Author: Joseph Geidel
Editors: Leah Cohen, Marissa Heuser, Yura Yokoyama
[Photo Credit: urosr, Shutterstock]
For nearly 12,000 years, the region of South America now known as Bolivia has been continuously occupied by indigenous peoples. The very history of Bolivia is one of native ancestry. Since their arrival, native Bolivians have gone through many great cultural, political, sociological, and environmental changes. They have been kings and servants, oppressed and liberated. The story of the indigenous peoples who occupy Bolivia is extremely unique when compared to the rest of the Americas. Those who claim some Amerindian ancestry comprise 88 percent of the population [CIA], making Bolivia arguably the only indigenous American nation to ever exist in our time.
To further understand what makes native Bolivians who they are, one must step back and analyze where they come from…
Pre-Columbian Period
[Photo Credit: Paulo Afonso]
Around the year 10,000 BCE, the first peoples, who became the indigenous Bolivians, arrived in the region surrounding the great lake, Titicaca. Among the first great changes endured by the natives was the biological adaptation to high altitude, as lake Titicaca rests as high as 12,500 feet above sea level [World Atlas]! As time progressed, the natives learned to domesticate crops, such as the potato, between the years 8,000 and 5,000 BCE.
By 1 CE, the distinct native Bolivian people groups which still persist to this day were thriving. These peoples are the Aymara, Quechua, and Uru [World Atlas].
Around the year 300 CE, native Bolivians, as well as those who inhabited what is now Peru and Chile, confederated into the Tiwanaku Empire [Kästle]. The Tiwanaku Empire made great discoveries and advancements, particularly in architecture. However, like all great empires, the Tiwanaku Empire fell around 1150. The absence of a unifying empire would not last long as the Inca Empire came to be around 1438. According to Darrell E. La Lone of Harvard University, Incan society was feudal and socialist. The Inca Empire flourished until 1524, when the outsiders arrived [La Lone].
Contact & Independence
[Photo Credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Creación_de_Bolivia_Sucre1825.jpg]
The Conquistadors of the Spanish Empire arrived in the Inca Empire in 1524. Among the Spaniards was Francisco Pizarro, a man tasked to discover the legendary land of gold. During his expedition, Pizarro came to learn about how the Inca Empire operated. When Pizarro finally made contact with Incan Emperor Atahualpa, he observed that he was weak and inexperienced [Kästle]. This can be attributed to the unexpected death of his father, thrusting him into a role he was largely unprepared for. Pizarro saw Atahualpa as an opportunity to gain control, and proceed to utilize him as an imprisoned puppet, until ultimately having no further use for him leading to his execution by strangulation on July 26th, 1533.
What then ensued was complete Spanish domination in Bolivia for nearly 300 years [Kästle].
During this occupation, native Bolivians were treated as indentured servants for the Spanish Empire and were forced to cultivate crops and labor in harsh conditions.
Finally, in 1825, the Bolivian people declared independence from Spanish oppression [Catholic].
Liberation & Morales
[Photo Credit: Dario Kenner]
Since independence, the indigenous peoples of Bolivia have largely existed in a state of poverty, inflicted upon them by the Spanish. Although the Spanish were now technically gone, those who were directly descended from the Spanish, European-Bolivians, were now in charge. These leaders continued to completely neglect the struggles of the native Bolivians, until it became politically dangerous to do.
In 1993, Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, a European-Bolivian, was democratically elected President of Bolivia, establishing a neo-liberal regime which sought to transform Bolivia into a capitalist manufacturing power [Kästle]. His public policies met strong disapproval from the native peoples. Amongst these policies was the privatization of the country’s natural resources, mainly water and gas. The latter, enraged the native peoples so much so that in 2003, President Sánchez de Lozada was forced to go into hiding in the United States.
A key figure who mobilized opposition was a Aymara native, Evo Morales. Morales became the most influential standard bearer for the rights of the indigenous people. In 2005, though the support of the indigenous community, Morales sought the Presidency of Bolivia and won [The Guardian].
President Evo Morales & The 2016 Referendum
[Photo Credit: Martin Alipaz]
Morales has since gone on to serve as the President of Bolivia for over ten years. During his time in office he has successfully fostered a growing economy which has largely benefited the native population. However, as time has progressed, President Morales has received backlash for stifling dissent and perceived corruption. Although he won reelection in 2014 with 61 precent of the vote, his popularity has taken a turn for the worse in recent years [The Guardian]. While support for Morales remains high amongst the native population for now, European-Bolivians do not view him as favorable. With this slow shift in public opinion, many groups are beginning to question their support of Morales, compelling the ‘Movement for Socialism’ to fight for their President [TeleSUR].
Their first challenge was to extend Morales’ power by eliminating Presidential term limits. In order to accomplish this task, a referendum was held to amend the constitution. While the results were expected to be close, nobody believed that Morales would lose. However, the unthinkable happened. Morales lost, with 51 percent of the vote rejecting the elimination of Presidential term limits [The Guardian].
With this blow, Morales is set to leave the Presidency of Bolivia in 2019, even though the ‘Movement for Socialism’ has stated that they will find a way to run their candidate again.
2019 will be a major year in Bolivian history. Will the continued mistrust of the Morales government lead to the election of a President of an oppositional political party? Will the next President be of native origin? These are extremely important questions.
The future of the indigenous population of Bolivia is uncertain. How will the next decade play out? Will prosperity continue or decline? We cannot know for sure. However, one thing is apparent. The native Bolivian people have inherited one of the most beautiful and peculiar countries on the face of this Earth.
Questions:
Who are the three main native groups which inhabit Bolivia?
Answer: Aymara, Quechua, and Uru
Who had Inca Emperor Atahualpa executed?
Answer: Francisco Pizarro
What year did Bolivia become independent from the Spanish Empire?
Answer: 1825
What year is President Evo Morales set to leave office?
Answer: 2019
References:
“The World Factbook: BOLIVIA.” Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency,
12 Jan. 2017. Web. 26 Feb. 2017.
“South America/.” World Atlas – Maps, Geography, Travel. N.p., 12 July 2016. Web. 26 Feb. 2017.
Tilley, Dan. “Climate Change.” The Bolivia Information Forum. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2017.
“Evo Morales | World News.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2017.
La Lone, Darrell E. “The Inca as a Nonmarket Economy: Supply on Command versus Supply and Demand,” p. 292.
Md-AE-mk, TeleSUR /., Kelly Lytle Hernandez, Arshad M. Khan, Rick Sterling, Belén Fernández, and Arnold August. “Bolivia Sets Date For Referendum On Evo Morales Re-election.” News | TeleSUR English. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.
“Bolivia.” CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Bolivia. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.
Kästle, Klaus. “History of Bolivia.” History of Bolivia – Key Figures in Bolivia’s History. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.