The legal guarantee on seats is the final node in the conflict for the census.

President Luis Arce signed three decrees to set the date for the next census; the last one, 4824It aimed to neutralize the indefinite strike that has been carried out in Santa Cruz since October 22. The extreme measure continues and this Thursday enters its 27th.

“We continue the indefinite strike and remain alert to what is happening in the Assembly regarding the census law.“Last night, Rómulo Calvo, chairman of the Santa Cruz Committee, declared while assessing whether the colossal town hall had fulfilled the five determinations it took on Sunday.

The Magna assembly instructed legislators in Santa Cruz to propose a project in the Legislature. law that allows census data to also apply to the allocation of seats in Parliament It is based on the new demographic reality revealed by the census. For example, the two fastest growing cities, Santa Cruz de la Sierra and El Alto, hope to have more representatives.

Calvo stressed The treatment of this standard “is well, albeit with different nuances.” When the 72-hour deadline given by the Council has expired.

Also in the grand assembly A commission was ordered to be formed to assess the “relationship between Santa Cruz and the State of Bolivia”.. Calvo stated that the profile of the people who will be a part of this formation will be examined and the conceptual framework will be discussed. It was the most talked about proposal of “federalism” so far. In any case, Calvo has announced that it will be reporting on progress in this section in the next few hours.

A request was also approved on Sunday, so other departments join the Santa Cruz demand for a census that produces reliable data for the distribution of resources for 343 municipalities and 10 universities in the country. Civic announced that it has invited colleagues from the rest of the country to hold a meeting.

The council also set a deadline for other departments to participate in different protest actions against the regional cause. He highlighted the 48-hour strike that took place in Potosí. “The rest of Bolivia has clarified its priorities, which are different and we respect them,” he said, announcing that the Santa Cruz institutions will continue.

In any case, the citizens of Santa Cruz met yesterday with the national leaders of the union sector. Jesús Cahuana announced that, at the end of this appointment, his sector would support the strike under the terms of the final council. “They want the Chamber of Deputies to definitively approve the law that will end the strike. Neither the decree nor the word of the ministers can be trusted,” he said.

Moreover, The Bolivian Trade Union Confederation of Workers will block roads across the country today As a show of support for Santa Cruz. The measure was determined at the extended meeting held in Oruro on Monday, where material and moral support to the hunger strikers set up in different cities was also determined.

“We We support the Santa Cruz department, we want the Census to be done in 2023Antonio Siñani, union representative for El Alto, as requested by our senior leader Francisco Figueroa (+).

The fifth article of the council’s mandate was the release of persons “illegally” detained in the context of the protests on Friday, 11 November, which also raised complaints of police harassment. The civic leader stressed that 15 residents had been released, but said there were three detainees during clashes on the border of La Guardia and Puerto Quijarro..

“we will not leave them. That’s why they are arrested and the municipality is sending us to guarantee their freedom,” civic concluded.

Earlier, Stello Cochamadinis, second vice-president of the pro-Santa Cruz Civic Committee, after speaking with Gabriel René Moreno Autonomous University (Uagrm) rector Vicente Cuéllar and his technical team, said: The government and MAS must “give a legal guarantee” that the allocation of seats in the Legislative Assembly is made on time and before the national elections scheduled for 2025.

Decree No. 4824, approved by Arce on November 11, consists of a single article consisting of two parts. The first is that the registration date is March 23, 2024, the second is orders the distribution of “preliminary results” in September of this year with a view to the redistribution of resources to municipalities. and universities based on the new demographic reality of the country. Norm made no predictions about seat allocation, which rekindled doubts about the next election.

In this context, 20 minutes before the gigantic city hall that took place in Santa Cruz on Sunday, November 13, Planning Minister Sergio Cusicanqui announced that the National Institute of Statistics (INE) will send the census results to the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) in December 2024. drafting the norm by which seats will be distributed, and limiting the country’s 70 single-member constituencies.

The Legislature consists of 36 senators, four for each section, elected by majority and by minority. Therefore, these census results do not affect those places. The data influences the distribution of 130 seats in the House of Representatives, 60 of which are distributed by population criteria.63 are directly elected in the same number of single-member regional constituencies, while seven are exclusive to indigenous nations.

Currently, La Paz has 29 MPs; Santa Cruz, 28; Cochabamba, 19; Potosy, 13; Chuquisaca, 10; Tarija, nine; Oruro, nine; me, eight; and Pando, five.
Santa Cruz could win at least three more MPs with updated population data. El Alto mayor Eva Copa predicted that this city would also gain a single-member representative after the new census.

TSE member Francisco Vargas reminded The constitution appoints 130 deputies and reappointments are made on this basis.. Without new population data, it is not yet possible to determine which rural and urban areas could lose seats in the next general election in 2025.

Based on this scenario, José Luis Santistevan, legal adviser to the Interagency Committee, and rector Cuéllar They demanded “certainty” from the government because the seat guarantee was already established at the Santa Cruz protest.

Actually, City Hall on Sunday approved the requirement of a law so the Government Confidence and assurance that for the next elections the country will come with an updated electoral map reflecting civic representation in the Legislature.

To respond to this command, Opposition deputies and the ruling party submitted a draft law with an urgent demand. Movimiento Al Socialismo (MAS), which controls decisions in the Senate and Deputies, did not proceed with appeals to waive the procedure and chose to send proposals to follow the course without haste.

“There are about five proposals in parliament, but we believe this is it. The University, which should present a new project (the law for the census with seats) that combines the already existing ones, and making it (the law) enforceable so that the country can move forward, calm down and people can go home,” Cochamanidis said. He suggested that UAGRM could manage a viable new project.

The 72-hour deadline given by the council coincided with the day of the failed census this year.. “There are three decrees in force and the census should be guaranteed to receive the official results of the INE by 2024 for the distribution of tax joint participation resources, but the Assembly itself is the Santistevan of the distribution of seats, the period of 2025-2030 and this is non-negotiable,” he said.