Morales, the son of a peasant farmer, vowed that his socialist government would reshape Bolivia. He criticized free-market economic prescriptions supported by the United States and international donors, saying they had failed to end chronic poverty.
''The neoliberal economic model has run out," said Morales, an Aymara Indian.
Thousands of Aymara, Quechua, and other Indians attended, many wearing the varied styles of hats imposed on them when Bolivia was a Spanish colony hundreds of years ago. They stood alongside miners, students, and leftist sympathizers waving Cuban and Venezuelan flags on the cobblestone plaza outside the colonial-era Congress building. Cuba and Venezuela are Morales's two chief allies.
''Power is in the hands of the Bolivian people for the first time," said Walter Villarro, among 2,000 miners who turned out dressed in their trademark helmets and black leather jackets.
Morales compared decades of discrimination against Indians to apartheid, saying ''Bolivia seems like South Africa" as he recounted how, decades ago, Indians were barred from entering the plaza.
He said he plans to bring Bolivia's vast natural gas reserves under more state control, and call a constitutional assembly to answer Indian demands for a greater share of power at all levels of society.
But Morales said his government would rule ''with all and for all" and would not seek revenge for past injustices. He also reiterated promises to respect and protect private property.
Part of a broader Latin American tilt to the left, Morales has left many guessing whether he will maintain free-market policies or take a more radical path.
