The Constituent Assembly is placed in the centre of the political debate in Bolivia mainly for two reasons. The first one is because of national sovereignty and the democratic character of the main demands of the people (property of natural resources m property of land, rights or the native people, national unity) appears as the “natural milieu” for the discussion and quest of solutions, especially for the peasant and native majority of the country.
In the second place, during the 2005 process Evo himself posed the central demand for the summons to the Constituent Assembly. Later, during the electoral campaign, it was the main guideline of his proposals: that is where all the problems will be solved and a new Plurinational Bolivian state will be founded. It was with this proposal in mind that the Pact of Unity was signed with the organisations of the native nations.
That is why so many expectations were spawned among popular sectors. And yet, ever since the sessions began on 6th August 2006, it has been practically paralysed.
The right opposition has blocked its functions and is essentially responsible for the situation. But the MAS shares the guilt for this situation, because they won the national elections for representatives to the Assembly and has 55% of the seats. However, they had agreed with the right parties on a set of rules according to which the new constitution could only be passed with the 2/3 of the votes of the Assembly. That means that the minority was granted a right to veto that is totally antidemocratic.
Later, the government said that this criterion was only valid for the new constitution as a whole (in case it was passed by the Constituent, it would have to be submitted to a plebiscite) but not for the individual articles. Thus he was trying to include at least some partial points that could permit them to show to his base that some progress was being made. But the right held on to the clause about the 2/3 and vetoed all the articles that were not to their liking. At the same time, the triumph obtained by the YES in the plebiscite for autonomy in the departments belonging to the half moon should be regarded as mandatory for the new constitution even if they lost in the rest of the country. That is how the Assembly was paralysed.
Making it hollow
At the same time, in spite of the radical discourse about the “native” character and the “refoundation of Bolivia” that the Assembly was supposed to have, the Evo administration has been sterilising it on several points.
As to the topic of the hydrocarbons and mining he says that it “has already been solved” with the tepid measures adopted and that the Constituent should limit itself to back the decrees and the conceptual base of the contracts. Neither was a real land reforms to be included.
The latest attempt pushed on by the administration was to try and change “territorial autonomy” for native people for “social autonomy”. But he had to recoil for fear of a split by several organisations.
The fact that several central issues had been removed from the agenda in the Assembly was admitted by the government itself: during an interview for Radio FIDES, the vice president Alvaro Garcia admitted that “the great assembly will probably not modify more than 20% of the articles of the constitution.”
And yet, in spite of all that emptying, there still are deep issues posed. Especially the collision between the just demand of the oppressed nationalities for “territorial autonomy” an the reactionary and pro-imperialist autonomy claimed by the bourgeoisie of the half moon. These are the points that cause the paralysis of the Constituent Assembly.
The need for a revolutionary policy for the Constituent Assembly
Within the framework of the bourgeois state and with the agreements on the rules between Evo and the right, this Assembly will not solve any of the serious problems of the country and the people. Only the autonomous mobilisation and organisation of the masses will be able to achieve that. That is why even here it is necessary to explain patiently to the masses the real class character of the Constituent Assembly.
But a revolutionary policy cannot be limited to mere exposing of this bourgeois institution. At the same time, the revolutionaries must defend the democratic right of the Bolivian people to make the Assembly work and discuss the main problems of the country. That is why it is perfectly legitimate and necessary to foster mobilisations to demand that the Assembly should comply with the mandate for which it was voted by the people, especially against the limitations imposed by the right.
Just as we pointed out in the main article, also here “it is absolutely impossible for the government to do so, but these mobilisations and the collision with this reality will be what can develop the awareness and, together with it, will determine the progress of the revolutionary process, overcoming the limits today imposed by Evo.
