TARIJA: A Bolivian court on Monday suspended the opening of the trial of former president Evo Morales, accused of trafficking a minor, after the defendant failed to appear in court, a journalist observed.

The former socialist leader (2006 to 2019) and Bolivia’s first Indigenous president is accused of having maintained a relationship with a 15-year-old girl while in office, with whom he is alleged to have had a daughter.

Morales rejects the accusations and did not appear at the trial that was supposed to open in the southern city of Tarija.

He has been in hiding from an arrest warrant issued in the case in his central Bolivian stronghold of Chapare since late 2024, where his supporters stand ready to resist a police raid targeting the former leader. Morales was declared in contempt of court in January 2025 when he did not show for a pretrial detention hearing.

Luis Ortiz Flores, Tarija’s highest judicial authority, said that this status can prevent a case from opening until the accused appears, except in corruption cases.

Wilfredo Chavez, one of Morales’ lawyers, said that the team would not appear at the hearing as it had not been “properly notified.” The lawyer said the court did not send the summons to Morales’ address but instead served it through an edict — an official notice published in the media.

Judicial authorities in Tarija were set to hold a press conference Monday morning.

Published in Dawn, May 12th, 2026