Bolivia: Police Attack Protesters Carrying Coffins of Killed

Supporters of ousted Bolivian leader Evo Morales marched into the capital La Paz on Thursday carrying coffins of people killed in clashes with the military and police, condemning the coup d'etat and drawing attention to the human cost of the crisis gripping the South American nation.

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Security forces fired tear gas to disperse the crowds according to eyewitnesses and local media.

Roadblocks were reported in at least seven Bolivian departments including La Paz, Oruro, Beni, Santa Cruz, Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Potosi.

Protesters rejecting the coup government of Jeannine Añez maintain their main focus in the Senkata area, on the Oruro-La Paz highway, to prevent the transfer of fuel to La Paz from the state-run Bolivian Oil Fields (YPFB) plant located there.

The Ministry of Defense issued a statement on Wednesday night in which it accused supporters of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) of surrounding fuel facilities.

At least 29 people have been killed in clashes since he resigned on Nov. 10 under pressure from the military and the opposition.

Morales, who has been granted asylum in Mexico, reiterated Tuesday the need for an international "truth commission" in order to dispel the lies woven by the coup plotters to justify the de facto government and its crimes.

In his first tweets this Thursday, Morales said that "We are going to form a Truth Commission with international personalities to verify whether there really was fraud," in reference to the elections of October 20. 'We had access to two technical reports from serious and renowned institutions that show we won in the first round," he added.

Human Rights Watch called on Bolivia to repeal a decree it said was passed on Nov. 15 that granted the military broad discretion in the use of force.