Faced with threats from groups aligned to the Pro Santa Cruz Committee, the popular mobilisation was suspended.

Santa Cruz, January 15 (ABI) - Close to midday today, Monday, the suspension of the mobilisation organised by the Popular Civic Committee of Santa Cruz was announced, which was to be held in the afternoon, given that lack of guarantees in the face of groups aligned with the Pro Santa Cruz Civic Committee having emitted a series of threats via local media indicating that they would not allow the mobilisation to occur, and physically and verbally attack against the vice president of this popular civic entity last Friday.

“We suspended the mobilisation that was programmed for Grigota Avenue in second ring at the monument to Chiriguano (and afterwards in the fifth ring of Moscu Avenue) due to lack of guarantees, because there are other people who have gone there and are going around saying that they will not let us meet”, declared Saturnino Pinto, president of the Popular Civic Committee.

He clarified that at no time was this mobilisation seeking confrontation and nevertheless it is other groups who have since the morning of today, Monday, already taken over the roundabout of the monument to Chiriguano with Crucena flags saying that they will not allow them to carry out any mobilisation by the Popular Civic Committee here. This threat of surrounding the protest had already been made in the Asamblea de la Crucenidad last Friday.

“So we officially suspended the mobilisation until further notice, until the authorities follow the law and say to us where we can meet without confrontations. If they don’t want us to meet in the Chiriguano it can be somewhere else, but they have to tell us that there is somewhere in Santa Cruz where we can meet, without anyone interfering, because what we need is for them to listen to us” sustained Pinto.

He stated that the suspension of the announced event was due to wanting to avoid the physical aggression against those who attended. He recalled that the previous Friday the vice president of this Popular Committee was attacked by followers of the Pro Santa Cruz Committee when he was going to give a media conference.

“We are against violence no matter where it comes from, no one has the right to hit anyone else and worst still if it is only for talking. Because what we are doing with the Popular Civic Committee of the people is only talk, about something that we think is bad and needs to be fixed. If we are wrong, let them demonstrate it, but by talking” he insisted.

Finally, he reiterated that there was a convocation for a popular mobilisation when those who reject the calls of the popular civic entity calm down.

Translated from Bolivian Information Agency