The Government of Venezuela warned this Saturday about the “selective” use of the Justice system in Bolivia as a “tool for political confrontation” following the detention of former President Luis Arce, (2006-2019).
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“Venezuela warns about the selective use of the judicial apparatus as a tool for political confrontation, a practice that has been repeated in Latin America under schemes of lawfare, and that seriously damages the credibility of Bolivian institutions, distorts democracy and deepens social polarization,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement published on Telegram.
The Bolivarian government expressed its “deep concern” for the detention of Arce and sent a message of accompaniment and “active” solidarity with the “brotherly Bolivian people.”
El Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela expresa su profunda y categórica preocupación por la detención arbitraria del expresidente del Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia, Luis Arce Catacora.
Condenamos enérgicamente esta acción que atenta contra el Estado de Derecho y la voluntad… pic.twitter.com/B0UkSMJ8qW— Perdomo.Juventud (@JuventudPe28841) December 13, 2025
On Friday, Arce was transferred to the San Pedro prison in La Paz, where he must serve five months of preventive detention for his alleged responsibilities within an investigation for mismanagement of a fund for indigenous projects when he was Minister of Economy in the Government of Evo Morales (2006-2019).
The Public Prosecutor’s Office charged Arce with “breach of duties and uneconomical conduct” because, according to that entity, when he was Minister of Economy he authorized disbursements of resources from the Indigenous Native Peasant and Agricultural Development Fund (Fondioc) for projects that were not executed or were carried out partially.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, there were “more than 3,500 projects” financed by the Ministry of Economy, of which “not even half have been completed” and it was also evidenced “that there were disbursements to private accounts of leaders” of indigenous and peasant organizations.
In this regard, Arce assured that, as minister, he did not participate in meetings of the Fondioc board, but that he designated a representative through resolutions of his portfolio and that this instance also had delegates from other ministries and institutions.
Since leaving the Presidency of Bolivia on November 8, Arce dedicated himself to teaching economics at the state-owned Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA), a job he did not stop doing while he was in government.
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