The Revolutionary Left Party ( es, Partido de la Izquierda Revolucionaria, PIR) was a communist party in

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

. It was founded by Dr.

José Antonio Arze José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...

and other Bolivian intellectuals on 26 July 1940 during a left-wing congress held in Oruro. The PIR was sympathetic to the Communist International, but did not become an affiliate to the International. The PIR began to organize the country's miners, but it did so cautiously for fear that strikes would hinder supplies for the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

during World War II. Except for the pro- Axis Gualberto Villarroel, the PIR generally supported all of Bolivia's war-time presidents to assure the nation remained an Allied power. Because of the party's hesitation to engage in domestic issues, it lost much of its

working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

support to the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement (MNR) and the Revolutionary Workers' Party (POR). In 1950, a section of the PIR membership broke away and founded the Communist Party of Bolivia (PCB). By the 1960s, the PCB had to a large extent replaced the PIR. Following the military coup in 1964, the PIR went underground and disintegrated into warring factions. A reconstituted PIR emerged in the late 1970s as a puppet party of the dictator Hugo Banzer. In 1979, it dissolved into Banzer's new Nationalist Democratic Action (ADN).

References

Sources

*Jerry W. Knudson, ''The Impact of the Catavi Mine Massacre of 1942 on Bolivian Politics and Public Opinion''. In: ''The Americas'', Vol. 26, No. 3 (January 1970), 254-276. *Herbert S. Klein, ''A Concise History of Bolivia'' (Cambridge University Press, 2003). {{Authority control 1940 establishments in Bolivia 1979 disestablishments in Bolivia Communist parties in Bolivia Defunct political parties in Bolivia Political parties disestablished in 1979 Political parties established in 1940