Eight South American leaders met in Chile Monday for an emergency summit on the crisis in Bolivia. Bolivian President Evo Morales accused right-wing opposition governors of trying to stage a violent coup to topple his democratically elected government. On Friday, martial law was declared in the Bolivian province of Pando after up to thirty peasant supporters of Morales were killed by Peruvian and Brazilian mercenaries hired by the local governor. Morales accused the opposition of committing crimes against humanity.

Evo Morales: “It is important for some groups to listen to the feelings of South America, of its presidents, that call to return the institutions of the state taken over by some violent people in some cities. We hope that those groups respect human rights. We hope that those that called for independence and separation under the pretext of autonomy work toward the unity of all Bolivians.”

At the emergency summit, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet voiced support for Bolivia’s government.

Michelle Bachelet: “We (South American leaders) declare that our respective governments energetically reject and will not recognize any situation that implies a civil coup, a break in institutional order, or anything that compromises the territorial integrity of the Republic of Bolivia.”

Several Bolivian governors — with apparent backing from the United States — have rejected Morales’ efforts to rewrite Bolivia’s constitution, to break up big land holdings, to give parcels to poor Bolivian Indians and to redistribute the country’s revenues from lucrative gas fields. On Sunday, US Ambassador Philip Goldberg left Bolivia after being expelled by the Bolivian government. Morales accused Goldberg of inflaming the protests and helping the opposition.