Bolivia legislators agree to put draft constitution before voters

Bolivian legislators on Tuesday agreed to schedule a national referendum on their country’s controversial draft constitution, a major victory for leftist President Evo Morales in this deeply divided nation. ‘There is no going back from this process of change,’ said a jubilant, teary Morales, addressing thousands of supporters gathered in the Plaza Murillo in downtown La Paz. The new constitution provides autonomy for indigenous groups and clears the way for more socialist measures by a president who has already moved to nationalize the nation’s energy and telecommunications sectors. Morales, however, reportedly agreed to modify several of the constitution’s more incendiary sections, including those governing land reform and the authority of indigenous courts, which would augment the government judiciary.