Bolivia security forces clash with protesters in La Paz

Bolivian security forces fired tear gas in La Paz on Saturday to break up protests by teachers, transport workers and indigenous groups who have blocked roads into the capital for two weeks. The demonstrators are demanding higher wages, economic stability, an end to state-company privatisations, and the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz.

Around 3,500 police and military personnel took part in the operation, which began in the early hours of the morning, according to AFP. The government's Ombudsman Office said at least 57 people had been detained.

Roadblocks and humanitarian crisis

Protesters have cut routes leading to La Paz, preventing food, medicine and other goods from reaching government buildings. Presidential spokesperson Jose Luis Galvez said Saturday's operation aimed to open a humanitarian corridor so that food, medicine and oxygen could be delivered to hospitals in the city. He reported that three people had died in recent days because they could not reach medical facilities.

The government highway administration said routes were blocked in at least 22 locations.

Economic pressures on the government

Paz, a centrist who won the presidency last year, ended two decades of socialist rule in Bolivia. He promised to resolve the country's worst economic crisis in four decades, marked by severe shortages of foreign currency and fuel. He scrapped a two-decade-old fuel subsidy that had been draining the treasury's dollar reserves.

The president faces pressure from all sides as road closures continue and prices for some food items have hit record highs.

On Friday, the government reached an agreement with striking miners who had demanded larger supplies of fuel and explosives for their work, as well as an expansion of the areas where they can operate. Paz's office did not release details of the deal.