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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Friday July 4

Illegal Logging Thriving In Peru

The frontier town of Satipo, on the edge of the Central Amazon, is a prime example of how illegal logging thrives, not only in Peru, but around the world. Satipo is a place where disputes are often settled by the gun, and international concerns over conservation and climate change are of no interest to those with the power here - the illegal logging barons. (Sky News - click here to read complete article by Catherine Jacob)


Peru's Stand on Bolivia Questioned

Two renowned Peruvian analysts criticized their government's position towards Bolivia, and agreed such policy is aimed at serving US interests. The issue was raised by the director of La Primera newspaper Cesar Levano and commentator Carlos Reyna, amidst an intensive controversy around the alleged intention of the US government to establish a military base in Peru. (Prensa Latina - click here to read complete article)


Peru, China reaffirm will to negotiate FTA

Peruvian Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) said Thursday that Peru and China have reaffirmed their political will to continue negotiations for a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Mercedes Araoz made the remarks after the 4th Round of FTA Negotiations between the two countries concluded here Thursday. (Xinhua - click here to read complete article)


Union support slips for Peru mining strike

Union support sank for Peru's nationwide mining strike on Thursday, while workers from other mines said the walkout would go on until Congress passed a bill to give them a bigger slice of corporate profits. Since the strike started on Monday, global copper prices have risen to record highs on worries it would crimp supplies from the world's No. 2 supplier. (Reuters - click here to read complete article)


Peru Meteorite could have survived descent if it lacked internal cracks and irregularities

Scientists have said that a meteorite that crashed in Peru in September last year may have survived the descent towards Earth if, by a one-in-a-million chance, it lacked internal cracks and irregularities. According to a report in New Scientist, the Carancas meteorite struck the town of that name in Peru last September, blowing a hole in the ground 13 metres wide. (ANI - click here to read complete article)


Peru-trek gran raises £3,000 for hospice

A GRAN has trekked across Peru in South America to raise more than £3,000 for Bolton Hospice. Cancer survivor Jean Partington, aged 65, spent four days walking the Inca Trail - and even reached its highest point of 14,000 feet above sea level. The grandmother-of-three was determined to complete the challenge after losing her father and sister to cancer and beating the disease herself 17 years ago. (Bolton News - click here to read complete article by Jane Lavender)


Seizing Native land in Peru, one parcel at a time

Activists in Peru are mounting various legal challenges to that nation's recently passed package of legislation, called ''forest laws,'' which they say will make it easier for authorities to break up indigenous communities and prevent indigenous people from obtaining titles to their land. ''These measures taken by the current government attempt to take away our collective property and intend to destroy indigenous people, who are people with rights that have existed long before the formation of the Peruvian state,'' asserted Robert Guimaraes, an indigenous leader from the Amazon, regarding the controversial laws that were decreed by President Alan Garcia May 20. (Indian Country - click here to read complete article by Rick Kearns)

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Peru's President Garcia attends US 232nd Anniversary of Independence

Peruvian president, Alan García Pérez attended Thursday United States' 232nd anniversary of independence, which took place in ambassador Michael McKinley's residence.

Together with his daughter Josefina García, the Peruvian president arrived at the diplomat's residence located in Cercado de Lima.

García was welcomed by Ambassador Michael McKinley and his wife. Then, the honor ceremony started with a tribute to the North American flag.

The ceremony was followed by Peru and United States' hymns.

During the speech, the American ambassador congratulated Colombia’s government and population for the “successful and extraordinary” hostage rescue which took place on Wednesday.

Then, the Peruvian president invited Colombia’s ambassador to Peru, Álvaro Pava, to participate in the main toast, by expressing his satisfaction regarding Ingrid Betancourt's rescue. The gesture was applauded by all the guests.

Peru’s vice-president Luis Giampietri; president of the Peruvian Congress, Luis Gonzáles Posada and several legislators also took part in this event.

As well as, Peru’s chancellor José Antonio García Belaúnde, and the ministers of Labor, Mario Pasco; Foreign Trade and Tourism, Mercedes Aráoz; Transports and Communications, Verónica Zavala; Energy and Mines, Juan Valdivia; and Justice, Rosario Fernández.

The Commanding General for Peru's Army, Edwin Donayre; Peru’s comptroller representatives, Peru National Elections Office (ONPE) and the Commission for the Development and Life without Drugs (Devida), businessmen, diplomatics, journalists, among other guests, were also present.

