CIVICUS discusses political changes and challenges for civil society in Bolivia as a result of its recent election with María Galindo, activist, philosopher and founding member of the Mujeres Creando feminist collective.

On 20 October, Christian Democratic Party leader Rodrigo Paz won the presidential runoff with 54.5 per cent of the vote, ending two decades of leftist rule by the Movement Towards Socialism. His victory came amid the country’s worst economic crisis in a generation, marked by inflation of close to 25 per cent, shortages of dollars and fuel and long queues for basic goods. Paz’s platform combines market liberalisation, social programmes and conservative positions on gender issues that are causing concern among the women’s rights movement. His lack of a majority in Congress will complicate any attempt at reform.

How was the pre-election landscape?

On the eve of the election, Bolivia was in the throes of a deep crisis that the election alone could not resolve. Economically, the country suffered massive capital flight, particularly from the export sector, and a financial collapse linked to Banco Fassil, which went bankrupt in 2023, left a huge hole in the banking system. On top of this there was a structural fiscal deficit, fuelled by a corruption-ridden and inefficient bureaucracy, and a crisis in the pension system, which faces serious risks due to loans granted to the National Treasury where funds were mismanaged or misappropriated. The state-led development model, based on the creation of public factories, has shown its limits: many of these do not function or make constant losses.

The crisis was equally severe on the political front. The party system has virtually disappeared. Party acronyms have become electoral vehicles with no ideological substance. This weakness is reflected in a low-quality Legislative Assembly, dominated by defectors – politicians who’ve changed parties according to convenience – and figures with no political track record, who’ve gained power through personal connections rather than merit or conviction.

How does Paz propose to address the crisis?

Although Paz has a significant number of parliamentary seats, his programme remains vague. So far, he has not presented a clear roadmap for addressing Bolivia’s structural crisis, marked by corruption, fiscal imbalances and institutional weakness. His victory seems to have been more a vote of rejection of his rival, far-right candidate Tuto Quiroga, than a genuine endorsement of his political project.

However, in Bolivia, any attempt at economic reform must take into account the strength of the social fabric, made up of feminist, Indigenous, neighbourhood and peasant movements and trade unions, with a long tradition of mobilisation and resistance. The government will not be able to impose unilateral measures without facing a strong social response.

How do you assess the government’s positions on women’s rights issues?

The government’s conservative positions contrast sharply with social reality. Women are mobilising strongly. Today, between 50 and 60 per cent of university students are women, and the idea of the patriarchal nuclear family is in crisis.

Gender-based violence is reported daily, and women are challenging the patriarchal order in all areas, particularly outside the state and political parties, which remain deeply violent and exclusionary. Women are increasingly consciously questioning power structures. I call this ‘intuitive feminism’: a transformation that does not depend on institutional discourse but on everyday practices. Today, every woman in Bolivia knows she can work in whatever job she wants, dress as she wishes and decide whether to become a mother, even if she has to do so in hostile and clandestine conditions. The government may have conservative positions, but it cannot reverse a social process that is already rooted in the daily lives of millions of women.

What are the challenges and opportunities for Bolivian civil society?

The new government is essentially a crisis manager. It has neither the economic nor political leeway to undertake profound transformations. It’s made up of a fragile coalition of diverse tendencies without a common vision, and its main objective will be to stay afloat and manage the situation.

However, in this context of institutional paralysis, civil society has a crucial role to play. Community organisations, feminist networks and social movements continue to be the driving force behind social change in Bolivia. Although civic space faces multiple restrictions, people’s capacity to organise and resist remains the main guarantee that demands for equality, justice and transparency will not be silenced.