Bolivia’s small-scale mining cooperatives, particularly those in the La Paz region, wield immense political and economic power, enabling them to operate with near impunity. Originally created to support unemployed miners, these cooperatives have morphed into quasi-mafias, often acting as fronts for illegal operations run by Colombian and Chinese financiers. They exploit legal loopholes – such as weak oversight by the Jurisdictional Mining Administrative Authority (AJAM) – to mine in protected areas and avoid taxes. Many operate without environmental licenses, despite controlling 94% of Bolivia’s gold production, and use destructive techniques like massive dredging barges and mercury separation. Their influence has even allowed them to violently oppose government regulation, most notably in 2016 when protesting cooperative miners kidnapped and killed the deputy interior minister.