La Paz. Bolivia was shaken yesterday by a massive military mobilization in front of the government palace in the emblematic Plaza Murillo, which authorities described as an attempted coup that kept the country on edge for several hours until the general allegedly behind the military deployment was arrested.
President Luis Arce called on the people to mobilize against the operation and appointed a new military leadership, which ordered the withdrawal of the troops and relieved the Army’s General Commander, Juan José Zúñiga, the main figure in the revolt. “We cannot allow coup attempts to once again take the lives of Bolivians,” emphasized Arce in a national address broadcast on television.
After the change in military leadership, the soldiers and military vehicles deployed in the plaza in front of the government headquarters withdrew from the area. Zúñiga also left and was later arrested after hours of tension in the country.
“Today has been an unusual day in the life of a country that wants democracy,” Arce declared after the beginning of the military withdrawal. He referred to it as “an attempted coup by soldiers who are tarnishing the uniform, who are attacking our Constitution.
“We deplore the attitudes of bad soldiers who unfortunately repeat history by trying to stage a coup when the Bolivian people have always been a democratic people,” he stressed. Shortly after, he greeted from the government palace surrounded by his ministers and thanked a crowd of Bolivians who gathered in the plaza.
After the failed uprising, Arce posted on X: “We salute and express our sincerest gratitude to our social organizations and all the Bolivian people who took to the streets and expressed themselves through various media, rejecting the coup attempt… Democracy will always prevail! Thank you very much, Bolivian people!”
Hours later, the ousted General Zúñiga was arrested by the police following an order from the Attorney General’s Office on charges of terrorism and armed uprising. Vice Admiral Juan Arnez Salvador was also detained.
Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Jhonny Aguilera, informed journalists before the arrest that the military leader “has led a criminal revolt that has put the country on edge. The Public Prosecutor’s Office has already ordered an investigation.”
