Last month six leading opposition figures announced a declaration of “unity in defence of democracy and justice”. Among other things, the declaration is in response to recent legal action against members of the opposition Movimiento Demócrata Social (MDS) [RA-17-03] and signals concerns ahead of the October 2017 popular elections to fill key judicial posts. Meanwhile the need to “defend democracy” has been linked to President Evo Morales’ declared intention of running for re-election again in 2019 for the ruling Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) despite the February 2016 public referendum rejecting the proposal to amend the constitution to allow him to do so [RA-16-03]. Signalling the latest attempt by the ever-fractious opposition to unite, the declaration has fuelled speculation that those involved could be considering a united platform ahead of 2019 although for the time being, its signatories continue to publicly rule it out.End of preview - This article contains approximately 852 words.
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