Peruvian Land Defender Killed After 48-Hour Anti-Mining Strike

Sev­en rur­al com­mu­ni­ties orga­nized a gen­er­al strike that immo­bi­lized com­plete­ly the activ­i­ties in Puquio, cap­i­tal of Lucana province, and result­ed in the unfor­tu­nate death of a young mem­ber of the Cccol­lana com­mu­ni­ty: Erick Men­don­za Tumaylle, age 22.

paro-Puquio

Octo­ber 29th, 2015

Sev­en rur­al com­mu­ni­ties orga­nized a gen­er­al strike that immo­bi­lized com­plete­ly the activ­i­ties in Puquio, cap­i­tal of Lucana province, and result­ed in the unfor­tu­nate death of a young mem­ber of the Cccol­lana com­mu­ni­ty: Erick Men­don­za Tumaylle, age 22. The con­flict occurred at the site of one infor­mal min­ing project where tox­ic run-offs lead direct­ly into fields used by the com­mu­ni­ty for agri­cul­ture.

Lead­ers of the com­mu­ni­ty have report­ed Juan Par­i­ona of Ccol­lao injured as a result of being held hostage by the infor­mal min­ing com­pa­ny in the San Andrés zone.

This theme of con­flict is a recur­ring one through­out the entire south­ern ter­ri­to­ries of Ayacu­cho, Ica, and parts of Are­quipa. Some com­mu­ni­ty mem­bers are suing Lay­tau­ma Cor­po­ra­tion for being the main stor­age facil­i­ty for explo­sives, for being the main source of income for infor­mal tran­sient work­ers, and for being the sole pur­chas­er of feed pro­duced in San­cos dis­trict.

Peo­ple are wor­ried about how thou­sands of infor­mal work­ers are affect­ing the Yuar­iviri lagoon, the many springs and water sources. It has been made appar­ent that the cen­ter storm of this con­flict has moved to this zone of the coun­try.

by Obser­va­to­rio de Con­flic­tos Mineros en el Perú /  Con­flic­tos Mineros

trans­lat­ed by Earth First! Newswire