Leaflet with president Evo Morales and coca leaves ( Erythroxylum coca ) at an event to celebrate Bolivia rejoining the 1961 UN Convention , La Paz , Bolivia
Bolivia withdrew from the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs in June 2011 saying it was discriminatory. The government (president Evo Morales is a former coca grower and still holds his position as leader of the country's coca grower unions) led a campaign asking the UN to remove language that bans the chewing of coca leaf. As well as international diplomatic efforts the campaign featured marches, mass coca chewing events and trade fairs promoting alternative products based on the coca leaf (these are popular in the country but cannot currently be exported). On 10th February 2013 Bolivia officially rejoined the Convention having obtained special dispensations that recognised the traditional use of the leaf in the country. Events were held across the country to celebrate.