Bolivia's Congress calls for vote on constitution

Supporters of Bolivian President Evo Morales shout at an opposition congresswoman outside the National Congress building in La Paz February 28, 2008.

LA PAZ (Reuters) - Bolivian lawmakers, in a hastily held session, voted on Thursday to hold a nationwide referendum on a controversial new constitution being pushed by President Evo Morales.

The vote came as thousands of Morales supporters, including members of indigenous groups and miners, massed outside Congress urging lawmakers to approve the measure.

It effectively signaled the end of two months of talks between Morales and opposition groups who refuse to recognize the proposed charter.

Lawmakers from Morales' Movement to Socialism party voted to hold the referendum May 4.

The leftist leader's plans to overhaul Bolivia's constitution have sparked a protracted political crisis and reignited long-running conflicts between more indigenous Andean regions, the base of Morales' support, and wealthier lowland areas.

The vote in Congress was carried out in less than an hour with little debate and only a few opposition lawmakers present after Morales supporters blocked some from entering the session.

Morales is expected to sign the referendum into law on Friday, Vice President Alvaro Garcia said.

The draft charter, a key Morales project which he says will empower the poor Indian majority, was approved last year amid violent protests and a boycott by the opposition.

Critics who decry the project as a Morales power grab quickly denounced the congressional vote.

"They have approved a declaration that is going to turn Bolivians against each other," said Tito Hoz de Vila, a senator from the conservative Podemos party.

The proposed constitution has led four of the country's nine governors representing Bolivia's wealthiest provinces, home to the country's gas and petroleum, to seek greater autonomy from the central government.

Lawmakers also approved a measure on Thursday scrapping a planned vote by the eastern province of Santa Cruz, a Morales opposition stronghold, to declare autonomy.

The vote in Santa Cruz was originally planned for the same day that new nationwide referendum will be held.

(Reporting by Carlos Quiroga; Writing by Kevin Gray)