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Extradite Ex President Says Bolivia
La Paz - The Bolivian government intensifies
its actions to extradite ex President Gonzalo
Sanchez de Lozada (2002-2003), accused in this
capital of genocide, but now living in the United
States, an official source reported on Monday.
According to Vice minister for Coordination with
Social Movements, Sacha Llorenti, a delegation led
by Presidential Minister Juan Ramon Quintana will
travel to Washington to present a demand to the US
authorities.
Quintana will meet with the Justice Department,
which is in charge of the procedures for extraditing
the ex president, who should answer for police
repression against a demonstration, resulting in 60
deaths and more than 40 wounded, he said.
Llorenti said the Bolivian delegation's visit to the
United States is also the result of the visit to La
Paz by US government representatives, led by Thomas
Shannon.
The Foreign Ministry sent in November, 2008 the
demand to extradite the ex president and two of his
ministers, Carlos Berzain (Defense) and Jorge
Berindoague (Hydrocarbons), who fled with him to the
United States.
October, 2003 is remembered as one of the dark
periods in the recent history of the Andean nation,
caused by the project to export gas to the United
States through Chilean ports, a country from which
Bolivia is demanding access to the Pacific Ocean,
lost after the war in late 20th century.
The government initiative unleashed a frontal
opposition by union and leftwing organizations that
led to a wave of anti-government protests and
actions that the military repressed, during which
more than 65 people died.
Then President Sanchez de Lozada resigned his post
on October 17, 2003, fled the country and went into
self proclaimed exile in the United States, where he
has lived since that date.
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