The Bolivian justice extended, Saturday, March 20, from four to six months the pre-trial detention of the former interim president of Bolivia Jeanine Añez, accused of having participated in an alleged coup against Evo Morales in 2019.
This decision, taken after a long court hearing, also applies to his former justice and energy ministers, also in detention. Arrest warrants were issued against others, including the leader of the wealthy Santa Cruz region (center), Luis Fernando Camacho, and senior military and police officials.
Luis Guillen, one of Mme Añez, reacted by stating that he “Was not a surprise”, during a press conference after the hearing.
Mme Añez was transferred by ambulance to a prison in La Paz where she can be medically monitored, according to the prison services, ensuring that the local mission of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights could verify it.
“Hypertension crisis”
The lawyers of the former transitional president, in power from November 2019 to November 2020, had filed a request for release due to the “Hypertensive crisis” of which she had been the victim after her imprisonment. His transfer to a hospital was authorized by the courts on Friday, then rejected a few hours later by the same court.
“It was not necessary that Mme Añez so [de prison], we have everything you need to preserve your health ”, said the director general of the penitentiary regime, Juan Carlos Limpias, at a press conference. United Nations personnel will be able to verify that” no right [de Mme Añez] was not violated ”, he continued.
M’s daughterme Añez, Carolina Ribera, denounced “An abuse, an injustice” in a video posted on social media. “They are threatening the life of my mother, who needs urgent medical attention”, she estimated.
Defense of Mme Añez had announced that he had renewed his request for release.
“Political persecution”
The 53-year-old former interim president was arrested on March 14, along with two of her ex-ministers, following a complaint about “Sedition”, “Terrorism” and “Conspiracy” tabled by a former member of the Movement towards Socialism (MAS), the party of former socialist president Evo Morales.
In November 2019, two days after Mr Morales resigned, while she was Conservative Second Vice President of the Senate, Mrme Añez was sworn in as interim president following a power vacancy caused by the chain resignations of Mr. Morales and his constitutional successors.
Mr. Morales had been forced to resign by an uprising, after being proclaimed the winner of the presidential election where he was running for a fourth term, but accused of fraud by the opposition.
After demonstrations in which at least thirty-five people were killed, Mr. Morales, released by the police and the army, resigned and took refuge in Mexico and then in Argentina.
During his arrest, Mme Añez had denounced a “Political persecution”.
