Evo Morales is welcomed to Morochata like an ancient conquering hero.

Leaders from the small potato-farming community, some 50km north-west of Cochabamba in the Bolivian highlands, anoint him with mounds of confetti that cling to his thatch of black hair. Villagers hang garlands of flowers, potatoes, beans and coca leaves around his neck. Crowds throng his route through the town, cheering, setting off home-made fireworks and jostling to be near him.