Supreme Court of Bolivia Releases Coupmonger Jeanine Áñez From Prison

Bolivian coup leader Jeanine Áñez was released from the Miraflores prison in La Paz on Thursday, November 6, the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) overturned her ten-year prison sentence in the Coup d’État II case.

The judicial decision, approved by a majority vote, concluded that the process violated constitutional guarantees and due process and ordered her immediate release.

Áñez, 58, had been convicted in 2022 of “resolutions contrary to the Constitution” and “breach of duties” after assuming the presidency in November 2019 amid the coup that led to Evo Morales’s forced resignation.

Áñez had said earlier that she had assumed office “knowing full well that at some point there would be a price to pay,” and defended her actions in a context of power vacuum following Morales’s forced resignation, pressured by civic mobilizations, a police rebellion, and pressure from the Armed Forces.

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During her administration, Áñez issued Supreme Decree 4078, which exempted military and police personnel from liability in the Senkata and Sacaba massacres, in which 36 people were killed: events that remain under investigation and continue to be a major point of contention for her administration.

Áñez’s release reopens the political debate in Bolivia over the 2019 crisis and its consequences. While her supporters celebrate the decision as an act of justice, sectors aligned with Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) and human rights organizations warn that the victims of the massacres are still awaiting truth and reparations.

In the coming days, Áñez is scheduled to participate in public events and, according to Bolivian media, attend the inauguration of President-elect Rodrigo Paz, which would mark her return to the political scene after years of silence.

(Telesur)

Translation: Orinoco Tribune

OT/SC/DZ