Bolivian President Evo Morales on Saturday said the autonomy announced by four eastern provinces is to split the country, according to news from La Paz.
"Under the pretext of autonomy, they (the four provinces) want to split the country, but we are not going to let any one divide Bolivia," Morales told a crowd who gathered to celebrate the parliamentary approval of the new constitution.
A constitutional assembly leader submitted a copy of the new charter to Morales at the rally, which drew hails from the crowd and the president.
"This is a historic day," Morales told the crowd, saying the Bolivian people will never again be "marginalized" and all of them will be integrated into the country.
The four eastern lowland an energy-rich provinces of Santa Cruz, Tarija, Beni and Pando have opposed the new constitution and made separate declarations of autonomy to extend the power of their local governments.
It was not clear that whether the autonomy declarations would be ratified in provincial referendums respectively.
The four, out of the nine provinces that make up Bolivia, are homes to some 35 percent of Bolivia's more than 8.5 million people and contribute to about two-thirds of Bolivia's gross domestic product.
The central government has sent 400 extra policemen to Santa Cruz, the wealthiest province of the country and the stronghold of the opposition provinces, this week to prevent it from going further on its way of seeking autonomy.
The four provinces' move increased tensions between the leftist president and the rightist opposition in Bolivia over a new constitution, which allows the president to run for a second consecutive term and changes in electoral rules for both houses of Congress.
The four provinces strongly opposed the constitution and called themselves victims of the changes, while the president and his supporters said the new charter will boost the power of the poor and the indigenous majority.
Morales earlier ruled out declaring martial law to calm the situation and met European diplomats for a possible mediation.
As the country's first indigenous president, Morales enjoyed support from the poor, indigenous majority that lives primarily in arid Andean highlands.
Source: Xinhua
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