CHINERS IN BOLIVIA-Scandal clouds Bolivian president's political future | Foreign and Defense Policy Blog » AEIdeas

Published allegations that Bolivian President Evo Morales channeled business to Chinese firms to enrich a former girlfriend have damaged greatly his bid for unlimited reelection. According to polls taken after the lurid disclosures and Morales’ clumsy denials, public support for a constitutional amendment allowing indefinite reelection has been cut in half, suggesting that the proposal will fail by a vote of 2-to-1 in the referendum to be held on Sunday.

Barely a week before the fateful referendum, Bolivian journalist Carlos Valverde revealed Morales’ secret affair with Gabriela Zapata, who was 19 at the beginning of the relationship and has given birth to the president’s illegitimate son. Valverde alleges that Morales used his influence to get Zapata a job with CAMC Engineering, a powerful Chinese corporation operating in Bolivia. Zapata, now 28, is a lawyer with a degree in political science. She is the business manager of the Chinese firm, which enjoys lucrative construction, mining, and engineering contracts awarded by the Bolivian government.

Bolivia’s President Evo Morales speaks during a ceremony to mark 10 years of his administration during a session of congress in La Paz, Bolivia January 22, 2016. REUTERS/Bolivian Presidency.

As Dr. Evan Ellis of the US Army War College explained in a recent paper, Zapata completed her education in 2013 and was hired by CAMC Engineering. Of the $580 million in contracts with the Bolivian government, $366 million “was awarded after Ms. Zapata was hired to represent the company.”

In response to the allegations, Morales admitted to the relationship, but he said that it ended after the couple’s son died in 2007. He denied the allegations of corruption, asserting that the two had not been in contact since their relationship ended. However, photographs later surfaced showing the two together as recently as last year.

CAMC Engineering’s lawyer, Fernando Cortez Flores, also denied the accusations of corruption, but he provided little clarity regarding why Zapata was hired. “In reality, the quantification or measurement of qualifications is not handled by an official here [in Bolivia]; the Chinese are very jealous in this and, like any international company, they must have their own human resource officials,” Cortez said.

Morales also resorted to his frequent claim that the United States is trying to undermine him, blaming the United States for the revelations as an attempt to destabilize the country ahead of the referendum.

China plays a significant role in Bolivia and in Latin America generally. Chinese trade and investment in the region have expanded dramatically in recent years, largely in the fields of infrastructure development, energy exploitation, and mining. Chinese involvement in the region has been a mixed bag to say the least. Although Chinese investment has produced significant revenue and economic growth, Chinese executives are frequently accused of corruption, bribery, and bypassing environmental, labor, and safety regulations.

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