Bolivia: ex-president Jeanine Añez continues her hunger strike in prison

The former interim president of Bolivia Jeanine Añez on March 13, 2021. AP - Juan Karita

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2 mins

Thirteenth day of hunger strike for Jeanine Añez from the prison where she is in preventive detention.

The former Bolivian interim president is currently protesting against her detention and the trial against her for having seized power in November 2019, without respecting the Constitution according to the charges.

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With our correspondent in La Paz

,

Alice Campaignolle

Last Friday groups of demonstrators outside the Miraflores prison in La Paz prevented the transfer of Jeanine Añez to the hospital, calling her a “murderer”, in reference to the bloody repression of the protests

during his tenure.

The lawyers of the former interim president denounce serious violations of her rights, they claim in particular that they were unable to communicate with their client for several days.

The detainee herself said at an interim release hearing on Sunday that she was the victim of "

torture

".

 While I am on a hunger strike, instructions have been given to keep all the doors in this part of the prison open, so that I can smell all the smells that come from the kitchen.

In my opinion, Judge, that is psychological torture 

, ”she said during the hearing.

His trial opened

on February 10

with two charges: the resolutions contrary to the Constitution and the non-respect of his duties.

An ordinary trial against Jeanine Añez, tried for having acceded to the presidential chair without respecting the procedure imposed by the Constitution, after the departure of Evo Morales in 2019.

Human Rights Watch

has

expressed concern about the difficulty for the state to enforce a court order aimed at protecting the health of a detainee.

Indeed nothing has really been put in place to allow the transfer of the former interim president to the hospital, a transfer ordered by a judge in view of the degraded state of health of the detainee.

Today, Jeanine Añez is still in detention.

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  • Bolivia