Military Deploys to Santa Cruz as Diesel Blockades Resume in Beni, Oruro

Defense Minister Ernesto Justiniano ordered a preventive military and police deployment to Yapacaní (131 km from Santa Cruz) on the night of Aug 24-25 after campesino sectors threatened blockades over Supreme Decree 5676's diesel price hike, saying the mission was to "prevent blockades, protect the highway and, above all, avoid confrontations." The threat materialized Aug 26: agropecuario producers from Beni's Marbán province began an indefinite blockade of the Santa Cruz-Trinidad highway at the San Pablo bridge, and quinoa producers blocked the Oruro-Potosí highway with a 48-hour ultimatum, both demanding repeal of the decree. It was the first blockade activity since all roadblocks were cleared on Jun 23, ending a two-month lull.