CRS: Fighting in eastern Congo pushes refugees into Rwanda
|
Peru peasants to restart strike, threaten protests
15 Jun 2004 17:43:24 GMT
|
LIMA, Peru, June 15 (Reuters) - Peasants in southern Peru whose protests led to the lynching of their mayor in April will launch fresh anti-government strikes on Wednesday against the new provisional mayor and to demand more investment in the impoverished region, a community leader said. The peasants, most of whom are Aymara Indians, in the Andean border town of Ilave ended almost two months of unrest in May after the government agreed to hold new municipal elections in September or October and work to solve community grievances. But community leader Mariano Encinas said on Tuesday that dialogue had broken down and that the peasants -- who killed Ilave mayor Cirilo Robles, blocked roads and took municipal leaders hostage during the unrest -- will start an indefinite strike and are deciding whether to hold protests. The town's provisional mayor Ramon Arias is "incapable," Encinas told RPP radio, without elaborating. "Tomorrow we will begin a peaceful, indefinite strike. If the government does not listen to us, our protest will need to become fiercer," Encinas said. "The government's attitude and the decision to install a local representative without discussing it has caused us to break off dialogue. The government tricked us," Encinas added. Interior Minister Javier Reategui denied in a statement that dialogue had collapsed and said it was continuing in Lima. The ministry declined to comment on the situation in Ilave. Thousands of Aymaras from Ilave and outlying towns led weeks of protests in April to demand Robles' resignation, accusing him of embezzling public funds. The protests culminated in a riot in which Robles was beaten to death. Violent protests continued into May as many Aymaras opposed the new mayor who replaced Robles and called for the release of jailed officials accused of organizing Robles' killing. The government considered declaring a state of emergency in Ilave, 825 miles (1,330 km) south of Lima, near Lake Titicaca, and sent in hundreds of police and soldiers to keep order. The government agreed to withdraw the security forces after the Aymaras ended their protests, but Encinas said not all police and soldiers had been pulled out "and that worries us." Residents said they wanted a return to normality as the long period of unrest left Ilave without basic services such as drinking water and a working sewage system, while many children were been unable to attend school.
|
|
|
Reset