Expression
Journalists assaulted and intimidated during elections
On 17th August 2025, violence against the press marked Bolivia’s general elections. The National Press Association (ANP) reported at least twenty assaults on journalists. In Entre Ríos, a town in the central Cochabamba region, a mob attacked Popular Alliance presidential candidate Andrónico Rodríguez as he left the José Carrasco polling station, and the crowd also targeted reporters covering the incident. For example, unknown individuals struck EFE photojournalist Claudio Abrego with a stone, cutting his chin and jaw and bruising his neck; the local outlet IN Noticias later published images of his injuries.
They also hit his colleague, Jorge Abrego, leaving a pronounced bruise on his right arm. In the same location, several people punched Fem Media journalist Carmen Challapa and pulled her hair amid the confusion surrounding Rodríguez’s departure. In La Paz, a police officer followed and harassed radio journalist Emma Bustamante while she covered the vote at a local school, according to the Association of International Press Correspondents (ACPI).
Fact-checkers also faced heightened pressure in the weeks leading up to the October 2025 runoff elections. According to the European Union System for an Enabling Environment (EU SEE), Bolivia Verifica, Chequea Bolivia and independent journalist Joaquín Martela experienced intimidation and online defamation between 27th September and 10th October 2025.
They documented a surge in coordinated online attacks after they verified racist tweets from 2010 linked to Juan Pablo Velasco, the vice-presidential candidate of Alianza Libre. The fact-checking teams confirmed that the posts originated from an account registered to Velasco’s party, triggering smear campaigns, intimidation and legal threats.