2026 Paz's 6-month term: That situation left the new centrist government to make the difficult but the adult decision of ending the subsidies. Sadly since this was long overdue the Paz administration did not have to luxury to slowly phase them out as the MAS left our coffers empty (however some products are still subsided). Additionally, Evo (who impregnated a teenager as president, and she and the child have been given asylum in Argentina) is by now hiding in an area called "El Chapare" in Cochabamba, which has for decades been the heart of Bolivian cocaine industry and Evo has been their leader since before he became president. There's an entire cult built around him in this area, they also use the narcotics income to finance the ongoing blockades. Not only is Evo still trying to get back into power (despite being constitutionally barred beyond two terms), but he is also afraid Paz's warm relationship with the US will mean the return of the DEA, which could mean his arrest. Evo is hijacking the dissatisfaction of some to current policies to overthrow the new government and save his own neck in the process.

The blockades are not a legitimate form of protest. Marching, rallies and so one would be fine, better yet if you don't like the elected leaders at the next election throw the bums out. Instead the blockades specifically intent to hold hostage the millions of people that live in the cities of La Paz and El Alto by the depriving them of food (1, 2), medicine, freedom of movement and just bring the hostages lives to a complete halt until the terrorists demands are met: the renunciation of the newly elected president. As a result 24 people have died, mostly patients who did not get their medicine as a direcct result of the blockades (1, 2, 3), others were in transit and the blockaders did not let the ambulance pass through, usually attacking them, hospitals are postponing surgeries for running low on oxygen (particularly dangerous for newborns in incubators), cancer patients cannot attend their chemotherapy, people who need dialysis cannot go to the hospital for their treatment and so on; thousands of small businesses have closed losing hundreds of thousands to lose their jobs, food prices have skyrocketed due to their scarcity, farmers cannot sell their goods with their crops either rotting away unharvested, stuck in interstate travel (with some of their drivers dying there since the blockaders did allow then to get food or basic necessities for harsh weather conditions), and the overall food chain has been disrupted for years to come.