Information on a farmers' group called Indio Tupac Catari [BOL14028]

As discussed by telephone, information on a group named Indio Tupac Catari could not be found among the sources currently available to the DIRB, but please find attached some articles reporting on two prominent groups with a similar name.

The Movimiento Revolucionario Túpaj Katari de Liberación (MRTKL) was founded by Victor Hugo C rdenas, a professor who has reportedly been pushing for vindication of native tongues, bilingual education and the right to vote of indigenous people (Andean Commission of Jurists Mar. 1993, 2). The group is named after an Aymara anti-colonial hero. The first word of the movement's name is spelled "Túpak" by some sources and the name is translated in different ways, such as Revolutionary Tupak Katari Liberation Movement. As indicated in the attached articles, the MRTKL has formed an electoral alliance with the Movimiento Nacionalista Revolucionario (MNR) for the upcoming general elections, due to take place in June 1993. The attached reports indicate that the MNR-MRTKL coalition is considered a favourite for winning the elections.

The Ejército Guerrillero Túpak Katari (Tupak Katari Guerrilla Army, EGTK) is an armed rebel group that has claimed responsibility for various attacks, although as indicated in the attachments, a significant number of its members were recently captured.

A political group that has registered for the 1993 elections is the National Katarist Movement, or MKN (the original name in Spanish could not be found among the sources currently available to the DIRB). The group, led by Fernando Untoja, changed from its original name, Katarist Liberation Movement (MKL), after "an action carried out by the Nationalist Revolutionary Movement" (Television Nacional Network 2 Apr. 1993), which has formed a coalition with the MRTKL.

In addition to the attached articles, some recent documents providing background on coca growers in Bolivia are being forwarded to you separately.

References


Andean Commission of Jurists. March 1993. Andean Newsletter [Lima]. No. 76. "Different Strokes."

Television Nacional Network [La Paz, in Spanish]. 2 April 1993. "Katarist Liberation Movement Changes Name." (FBIS-LAT-93-062 2 Apr. 1993, p. 18)

Attachments

Andean Commission of Jurists. March 1993. Andean Newsletter [Lima]. No. 76. "Different Strokes," p. 2.

_____. February 1993. Andean Newsletter [Lima]. No. 75. "Uprising in Women's Prison," pp. 1-2.

_____. July 1992. Andean Newsletter [Lima]. No. 68. "Tupac Katari Offensive," pp. 1-2.

_____. May 1992. Andean Newsletter [Lima]. No. 66. "Túpak Katari Guerrilla Army Leaders Captured," p. 1.

Latin American Newsletters. 17 December 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Andean Group Report. "Strange Bedfellows for 1993 Elections." London: Latin American Newsletters, pp. 6-7.

Presencia [La Paz, in Spanish]. 5 April 1993. "Candidate Sanchez de Losada Details Government Program." (FBIS-LAT-93-070 14 Apr. 1993, pp. 24-25)

Radio Fides Network [La Paz, in Spanish]. 17 April 1993. "Independent Polls Show MNR Leading for June Elections." (FBIS-LAT-93-074 20 Apr. 1993, p. 27)

_____. 8 April 1993. "Fourteen Political Groups Register for General Election." (FBIS-LAT-93-067 9 Apr. 1993, p. 5)

_____. 14 December 1992. "Tupac Katari Chief Named Vice Presidential Candidate." (FBIS-LAT-92-241 15 December 1992, p. 16)

Television Nacional Network [La Paz, in Spanish]. 2 April 1993. "Katarist Liberation Movement Changes Name." (FBIS-LAT-93-062 2 Apr. 1993, p. 18)

Waltraud Queiser Morales. 1992. "Militarising the Drug War in Bolivia," Third World Quarterly [Surrey, UK]. Vol. 13, No. 2. pp. 360-362, 368-369.