The truth is as simple as can be: the friendly fire between current President Luis Arce, struggling to deal with the current recession, and former President Evo Morales, determined to take back power, can only favor the forces that want to see a coup happen. And while the surprise coup attempt by the now-former commander of the armed forces, Gen. Juan José Zúñiga, was thwarted quickly and relatively painlessly (with at least 12 wounded), it nevertheless sounded a troubling wake-up call for Bolivia’s still-fragile democracy.

It was clear that something was amiss from Zúñiga’s controversial statements right before the coup, who said on Tuesday that if Morales ran for president in 2025, the armed forces would proceed to arrest him. “That man cannot return to the presidency of the country. He is legally prohibited. According to the Constitution, he cannot serve more than two terms, and he has already been elected three times. The armed forces have a mission to enforce the Constitution.”

This serious act of political interference was immediately condemned by the........

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