A 5,000 year-old pyramid has been completely levelled in Peru

  George Dvorsky 7/03/13 2:30pm

Just to refresh your memories, a construction crew demolished a 2,300 year-old Maya pyramid several months ago in Belize. They did so to extract crushed rock for a road project. The Ministry of Tourism and Culture calling the wrecking of the ceremonial center "callous, ignorant, and unforgivable."

Now a similar incident has happend in Peru, but this pyramid — the El Paraiso — was much older and far grander. It is — or rather IT WAS — one of the oldest structures constructed in the Americas, consisting of 12 pyramids covering over 64 hectares.

This is what it looked like prior to demolition:

Peru This Week reports:

Archaeologist Frederic Engel said in a report that El Paraiso could have held between 1500 and 3000 inhabitants and required over 100,000 tons of rock to construct, which was taken from the hills surrounding the structure, and was likely used for religious and ritual purposes. Evidence shows the culture living there was from the Late Pre-Ceramic Age (2000-3000 B.C.E).
Despite its obvious importance to Peruvian culture, this pyramid was knocked down and later burned by several clandestine groups that entered the site on Saturday.
Archaeologist Marco Guillén Hugo was in charge of the research and excavation of this site and reported to El Comercio that he had reason to believe two private building companies, Compañía y Promotora Provelanz E.I.R.L and Alisol S.A.C Ambas, were behind the destruction.

Guillén says it's not the first time they've tried to "take over this land." The Ministry of Culture says the land is under state control, despite the companies' efforts to claim the property.

With Humala's win, Peru turns to the left

With a former army officer winning the presidency, Peru joins Brazil, Bolivia and Venezuela in tilting to the left.
Greg Grandin Last Modified: 07 Jun 2011 18:43
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Add Peru to the list of Latin American countries that have turned left. On Sunday, Peruvians voted in a second-round run-off ballot and elected Ollanta Humala, a 48-year old former army officer, president. This is Humala’s second try for the office. In 2006, he came close to winning, but WikiLeaks cables reveal that Peru's establishment politicians put aside their differences and beat a path to the US embassy, asking for help smearing Humala as a Peruvian Hugo Chávez.

WikiLeaks also reveals that that same year the Mexican right and the US State Department worked together to defeat the populist presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador, leading many in the US to gloat that the "left turn" in Latin America had run its course.

Humala's victory suggests otherwise. Here's just some of what has happened since 2006: In Bolivia, Evo Morales presided over the ratification of a new social-democratic constitution and was re-elected as president in 2009 with 64 per cent of the vote. In Ecuador, Rafael Correa also easily won reelection and ratified a new constitution that guarantees social rights and puts tight limits on privatization. Recently, Ecuadorians likewise voted on ten progressive ballot initiatives, passing them all. They included the strict regulation of two blood sports: banks are now banned from speculation and bulls can no longer be killed in bull fights.

And last year in Brazil, the trade unionist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva left office the most popular politician on the planet, handing over the presidency of one of the world's largest economies to Dilma Rousseff, a former urban guerrilla and economist who vows to continue to try to make Brazil a more humane and equal nation.

All of these national left political projects—from Venezuela to Uruguay—have their problems and shortcomings, and are open to criticism on any number of issues by progressive folk. But combined, the Latin American left can claim a remarkable achievement: It has snatched the concept of democracy away from neoliberals and the corporate privateers who came close to convincing the world that democracy equals deregulated capitalism and returned the term to its more humane, sustainable definition. In Latin America, democracy means social democracy. So considering the otherwise bleak global landscape, the return of the Latin American left, now well into its second decade, is cause for great cheer.

What does Humala's victory mean for Peru? Most importantly in the short run, it has halted the return of Alberto Fujimori's style of death-squad neoliberalism. Humala's opponent was Fujimori's daughter, Keiko, who pledged to free her jailed father, who was convicted of murder, kidnapping and corruption.

In the long run, many Peruvians, particularly those outside of Lima, voted for Humala because they have seen little benefits from the country's celebrated macroeconomic performance over the last decade, driven by the high price of silver, zinc, copper, tin, lead and gold—which comprise sixty per cent of the country's exports.

