned by Arce.
Source: Gestion
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