Bolivia: visit of Foreign Minister Karen Longaric

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

We welcome the presence of Dr. Karen Longaric Rodríguez in this forum, and we likewise welcome the holding of this special meeting of the Permanent Council on the transition process of the Plurinational State of Bolivia.

The Dominican Republic feels great admiration for Bolivia, to which we are bound by close ties of friendship and cooperation, and it is our Government's sincere wish that a path of inclusive political dialogue be followed, respecting the rights of the diverse and hard-working Bolivian people.

Our Delegation wishes to reiterate its recognition of the remarkable work done by the Department of Electoral Cooperation and Observation (DECO) of this Organization in the difficult task of analyzing the past electoral process.

We understand that the conclusions of the electoral observation will be taken into account by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal and that they will serve to improve and strengthen the electoral system for the benefit of Bolivian democracy. We view with optimism the election of the new Supreme Electoral Tribunal in Bolivia and the confirmation of the date for the coming elections. The Dominican Republic hopes that the approaching electoral process will be free and transparent, one in which the participation of all political sectors is guaranteed by the authorities.

Mr. Chair, violence is not the path desired by a society that is now emerging from a political and social upheaval it never deserved. We urge the international community to accompany the Bolivian electoral process in order to ensure the greatest credibility and legitimacy in the election of its authorities and the return to constitutional order.

Mr. Chair, the Dominican Republic wishes to commend the efforts made by this Permanent Council to open a conversation about this upheaval, which has brought to the sister country of Bolivia a serious setback to its calm and its development. We also view with sympathy the fact that the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) is assisting and taking part in clarifying the regrettable events that have brought mourning and pain to many people, most of them from Indigenous Peoples.

Finally, we wish to conclude this statement by calling on all parties to continue, as they have until now, to work to reduce social and political tensions, to use moderate language, to work for social cohesion and to channel any difference within the legal order, always respecting the norms of international law.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.