Bolivia's seven-week political crisis entered a decisive new phase after President Rodrigo Paz declared a state of emergency, parliament ratified the measure with a two-thirds majority in a dramatic overnight session, and security forces began clearing the road blockades that had strangled the country's major cities since early May. Yet, pockets of resistance led by allies of former hard-left president Evo Morales remain in the Cochabamba region.

Paz decreed the state of emergency on June 20, citing nearly 50 days of blockades that had caused the deaths of at least 17 people, acute shortages of food, fuel and medical oxygen across multiple cities, and business losses exceeding $2bn. The decree, published as Supreme Decree 5636, prohibits new blockades and the use of weapons and explosives but does not suspend constitutional rights, and will remain in force for 90 days, though the government said it could be lifted earlier if violence and threats against the population cease.

The Plurinational Legislative Assembly ratified the decree in the early hours of June 22, following a tense overnight session convened at 23:00 the previous evening, a timing that drew criticism from several legislators. The session was marked by procedural disputes and internal divisions, with Vice-President Edmand Lara, a self-described "constructive opponent" of Paz, presiding over the debate despite his personal opposition to the measure. "I do not agree with the state of exception; however, I am obliged to comply with the law," Lara said. He later stepped back from conducting the debate in a moment that observers described as one of the most-commented-on episodes of the crisis. The decisive shift in the vote came when the Libre bloc announced unanimous support, followed by APB Súmate, securing the two-thirds majority required. The session closed with a minute of silence for the more than 20 people who died during the weeks of conflict.

Within hours of the decree, police and military units moved to reopen key highways in western and central Bolivia, clearing barricades and debris from routes including the El Alto-Oruro and Cochabamba-Oruro corridors that had been sealed since May 6. Defence Minister Ernesto Justiniano confirmed that routes connecting Bolivia with Chile and Peru were restored. Hundreds of stranded lorry drivers, some of whom had been unable to move their vehicles for up to 50 days, were able to return home. Fuel tankers began reaching La Paz and El Alto, where queues of vehicles had stretched for kilometres. Hydrocarbons Minister Marcelo Blanco said supply improvements would begin at the Senkata refinery before distribution to petrol stations resumed. "In a peaceful manner, we are managing to get the tankers that were blocked by these people moving again," he said.

The rapid restoration of road access brought visible relief to residents of La Paz. "We are seeing a city that is beginning to recover its calm," said Víctor Hugo Angulo, a 61-year-old cultural worker, speaking to AFP in a street market.

The broader political landscape has also shifted. Paz, a centrist who swept to power in October 2025 ending two decades of socialist rule, reached an agreement with the Central Obrera Boliviana (COB) on June 20, while campesino federation Túpac Katari announced a meeting to assess its position and its members stepped back from the protests. The vast majority of blockade points, which had peaked at over 90 and stood at around 50 before the decree, were reduced to 12 by June 22 — all in Cochabamba, controlled by coca growers loyal to Morales.

Clashes broke out in the small town of Llavini in Cochabamba, where security forces moved to clear a vital highway route as campesinos responded with stones and dynamite. Police deployed tear gas to disperse demonstrators. A lorry driver, Giovany Colque, described the ordeal of remaining stranded under threat: "They threw stones at me and dropped dynamite on my lorry, and last night they threatened to burn it — so we had to sleep in fear."

On the international front, OAS Secretary-General Albert Ramdin voiced support for Paz's government on June 21, after meeting with Foreign Minister Fernando Aramayo in Panama. "We support the constitutionally elected government of Bolivia simply because we cannot support any breach of constitutional order," Ramdin said. The Paz administration has also secured backing from the US, Argentina, Chile, and Ecuador, among others.

Meanwhile, Morales remains holed up in his Chapare stronghold, where he has stayed since 2024 to avoid an arrest warrant for human trafficking involving a minor. From there, he blamed the United States for trying to implicate him in drug trafficking, dismissing the Paz administration as Washington's "useful fool." He said he fears being arrested and handed over to US authorities.