HRF succeeds in UN petition: Bolivia condemned for arbitrary detention of democratically elected governor

NEW YORK (March 31, 2025) — The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) welcomes the decision of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) ruling that the arrest of Santa Cruz Gov. Luis Fernando Camacho in Bolivia was arbitrary and in violation of international law.

HRF submitted the petition on behalf of Camacho in February 2023. The UNWGAD called on the Bolivian hybrid authoritarian regime to immediately release Camacho, provide compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law, order an independent government investigation of the circumstances that led to the detention, and adopt the appropriate measures against those responsible for this human rights violation.

“The Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) regime has ruled Bolivia for nearly two decades, steadily eroding democratic institutions — a decline that culminated in blatant electoral fraud in 2019. Camacho was one of the leading voices denouncing this fraud, and for his courage, he was singled out and targeted by an increasingly vindictive government,” HRF Chief Legal Officer Javier El-Hage said. “This decision should make clear to the international community the true nature of Bolivia’s regime — one that tolerates no dissent and seeks to indefinitely extend its grip on power as the 2025 elections approach.”  

Camacho led nationwide nonviolent demonstrations against the electoral fraud perpetrated by the MAS’ authoritarian government in Bolivia’s 2019 general election, leading to the resignation of then-President Evo Morales. Morales ignored a 2016 referendum in which Bolivians rejected his bid for indefinite re-election and placed himself on the 2019 ballot. Following his resignation, a transitional government, led by opposition leader and current political prisoner Jeanine Áñez, oversaw new elections in 2020. Camacho founded a new political party, CREEMOS, and ran unsuccessfully for president but was elected governor of Santa Cruz in the 2021 regional and gubernatorial elections.

Luis Arce, Morales’ successor, reclaimed the presidency and congress for MAS in the 2020 election. Since then, Arce has intensified the crackdown on the opposition, targeting high-profile figures such as Gov.  Camacho, former President Jeanine Áñez, and Camacho’s presidential running mate, indigenous leader Marco Pumari, with baseless charges of terrorism and coup-plotting. All three remain imprisoned, and civil society organizations put the number of political prisoners at least at 173 in the entire country.

On Dec.  28, 2022, Camacho was violently arrested in a military-style operation by over 40 government agents who were dressed in plain clothes. He was taken without a warrant and transferred to the Chonchocoro prison, a maximum-security facility, where he is still held. The government claims his detention is linked to the so-called “Coup d’État I” case but has provided no evidence that the former governor attempted or participated in a coup d’état. In reality, Camacho is being held without trial on politically motivated charges of terrorism.

Since his arrest, Camacho’s pretrial detention has been extended more than five times. The governor’s life is in imminent danger, as he suffers from an illness that requires special treatment, yet the Arce government has restricted Camacho’s access to medicine and treatment.

In its decision, the UNWGAD found that Camacho’s detention was tied to his role in peaceful protests following the fraudulent 2019 election.

“Mr. Camacho’s detention is arbitrary because it violated the principle of equality among human beings, as it was motivated by his political opinion as a leader,” the opinion stated, concluding that he was persecuted for his activism.

Additionally, the UNWGAD found that Camacho was denied the right to defend himself, as he was not informed of the reasons for his arrest at the time of his detention. The working group also determined there was no legal justification for his pretrial detention and that he was denied the right to a fair trial. It cited remarks by President Arce in an interview with Brazilian newspaper Folha de S. Paulo in which he publicly prejudged Camacho’s guilt, violating his right to the presumption of innocence.

The opinion also raised concerns over Bolivia’s Constitutional Court decision to remove Camacho from office and replace him with the vice governor, a MAS ally, under the pretext that he was absent from his duties — despite his ongoing political imprisonment.

HRF urges the international community to hold the Bolivian regime accountable and to stand in solidarity with Luis Fernando Camacho and all prisoners of conscience.