Versión Español
Spanish – In Buenos Aires, he has a burning streak, but at least Alberto won over MAS’ supporters in Bolivia. Although they are not voters (except for the important community in Argentina), the President had his day of populist glory in the border town of La Quiaca, Jujuy. There he said goodbye to Morales, who returned to his country today after his ally’s victory in the October 18 elections.
“Alberto Fernández saved my life. Thank you very much,” said Evo Morales, without a mask but several meters away from his friend. Of course, the health issue was another fictional show. A few meters away, on the other side of the border, his supporters (immune to the coronavirus?) were much closer together, not to say crowded. The scene was like that of a commercial flight. Forward, with a microphone, the stars spaced out with exaggerated protocol. A few meters behind, the “middle class” of the bureaucracy in little plastic chairs and much less social distancing than the leaders. Behind everything, there was the “pullman” or “economy” section. Standing together and hoisting flags.
Evo’s gratitude was followed by Alberto’s fake modesty: “The most important thing is that he returns to his homeland from which he should never have left. Argentina and Bolivia are part of a big country. A homeland that wants to embrace all, not some,” he emphasized.
Morales spent eleven months in Buenos Aires as a “refugee” and was under scrutiny for maintaining his political actions concerning Bolivia. This activity was incompatible with his status, and he even had a formal warning from the local authorities. But since the victory of the Frente de Todos, Evo did whatever he wanted in Argentina. Before arriving in the country, the former Bolivian leader had had a brief stay in Mexico.
Last night, after participating in the inauguration of Luis Arce, Fernández crossed the border to have dinner with Morales and several officials. At a long table in a festive atmosphere, with many diners and few masks, Foreign Minister Felipe Solá told Evo:
“This is a symbolic act. We received you, and we say goodbye; you will return to a democratic Bolivia where you are not in danger.”
In this way, Argentina resumes its normal relations with Bolivia. The Peronist administration had defined Jeanine Áñez’ interim as a “de facto government.” The former president decided not to participate in the handover of power and returned to her hometown. “I hand over a country with the pandemic under control, with the economy rising, and with democracy well-established,” said Áñez on her social media.
