BOLIVIA'S LIKELY VICTOR PLEDGES COCA CONTROL

Bolivia's likely new president said Tuesday that he would not allow
unlimited production of coca, the crop used to produce cocaine. Evo
Morales called on the U.S. government to enter into an agreement to
"truly" fight drug trafficking.

Morales said coca farmers should have a say in controlling the crop,
but he left unclear how that could be accomplished. Morales, a leftist
former coca grower who campaigned against a U.S.-backed coca
eradication effort, gave few details about how he would fight illegal
trafficking.

The government currently restricts coca production and has tried to
carry out an aggressive, U.S.-funded effort to limit the crop. Morales
said the government would study whether to increase the amount of coca
legally grown for traditional consumption. Current laws permit coca
cultivation in 29,000 acres of the Yungas valley and a small amount in
the Chapare region. For thousands of years, people in the Andes have
chewed coca to stave off hunger, made it into tea or used it as medicine.

Three independent vote counts sponsored by Bolivian news media showed
Morales at or above the majority needed to win Sunday's election
outright. If he falls short, Bolivia's congress would decide the winner.