MOSCOW, April 14 (RIA Novosti) - Bolivian President
Evo Morales ended a hunger strike on Tuesday after the
country's parliament passed an electoral law ratifying a date
for general elections in December, according to media reports.
The new legislation was approved after nine hours of
intense debate, with the government promising to allocate $35
million to create biometric voter registration lists, a key
concession to the opposition. It confirms December 6 as the
date for presidential and parliamentary elections.
The president had reportedly not eaten since Thursday, and
had canceled an official visit to Cuba over the standoff.
In January, Bolivians approved a new constitution allowing
the president to seek a second five-year term in December's
elections and giving more power to the country's indigenous
majority.
The new constitution came into effect on February 7.
Opposition parties believe it will give Morales, Bolivia's
first indigenous president, an unfair advantage in the upcoming
elections.
They demanded an updated voter registry, raised arguments
over whether Bolivian expatriates should be able to vote, and
contested the number of seats in Congress that should be
assigned to indigenous groups.
Morales was inaugurated in January 2006 and is expected to
easily win a second term in December's elections, keeping him
in power until 2014.
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