Prior consultation bill sent to Humala after approval in Congress

Peru’s Congress has unanimously approved a bill to implement prior consultation for indigenous communities that could be impacted by development projects, mainly in the mining, energy and agricultural sectors. The bill was the first approved by the new Congress, which was formed in July following the general election in April. The bill, known as prior [...]

Amnesty International calls for approval of prior consultation laws

Amnesty International called on Peru and other Latin American countries on Friday to enact laws to improve consultation for indigenous peoples in relation to projects in the extractive industries, state news agency Andina reported. The group said there is a “false and dangerous dichotomy” between development and indigenous rights, the report said. “There is a [...]

Indigenous communities sign up for forest conservation program

Sixty four indigenous and rural communities in Peru have signed up to be part of a new government initiative aimed at conserving forests, state news agency Andina reported. The initiative is led by the Environment Ministry and involves paying communities 10 soles (about $3.62) a year for every hectare of forest that is incorporated into [...]

Peru Government adopts conciliatory tone after Amazon clashes

In a conciliatory move, after two months of telling indigenous communities that the government would not review legislation aimed to open up the Peruvian Amazon to more foreign investment, Peru’s Premier Yehude Simon asked Congress to repeal the controversial decrees by June 18. “I understand that the members of Congress are upset,” said Simon. “But I [...]

Peru’s Amazon leaders retreat insurgency call, agree to pursue claims within the law

Amazon tribal leaders agreed Saturday afternoon to retract their call for insurgency, signing an agreement with the Public Ombudsman’s Office after intense talks and agreeing to continue their demands within the rule of law.  

Strike in Amazon

By Antonio Zapata Note: This article was written 15 April 2009 for La República newspaper by historian and commentator Antonio Zapata. It has been translated for the Peruvian Times in order to provide some general background to the ongoing critical dispute in the Amazonian area of Peru. ————— While the Fujimori case has been the [...]

Kichua and Arabela indigenous communities block river traffic in Amazon to protest oil exploration and extraction on their ancestral lands

Approximately 2,000 members of Kichua and Arabela indigenous communities blocked off river traffic on Peru’s Curacay and Napo Rivers in northeastern department of Loreto Wednesday, to protest the contamination of their ancestral lands by mining companies, and to demand the repeal of a series of laws they say are promoting unrestricted oil exploration. According to [...]

National Statistics Institute: Peru is home to 1,786 indigenous communities

A total of 1,786 indigenous communities living in 11 Peruvian departments were geographically and cartographically identified during the latest nationwide population census, reported Peru’s national Statistics Institute, or INEI, on Wednesday. The recently published results of Peru’s 11th Population Census and Second Indigenous Communities Census — both conducted in 2007 — indicate that 1,786 indigenous [...]

Peru-Ecuador sign development agreement along border

Peru and Ecuador have signed an agreement to promote development in the Cordillera del Cóndor, the 48-mile stretch of jungle border in the Andean jungle that was the epicenter of one of South America’s oldest territorial disputes. The “Peace and Binational Conservation in the Cordillera del Cóndor” was reached during a meeting at Peru’s National [...]