Does Indigenous Mainstreaming Work? Mechanisms of Indigenous Interest Representation in Bolivia

Abstract

ABSTRACT Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, Evo Morales (2006–2019) of the Movement toward Socialism (MAS) party, made Indigenous rights the cornerstone of his administration. In his first official act, Morales disbanded the Ministry of Indigenous and First Peoples Affairs under the logic that Indigenous peoples’ demands are to be incorporated into all facets of government, rather than addressed separately. In light of this dynamic, the paper takes up the questions: Does Indigenous mainstreaming work to advance the representation of Indigenous peoples’ interests? And, what are the conditions under which mechanisms of Indigenous representation emerge, succeed, or fail? The paper maps out the institutional architecture that has emerged in Bolivia to advance Indigenous peoples’ descriptive and substantive representation. The study finds that for Indigenous mainstreaming to be effective, it must be accompanied by multiple mechanisms of interest representation, such as reserved seats, executive appointments, and the direct election of Indigenous representatives, to account for the diversity of Indigenous peoples’ representational needs.