News source: ANDINA

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Thursday July 3

Lack of cracks may explain Peru meteorite impact

It's the Superman of space rocks. A mysterious meteorite that crashed to Earth last year may have been the toughest of its kind The Carancas meteorite struck the town of that name in Peru last September, blowing a hole in the ground 13 metres wide. The fact that locals saw a single object strike suggests a meteorite made of iron, like the one that created a similar crater in 1990 in Sterlitamak, Russia, because stony meteorites normally fragment high above the Earth and spread relatively harmlessly over a wide area. However, the debris found by investigators was stone. (New Scientists Space - click here to read complete article by Devin Powell)


Peru denies US base reports

Peru has denied reported claims by Evo Morales, the Bolivian president, that it had allowed the US to establish a secret military base on its territory. The claims have sparked a diplomatic row between the two nations, with Lima saying it would recall its ambassador to Bolivia and Alan Garcia, the Peruvian president, saying Morales should "shut up". (Aljazeera - click here to read complete article)


More workers join Peru's nationwide mining strike

Workers at Peru's third-largest copper pit threw their weight behind a nationwide strike that entered its third day on Wednesday, as miners in hard hats marched through Lima to demand a bigger slice of corporate profits. Global copper prices rose to a two-month high on worries the strike would crimp supplies from the world's No. 2 supplier. Meanwhile, stock prices of mining companies sank as strikers pressed Congress to pass a bill that would force companies to share more of their record profits with workers. (Guardian - click here to read complete article by Dana Ford)


Rotary exchange student is heading home to Peru

Aissa Paola Farro Lem was born and raised in the Peruvian seaport city of Ilo on the southern tip of Peru. Ilo is a city of more than 70,000, best known for its commercial fishing operations. The region is also home to Peru’s largest copper mine. Aissa, as she is known to many of her American friends. is Paola to her family and Rotary sponsors. Paola is an only child. Her father, Renzo, is a successful commercial fisherman. The fish he catches not only feed the people of Peru, they are also exported around the world. (Brighton Standard Blade - click here to read complete article)


Pressure mounts for resignation of Peru coach (El Chemo) Del Solar

Peru's beleaguered coach Jose del Solar met with Peruvian Football Federation officials on Wednesday to explain the national squad's dismal performance in the South American 2010 World Cup qualifiers. Uruguay routed Peru 6-0 in Montevideo last month, leaving Peru winless with three points from six matches and in last place in the 10-team region. (Canadian Press - click here to read complete article)

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Wednesday July 2

Copper climbs to 2-mth high on Peru strikes

Copper hit a two-month high on Wednesday as industrial action in Peru threatened supply, while rising energy prices underpinned aluminium. Copper for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange touched an intraday high of $8,671 per tonne, before trading at $8,630/8,640 at 0931 GMT versus $8,610 at the close on Tuesday. Aluminium eased slightly to $3,140/3,150 a tonne from $3,155 on Tuesday, after hitting an intraday high of $3,177 -- the highest since March 11. (Reuters - click here to read complete article)


Peru's finance minister could step down

Peru's Finance Minister Luis Carranza has expressed his desire to resign, and it is up to him to decide whether he stays or quits, President Alan Garcia told reporters on Tuesday. Garcia, who praised Carranza's work, said a final decision had not yet been made. "In the end, I'll put it in his hands to decide ... It's not something that the prime minister or I have asked for," Garcia said. (Reuters - click here to read complete article)


Peru: Latin America Bond, Currency Preview

Peru: Consumer prices rose 5.7 percent in the 12 months through June, the government reported yesterday. The inflation rate was higher than the 5.4 percent rise in May, the National Statistics Institute said in a report. The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 14 economists predicted 5.4 percent. The sol was little changed at 2.9615 per U.S. dollar. (Bloomberg - click here to read complete article by Jamie McGee)


Doherty Students make a difference in Peru

Lauren Collins, Paige Clarke, Molly Frick and six other Doherty High Students can not stop talking about their medical mission trip to Peru. The group provided important hygiene and health care to impoverished South American villages, all in conjunction with the local non-profit organization Adopt a Village International and Springs Rotary Club. (Fox21 - click here to read complete article by Rachel Welte)


Protecting Peru and Brazil’s Uncontacted Amazon Tribes

What is it about the recent photographs of the “uncontacted” indigenous tribe of the Peruvian-Brazilian Amazon region that has caused such a stir? The provocative photos of painted natives in loincloths, including several holding bows ready to loose their arrows at the aircraft filming them from overhead, are eliciting worldwide concern over how the government will treat these people. The image of brandished arrows seems pretty clear: these natives want to be left alone. (COHA - click here to read complete article)

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Tuesday July 1

Former spy chief refuses to give further testimony against Peru's Fujimori

Former Peruvian spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos on Monday refused to give further testimony at ex-president Alberto Fujimori's trail on human rights abuses. "From this moment on I won't answer any question (from the prosecutor or lawyers)," the former National Intelligence Service head told the court hearing Fujimori's trial. (Xinhua - click here to read complete article)


In Testimony, Former Spy Chief Says Peru's Fujimori Is Innocent

Former president Alberto Fujimori and his security chief, Vladimiro Montesinos, who together wielded unprecedented powers in Peru throughout the 1990s, faced one another in a Lima courtroom Monday, the first time the two had seen each other since fleeing the country nearly eight years ago. (Washington Post - click here to read complete article by Lusien Chauvin)


