Thousands chew coca in Bolivia protest

LA PAZ, Bolivia Thousands have taken to the streets in Bolivia to chew coca leaf in support of the country's bid to remove an international prohibition on the age-old practice. The chief target of Wednesday's peaceful protest was the U.S. Embassy. Coca is a mild stimulant of high religious and social value in the Andes. It fights hunger and alleviates altitude sickness. But it is also the raw material of coc aine. Washington last week formally objected to Bolivia's proposal to remove a prohibition on coca chewing from the international Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. Bolivia's U.N. Ambassador Pablo Solon says that Bolivia does not seek to remove coca from a list of controlled substances. Read more: www.tri-cityherald.com...

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Full support from me about this protest ..decriminalize the nature !

Where the hell was my invite?!! oh but wait, the US said u better not! i say happy chewing Bolivia!

I'll repost what I said on my thread that I started not knowing this one was here ...

I fully understand the need to be rid of destructive drugs that enter the United States. BUT ... The UN and the United States are DEAD WRONG in this case. Coca plants in Boliva are a part of the life style of the country. The plant has medicinal properties that are needed, especially for those living at high altitudes. The coca plant stimulates blood oxygenation properties. It has vitamins and alkaloids. The altitude of some of the cities there .. like La Paz .. is exceptionally high and difficult to deal with.

The plant helps with altitude sickness and headaches. Bolivia has cities very high in the mountains (The La Paz airport is the highest in the world .. More than 2 miles high) without a lot of oxygen and with very difficult breathing. (And Bolivia has cities very low with thick oxygen in a rainforest atmosphere - Like Santa Cruz)

If the United States REALLY wanted to stop the drug problem in the USA, they'd put up a massive border fence along the Mexican border to stop the drug runners. That would be a better use of resources then bothering the very poor people of Bolivia who want to grow some plants in their yards, and who are just looking for relief from altitude sickness or illness, etc.

I fully understand wanting to destroy fields and fields of poppys on the other side of the planet because the drugs from those poppys eventually get to the USA and cause problems ... I fully understand trying to get those farmers to grow food instead because the population there goes hungry. But that is a different case then what is happening in Bolivia.

14 years ago I spent a month in Bolivia in Santa Cruz. We landed at the La Paz airport and the pilot had to keep the oxygen running on the airplane as people got off and got on. The bags of peanuts and potato chips all expanded and looked like they were going to explode from the air pressure change up there. They stayed puffed up until we took off again and everything got back to normal. We couldn't even breate if we walked to the front of the airplane because the air got thin from the open cabin door. Later .. my husband had to go to La Paz for 3 days to get paperwork done for the adoption we were going through. Walking was very difficult for him. Even Bolivians who go to La Paz need oxygen ... the hotels have oxygen available on room service like you'd get a sandwich on room service here in the USA.

The Coca leaves help with oxygen in the blood supply. There is coca tea in Bolivia that helps with this and with the stomach sickness that comes from that kind of situation. I had some coca tea while I was there. It didn't help me, but I did try it. (and no .. I didn't get 'high' or get a buzz or anything like that). Anyways, even the locals need it when they go through the different altitude changes there. La Paz is one of the capitols of the country ... (yes, it has more than one!!) and lots of gov't work has to be done at that high altitude. Also, the llama farmers have to go up and down the mountains with their llamas to move them in the pastures.

Anyways .. IMHO the USA and the UN are wrong and the people of Bolivia actually need the coca leaves. If they want to try to control export .. I don't care. But leave the people of Bolivia alone and let them have their coca tea

Originally posted by FlyersFan
I'll repost what I said on my thread that I started not knowing this one was here ...

I fully understand the need to be rid of destructive drugs that enter the United States. BUT ... The UN and the United States are DEAD WRONG in this case. Coca plants in Boliva are a part of the life style of the country. The plant has medicinal properties that are needed, especially for those living at high altitudes. The coca plant stimulates blood oxygenation properties. It has vitamins and alkaloids. The altitude of some of the cities there .. like La Paz .. is exceptionally high and difficult to deal with.

The plant helps with altitude sickness and headaches. Bolivia has cities very high in the mountains (The La Paz airport is the highest in the world .. More than 2 miles high) without a lot of oxygen and with very difficult breathing. (And Bolivia has cities very low with thick oxygen in a rainforest atmosphere - Like Santa Cruz)

If the United States REALLY wanted to stop the drug problem in the USA, they'd put up a massive border fence along the Mexican border to stop the drug runners. That would be a better use of resources then bothering the very poor people of Bolivia who want to grow some plants in their yards, and who are just looking for relief from altitude sickness or illness, etc.

I fully understand wanting to destroy fields and fields of poppys on the other side of the planet because the drugs from those poppys eventually get to the USA and cause problems ... I fully understand trying to get those farmers to grow food instead because the population there goes hungry. But that is a different case then what is happening in Bolivia.

14 years ago I spent a month in Bolivia in Santa Cruz. We landed at the La Paz airport and the pilot had to keep the oxygen running on the airplane as people got off and got on. The bags of peanuts and potato chips all expanded and looked like they were going to explode from the air pressure change up there. They stayed puffed up until we took off again and everything got back to normal. We couldn't even breate if we walked to the front of the airplane because the air got thin from the open cabin door. Later .. my husband had to go to La Paz for 3 days to get paperwork done for the adoption we were going through. Walking was very difficult for him. Even Bolivians who go to La Paz need oxygen ... the hotels have oxygen available on room service like you'd get a sandwich on room service here in the USA.

The Coca leaves help with oxygen in the blood supply. There is coca tea in Bolivia that helps with this and with the stomach sickness that comes from that kind of situation. I had some coca tea while I was there. It didn't help me, but I did try it. (and no .. I didn't get 'high' or get a buzz or anything like that). Anyways, even the locals need it when they go through the different altitude changes there. La Paz is one of the capitols of the country ... (yes, it has more than one!!) and lots of gov't work has to be done at that high altitude. Also, the llama farmers have to go up and down the mountains with their llamas to move them in the pastures.

Anyways .. IMHO the USA and the UN are wrong and the people of Bolivia actually need the coca leaves. If they want to try to control export .. I don't care. But leave the people of Bolivia alone and let them have their coca tea

....and the congregation said.....AMEN! You had me at "If the United States REALLY wanted to stop the drug problem in the USA, they'd put up a massive border fence along the Mexican border to stop the drug runners."