Senkata massacre

Bolivia entered into a political crisis following the 20 October 2019, national elections. Opposition protesters denounced the candidacy of President Evo Morales, who was running for a fourth term, and claimed that he was benefiting from electoral fraud. Following a police mutiny, the initial conclusions of an OAS audit of the election, and public urging by the commander of the Armed Forces, Morales resigned on 10 November 2019. Supporters, including Morales' coca grower base in the Chapare region of Cochabamba department, immediately began protests denouncing his ouster as a military coup. Jeanine Áñez was sworn in as interim president on 12 November.

Residents of El Alto opposed to the new government began protest blockades across the city, including at the Senkata plant on 11 November 2019. By 14 November, YPFB reported that it was unable to send gas canisters out of the facility and this was leading to shortages in the municipality of La Paz.[1]

On 15 November 2019, amid continuing protests, violence and shortages in several main cities, Áñez and her cabinet signed a decree to enlist the police and army to pacify the country. This was issued as Supreme Decree 4078 on 15 December. Article 3 of the decree reads, "The personnel of the Armed Forces who participate in operations to restore internal order and public stability will be exempt from criminal liability when, in compliance with their constitutional functions, they acted in legitimate defense or state of necessity, in observance of the principles of legality, absolute necessity and proportionality."[4] The decree was criticised by several human rights groups, including the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the UN Human Rights Commission, who all called for its immediate revocation.[4] Amnesty International described it as "carte blanche" for human rights abuses.

In response to ongoing persecution against Indigenous peoples, including the Sacaba massacre, and the new interim government, communities throughout El Alto had been organizing non-violent blockades. “Protestors included the CSUTCB (Confederación Sindical Única de Trabajadores Campesinos de Bolivia), the National Confederation of Indigenous Rural Women from Bolivia - Bartolina Sisa, and the Túpac Katari Rural Workers Federation”[5]. Historically the Senkata gas plant which belongs to Yacimientos Petrolífos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) has been a central cite for protests due to its strategic location. The plant provides gas to La Paz, as such, blocking the plant prevents trucks from passing through from the La Paz to Alto area. On 14 November protesters began building blockades that delimited both the ability of trucks to leave and the ability of some food and fuel to enter. They also dug trenches in front of the main doors to the plant to prevent trucks from entering. The same day, the interim government ratified Decree 4078 which granted impunity to the armed forces from any violent acts used to “maintain public order”.

As the blockade continued, it began to cause gas shortages and frustration mounted. The interim government said that they would negotiate with the protesters, and protesters demanded that armed forces leave as a condition under which they would end the blockade. On 18 November, there was a town meeting of El Alto neighborhood councils. At the meeting they voted to continue and intensify the blockades[6].

On 18 November the government deployed a caravan of military vehicles and soldiers inside the Senkata plant. The following morning, 19 November, around 8am a military escort arrived to help move 45 gas filled tanker trucks from the plant. Protesters, local residents, shop owners and shoppers were all present. Then between 9 and 11 am, without warning, state forces began firing tear gas at those outside the plant, attempting to break the blockade. Security forces made no attempts to negotiate or warn surrounding individuals. Demonstrators and civilians, including women with children attempted to flee. Those living around the plant who were not part of the protests fled their homes as the gas entered. Witnesses reported seeing dozens of people suffocating on the gas and overall panic[7]. Protesters decided to lift the blockade around 10:30am to let the trucks through. However, repression continued.[8]

