Peru

Peru: National mining strike to start on Monday

Peruvian miners' march, May 2007

Peru's biggest federation of mining unions said workers will go on strike nationwide starting on Monday despite efforts by the government to avert the walkout, officials said on Sunday.

It would be the second nationwide strike this year in Peru, the world's third-largest producer of copper and zinc, and fifth-largest producer of gold. A strike in May, which was halted after five days, pushed up global metals prices.

"Mine workers will go on strike tomorrow (Monday)," said Julio Ortiz, a director of the federation.

‘General strike’ spreads across Peru

Riot police in Cuzco

As an indefinite teachers strike continues into its 12th day, farmers, miners and construction workers joined the protests, with one farmer shot dead by police.

The latest death brings the reported death toll to 4 over the last week in what has been described by some media as a general strike. The strike began when the teachers union struck against a new law requiring all teachers to sit regular competency exams (libcom.org coverge here).

Peru: Teachers strike against exams

President Garcia sits an exam (photoshopped)

Teachers in Peru launched a one-day strike to protest against legislation currently being debated in Parliament.

(Update 17/7)

The government is proposing to reform the education system by forcing teachers to take regular competency exams. A teacher failing the exam three times could then be fired. Unions have strongly protested, claiming that the new law will allow arbitrary sackings.

Miners' strikes in North and South America

Striking miners in Lima

Miners in Canada, Mexico and Peru are either currently striking or planning strike action.

In Canada the mining group Inco has been forced to cancel deliveries as a strike by 3300 workers at its Sudbury Mine in Ontario. Workers have been on strike for a week after negotiations on a new contract broke down.

Peru: Miner's strike ends

A Peruvian mine

A unlimited strike has come to an end after the goverment agreed to the miners' demands.

Workers for the state-run mining company demanded an increase in their salaries and pensions and an end to the involvement of private companies, especially the use of subcontractors who do not offer benefits such as retirement plans to employees.

Worker self-management in historical perspective, 1950-2006

A worker of Argentina's self-managed Brukman plant

A brief history of the movement for workers' self-management in the 20th and 21st centuries. Examines instances of workers' control in Yugoslavia, Chile, Bolivia, Peru and contemporary Argentina.

Introduction
Worker self-management (WSM) has re-emerged as a major movement in Argentina, particularly this year with over 200 factories organized and controlled by their workers and a national co-coordinator of self-managed enterprises in the process of being organized.

Peruvian indigenous group wins oil pollution battle

Achuar Indians have now returned home following a two-week protest.

Local residents return to their homes having reached an agreement over oil waste after a 15-day protest.

Protesters from the Achuar Indian communities in the northern Peru forest have won an agreement for an Argentine oil drilling firm to stop dumping toxic waste into the rainforest. The Native Federation of the Corrientes River brought jungle operations of Pluspetrol Norte to a standstill, demanding a clean-up of the harmful waste produced by 30 years of drilling in the area.

Indigenous Peruvians shut down Amazon oil facility

Rainforest in Southern Ecuador

The Native Federation of the Corrientes River (FECONACO) has shut down Pluspetrol's Amazon oil facilities in protest at water contamination.

Seven hundred Peruvians have occupied oil facilities in the rainforest territories of Loreto, on the border with Ecuador, halting production. After 30 years of drilling, protesters are demanding that steps be taken to stop the Argentinian company Pluspetrol from continuing to dump one million barrels of untreated toxic waste each day.

Large-scale Massacre of Prisoners in Peru, 1986 - ICG

Peruvian prison

Poorly written but still interesting article about a massacre of prisoners in Peru in 1986.

From Communism #6

Social-democratic peace is nothing else but the peace of tombs.

The tombs of all the proletarians who struggle against the State.

International Solidarity with the Proletariat and its prisoners in Peru!

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We are publishing here a translation of an article that was first published in our Spanish review "Comunismo" (No.22 - June 86).

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