LAST week, June 15 2022, the court gave a full reading of the sentence to 10 years in prison to Jeanine Anez and other co-defendants, in the case of Coup d’etat II, for resolutions contrary to the State Constitution and breach of duties in November 2019.

The legal system caught up to Anez and some of her co-defendants and due process has been exercised.  

Even within its limitations, the Bolivian justice system has made an important step with this trial. It is not enough but it is a step forward in the fight against impunity. And the outcome must be defended against the far right that seeks to undermine the verdict, calling for international organisations “to certify that there was no coup.”

No-one has the right to interfere with our legal system — not even imperialists US senators. The Plurinational State of Bolivia is a free and democratic country and our sovereignty should be respected.

We repudiate the far-right coup plotters who continue walking the streets with impunity and intend to destabilise the country again calling paramilitary groups out, supported by Amparo Carvajal, who defends the executioners and not the victims’ human rights. They should be prosecuted alongside Luis Almagro of the OAS for taking part in the November 2019 bloody coup that left more than 38 indigenous people killed, more than 800 injured, disabled and more than 1,500 men, women imprisoned and tortured. Nor do we forget the death of the Argentinian journalist Sebastian Moro.

We also condemn the private media outlets and press that lacks objectivity, misuses freedom of expression amplifying false narratives, fake news.

We praise the courage of sister Lidia Patty, an indigenous woman and former MP who started the legal proceedings and for her staunch fight against impunity. This verdict sets a precedent, so violent seizure of power never happens again. Democracy should prevail, not dictatorship.

Be assured that we will not rest until justice is done, and we will redouble our efforts to demand justice and reparation for all the coup victims and their families.

Miriam Amancay Colque is a longstanding Aymara activist and Bartolina Sisa Resistance spokesperson in Britain.