In 2008, President Garcia created 99 laws designed to open up Peru's lands to multinational corporations for oil and gas exploration by executive order, bypassing Peru's Congress and any debate in Peru's democratic government.
While the Peruvian Congress reviews whether these executive orders are constitutional, tens of thousands of Indigenous peoples have been peacefully marching and blockading to prevent the rainforests they depend on from being exploited.
Then, several days ago, the violent crackdown began. In Bagua Grande, 1,400km north of Lima, several thousand indigenous peoples were forcibly dispersed by tear gas and real bullets, killing dozens of Indigenous protesters. Just yesterday, the Congress announced a suspension of two of the laws, but Indigenous leaders have signaled that their peaceful protests will continue until the laws are completely revoked.
Peru's President, Alan Garcia, says that in order to meet its Free Trade Agreement responsibilities to the United States Peru must prioritize the demands of international resource exploitation even as they undermine the land rights of Peru's Indigenous peoples.
And so far the US has been silent.
Act now and tell Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the US needs take a stand and formally demand that Peru end the violence now.
Your message will be sent as an electronic fax to Secretary Clinton in order to maximize your impact!
[Petition] Sign the petition to show your support for the Peruvian Indians as they face the oil multinationals
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