[speaking of the FTAA] Bolivia's President Halts Controversial Gas Project Strike Paralyzes Capital as Protests Spread
By Carlos Valdes Associated Press Tuesday, October 14, 2003; Page A16 LA PAZ, Bolivia, Oct. 13 -- Bolivia's president suspended on Monday a controversial project to export natural gas through Chile to the United States, hoping to defuse weeks of widening anti-government protests in which about 40 people have been killed. Despite the decision, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets and a public transportation strike virtually paralyzed the capital. President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada also faced criticism from his vice president over the use of deadly force against the protesters. "I cannot continue to support the situation we are living," Vice President Carlos Mesa said, urging the president to change his policies. But Mesa said he would not resign. Another senior official, Development Minister Jorge Torres, did resign, citing "insurmountable differences" with the president. As calls mounted for Sanchez de Lozada's resignation, the embattled president addressed the nation on radio and television after meeting with top advisers and military leaders. Sanchez de Lozada vowed "to defeat the sedition and restore order," and called the massive protests "a plot encouraged from abroad aimed at destroying Bolivia and staining our democracy with blood." As the president spoke, marches and sporadic clashes continued in La Paz. Witnesses said demonstrators threw rocks at the residence of former president Jaime Paz Zamora, a close associate of Sanchez de Lozada's. The presidential palace remained under heavy military guard. For the most part, however, the marches appeared peaceful. Radio stations urged soldiers and police to use restraint. Protesters were reportedly blocking roads in several parts of the country. During protests in El Alto, a La Paz suburb of 750,000 people, soldiers killed at least five demonstrators, according to witnesses. The government had earlier reported 11 deaths in El Alto. The government declared martial law, sending soldiers with automatic weapons to patrol the streets. In La Paz, many shops, banks and offices were closed as opposition leaders called for the president's resignation. "We will not stop until he goes away," said Roberto de la Cruz, a union leader in El Alto. Protest leader and former presidential candidate Evo Morales said Sanchez de Lozada's resignation was "the only political solution to this crisis." The president's decision to shelve the gas plan "is not enough for the Bolivian people," Morales, a member of congress, told Chile's Radio Cooperativa. "What the Bolivian people want is that the gas remain in Bolivia, for the benefit of Bolivians."