After shooting tear gas, at around 10:00am state forces then began to shoot live rounds at demonstrators including those fleeing the demonstrations and those helping the injured. Security forces broke into people’s homes to use their roofs to shoot at civilians. A military helicopter also shot tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition from above. Witnesses report that state forces were targeting people who weren’t participating in the blockades and those who just walking through the area. For example, both Milton Zentero a young university student and 22-year-old Joel Colque were shot as they returned home from school and work respectively[9] . 21-year-old Jose Tenorio Mamani was shot and killed as he was helping the injured. Similarly, Antonio Ronald Quispe Ticona was killed as he tried to shield civilians from bullets shot from the helicopter. He left his home around 1:30pm, and while watching the footage on television, his Uncle identified him as a victim around 4:30pm. Joel Colque was shot around 10:00am suggesting that the shootings began minimally one hour after the tear gassing began. Another victim, Clemente Eloy Mamani Santander was shot between 10 and 10:30 am. Pedro Quisbert Mamani, 37, was shot and killed between 3 and 3:30pm, as was Rudy Cristian Vazquez Condori, 23, who left his house around this time.[10] Many of the victims families reported that they were not participating in the protests but were simply passing through. However, due to the widespread persecution, some families could be afraid of identifying their family members as protesters.

The massacre took place over about 8 hours, from 10 am to 6pm. Witnesses report incidents of shooting at three different intervals between 10:30am and 11:30am, 2:00 and 3:30pm, and 4:30 and 5:00pm. At least eleven people were killed and 72 wounded[11]. The killed include: 1. Deyvid Posto Cusi (34). 2. Antonio Ronald Quispe Ticona (24) 3. Clemente Eloy Mamani Santander (23) 4. Joel Colque Patty (22) 5. Pedro Quisbert Mamani (37) 6. Juan José Tenorio Mamani (23) 7. Rudy Cristian Vazquez Condori (23) 8. Milton David Gironda (24) 9. Edwin Jamachi Paniagua (38) 10. Calixto Huanaco Aguilario (32) 11. Emilio Fernández

During the massacre, security forces also forcibly arrested civilians and drug them into the plant. They also drug at least one wounded or dead person into the plant after the initial tear gassing. Fearing that security forces would disappear the bodies of those killed and wounded, protesters knocked down the wall of the plant. This was met with increased violence from the security forces[12]. The police returned some of the detained individuals to the police station later that night. Victims reported varying responses at the hospitals at which they sought treatment. Some reported good care while others noted that some hospitals turned people away or demanded payment up front, delaying treatment. Police also arrived at the hospital and took some injured away. Some people did not seek medical treatment for fear of repercussions.

The government denied responsibility for the attack arguing that civilians were responsible for the violence. On 19 November, the Defense Minister, Fernando López said that the military intervention was peaceful but protesters were violent. He said that they "were proven to be paid and drunk" and that the military did not shot a weapon.[13]

On 10 March, 2020, the government ratified Supreme Decree 4176 which aimed to "strengthen the culture of social peace, through granting humanitarian social aid to the wounded and relatives of the deceased, as a result of the conflicts in the country between October 21 and November 24, 2019 ”. The decree included a variety of measures, including a payment of 100,000 bolivianos of "humanitarian aid" for those who had been killed. In addition the Servicio de Desarrollo de las Empresas Públicas Productivas (Sedem) was granted a period of 12 months to transfer 500 bolivianos to all who were killed or injured. As of April 2021, of 209 people who had identification numbers and were identified either as victims or relatives of those killed in the Senkata massacre and La Paz violence, only 43 people had picked up their support packets.[pg 458 1]

In January 2021, the government adopted another act intended to support victims and relatives of the deceased. This act included provisions to place individuals in governmental jobs and with corresponding training.

Five former military officers were arrested in July 2021 for their alleged responsibility for the massacre:

• General Iván Inchauste Rioja, General Commander of the Army
• General Luis Fernando Valverde Ferrufino, former director of the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH)
• General Franko Suárez Gonzales, commander of the first mechanized division of the Army
• Colonel Julio Tamayo Rivera, subchief of operations of the Chief Command of the Armed Forces
• General Pablo Guerra Camacho, head of the joint command of the Armed Forces[14]

• Sacaba massacre on November 15, 2019
• Bolivian Gas War — 2003 protests with blockades and deaths at the Senkata plant