58 CultureShock! Bolivia
maintaining cultural self-esteem. The Cholo and Chola
represent a transition between pure indigenous culture and
a fusion between these cultures and Western impositions.
Congresswoman Loza’s Chola outfi t seems to enhance her
attractiveness. Her voice is soft and graceful, but her words
are braided with steely conviction. I would have liked to ask
about her family and cultural background, but I preferred
to interview a congresswoman and not a charming relic. By
choosing to address national realities rather than picturesque
curiosities, Loza is a symbolic influence in assuring
that Bolivia chooses a path of true diversity rather than
quaint folklore.
Remedios Loza’s potentially bright career as a critic of
neoliberal economics took a downspin when her party,
Condepa, was linked to scandals of corruption, and she
herself was involved in a power struggle over the control
of a TV programme. The fi nal straw was when her party
joined a governmental coalition with an elite party that
espoused the very philosophy that the now defunct Condepa
had opposed.A Chola with her baby—Bolivia modernises but Chola culture is passed from
one generation to another.