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| - Supporters of exiled former Bolivian president Evo Morales began dismantling roadblocks on Thursday after parliament passed a law preventing further postponement of the country's general election, the government said. Demonstrators -- mostly indigenous people and peasants -- had set up 142 roadblocks throughout all nine of Bolivia's departments after the vote was delayed twice. Originally due to take place in May, the election was pushed back to September and then October 18 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Protesters, however, suspected the government was delaying the elections to prevent Luis Arce, who represents Morales's Movement for Socialism (MAS) party, from becoming president. Under the new measure passed by the Senate late Wednesday and ratified by the Chamber of Deputies on Thursday, which still must be formally approved by the federal government, there will be no more delays. Javier Issa, internal affairs deputy minister said there was already "a reduction in roadblocks since the law was passed." Authorities said the roadblocks severely limited the ability of trucks carrying oxygen to reach hospitals where coronavirus patients are in desperate need of treatment. On Wednesday, the health ministry said 31 people had died this week alone of COVID-19 because of a lack of oxygen. Tensions had run high as the United Nations, European Union and Catholic Church called for dialogue and Interior Minister Arturo Murillo warned the country was heading for "a civil war." Last week, Murillo threatened to deploy the military to clear the roadblocks. Both chambers of parliament are controlled by Morales's MAS party, whose candidate Arce has consistently led the polls since his nomination by Morales in January. Conservative interim President Jeanine Anez is polling in third place behind centrist ex-president Carlos Mesa. On Thursday, Issa said there were fewer blockades in the northern Pando and Beni departments, and "almost none" in Santa Cruz in the east. However, he said they remain unmoved in the administrative center of La Paz and Oruro in the west. In El Alto, a satellite town on the outskirts of La Paz and hub of support for Morales, demonstrators maintained their blockades and demanded that Anez resign. The executive as well as top military and police chiefs have accused protesters of "terrorism." And the government accuses Morales and Arce of being behind the roadblocks. Experts believe that Bolivia has not yet reached the peak of its coronavirus outbreak, which is expected in early September. Bolivia has registered more than 95,000 coronavirus cases and 3,800 deaths. The Andean country has been in political crisis since the October 2019 election won by Morales, who subsequently resigned and fled into exile after an Organization of American States audit found evidence of fraud. jac/fj/gm/bc/bfm
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