Rural communities in Bolivia seize oil field

Rural communities in Bolivia demanding the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz seized an oil field in the Santa Cruz region Wednesday, shutting down production. Protesters closed the well valves and erected barriers to slow the advance of the police, with a local leader stating the takeover was nonviolent and decided collectively by Indigenous community members. Police later moved in with riot gear, arresting four people. The oil field action is the latest escalation in a weekslong general strike opposing Paz’s sweeping neoliberal agenda. The unrest began in early May over fuel shortages, rising living costs and austerity measures. Since then, it has left at least five people dead and caused billions of dollars in economic losses. President Paz is proposing a controversial state of exception bill to Bolivia’s Congress to authorize the military to dismantle roadblocks as nationwide protests enter their fifth week.