David versus Goliath in Cochabamba: Water Rights, Neoliberalism, and the Revival of Social Protest in Bolivia

Data obtained via archival research & visits in 2000 to Cochabamba, Bolivia, are drawn on to analyze the 1999-2000 water war, which had erupted in protest to Law 2029 on Potable Water & Sanitary Drainage. Resistance to the law resulted in its revocation merely 5 months after being passed, which was cited as a victory for small, local, community forces against the power of transnational capitalism & neoliberal policies. The debate over Law 2029 & control over local water resources is summarized, & reasons why Cochabamba emerged as the central protest site are explored. The water war was unique in that it (1) represented the triumph of popular protest movements following years of suppression & resistance to structural adjustment policies, & (2) involved new forms of mobilization, particularly as a result of the actions of the transnational Aguas del Tunari Consortium. 15 References. K. Hyatt Stewart