“Evo Morales is one of the world’s most controversial political leaders. His story is extraordinary: poor shepherd-boy, persecuted coca grower, self-professed admirer of Ché Guevara, hero of the anti-globalization movement, and first indigenous president of modern Latin America.

The story of the social movement turned political party he is a part of — the Movimiento Al Socialismo (MAS) — is also exceptional: originally founded as a splinter of an ultra-right party, it was given as a gift for the coca growers after they had been banned several times for spurious reasons to register their own party, and went on to become an irresistible force for indigenous rights in Bolivia.

In this insightful and revealing book, Sven Harten explains the success of the MAS and its wider consequences, showing how Morales has become the symbol for a new political consciousness that has entailed de-stigmatizing indigenous identities.”

Publisher: London, Zed Books, 2011
Call number: 920(84)MOR HEIA 74764

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Illustration (cropped): Constituyente 2006, by A. Davey (CC By 2.0)