A general strike and protests against the Tia Maria mining project in Arequipa began Monday with acts of vandalism in the city of Arequipa, highways blocked by truckloads of rock, and protestors marching through the streets. But towards the end of the week, although the general strike continues, much of the heat has worn off.
The leaders of the Workers Federation of Arequipa and the Struggle Command for the Tambo Valley are continuing the indefinite strike but agreed, in a long meeting with police and civilian authorities, to not block roads and highways and to ensure that protest marches are peaceful.
At the same time, local government officials at the meeting are asking President Martin Vizcarra to speed up the resolution to annul the Tia Maria construction license, which was granted to Southern Copper in early July.
Several meetings with protestors have been held by the provincial mayor, Omar Candia, in the hopes of reaching a truce before Arequipa’s Foundation Day, Aug. 15, a key festival that attracts visitors from all over the country. The Archbishop of Arequipa, Mons. Javier del Rio, also interceded.
“They are in their right to protest. We can’t stop that. We’re approaching them to dialogue,” Candia said.
The protests, which started in mid-July when the Ministry of Energy and Mines granted the Tia Maria license, became more violent this week when the indefinite general strike was called. In the days building up to the strike, eight protestors were arrested and 34 police were injured. Schools were closed, some 400 police were specially assigned, and military troops were posted to guard the port of Matarani, where operations have closed down temporarily. Ships have been re-routed to the port of Ilo, further south in the Moquegua region. Truckloads of rocks were taken by protestors to block highways, affecting commercial transport and tourism, and the main inter-provincial bus terminal closed for the first part of the week.
The Tia Maria project, an open pit copper mine above the Tambo Valley in northern Arequipa, has long met with resistance from farmers in the valley who are concerned that the mine will pollute the Tambo River. One person was killed during protests in 2011 and five deaths were reported in the protests in 2015. The project was brought to a halt, and over the past four years Southern Copper has been unsuccessful in convincing the valley of the benefits the mine could offer. Critics of the license, including former Mines Ministry officials, say the environmental impact study — which was about to expire and thus prompted the ministry to grant the license— is not clear on several facets of the operation.
Arequipa’s governor, Elmer Cáceres, who adamantly defends the strike and refuses to negotiate the annulment of the Tia Maria license, has not made any public appearances since last week. His deputy governor, Walter Gutierrez, has instead been working on seeking a truce and working with the government for a solution. Gutierrez said President Vizcarra assured him personally that the legal framework to annul the license would be ready by Aug. 19.
“With that, the forces in Arequipa and the leaders should lift the strike,” Gutierrez said.
According to the tourism industry in Arequipa, they are losing close to $250,000 daily in cancelled bookings in the height of the tourism season. The transport of minerals from a number of mines has also been blocked.
President Vizcarra and Premier Salvador del Solar have said on several occasions that Southern Peru would not begin the Tia Maria project until the social conditions are right and until the Tambo Valley agrees.
