Human rights in Peru; a murky situation made worse by misinformation

The status of human rights in Peru has become a touchy topic in recent weeks following the issuance of decrees allowing a series of presidential decrees that allow greater leeway to arrest protesters.

President Alan Garcia’s approval rating has shrunk in recent months as inflation has eaten away at Peruvian buying power. Costs for staples such as chicken and bread have surged despite efforts to cut taxes on food imports. It’s a touchy topic for the president given the state he left he country in at the end of his first administration.

The unrest has led to some protesting but there are fears wider disruptions may occur during two major summits being held in Peru this year - one of European and Latin American leaders in May, and the other in November for Pacific Rim countries.

Critics of the president have insisted the decree make it easier for the military to arrest protesters is just a way to clamp down on unrest for the sake of the summits. Yet there are growing concerns in Peru that Venezuela’s leftist leader, Hugo Chavez, is working to bolster the disturbances.

Over the past few months, there have been numerous reports that Chavez is continuing to work behind the scenes in Peru to foment unrest by supporting protests, financing left-wing groups and using Bolivia as a training camp for radical leftists.

Peruvians are still living with the legacy of a two-decade-long Maoist insurgency that caused the death of nearly 70,000 people, and lead to atrocities on the part of both the leftists and the government. The latter including Garcia’s first administration.

It’s a complicated situation that has been muddied further by clumsy coverage on the part of the most vaunted of US newspapers – the Wall Street Journal – whose reporter, Mary Anastasia O’Grady has penned several articles from Lima.

Rick Vecchio, editor of The Peruvian Times and longtime reporter for the AP in Peru, blasted the article as, at the very least, ‘misinformed’ and pointed out it hinged solely on an interview with a congressman who is part of ex-President Alberto Fujimori’s congressional bloc... the ex-president currently on trial for, you guessed it, human rights abuses.

The lawmaker – and the newspaper – essentially accused one of the major human rights NGO’s in Peru of fostering terrorism, a NGO that pushed vehemently for the extradition of Fujimori in recent years.

Much of the US-based media has been overly infatuated with the Venezuelan leader’s doings on the continent and consistently insist that every liberal candidate that wins an election is part of a “pink shift” on the continent.

Which isn’t to say Chavez hasn’t been active in various roles. In 2006, he openly backed the ultra-nationalist candidate in Peru’s presidential election, Ollanta Humalla, and is believed to have offered financial backing to him. Many in Peru cited that as one of the many reasons for Garcia’s eventual election.

Alan Garcia and Peru - The state of things one year in

Peru's President Alan Garcia marked his first anniversary in office with a traditional 'state of the union' speech before the country's legislature this weekend.

The keynote of the address was a renewed commitment to help Peru's poor - almost 44 percent of the country's 28 million residents live in poverty. He set a goal of reducing that total to one third of Peruvians by the end of his term in 2011 through increased public investment and building low-cost housing for 1.2 million. (Critics pointed out that Garcia was very vague on how he plans to achieve these goals)

The speech a precarious time for the beleaguered leader. He has struggled with a wave of public protests in recent weeks and witnessed his approval rating plunge precipitously.

(And they didn't leave anything to chance during the Independence Day activities. Security was at an inordinately high level with many police and no public on the streets in key areas. "Everything was very aseptic, very cold, very perfect," reported the El Comercio newspaper.)

Following his hard-fought election last year, Garcia has emerged as one of Washington's strongest allies in Latin America - an alternative to Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and a possible future trade partner.

The Peruvian economy has been expanding by a healthy 8 percent annually, driven primarily by metals prices. In his speech, Garcia has pledged to continue to support that growth by fostering $20 billion in private investment in manufacturing, mining, gas and electricity and providing $5 billion in public spending on infrastructure, Bloomberg reported.

That's a dramatic difference from 1985 when Garcia first took the reigns of office touting classic populist policies - subsidized food programs, price freezes and an embargo on foreign debt.

Many in Peru recall that Garcia's policies in the mid-1980s allowed his government to function relatively well for the first two years of his presidency but, it was an effort to stem the dip in public perception that prompted him to take a radical action in 1987 - nationalization of the banking system. The subsequent fallout led to an economic collapse.

The event he chose to make the announcement? His second 'state of the union' speech.


Find out more about Peru, South America and my varied interests over on Klephblog.

Technorati Tags: Peru, Alan Garcia, Fiestas Patrias

Peru Teachers Strike - The Uneasy Aftermath

The 15-day teachers strike that sparked protests across Peru ended last Thursday when the teachers union, SUTEP, agreed to return to work and begin discussions with the government.

The strike began on July 5 when Peru’s congress passed a law that requires Peruvian teachers to pass a basic competency test. The union, which represents the country's 350,000 educators, claims the law is a means to undermine its political power by allowing the government to fire teachers at will.

The government and the union have agreed to begin talks to mediate the dispute and classes are expected to resume on July 30, the first day following the country's Independence Day holiday. Although SUTEP leaders in some regions, particularly in the south of the country, have vowed to continue the strike and protests.

What is clearer is that the resolution of the strike has revealed a division in the leadership of the union - notably between the SUTEP Secretary General, Luis Muñoz, and Robert Huaynalaya, who leads the more radical faction of the group.

After the announcement of the end of the strike, Huaynalaya held a press conference blasting Muñoz as a traitor and claiming he and the more than half the teachers in the union who support him will continue to oppose the new law.

Several authorities have alleged that the protests - particularly those in rural highland areas - were acerbated by insurgent groups, including the remains of the Sendero Luminoso terrorist organization. The accusation is that the more extreme leftist leaders of the unions were in collaboration with the communist insurgents to organize protests in rural areas.

