Why Bolivia declared state of emergency amid protests? US Defence Chief Pete Hegseth warns ‘United States is watching’

Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz on Saturday announced a state of emergency, granting the military expanded authority to dismantle road blockades that have severely disrupted the supply of fuel and food in the capital and other major cities, as reported by AP.

Over the past five weeks, widespread protests have demanded his resignation in response to government-imposed austerity measures, including the removal of fuel subsidies and other economic reforms. The unrest has led to violent clashes between protesters, some reportedly using dynamite, and riot police. Authorities say the violence has resulted in at least 365 arrests and 37 injuries.

At least 17 people have died, most of them linked to a lack of medical care caused by transportation disruptions, according to Bolivia’s ombudsman’s office and human rights organisations.

Barricades erected on key roads have effectively isolated the city of La Paz, triggering fuel and food shortages, paralysing transportation and preventing patients from reaching hospitals — causing at least seven deaths for lack of medical attention, the government says, as reported by AP.

“This is not a state of emergency to restrict people’s lives. It is a state of emergency to give people back their freedom,” the president said in a televised address to the nation. As the protests dragged on, many businesses shut down, supermarket shelves were left bare, and hospitals reported shortages of oxygen supplies. Amid the worsening situation, some sections of society called on President Paz to use force to restore order.

On Friday night, Paz reached an agreement with one of the labour unions, whose leaders urged that the road blockades be lifted. However, other groups of protesters have continued to demand his resignation and have refused to enter into negotiations.

Paz said that the state of emergency is intended to guarantee fuel supplies, which have become increasingly scarce as roadblocks have left tanker trucks stranded.

The decree prohibits “blocking streets, avenues, roads and highways in ways that affect transportation and supplies,” and orders the armed forces to temporarily support the police “in restoring order, reopening roads and protecting the population.” The state of emergency doesn't limit due process rights or constitutional guarantees and allows people to continue their daily activities, according to the decree, AP reported.

The state of emergency will last 90 days, but could be lifted earlier if “violence and threats against the population come to an end,” the government said in a statement.

Paz came to power in November, ending almost 20 years of uninterrupted rule by Bolivia’s Movement Toward Socialism party, or MAS, which delivered the country's worst economic crisis in a generation. A centrist who triumphed over more conservative candidates, Paz promised to resolve chronic fuel shortages and replenish the central bank's almost-empty coffers, while protecting the social welfare that represented a pillar of MAS' popularity.

But his austerity measures, most significantly the elimination of long-standing fuel subsidies, have exacerbated biting inflation. His government fixed fuel shortages, but with poor-quality gasoline that damaged thousands of vehicles. Reforms to encourage foreign investment and stimulate economic growth have stalled in Congress.

The highland Indigenous and rural workers' groups — who long supported MAS but helped vault Paz to power last year — have led the protests, accusing his government of neglecting their needs since entering office.

He faces rising pressure from both Bolivia's hard-right, which dominates Congress, and long-ruling left. Former President Evo Morales has supported the protests and demanded a new election from his hideout in the coca-growing tropics, where he is evading an arrest warrant on charges related to statutory rape.

The Trump administration has backed Paz, who repaired relations with the U.S. after years of anti-Western hostility in Bolivia under Morales.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Paz to inform him last week that Washington was “ramping up emergency assistance and logistics operations support” to help alleviate shortages caused by the blockades.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth denounced the protests as “attempts to overthrow the legitimate government,” and issued a stark warning to those who he said were “profiting on death and destruction in our hemisphere.”

“The United States is watching,” he wrote on X.

Morales, in turn, has expressed support for the protest movement, called for early elections, and described the demonstrations as opposition to Paz’s economic reforms. In an exclusive interview with Reuters this week, he rejected allegations that he was behind the unrest, arguing instead that the “indigenous rebellion” was rooted in economic hardship.

The U.S. "strongly supports" Paz's decision "to restore order and ensure the free flow of food, medicine, and essential supplies to the Bolivian people," a State Department official said on Saturday, as reported by Reuters.

(With inputs from agencies)