Letter to Secretary Michael Pompeo - Sanders, Two Dozen Lawmakers Call for OAS Accountability to Ensure Fair Elections in Bolivia

Letter

We are deeply concerned with the lack of accountability and transparency regarding the role of
the Organization of American States (OAS) in last year's election and political crisis in Bolivia.
As the New York Times recently noted, OAS claims of electoral fraud following Bolivia's
October 2019 elections were "seized on" by President Evo Morales's political opponents "to
escalate protests, gather international support, and push Mr. Morales from power with military
support weeks later."
Given that the OAS has been invited to monitor Bolivia's next elections--scheduled for
September 6th and postponed until October 18th--we urge the administration to use its voice at
the OAS to advocate for a thorough, independent assessment of the OAS's statements and
reports regarding Bolivia's 2019 elections.
As you are likely aware, the de facto authorities that seized power following Morales' forced
resignation have promoted a racist, anti-indigenous agenda and deployed the military to violently
repress protests, resulting in the killing and injury of many civilians. OAS Secretary General
Luís Almagro was quick to recognize the unelected president, Jeanine Añez, and has failed to
speak out regarding the deterioration of human rights and persecution of political opponents
taking place under her rule.
A study casting doubt on the OAS claims was featured in a June 7 report in the New York Times.
It concluded, as previous independent analyses have done, that claims by the OAS of an
"inexplicable change" in the trend of the vote count following the October election are based on
an apparently flawed statistical analysis. Instead of responding to this and other critiques of OAS
claims in a meaningful fashion, OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro has engaged in ad
hominem attacks against their authors, as well as an attack on the reporting of the New York
Times, suggesting that it is a purveyor of fake news. The OAS has also refused to answer basic
questions from researchers, media outlets or from Members of Congress regarding its press
statements, the data it used, or how it reached its conclusions.
In February of this year, the government of Mexico, backed by other regional
governments, called on the OAS Secretary General to authorize an independent review of the
OAS electoral department's analysis of Bolivia's 2019 elections as well as an assessment of the
human rights violations reportedly caused by erroneous OAS assertions regarding those
elections. It is our understanding that they have yet to receive a response.
In light of the fact that the OAS has been invited to monitor Bolivia's next presidential election,
it is particularly concerning that Secretary Almagro and his colleagues continue to avoid
answering for statements and actions that may have contributed to the erosion of democracy and
human rights in Bolivia. The U.S. Congress appropriates the majority of the OAS's budget. We
therefore have a responsibility to ensure that American taxpayer dollars are used to support
organizations that function transparently and that uphold democratic norms rather than
undermine them.
The OAS is poised to make a determination of the freedom, fairness, and integrity of the
upcoming elections in Bolivia, even as under the unelected Añez government, various highprofile political opponents--including leading presidential candidate Luis Arce--face dubious
charges that include corruption, terrorism, and sedition. Government critics in the media and
indigenous and trade union leaders have also been detained and threatened, while military force
has been deployed against nonviolent protesters. Despite initially claiming to play merely a
caretaker role during the interim period, Añez has repeatedly delayed elections and reversed her
position in order to run for president herself.
Given this troubling situation, we urge you to use the diplomatic resources of the State
Department to immediately seek a full, independent review of OAS statements and reports
regarding Bolivia's 2019 elections. In addition, our government should work with other OAS
members to ensure that corrective measures are taken to ensure that future OAS electoral
observation missions perform their functions in an independent, impartial and professional
manner.

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