President Paz demands military role against organised crime and drug trafficking in Bolivia
On the anniversary of the Military Naval School, Rodrigo Paz called on the Armed Forces to protect the country from organised crime. Cosdep drafted four draft laws to strengthen security.
Paz summons Armed Forces in fight against organised crime and narco-terrorism
Bolivian president Rodrigo Paz demanded that the Armed Forces take an active role in the fight against organised crime during an event marking the anniversary of the Military Naval School, held at military facilities in Cochabamba. According to vision360.bo, the president stated that military institutions must contribute to "saving the nation from organised crime", which in his words seeks to "destroy our democracy".
"If we want to produce or develop, our Armed Forces must also be part of building security to save the nation from organised crime; that organised crime which wants to destroy our democracy", Paz declared to the institution.
Santa Cruz, epicentre of criminal pressure
In his recent speeches, the president has focused his attention on the department of Santa Cruz, where police have documented links between drug trafficking and two criminal organisations of Brazilian origin: the First Command of the Capital (PCC) and Comando Vermelho (CV). Paz warned of the risk that these structures "could generate, with international organised crime, a space for the development of this crime in Bolivia".
The president recalled recent security force results: the capture of drug trafficker Sebastián Marset and his subsequent extradition to the United States, as well as the expulsion and handover to Brazil of other leaders of the PCC and CV.
Four draft laws to strengthen security
The newly reformed Supreme Council of Defence of the Plurinational State (Cosdep) prepared a package of four draft laws aimed at confronting organised crime and narco-terrorism. One of these measures specifically regulates military participation in operations against criminality.
For Paz, criminal organisations seek to "destroy our Constitution and pervert our institutions" in order to consolidate their illicit activities, which is why he insisted on articulating a broad alliance against criminality.
Rivers under surveillance: the "Blue Devils" on the front line
Given that the Bolivian Navy operates mainly on the country's extensive river network, the president proposed reinforcing surveillance by its elite units. The objective is to maintain river channels as routes for integration and development, and not as corridors for drug trafficking.
"The same waterways that serve commerce and communities can also be used to transport drugs, weapons and illicit goods. The Navy already has experience in this fight; the Blue Devils have actively participated in operations against drug trafficking", the president emphasised.
The Mariaca capture and institutional infiltration
The case of former chief prosecutor Roger Mariaca revealed signs of alleged criminal infiltration within an institution charged with combating crime. The Interior Minister, Marco Antonio Oviedo, noted that Mariaca's structure encompassed everything from the receipt of complaints to cases of unsolved deaths.
Paz concluded his address by linking security and economic development: "Sovereignty and production go hand in hand to build the nation, and this Government has committed itself to making decisions that generate order. It is not easy, but these are the moments that God gave us".
Source: Google News BO — La Paz