Worst violence in years over Peruvian land-use results in 30 dead

Tensions in Peru's Amazon came to the boiling point Friday over government development plans for a region of the Amazon jungle. 30 people were reported killed, mainly indigenous people who live in the region.

Bagua, Peru - A state of emergency has been declared for this northern area of Peru after the latest clash resulted in the deaths of at least 30 people, including three children after police opened fire on the protesters from helicopters. The fighting is reported to be the worst since the protest campaign began. Reports from Peru state that protesters have also burned government buildings. Peru's Minister of the Interior, Mercedes Cabanillas, confirmed the deaths of nine policemen in the clash over the road blockade yesterday. Prime Minister Yehude Simon (who has no powers) urged calm but defended the decision to use force. Other protesters reacted by taking 38 police hostages at a Peruvian-owned gas installation, PetroPeru Station No 6. They also threatened to blow up the station. Apparently the public is also now demanding the resignations of both Peru's Prime Minister and the Minister of the Interior. Protests have been ongoing intermittently since at least 2008 over Peru's new land sale law. Indigenous people, representing 65 different Amazon tribes, have been protesting at various gas, oil and hydro installations in the area since 2008. They say that the new law makes it easier for energy companies to buy up communal rain forest land, known to be rich in oil and gas. The protests are rooted in the 2007 decision by the Peruvian government to sell off large sections of the Amazon to oil and gas companies. The sales would, the government argued, help alleviate poverty in Peru. Opposition said that the sales threatened diversity and the lives of indigenous people who live in the Amazon. In this week's most recent clash, protesters had blocked a road, and police were attempting to end the blockade. The indigenous protesters have been receiving support from American actors and activists for their position on the land use in the Bagua district. Peru has a population of nearly 30 million, of which 39% live in poverty. Almost 14% of the population lives in "extreme poverty."