Correcting a historical error: the bolivian defense for the cultural and medicinal use of the coca leaf

Abstract

The arrival of the MAS-IPSP to the presidency in 2006 marked a breaking point regarding the participation and presence of Bolivia in multilateral spheres, in this sense, the principle of autonomy of the new foreign policy marked a break with the US government on strategies to address the fight against drugs and the eradication of the coca leaf.  In this regard, the government of Evo Morales implemented a paradigm shift in the fight against drugs with the implementation of new strategies to combat drug trafficking and the diplomatic consolidation of the coca leaf to begin the defense of traditional chewing, the consumption and use of the coca leaf for cultural, commercial and medicinal purposes. Today, more than ten years after Bolivia's re-accession to The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, Bolivian diplomacy began the process of reviewing the classification of the coca leaf as a narcotic drug in list 1 of the 1961 Convention, the same as It must be accompanied by a more aggressive strategy in the media, academic spaces, multilateral forums and with the consolidation of new alliances with other countries and international organizations.