Over thirty per cent of Peru's thirty million people live in poverty and eight per cent in extreme poverty. In rural areas, particularly in indigenous communities, more than half of all families are poor, many desperately so. Humala has promised to address this inequity with a series of pragmatic measures—a guaranteed pension to people over 65; expanding health care in rural areas, including the construction of more provincial hospitals; an increase in public sector salaries, to be paid for with a windfall profit tax on the mining sector.

In terms of foreign policy, Humala's election is another victory for Brazil in its contest with Washington for regional influence. If Fujimori had won, she would have aligned Peru politically with Washington and economically with US and Canadian corporations.

Humala, in contrast, will tilt toward Brazilian economic interests. Indeed, the Peruvian historian Gerardo Rénique said that the election, while representing an important victory for democratic forces, could also be understood in part as a contest between Brazil and the US over Peruvian energy and mineral resources. In this perspective, one could say that it didn't matter who won the Peruvian election: the Amazon lost.

Here then might be the question that determines the success of Humala's presidency: As he tries to put into place his "growth with social inclusion" agenda, will he be able to balance the conflicting interests of his Brazilian allies and the social movements that elected him, many of which are fighting for sustainable development and local control of resources?

In addition to reviving social democracy, the other major accomplishment of the renewed Latin American left has been to dilute the entrenched racism that has defined the continent for centuries. In Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil, Venezuela and other countries, Native Americans and peoples of African descent have led a remarkable, if still incomplete, democratization of politics and culture. Peru, with its 45 per cent Amerindian population, has largely been left out of this process. In fact, some say that racism has deepened over the last decade, with the mining boom wreaking havoc on the dark-skinned Andean countryside and Amazonian lowlands while financing the rise of luxury condos and malls in white, middle-class Lima.

So however hard it might be for Humala to take on international capital—Peru's stock market plunged 12 per cent the day after his election—an equally difficult challenge will be to tackle Peruvian racism. "El Indio Humala" lost Lima by a wide margin, driven mostly not by fears he would turn Peru into Chávez's Venezuela but into neighboring Indian-governed Bolivia. Candidate Humala did his best to deflect these concerns.

President Humala, however, will have to confront this racism directly if he is to succeed in democratising Peru. After all, even before all the votes where in, tens of thousands of his supporters began to fill the country's plazas, including Lima's. They raised high the rainbow wiphala flag that became ubiquitous in Bolivia, during the rise of the social movements that brought Evo Morales to power. Today, it is waved throughout the Andes as a symbol of indigenous pride and sovereignty.

Greg Grandin is a professor of history at New York University and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is the author of a number of prize-winning books, including most recently, Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City (Metropolitan 2009), which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History, as well as for the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award.

Peru may be a melting-pot nation, but it has deep-set racial prejudices
Page last updated at 16:42 GMT, Sunday, 13 June 2010 17:42 UK
By Dan Collyns
BBC News, Lima


There is a saying in Peru - "el que no tiene de Inga tiene de Mandinga" - which means every Peruvian has either some indigenous or African blood. It is an often-quoted proverb used to explain the country's blend of races. Racial mixing began mixing with the Spanish conquistadors who overran the Inca Empire in the 16th Century, and continued with successive waves of African slaves, indentured Chinese labourers and migrants from Japan and Europe.

The phrase speaks of a melting-pot nation but does not hint at Peru's deep-set prejudices. The country has socio-economic gaps along race lines and its inherent, if subtle, discrimination can mean an indigenous woman may only ever work as a maid; a black man may only ever aspire to be a hotel doorman. This is the kind of everyday racism which dictates the lives of many Peruvians.

Reinforced stereotypes

Perhaps the biggest obstacle to ending this racism is the fact that it is simply seen as a joke. Daniel Valenzuela foresees a day when Peru has a black president. Complain and people will chide you and ask: "Where's your sense of humour?" And, by and large, most Peruvians don't complain; they just go along with it. Racial stereotypes are reinforced on a daily basis in the media. Tabloid newspapers use crude sexual innuendo to describe a black congresswoman in a way they would not dare refer to a white member of parliament.

They compare a black footballer to a gorilla when he loses his temper on the pitch. And on prime-time Saturday night television, the country's most popular comedy programme abounds with racial stereotypes with which the audience are so familiar they scarcely question what they are watching. (cont...)

Independence in Spanish America
--BritishLibrary.uk--

Argentina
The independence process began in 1810 with the creation of a junta in Buenos Aires. National independence was declared in 1816.

