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Peru declares emergency in confrontation with natives
LIMA
Petroleumworld.com, Aug 19, 2008Peru's government declared a state of emergency Monday in areas where indigenous groups opposed to development in the Amazon basin have occupied oil installations and a hydroeletric plant for ten days.
The decision was taken because "violent acts in certain Amazon localities put security at risk," according to an official decree.
The state of emergency, which lasts 30 days, covers the eastern provinces of Bagua, Utcubamba and Datem del Maranon and the southern district of Echarate.
On Sunday, clashes between 800 demonstrators and police in Bagua left at least four people injured.
Members of the indigenous community have occupied the hydrolectric plant in Bagua and disrupted gas production in the southern Cusco region as part of their protest against government laws opening up the Amazon basin to development.
Negotiations with 65 indigenous groups taking part in the protest broke down earlier after the government refused to revoke the laws, which the natives say trample their territorial rights in favor of mining, forestry and oil companies.
The natives say the industrial plans will force them to migrate from their tribal land.
In all, about 12,000 indigenous people are taking part in the nationwide protest against development programs in the Amazon basin, where economists estimate 3.5 billion dollars worth of timber and forestry products are locked in a 92,000-square-kilometer (35,500-square-mile) region -- the size of Taiwan.
Story from AFP
AFP 181729 GMT 08 08Copyright© 2008 respective author or news agency. All rights reserved.
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