They do things differently in Latin America. Just two weeks after political protests in Peru erupted into violence, the prime minister has announced his resignation and the controversial laws which sparked the unrest have been repealed.

It is the sort of dramatic political victory that is unheard of among British activists. The win comes at a significant cost, though. Dozens of protesters and police were killed in the clashes in the Amazonian region of Bagua on 5 June. Officials say 34 people died, while indigenous leaders put the figure at more than 50.

The Peruvian president, Alan Garcia, has portrayed the conflict as a misunderstanding between his government and the unsophisticated Amazonian people who cannot grasp the need to attract foreign investment if mineral and petroleum reserves are to be extracted.…  Seguir leyendo »