A poll taken during the strike by Apoyo indicated that almost 3/4 of Peruvians disagreed with the union and believe the law will lead to better teachers. Almost 60 percent of those polled believed the protests were organized by extremist groups working subversively.

The government also estimates that more than 15,000 tourists have canceled their planned trips to Peru due to concerns about the strikes and protests. Typically July is the busiest season for foreign visitors.


Find out more about Peru, South America and my varied interests over on Klephblog.

Technorati Tags: Peru, teacher, protests, strike, SUTEP

Peru protests begin to take their toll

Almost two weeks of protests, demonstrations and strikes have begun to take their toll in Peru as various groups accuse the country’s President, Alan Garcia, of reneging on his campaign pledges and say social development and working conditions have not improved, despite Peru's booming economic growth.

A recent poll conducted by Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú found that Garcia’s approval rating dropped to 35 percent – down 16 points from the month prior and a full 60 percent from when he took office a year ago.

The disruptions began a week ago when the country’s teacher’s union, SUTEP, walked out in protest of a new law that requires teachers to pass a job-competency test. The teachers allege the law will allow the government to dismiss teachers at will, allowing them to undermine the hold of the leftist-leaning union.

The government has balked at discussions with the teacher’s groups until they return to teaching classes. But, in the meantime, the demonstrations have spread.

The teacher’s protest was joined by a massive demonstration by farm workers who oppose the government’s efforts to establish various free trade agreements. One man, a farm laborer, was killed and dozens were injured when several hundred protesters clashed with police in Andahuaylas earlier this week in southern Peru. (This youtube video may be of that event)

The disruptions have reached the point that the US Department of State has issued a warning for travelers to the country. The announcement does take pains to note that the demonstrations in the country have not directly threatened Americans or American interests in Peru.


Find out more about Peru, South America and my varied interests over on Klephblog.

Technorati Tags: Peru, Alan Garcia, strikes, protests, SUTEP

Evo Morales and the nationalization of the Bolivian railways

In another move to further extend government control over his country, Bolivia’s leader Evo Morales announced this week that he would nationalize the country’s railroad systems.

Currently, Bolivia’s railroad network extends nearly 4,300 kilometers. But rather than a single unified network, it consists of two separate systems. The eastern network links the Santa Cruz region with both Argentina and Brazil while the western system hooks the capital of La Pas to Chile and Peru.

Currently, plans exist for a railroad connecting Santa Cruz and Cochabamba. The feasibility and funding for this improvement are under debate.

The Bolivian government owned the country’s largest railroad company, Empresa Nacional de Ferrocarriles, until 1995, when it was capitalized. At that time, the country sold a majority share in to the Chilean company Cruz Blanca.

That, in turn, led to a discontinuation of most passenger routes — including lines to La Paz — in favor of freight service. The western portion of the railway to the Chilean company Luksic Group, and in 2000 sold the eastern portion to the U.S. company Genessee & Wyoming Inc.

The extreme Andean terrain and elevation makes cross-country transportation a problem. While Bolivia has more than 60,000 kilometers of roads, only about 4,000 kilometers are paved. Although there have been efforts to extend the amount of paved roadway – until they are successful the railway system will remain a key component for development.

Moreover, the country’s landlocked situation keeps transportation costs high in comparison with it’s neighbors – a drag on economic development. And the transportation corridors are a key strategic piece to the country’s political situation. The blockage of the primary highways was an important element of the protests that brought Morales to power.


Find out more about Bolivia, South America and my varied interests over on Klephblog.

Technorati Tags: Bolivia, Evo Morales, nationalization, railroads

Peru's Free Trade Agreements

For the past several years, Peru and the United States have been working on creating a Free Trade Agreement - or FTA - that will foster investment between the two countries. The treaty was signed and later approved by Peru's congress but has languished ever since awaiting the green light from US legislators.

Democratic congressional leaders, who took control of Congress last year, were concerned with some of the provisions in the pact much to the displeasure of the Bush administration. Things seemed to be moving forward last month when, after weeks of negotiations, the stalemate was broken when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and U.S Trade Representative Susan Schwab announced an agreement on new labor and environment provisions for these and future FTAs.

Last week, though, things changed. According to the Wall Street Journal, House Democratic leaders declared that Peru would have to change its laws before Congress voted to approve the pact. That prompted an angry letter from Peruvian President Alan Garcia to House leaders.

"It is now time for the United States Congress to act in the name of our countries' friendship and common goals," Garcia wrote. "Peru has done its share and it is now time for the U.S. Congress to start acting for a prompt passage"

Although Peru scored a minor victory last month with an eight-month extension of a package of trade benefits, the country isn’t waiting around to find other options. The first round of Free Trade negotiations between Peru, Canada and Colombia kick off at the Universidad del Pacífico in Lima today.

Canada has been more aggressive in seeking free trade deals with major powers such as Inda in recent months but it has also been much more active drumming up interest south of the equator. Canada already has significant investments in Peru, about $5 billion worth, but mostly in mining where more than 80 Canadian companies are carrying out exploration activities.

And, while the negotiations continue, there are questions on how the opposition groups in Peru will react. The country is still reeling from a week of strikes and street protests and much of the recent unrest, the BBC reported, is widely seen as a show of disapproval with the government of President Alan Garcia. The success or failure of these treaties could have a great effect on the perception of his administration.


Find out more about Peru, South America and my varied interests over on Klephblog.

Technorati Tags: Peru, free trade, Canada, United States