The undersigned Members of the Grupo Parlamentario Progresista de Iberoamérica, part of the Grupo de Puebla, express our deep concern about the campaign of persecution against the deputy Betty Yañíquez Lozano, Head of the MAS-IPSP bench of the Chamber of Deputies, who is victim of threats, harassment and persecution by the transitional Government, for the mere fact of having participated in a march called by social organizations, claiming for Government policies to face the pandemic, the right to education and against the postponement for the third time of the general elections.
These threats led to the opening of a criminal proceeding, initiated by the acting minister of the presidency, Yerko Núñez, against deputy Yañíquez, the former president Evo Morales and the top leader of the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB), for the alleged crimes of attack against public health, public instigation to commit a crime, criminal association, apology for crime, destruction of public ornament. This persecution has also acquired connotations contrary to the of women´s rights, when the Minister of the Presidency, in a contemptuous and arrogant way pointed out emphatically “What was this lady doing there….”. Likewise, we denounce that this harassment continues with the follow-up concealed from her work as a deputy, preventing her from normally fulfilling her legislative and supervisory functions.
We also express our solidarity with the Plurinational Legislative Assembly of Bolivia, for the smear campaign deployed by the transitional Government, which obstructs its legislative work and does not promulgate several laws passed in this legislative instance, urgently awaited by the Bolivian people, who are struggling in the fight against the pandemic.
We call for the transitional government to respect the independence of powers, guarantee the constitutional right to social protest and particular, complies with Article 151 of the Political Constitution of the State, which establishes that assembly members enjoy inviolability for any act that perform within the framework of their functions, and that they may not be criminally prosecuted.
Likewise, we urge the authorities to protect her integrity as a woman and avoid violence and political harassment against her.
We call on the international community to monitor the events in Bolivia so that the political and social crisis in which it finds itself can be overcome, the policy of persecution, intimidation and criminalization of social protest, respect for the work of the Plurinational Legislative Assembly and the right of the Bolivian people to have a legitimate and democratically elected Government in the general elections set for October 18, 2020 is fulfilled.