Dancing to save coca in Bolivia

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Tia Tomasa is a woman of an explosive nature but of absolute candor, says journalist Carlos Quisbert, who recently interviewed her. The “Yungueños,” who grow 18,000 of the 22,000 permitted coca hectares, have just regained control of the Adepcoca market in La Paz, which had been dominated for 2 weeks by a group close to the government with the support of the police.

The clashes were violent and lasted up to 3 hours a day, but between rocks, small explosives and tear gas, it was precisely Tía Tomasa who drew attention to the situation.

Adepcoca is more than a market. In Bolivia, 90% of the legal coca production flows in sacks through this compound in La Paz. It was founded 3 generations ago by traditional coca producers and is now recovered by Tía Tomasa and over 40,000 other members.

Its only competition is the Cochabamba market, controlled by Chapare farmers, whose main outlet is the black market. Photojournalist Freddy Barragán tells the story, although it is an open secret: “Almost 80%” of what is produced in the Chapare is for drug trafficking.

On the other hand, Adepcoca generates more than a legal US$174 million a year and, despite being a private entity, politics has for years been interfering and trying to control it.

The conflict erupted in late September, when a group of growers aligned with the ruling party – the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) of former coca grower Evo Morales – took over the building under police guardianship and installed a new president, Arnold Alanez. Some 30,000 people protested and besieged the market.

The flags are as always a statement of intent. Tía Tomasa is waving the tricolor flag, but not because it is the official Bolivian flag. It has also become a reaction against the Wiphala, the multicolored indigenous symbol that the MAS socialists have converted into vindication.

The attempts of some leaders to avoid mixing the coca growers’ conflict with politics were in vain. In the streets, the exchange of power in Adepcoca is seen as a struggle between MAS supporters and detractors. The paradox is that historically it was the people of the Yungas themselves who supported Evo Morales, until his policies favored the people of Chapare and the Cochabamba market, where the ex-president is from.

Some have interpreted Tía Tomasa’s gestures as provocation. She blows kisses at the police. She dances in front of them. She tells them she loves them. She resists turning away when they threaten to shoot her. She is 48 years old and has no fear.

She is a coca grower in the Arapata region, although she could well be Adepcoca’s new leader. Now that the people of the Yungas have regained their headquarters, they have expelled Alanez and formed an electoral committee to decide on a new president. Recent popularity supports her; Tía Tomasa is now a symbol and some members support her potential candidacy.

The coca leaf trade “is linked to drug trafficking,” Quisbert explains. Data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) place illegal plantations at over 7,000 hectares. In addition, the legal markets produce a surplus.

Buyers for traditional and pharmacological uses represent a small demand compared to supply. The final destination of the surplus is unknown, although everything suggests that it ends up with the cocaine-producing cartels.

Quisbert states the evidence: “Where else could it go?”

The masses are with Tomasa Medina, whom they affectionately call aunt. The honesty of her messages and the courage to stand up to the police have inadvertently made her a leader. Thanks to her messages, more women have dared to go out with her to defend the coca growers and promise to organize themselves into a self-defense committee. They also want to have power in Adepcoca.