Bolivia’s attorney general separately designated, rejects U.S. action as interference
The State Department announced the new visa policy on Monday as part of the Trump administration’s effort to expand U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere. Several of those targeted under the measure have ties to previous left-wing governments or movements in the four countries.
Of the 21 Bolivians targeted, the State Department said 12 had their visas revoked and nine who did not possess visas were rendered generally ineligible to receive them. Two Colombians had their visas revoked, including Sen. Martha Peralta Epieyu of the former coalition government of President Gustavo Petro, who had a contentious relationship with Trump and had accused him of murdering a Colombian fisherman in a U.S. strike on a vessel alleged to be carrying drugs in the Caribbean.
Peralta said she learned of the revocation through media reports and had received neither official notice nor an explanation. She said she had faced accusations from various sectors and attacks online, and urged that unproven claims about her not be treated as fact. She called on the Colombian Foreign Ministry to seek clarification from Washington.
“I will continue to carry out my work with tranquility, facing the country and with respect for the institutions,” she said online.
In a separate announcement, Pigott said the State Department was designating Bolivia’s attorney general, Roger Mariaca, “for his involvement in significant corruption.” Pigott accused Mariaca of abusing his public positions “by soliciting and accepting bribes to facilitate narcotrafficking” and helping “violent criminals evade justice.” The department did not provide evidence, according to UPI.
“His actions endanger President Trump’s efforts to combat narcoterrorism while undermining the very democratic institutions Bolivia, as a Shield participant, is working to strengthen,” Pigott said, referring to the U.S.-led Shield of the Americas multinational security initiative launched in March.
Mariaca rejected the U.S. action as interference with Bolivia’s prosecutorial independence, suggesting the visa ban may be an attempt to influence the prosecution of Fernando Cerimedo, an Argentine political consultant with ties to Trump’s political circle who is under investigation in connection with the August shooting of his former partner, political analyst Nadia Beller.
“This attorney general is not here to please individuals, business groups or political leaders,” Mariaca said Monday during a press conference. “He is here to uphold the Constitution and the law and to fulfill his responsibility to all Bolivian citizens.”