No, I’m not trying to explain the political situation at Santa Cruz airport – I mean the real thing. There are reports that it was thrown at a house near the Venezuelan Consulate in Santa Cruz.
My first reaction was: why? But not why dynamite, but why Venezuelan?
Venezuela and Bolivia normally get on so well together – and that’s the problem, their presidents get on well together, and since Santa Cruz is trying to gain some degree autonomy from the Bolivian Government, it would to put Venezuela on the wrong side.
Readers who are not so familiar with Bolivia may be wondering where the dynamite came from. The truth is, that it is not very difficult to buy – as I myself have witnessed, as have most visitors to Potosí that have been on or even inside the cerro rico.
Here there are small stalls selling essentials for the minors inside, and visitors often buy items from the stalls to give to the minors in exchange for them explaining their work. These can be coca leaves, sticks of dynamite, fuses or even a black potato-based mixture that acts as a catalyst on the coca leaves and increases their effectiveness against the effects of the altitude.
So it came as no surprise to hear that dynamite was readily available – but it is the first time that I have heard of it being used in this way. Protests in Bolivia are not uncommon, but the advice to travellers was always just to accept them and any associated delays, and not to try and pass roadblocks or demonstrations.
With explosives involved, these protests may have just taken on a whole new, unfortunate, dimension.
