Human Rights Watch exposed irregularities in arrest warrant for Jeanine Áñez in Bolivia

José Miguel Vivanco, director for the Americas of the organization Human Rights Watch, questioned this Friday the arrest warrant against the former interim president of Bolivia, Jeanine Áñez, and five of his former ministers of the cause investigating the alleged “coup”. Against Evo Morales in November 2019, to contain significant irregularities that cast doubt on being before a “politically motivated process”

“The arrest warrants against Áñez and his ministers contain no evidence that they committed the crime of ‘terrorism’. For this reason, they raise serious doubts that this is a politically motivated process “Vivanco said from her Twitter account with a post that included multi-page photos of the arrest resolution.

And, in a second tweet, he added: “The arrest warrants against Áñez and his ministers invoke – like that of Evo Morales in 2020 – the ambiguous figure of “terrorism” which lends itself to arbitrariness. In 2020, we ask that the charges against Morales be dropped for the same reason. “

“Any serious crime, including conspiracy to commit a coup d’etat, demands a serious and independent investigation which respects due process and brings those responsible to justice “concluded the director of the prestigious NGO for the defense of human rights.

A Bolivian prosecutor’s office ordered this Friday the arrest of Áñez and five of its ministers, two of whom have already been arrested: the former head of the Energy portfolio, Rodrigo Guzmán and judge Álvaro Coimbra.

Arturo Murillo (Government Minister), Yerko Nuñez (Public works, services and housing, and presidency), Luis Fernando Lopez (Defense) are the other ministers affected by the decree in the case investigating the alleged “coup” against Evo Morales in November 2019.

“The political persecution has started. The MAS decided to return to the styles of the dictatorship. Too bad because Bolivia does not need dictators, it needs freedom and solutions. Áñez expressed via his Twitter account, in which he also attached the complaint against him.

Specific, the case accuses the former officials of the crimes of terrorism, sedition and conspiracy. The complaint was brought by former Movement for Socialism (MAS) MP Lidia Patty, who accused Luis Fernando Camacho, governor of Santa Cruz and candidate in last year’s presidential elections in which Luis Arce emerged victorious , to have instigated with his father and several military and police commanders the protests which led to the departure of Morales.

The charges are practically the same as, during his time in power, officials at the time accused Evo Morales and for whom, in December 2019, the arrest of the former president was ordered.

However, by the time the order was issued – in December 2019 – Morales was already settled in Argentina, which authorities said had “refugee status” and would not agree to extradite him. .

This measure was canceled in October 2020, a week after Luis Arce, the dolphin of Morales, was imposed by a big difference in the presidential elections of the Andean country. However, at that point, the judge in charge of the case clarified that this did not imply that the investigation would cease.

Since his resignation from the presidency, Morales has always maintained that he was the victim of a coup.

KEEP READING: