Economic crisis deepens as thousands of demonstrators demand the president's resignation

Thousands of Bolivian protesters demanded the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz during demonstrations in La Paz on Monday, 18 May 2026, local time. The protests, which ended in clashes, were triggered by an economic crisis and fuel shortages worsened by a shortfall of U.S. dollars and reduced domestic energy production. Bolivia’s state oil company YPFB said that blockades at the Senkata refinery and several roads across the country have sparked the suspension of oil shipments to affected areas. The unrest, which has spread, has blocked roads for almost two weeks and caused shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies nationwide. ‘President Paz should govern, not sow division among us as brothers,’ one demonstrator said. ‘Our brothers are here; even my son, a police officer, is there facing me. That is not what we, indigenous people, want. That is why we tell our brothers, the president: we have given you power, but you have not been able to govern,’ he added. Bolivia’s economic crisis, resulting from a decline in energy production and a shortage of U.S. dollars, is the worst the country has faced in several decades. Fuel shortages have also spread nationwide, following the December 2025 presidential decree ending national fuel subsidies, which has led to petrol prices being much higher.