A new report takes a look at the state of Cochabamba, Bolivia’s water seven years after thousands of residents took to the streets protesting the takeover of their city water system by a subsidiary of the U.S. corporate giant, Bechtel.
On April 10, 2000, Bechtel officials finally fled the city and the water system was returned to public control. The Cochabamba Water Revolt soon became a global legend – but without much followup. What has the uprising really meant for the people and their thirst for clean, affordable water.
American NGO The Democracy Center was on the scene in 2000, and has remained at the heart of the water struggle ever since. The centre’s new briefing paper is an unvarnished look at events since April 2000. The paper is an excerpt from a chapter on the Water Revolt, in the Center’s forthcoming book: Dignity and Defiance – Stories from Bolivia’s Challenge to Globalization.
The paper can be downloaded here.