Chills in the MAS | Escalofríos en el MAS

Editorial, El Dia:

More than one in the MAS regime must have felt chills after the separate statements made by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) administrator and the Southern District of New York prosecutor, Damian Williams, who is leading the case against Bolivia’s former anti-narcotics chief, Maximiliano Dávila, recently extradited.

Anne Milgram made it clear that Bolivia is a narco-state, stating that Dávila turned the Bolivian police into a cocaine trafficking machine, not only protecting drug traffickers but also becoming a key player for the cartels operating in our territory. Such an operation cannot happen without high-level political protection.

Milgram declared that no one is untouchable and that they will continue pursuing the corrupt who protect drug traffickers, regardless of their position or location. Many might think she is only referring to Evo Morales, but there is no doubt that the warning also applies to the current government, which strictly follows the coca grower’s policies. Three facts confirm this: Luis Arce refuses to activate the radars to stop planes loaded with drugs; the police and military lack the power and authority to strike at drug sanctuaries (from where they are expelled with kicks); and, what’s more, a light sentence given to a major figure for killing three police officers, who—besides being pardoned—was transferred to the location of his choice, while MAS-aligned justice doesn’t even mention his drug ties. This only happens in a narco-state.

Milgram’s statements, detailing how Dávila operated, prove that the DEA never left Bolivia, that its global reach remains intact, and that it is capable of operating under adverse conditions without cooperation from a government that shields criminals.

Meanwhile, prosecutor Damian Williams—who led the indictment against Mexican drug lord Chapo Guzmán—said Dávila’s arrest and extradition are just the beginning, explicitly signaling the enormous task ahead in Bolivia. Things are now worse than in the 1980s when military dictatorships, especially under Luis García Meza’s regime, turned the country into a massive cocaine factory. This situation led to the approval of strict anti-drug laws and bolstered the fight against drug trafficking, enabling the intervention of various international agencies, including the DEA.

The MAS dismantled the entire structure that had been consolidated, amended laws to benefit the mafias, put foxes in charge of the henhouse, let criminals run the country as they pleased, and flung open the doors to international cartels linked to the governments of Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, and others. We hope Dávila’s extradition is just the first of the government’s actions to set things right. Without that, we will never have justice or democracy.

Leave a comment