824.00/3203: Telegram
The Chargé in Bolivia (Woodward) to the Secretary of State
[Received 11:55 p.m.]
1165. At his request I talked with Baldivieso on June 1. He said the Cabinet had just gone over the lists of candidates for the elections and that he could tell me definitely that unless there is some very serious upset in the plans of the Provisional Government the maximum number of seats that will be obtained by the MNR in the Constitutional Convention will be 18 (out of 137). He said the Government plans to run its own “independent” candidates against the MNR candidates and the figure of 18 maximum is based on a careful estimate of relative election strength. (José Cuadros principal author of the MNR platform who has been a dissident MNB member in recent months told me at an accidental encounter on June 1 that he would bet me that not more than 20 seats are obtained by the MNR the way things are now going). Baldivieso expressed serious concern lest the election plans of the Government should receive a serious upset by a slowing down of the present trend toward recognition so that it would not come until after elections. (Obviously our Government cannot now be neutral in the elections since recognition before July 2 will definitely assist the Provisional Government while recognition after July 2 will now actively express disapproval of the Provisional Government and in this particular disapproval of them locally for having done everything possible to cooperate in the war effort and with the United States. Villarroel will probably be elected President even though we do not recognize him before elections, although with more difficulty and less prestige, and we would unquestionably receive much less spontaneous and effective cooperation from the elected government if we were to oppose it in the elections).
Baldivieso said that the MNR is conducting a whispering campaign labeling the Provisional Government as dunces for giving such cooperation as the deportation of Axis nationals without being accepted as a recognized government (as the Department knows the German businessmen have not been popularly considered in Bolivia to constitute a danger but rather as accepted members of the community and the deportation on May 18 had almost no popular support).
Baldivieso commented that press censorship has been entirely eliminated with the exception of censorship of International News despatches [Page 463] leaving Bolivia. (Since all foreign press correspondents in La Paz are Bolivian citizens they of course have local political views of their own and are employees of local newspaper owners).
Baldivieso mentioned also that he believes general political amnesty of alleged plotters would probably soon be granted.
In the course of the conversation I commented that I had heard the Argentine Ambassador was leaving. Baldivieso said that Ambassador Gras will probably not return; that he seemed to be very incontestably “disgustado” because he asserted he had received absolutely no cooperation from the Bolivian authorities (my telegram 1160, June 1, 4 p.m.).