By defending the coca leaf, consumed for centuries in the Andean world and the raw material for cocaine, Morales was able to link his opposition to America’s anti-drug policy with the defense of native cultural tradition and the economic rights of the poor. Thus, Morales’s leadership brought together three strongly symbolic dimensions: nationalist sentiment, concern for the poor, and emerging ethnic pride among Bolivia’s native peoples.
通过为安第斯地区沿用长达几个世纪之久的可卡因原料古柯叶辩护，莫拉莱斯成功地将反对美国禁毒政策与捍卫本国文化传统和穷人的经济权利挂钩。因此，莫拉莱斯的统治是三大标志性领域的成功融合：民族主义情绪、对穷人的关注和玻利维亚人越来越强烈的民族自豪感。