Bolivia
Formerly known as Upper Peru. In 1809 a revolutionary uprising in Chuquisaca was put down. Fighting against Spanish forces lasted until 1825.

Chile
A junta was formed in Santiago in 1810 but Chile was retaken by the Spanish in 1814. Independence was sealed in 1818.

Colombia
The Comunero Revolt of 1781 was supressed. In 1810 a junta was formed in Bogotá and the struggle for independence continued. The Republic of Greater Colombia was formed in 1819 and included Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, and Ecuador. The union split in 1830.

Costa Rica
Independence from Spain in 1821. Part of the United States of Central America until full independence in 1838.

Cuba
In 1898 Spain relinquished Cuba to the United States. Cuba secured its independence in 1902.

Dominican Republic
Declared independence in 1821 but was invaded by Haiti only weeks later and occupied until 1844. Haitian attacks meant that the Dominican Republic returned to the Spanish Empire between 1861 and 1865.

Ecuador
A junta was formed in Quito in 1809 but the rebellion was crushed in 1812. Following independence from Spain in 1822, Ecuador became part of the Republic of Greater Colombia. It withdrew from the union in 1830.

El Salvador
Independence in 1821. Part of the United Provinces of Central America until the region broke away in 1838. Named El Salvador in 1844.

Guatemala
Independence in 1821. Part of the United Provinces of Central America, a federation formed in 1821 that also included El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua and dissolved in 1838.

Honduras
Independence in 1821. Honduras seceded from the United Provinces of Central America in 1838.

Mexico
War for independence began in 1810. Independence was won in 1821.

Nicaragua
Independence in 1821. Nicaragua seceded from the United Provinces of Central America in 1838.

Panama
Independence from Spain in 1821 and then became part of the Republic of Greater Colombia. Became an independent nation in 1903.

Paraguay
Independence from Spain in 1811.

Peru
The Túpac Amaru uprising in 1780 was suppressed. Independence declared in 1821.

Uruguay
Occupied by the Portuguese and then the newly independent Brazil from 1816. Becomes an independent nation in 1828.

Venezuela
In 1806 Francisco de Miranda launched an unsuccessful attempt to free Venezuela. Revolutionary struggle began again in 1810 but Spanish authority was restored until 1821. Venezuela seceded from the Republic of Greater Colombia in 1829.

The origins of the independence movement in Spanish America
--BritishLibrary.uk--


During the colonial period some sectors of the Creole population (Spanish descendents born in the Americas) became increasingly frustrated by Spanish rule. Their discontent grew out of the belief that local ambition and prosperity were stifled by colonial administrative, tax and trade policy and the superior status conferred to Spanish-born residents. Another grievance was the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767 by the Spanish Crown in order to secure its power in the colonies.

The occupation of Spain by Napoleon in 1808 paved the way for the independence of the Spanish American territories. The constitutional crisis in Spain caused by the imprisonment of Fernando VII in France and the imposition of Joseph Bonaparte on the Spanish throne created an opportunity for the Creoles to proclaim their independence from Spain. Widespread revolts and civil war broke out across the region and juntas (local governing bodies) took matters into their own hands. Fernando VII returned to the Spanish throne in 1814 and initiated a ‘reconquest’ of the Spanish American colonies but the resolution of the crisis came too late to stem the tide of rebellion.

Video shows plane with US missionaries shot down in CIA operation in Peru
CIA agents are facing disciplinary action after a video emerged showing how a small plane carrying American Christian missionaries was shot down in a CIA operation in Peru

By Nick Allen in Los Angeles
Published: 7:12PM GMT 04 Feb 2010

Veronica Bowers, 35, and her seven-month-old daughter, Charity, were killed when their Cessna was mistaken for a drug plane in 2001. Her husband, Jim Bowers and the couple's son, Cory, escaped serious injury.

Pilot Kevin Donaldson, who had serious leg wounds, crash-landed the plane on the Amazon River. A cockpit video tape obtained by ABC News shows how a CIA spotter plane sneaked up behind the Cessna and wrongly identified it as a drug plane. CIA operatives then called in the Peruvian Air Force. A Peruvian pilot issued a warning to the Cessna but it was in Spanish and on the wrong frequency.

The Peruvian pilot is heard on the tape saying he is sure the plane is a "bandito" but the CIA pilots then suggest they are not sure, wth one saying: "I think we're making a mistake." Another says: "I agree with you."

