El Alto: A History of Anti-Neoliberal Struggle
March 7, 2023
“El Alto on his feet, never on his knees!” is a slogan that reflects the combative character of the inhabitants of this indigenous Aymara city in Bolivia, which since 2003, has shaped the country’s history. This city led the uprising against the privatization of natural resources in 2003, and then the defense of democracy in the face of the 2019 coup. Both struggles resulted in numerous massacres against those of El Alto who stood up to defend the country.
Located at more than 4,000 meters above sea level, it mostly comprises migrants from rural areas between La Paz and the Peruvian border. It has a population of close to 1.5 million, making it one of the largest cities in the country and a motor of economic growth. Most importantly, the city has a level of social organization and mobilization, rooted in neighborhood councils (FEJUVE) and labor unions (COR), that is able to flex its muscles to defend national interests and make its local demands known.
In many ways, the entire city is a product of neoliberalism, it’s only 38 years old and exploded in population as miners and campesinos migrated there en masse following the impoverishment of their own regions that followed the introduction of neoliberalism in the early 80s.
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In 2003, the neoliberal regime killed more than 67 protesters in El Alto and left more than 400 wounded by gunshot. During that struggle, the people of El Alto shut down the city by erecting barricades across almost every street, the aim was to stop the sale of Bolivian gas to Chile, the central gas plant was located in El Alto, so this was an effective measure.
More:
https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/el-alto-a-history-of-anti-neoliberal-struggle/
