BOLIVIAN UNIONS UNITE WITH COCA GROWERS

General Strike!

Set To Begin Tuesday, May 1 And Go On Indefinitely

The Bolivian Central Union (COB, in its Spanish acronym) on Monday
ratified its decision, beginning on May 1st, International Workers
Day, to begin a general strike for an undetermined period of time to
demand official attention at its 15-point petition, its leader
Alberto Camacho announced this morning.

"Until the government (of President Hugo Banzer) effectively meets
our demands the decision to convene a National STrike will be
maintained," said Camacho, who had announced the adoption of this
strategy on Monday.

The decision was ratified in spite of the renewal of negotiations
between the government and the trade organizations in conflict,
including the coca growers leader Evo Morales, whose union has
blocked the principal highway in Bolivia for six days in opposition
to the anti-drug policies out of the capital of La Paz.

Camacho expressed hope for the results that could be arrived at
during the meeting to be held this Monday in the seat of the Bolivian
Congress.

Various unions affiliated with the COB, including the retirees and
the coca growers, are represented in the meeting to seek solutions to
the climate of social protests that shake the nation.

Detained by its own internal conflicts, the Central Union intends to
recuperate its leadership that for two decades made it an effective
representative of Civil Society, as well as its influence in regional
politics. (AFP)