Teoponte Guerrilla Explained

Conflict:Teoponte Guerrilla
Partof:Cold War
Date:July 19, 1970–November 1, 1970
Place:Bolivia
Result:Bolivian government victory
Combatant1: Student guerrilla
Commander1:Osvaldo Peredo
Elmo Catalán
Commander2:Alfredo Ovando Candía (Until October 6)
Juan José Torres (From October 6)
Casualties1:67
Osvaldo Peredo exiled
Casualties2:unknown

The Teoponte Guerilla was an armed conflict that occurred in 1970. After the failure of Che Guevara's guerrilla, radical leftists in Bolivia began to organize again to set up guerrilla resistance, but suffered severe persecution that left many incarcerated, dead, or in exile. Despite this, radical university students in Bolivia organized a new insurgency attempt in Teoponte in 1970, trying to overcome mistakes made by Guevara's guerrilla. The participants were mostly Bolivians, but Chileans, Argentines, and Peruvians also partook. The guerrilla, which took form in an expedition into the lowlands starting from the Altiplano, lasted from July 19 to November 1 and saw most of its inexperienced participants die by attacks from the military or from disease. When Salvador Allende assumed office in Chile on November 4, his very first decree was to give asylum to the survivors.[1]

Notes and References

  1. News: A 40 años de la guerrilla de Teoponte . 29 June 2020 . . 18 July 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303214142/http://www.lostiempos.com/diario/actualidad/nacional/20100718/a-40-anos-de-la-guerrilla-de-teoponte_80984_153516.html . 3 March 2016 . Spanish.