After the Peruvian pilot opens fire, Mr Donaldson can be heard yelling in Spanish: "They're killing me. They're killing us."

One of the CIA operatives can then be heard shouting: "Tell him to terminate. No. Don't Shoot. No more, no mas."

By that time, the plane was falling and crash landed in a river. Mrs Bowers and her daughter died after being hit with bullets.

Congressman Pete Hoekstra, who has campaigned on behalf of the Bowers family, told ABC News: "If there's ever an example of justice delayed, justice denied, this is it.

"The intelligence community's performance in terms of accountability has been unacceptable. These were Americans that were killed with the help of their Government, the community covered it up, they delayed investigating."

The CIA said that after a nine year investigation, it had concluded that 16 of its employees should be disciplined.

Labor Rights and the Peru, Panama and Colombia FTAs
courtesy of PublicCitizens.org

The NAFTA expansions to Peru, Panama and Colombia will decrease job security in these countries and in the United States. Under NAFTA, U.S. wages remain stuck at near-1970s levels, while Mexican wages have actually decreased. More of the same can be expected in these countries if NAFTA is expanded.

In Colombia, the labor rights situation is especially dire. Since 1991, over 2,100 trade unionists have been assassinated, with 72 murdered in 2006 alone. The Colombian army has been implicated in many of these killings, and very few have been prosecuted.

Read the letter from Congress to USTR Portman opposing trade negotiations with Colombia until the Colombian labor rights record improves (PDF)

Pan-American Highway

This is a google-maps view of the Uros floating islands of Lake Titicaca. The Uros have lived and created these floating islands made of totora (a type of sedge) that are situated on Lake Titicaca, which is the largest lake in South America. Lake Titicaca is also one of the highest elevated lakes in the world, it borders Peru and Bolivia.

View Larger Map

Mass arrests over Peru protests
07:07 GMT, Thursday, 9 July 2009 08:07 UK bbc.co.uk

Peruvian police say they have arrested 156 people during a second day of nationwide protests against the government's free market policies. Some 30,000 police and 6,000 soldiers were deployed to keep order. The protests come just over a month after clashes over land rights in the Amazon left at least 33 people dead. On Tuesday, President Alan Garcia announced changes to his cabinet, amid sharp criticism of the government's handling of those protests. The latest demonstrations were called by the CGTP union, which is demanding wage increases for public sector workers and the cancellation of Peru's free trade agreement with the US. Police cleared highway blockades in four provinces on Wednesday, as transport workers and teachers led strikes and demonstrations. Peru's national police chief said 156 people were arrested across the country, including 127 in the capital Lima, where some 2,500 people staged a rally in the downtown area.

Pressure building
The government blamed the demonstrations on what they call communist groups supported by foreign governments such as Bolivia and Venezuela. But the social discord appears to be firmly rooted in Peru, where the pressure is building on President Garcia and his government, the BBC's Dan Collyns reports from Lima. On Tuesday, Mr Garcia said he would reshuffle his cabinet by the weekend. The announcement followed criticism over the way his government dealt with protests by indigenous groups last month. More than 30 police officers and protesters were killed as security forces tried to end a two-month-long blockade of roads and fuel pipelines by indigenous people. Opinion polls show President Garcia is increasingly unpopular and that most Peruvians blame his government for the escalation of tensions which led to the violence.

peruvian Justice for the amerindian

june 22, 2009



The Peruvian Congress has voted to repeal two controversial Amazonian laws after protests that led to the death of an unknown number of policemen and indigenous people. The Congress voted to repeal the laws at the end of last week. The laws undermined indigenous peoples’ rights and made it easier for outsiders to take control of their land. Peru’s Amazon Indian organisation, AIDESEP, described the government’s decision as ‘historic’. ‘Our struggle and the lives of our indigenous brothers and sisters have not been in vain,’ said AIDESEP’s vice-president, Daysi Zapata Fasabi. ‘(This decision) shows that our struggle is a just one and that no one is manipulating us.’ Peru’s president, Alan Garcia, admitted that the laws were passed without consulting the Amazon’s indigenous inhabitants and that a ‘succession of errors’ was made in the government’s handling of the protests. The government’s official figure is that 24 policemen and 10 indigenous people were killed during the protests, but those figures are disputed by local sources. According to reports, the mayor of local town Bagua has said that up to sixty indigenous people are still missing.