Morales took the opportunity to demand the release of the imprisoned blockaders.     Photo: RTP Bolivia

La Paz, November 5 (RHC)-- Evo Morales has called for a temporary suspension of blockades pending a national dialogue.  In a press conference held Tuesday afternoon, the former president dismissed the responsibility of the blockaders in the fuel shortage in the country.

"Yesterday, after repeated insistence on our part, we managed to get the Government to accept the essential points to advance in the dialogue," announced the former president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, regarding his request for a recess or temporary suspension of the blockades. Even so, he indicated that they have not received a clear response from the Executive.

«In these difficult times for our country, due to violent repression, we are forced to express to the Bolivian people the lack of clear responses from the national government», he denounced in his speech.

Evo Morales took the opportunity to demand the release of the imprisoned blockaders: «We propose the immediate release of those detained unjustly and illegally, who are presented as war trophies, stripped of their rights to pretend state strength».

"We denounce that through judicial, police and military persecution, they seek to punish the people by exhibiting social fighters as if they were criminals, without respecting the right to due process and judicial guarantees", said Morales, and immediately raised the need to have such guarantees for national and departmental leaders, as well as for the technical team.

He also called for the establishment of dialogue tables, "prioritizing the economic-social" and the political aspect, "with the accompaniment of international organizations," he said verbatim.

"It is necessary to point out that we disclaim our responsibility for any fuel shortage situation because the gasoline and diesel import routes were never subject to nor do they register blockades," continued the former president, who recalled that the people remember the shortage experienced two years ago.

"The truth must be known.  The Government does not import fuel because it does not have the means to pay for it and that is a management problem, not a problem of social protests," said the leader, who ended with a call to the Unity Pact and the People's General Staff to declare a recess of road blockades, while waiting for the national dialogue proposed by the Government to take place.

"My colleagues know that we have always put life and human dignity first and today is no exception," he said as justification for his request.