>>Drugs are explicitly prohibited. I don't know if coca leaves would be prohibited - as opposed to the refined end-product. AFAIK, there is no explicit prohibition against coca leaves.
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>But wouldn't the Coca leaf be considered a drug? If it alters the bodies chemical balance to produce euphoria, I'd think its a drug. Just like a marijuana leaf.

I simply don't know enough to give my opinion on the subject. But, relating to your statement, I think that: a) Drinking a tea from E.Coca doesn't produce euphoria. b) I don't know about chewing E.Coca all day long, but I believe the main effect is not to produce euphoria, but to forget fatigue. Not quite the same, I think.

>Thats interesting. What do these "peasants" do, typically? Farm work and hard labor?

Yes, that's what I meant. Typically poor people, who don't have enough food, for instance. Malnutrition is a serious problem here in Bolivia. So is infant mortality, lack of education, and other "social indicators"...

I just looked "peasant" up in www.britanica.com, and found: "2. a usually uneducated person of low social status". While I might have used "farmer" instead, I think "peasant" is more accurate. This wasn't meant to be derogatory, it just illustrates the actual situation.

Hilmar.