Environmentalist priest appeals to premier and health minister for “just and humanitarian” solutions to Choropampa’s health crisis

Environmental activist Father Marco Arana wrote an open letter to Peruvian Premier Yehude Simon and Health Minister Oscar Ugarte, demanding “just and humanitarian” solutions for Choropampa, a small town in the Cajamarca highlands still feeling the effects of a mercury spill that occurred eight years ago. “I am writing this letter in solidarity with the [...]

Death of local mayor causes panic in Choropampa, 8 years after mercury spill

The death of the mayor of Choropampa, Vicente Zarate Minchán, has triggered widespread panic in the town in the Cajamarca highlands, eight years after the June 2, 2000 mercury spill that contaminated Choropampa and two neighboring towns. Zarate, 34, died of Guillain-Barré syndrome, a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the [...]