Evo Morales reappears in Bolivia after weeks-long absence

After almost seven weeks away, Evo Morales returned to his political stronghold in the tropics, endorsing candidates for upcoming regional elections and seeking to quiet rumours he had fled following the US seizure of his ally, Venezuela’s ex-president Nicolás Maduro.

Footage released by the coca growers’ union outlet Radio Kawsachun Coca showed Morales smiling in dark sunglasses as he arrived by tractor at a stadium in Chimoré to address supporters. He has spent the past year in the remote Chapare region evading an arrest warrant on human trafficking charges, a situation that highlighted how little the country knows about events in that area and how susceptible it is to fears about US president Donald Trump’s potential future actions abroad.

Morales said he had contracted chikungunya, a mosquito-borne illness that causes fever and severe joint pain, and suffered complications that "caught me by surprise." He urged people to "take care of yourselves against chikungunya — it is serious," and appeared frailer than in past appearances.

Bolivia, Chimoré, Chapare

evo morales, chimoré, chapare, radio kawsachun, coca growers, regional elections, nicolás maduro, human trafficking, chikungunya, arrest warrant