For nearly a week Peruvian unionists, teachers, leftists and nationalists have staged demonstrations to protest the economic and political polices of President Alan Garcia and the expected ratification of a free trade accord with the United States. Protests began on July 11 during the so-called Day of National Struggle, called by the General Confederation of Peruvian Workers, Peru’s largest labor group, and long time supporter of former presidential candidate Ollanta Humala.
Unions and organized labor are demanding the government enforce labor laws, eliminate the outsourcing of service sector jobs, impose higher taxes to mining industries, review the free trade agreement with the United States that they blame for agricultural job losses, and allow workers to opt out of the private pension system. Many of these demands are former campaign pledges of President Garcia.
Protests have caused extensive losses to Peru’s tourism sector and agricultural industry, while slowing the overall economic growth of the country. Some 40,000 workers from the mining union, FNTMMSP, have gone on strike because of many work-related grievances, eliminating significant revenue from Peru’s gold, zinc, and copper exports that rank among the top five fields in the world.
Weeklong Protests Intensifying
With Garcia’s first anniversary of his term in office occurring on July 28th, protesters are demanding the administration’s immediate implementation of economic and labor reforms formally championed by his presidential campaign. Labor unions have pledged to continue protests until some progress is made on their aforementioned demands.
Current open source reporting indicates that at least four people have been killed during the weeklong protests, including a 13-year old girl who was killed during clashes between police and teachers in the southern Andean region of Apurimac. Although unconfirmed, local news sources – that have previously exposed a pro-labor bias and anti-Garcia leanings – have blamed Peruvian security forces for the four deaths and hundreds of injuries to peasant farmers and labor leaders. Police have detained 120 union representatives in a bid to quell protests in Lima. At least 12 protestors have been detained in Lima’s San Isidro financial district on July 12th.
The government has attempted to restore order through the deployment of an additional 15,000 police throughout the country. Protests have disrupted travel throughout the country, with labor unions occupying large sections of the Pan-American Highway for extended periods of time over the past weekend. Following attempts by police to disperse crowds that had overrun the highway, the protestors forcefully detained nine police officers although all nine were later released unharmed. The head of Peru’s police department, General David Rodriguez, has denied reports that police have opened fire on protestors but confirmed that police had permission to fire if attacked.
On July 13th, in the southern region of Puno, some 5,000 protestors occupied the international Manco Capac airport in Juliaca, setting several offices ablaze in the process. Protestors also derailed a tourist train traveling to Machu Picchu, stranding foreign nationals for several hours.
Ollanta Humala’s Resurgence
President Garcia has inflamed protests by expressing his disdain for protestors and launching insults at union leaders and teachers, accusing them of acting against the interests of Peru in pursuit of left-wing radical agendas. The presence of opposition leader and former nationalist presidential candidate Ollanta Humala and several other anti-Garcia MPs has caused the Garcia administration to react with suspicion to labor and teacher demands.
Humala’s participation demonstrates Peru’s diverging political community which is divided between the pro-free trade and market principled Aprista party and the nationalistic, leftist, Peru Nationalist Party. Humala advocates a pro-labor, nationalistic agenda, as demonstrated during the 2006 presidential election and Humala’s attempted overthrow of former President Alberto Fujimoro in 2000 (Previous Report).
What to Watch
Protests will likely last through Garcia’s first-year anniversary mark on July 28th. Pending immediate economic and labor settlements with Peru’s labor and teacher unions, Garcia’s second year in office could be very difficult.
We believe protest movements throughout the state will likely result in the regeneration of Ollanta Humala’s political stardom that was temporarily stymied following Garcia’s presidential victory. Moreover, we believe labor unrest and the mid to long-term potential for political unrest will hinder the state’s economic growth, while simultaneously discouraging foreign travel to the country.
