Peru suspends law after protestors killed in clashes

Enviromine

Publishing Date: 07 Jul 2009 3:22pm GMT
Author: Mining Environmental Management

Legal and Legislation Ecology & Biodiversity

PERU’S government has announced that it will suspend two land-use laws that have led to violent clashes between indigenous people and the police, causing at least 40 fatalities.

The clashes led President Alan Garcia to revise the government’s position on the land laws.

The protestors claim that the laws, which implement a free-trade agreement with the US, could encourage mining companies to prospect for projects in the Amazon jungle and fear they will lose control of their natural resources.

They claim that one of the land laws will free up about 60% of Peru’s Amazon jungle for development, while the other provides a loophole allowing companies to bypass the need for community consent before developing a project.

Protest groups, led by the national indigenous organisation, AIDESEP, have vowed to continue protesting, and called for a national strike and march to congress.