US Ambassador to Bolivia Expelled

President Evo Morales today declared the U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia Philip Goldberg "persona non grata". He is accused of financing the right-wing Prefectural civic coup that erupted on Tuesday in Santa Cruz. The Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca asked the diplomat to leave the country.

"Without fearing anyone, without fearing the empire, today in front of the Bolivian people I declare US ambassador Mr. Goldberg persona non grata (…). We do not want separatist people or divisive people or people who conspire against unity, we do not want people who attack democracy," President Morales said.

Morales has denounced on several occasions the U.S. government advising of seditious groups from the eastern part of the country. In recent days, he revealed that some officials of the Embassy funded mobilizations and road blockades by landowners.

Goldberg met secretly with the prefect Ruben Costas, leader of the hardline autonomy movement, days before the outbreak of violence in the Cruceño capital. The Foreign Ministry urgently called for the diplomat to explain the reasons for the meeting, recommended that he be "more careful", and reminded him that diplomats must not meddle in internal political affairs.

Despite the warning, Goldberg then visited Savina Cuellar, the prefect of Chuquisaca, connected to the civic autonomist business movement. It was reported that he also met with the opposition prefects of Beni, Pando and Tarija.

MAS Legislators accused the U.S. ambassador of financing the prefectural civic coup that threatens to fracture the territorial integrity of Bolivia.

Senator Ricardo Diaz said that the taking and looting of public institutions in Santa Cruz led by Costas and civic leader Branco Marinkovic relied on direct support from the U.S. embassy.

Autonomist hordes looted public institutions in the Cruceño capital on Tuesday, a few hours after Marinkovic returned from a trip to the United States. According to Deputy Rene Martinez, Marinkovic returned with "economic resources to fund mobilizations in various capitals of the regions".

Goldberg has a bad reputation in Bolivia as a "specialist in country separation". Legislators, members of the Executive and social leaders say that the separatist Ambassador who operated in Kosovo as head of the U.S. mission now wants to divide Bolivia and is in league with a landowner and agribusiness minority.

Bolpress.