Former Bolivian President Evo Morales has been discharged from the Los Olivos Clinic in Cochabamba, where he received treatment while fighting COVID-19. He took to Twitter on Sunday to thank the medical workers and staff for their effort.
“I am very grateful to the medical board, staff and workers of the Los Olivos Clinic for the care they gave me and for making my discharge possible,” his tweet reads. “My respect and admiration for them for their dedication and effort.”
In a follow-up post, Morales praised those who expressed concern for their prayers, messages and calls from Bolivia and abroad, adding that this support gave him the “strength to overcome the virus that, unfortunately, affects so many families worldwide.”
61-year old Morales tested positive for COVID-19 last week, local media reported on 13 January, citing a statement from his office. Before that, the politician had denied claims of his illness and accused the right-wing forces of spreading rumours. However, he admitted that he had a cough.
Morales was pressured by the military to flee Bolivia following the violent protests last fall. Opposition lawmaker Jeanine Anez took over as interim president and arranged for a new presidential vote. The election took place on 18 October and resulted in the victory of Luis Arce, a member of Morales' own Movement for Socialism party.
In November, Morales returned to Bolivia, after being in exile in Argentina for almost a year. He reacted to Arce's win by saying that the Bolivian people managed to regain political power via democracy, not a coup, and called the victory a “great triumph of the people.”