Bolivia’s strike movement deserves solidarity from the international left, argues Jonathan Maunders. The threat to democracy is not the people in the streets. It is a government, backed by the United States as part of a wider effort to reassert right-wing, neoliberal rule across Latin America

The Trump administration has intervened in Bolivia’s crisis, backing President Rodrigo Paz Pereira as his government faces a growing strike movement against austerity, fuel shortages and rising living costs.

The US message is clear. It is not neutral. It is not defending democracy. It is backing a friendly right-wing government against workers, peasants and Indigenous communities resisting disastrous neoliberal policies.

Washington brands the protests a ‘coup d’état

Officials in Washington have slammed what they call attempts to “destabilise” Bolivia’s elected government. Secretary of State Marco Rubio then doubled down, saying the US “stands squarely” behind Paz’s government and linking the unrest to “criminals”. His deputy, Christopher Landau, went even further, describing the protests as a “coup d’état”.

Such framing is beyond parody. Bolivia is not facing a coup from below. It is facing a mass movement against a right-wing government trying to impose austerity on people already suffering fuel shortages, inflation and collapsing living standards.

The strikes began with rural and peasant organisations marching to defend land rights. It has since grown into a broader confrontation involving miners, teachers, transport workers, labour unions and rural groups. Roadblocks have disrupted the cities of La Paz and El Alto, as protesters demand an end to austerity and Paz’s resignation.

The government has already been forced to retreat once, repealing the land law that first sparked this crisis. But the anger has not disappeared because this is much deeper than one policy.

Paz deploys police and military to ‘restore order’

Bolivia is facing its worst economic crisis in decades, driven by declining gas production, inflation and external pressure to restore confidence among international lenders.

For ordinary Bolivians, this means higher prices, shortages of diesel, food and medicine, and wages that cannot keep up. For Paz, Washington and the markets, the answer is austerity, foreign investment and repression dressed up as restoring order.

That may now intensify. Paz’s government has deployed police and soldiers, opened so-called humanitarian corridors through blockades, and taken steps that could make it easier to declare a state of emergency. In that context, US talk of a “coup” is not just words. They help prepare the ground for further repression.

Trump and US imperialism give Paz political cover for repression

This is why the Trump administration’s intervention matters. By branding protests as a coup, Washington is giving Paz political cover to move against the movement. It is the familiar script of US imperialism in Latin America: right-wing governments are “constitutional”, even when they attack the poor. Meanwhile, we are told that mass movements are “destabilising” when they threaten market interests

‘Destabilization’ is from the US playbook when it suits their interests

It’s rank hypocrisy. The United States has spent generations backing coups, dictatorships and right-wing destabilisation across Latin America. From Guatemala and Chile to Bolivia itself, Washington has never hesitated to undermine democracy when elected governments threatened US interests, nationalised resources or empowered workers.

Yet when Bolivians block roads against austerity, suddenly the US finds concern for constitutional order.

Ordinary people should not pay for a crisis created by neoliberal politics

The international left must reject this. The movement in Bolivia contains different forces, including miners, teachers, unions, rural organisations, and supporters of ex-president Evo Morales.

However, its central demand is clear: ordinary people should not be made to pay for a crisis created by economic dependency, failed elites and the return of neoliberal politics.

Trump’s intervention shows what is at stake. Paz’s government is not simply trying to survive a domestic crisis. It is being backed by Washington as part of a wider effort to reassert right-wing, neoliberal rule across Latin America.

Bolivia’s strike movement deserves solidarity. The real threat to democracy is not the people in the streets. It is a government, backed by the United States, preparing to impose austerity by force.