La Paz, November 11 (RHC)-- Residents of the city of El Alto, in the department of La Paz, took to the streets Monday to protest against the coup d'etat that forced the resignation of Evo Morales. They were met with violent police repression, in which security forces are reportedly using live ammunition and rubber bullets.
"After the first day of the civic-political-police coup, rebellious police use bullets to cause deaths and injuries in El Alto. My solidarity with those innocent victims, among them a girl, and the heroic alter people, defender of democracy," Morales said from his Twitter account Monday.
According to videos posted by residents of El Alto on social media networks, among the injured are two people and a girl who were shot and evacuated by protesters. Protesters denounce that the Bolivian police joined the coup against Morales, with the support of the now ex-commander of the Yuri Calderón institution.
"The first thing we have to do is organize groups in all cities, we will proceed with arrests to grab all those who are causing problems, and take back the city," Calderón said when he resigned.
Trade unions and social movements have come out against the coup and said that they refuse to recognize Evo Morales' resignation as it was forced on him by the military after weeks of right-wing violent protests and attacks.
Earlier in the day, Morales condemned right-wing opposition leaders Carlos Mesa and Lusi Camacho for failing to stop the violence in the country and warning that they intend to blame him for such violence instead of taking responsibility following the coup against his constitutional government.
"Mesa and Camacho, discriminators and conspirators, will go down in history as racists and coup plotters," Morales said in a tweet early Monday morning. "They must assume their responsibility to pacify the country and guarantee the political stability and peaceful coexistence of our people. The world and Bolivian patriots repudiate the coup."