Peru mines hit by nationwide mining strike

Workers at several big mines in Peru went on strike Monday and joined a nationwide walkout, hoping to pressure Congress to pass a bill that would give them a greater share of profits from sky-high metals prices. The strike, which pushed global copper prices to a two-month high of $8,620 per tonne, will test President Alan Garcia at a time he is losing sway in Congress. He has tried to persuade legislators to approve the labor law, but has so far failed. (Reuters - click here to read complete article by Dana Ford and Teresa Cespedes)


2 moderate earthquakes rattle central Peru; no damages reported

The U.S. Geological Survey says a 5.5-magnitude earthquake rattled Peru's central highlands, followed by a 4.7-magnitude temblor in the same area. No damages or injuries were immediately reported. The first quake struck at 7:17 p.m. (0017GMT) Monday evening, and the second hit 47 minutes later. (The Economic Times - click here to read complete article)


Peru: Latin America Bond, Currency Preview

The annual inflation rate likely accelerated to 5.4 percent in June, from 5.39 percent in May, according to the median estimate of 13 economists in a Bloomberg survey. Inflation in the last month accelerated to 0.49 percent, up from 0.37 percent in May, according to the median estimate of 13 economists in a Bloomberg survey. (Bloomberg - click here to read complete article by Jamie McGee)

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26 Peruvian companies participate in US gourmet food fair

A total of 26 Peruvian companies are participating in the Summer Fancy Food Show, one of the largest specialty food trade shows in the U.S, which began in New York on June 29 and is to last until July 1st, said today the Commission for the Promotion of Peruvian Exports and Tourism (PromPeru).

This group of companies includes two consortium bringing together 12 companies of Cusco's Regional Bureau of Foreign Trade and Tourism (DIRCETUR) and four companies of San Martin's DIRCETUR.

The Peruvian delegation shows a wide range consisting of snacks, jams, coffee, avocado oil and Sacha inchi, energy bars, chocolate, quinoa pops, quinoa flour, biscuits and cereal kiwicha, nick peeled and corn chullpi with yacon, among others.

Asparagus, artichokes, as well as Peruvian vinaigrettes and sauces are also showcased during this US fair.

The Summer Fancy Food Show receives about 32,000 trade visitors from department stores, supermarkets, restaurant chains and hotels as well as retailers and other businesses related to the sector.

News source: ANDINA

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Peru's flag in top ten in World's Most Beautiful Flag Contest

Living in Peru
Israel J. Ruiz

The World's Most Beautiful Flag Contest, an unofficial competition created by a user on 20minutos.es, has received hundreds of thousands of votes since it began in the beginning of June.

The contest began with 104 flags, eliminating the five flags with the least votes every two days.

The competition is coming to an end and is now in its final stage.

The last week of voting has begun and users across the world are chossing their favorite flags.

The final ten flags remaining are Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Guatemala and Puerto Rico.

Peru's red and white flag has been in the top three the entire contest and many Peruvians are eager to see it win.

It is currently ranked number two with almost 45,000 points. Mexico is ranked number one with almost 130,000 points.

Those that wish to vote for the world's most beautiful flag can do so at http://listas.20minutos.es.

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Monday June 30

Workers strike at Peru's biggest copper, zinc pit

Peruvian workers went on strike Monday at the sprawling Antamina zinc and copper mine owned by BHP Billiton and Xstrata, a union official said. "All operations are stopped at Antamina," union leader Francisco Marino told Reuters. The mine is one of the world's largest copper-zinc pits. (Reuters - click here to see article)


Peru trial sensation: President versus spymaster

Six months into the murder trial of Alberto Fujimori, prosecutors have produced little hard evidence that the former Peruvian president approved of a death squad to eliminate rebel collaborators. But they're about to put a blockbuster witness on the stand in a trial that is riveting the nation. (AP - click here to read complete article)


A healthier life and helping others

Maria Fitzgerald said many people don't recognize her anymore. The Peterborough resident has lost 63 of the 80 pounds she pledged to lose by Christmas for her fundraiser Weight for the Abandoned, to help abandoned children in Peru. She's also raised more than $10,000 of her $250,000 to $300,000 goal through various fundraising activities. At a garage sale at her home on Saturday, Fitzgerald raised $1,397 from the sale and received nine cash pledges of $100. (Peterborough Examiner - click here to read complete article posted by Fiona Isaacson)


Making contact: Indigenous tribes' fight to survive

Last month photographs of the discovery of one of the world's last "uncontacted" tribes on the Brazil/Peru border made front covers across the world, vividly illustrating a way of life that is mostly unknown and ignored in the industrialized world. Far from being a unique example there are actually over 100 tribes across the world -- half of whom live in Brazil and Peru -- that have chosen to reject contact with outsiders and fight for the right to live as their ancestors did before them. (CNN - click here to read complete article by Matt Ford)


"It's simply market growth that has prompted us to boost sales"

Peru has been growing at a breakneck pace in recent years and its GDP is expected to expand faster in 2008 than the economy of any other country in Latin America. In addition to growth, the country has infrastructure and construction projects lined up along with an extraordinary housing boom that has prompted ever-increasing demand for steel products. Aceros Arequipa is reaping the benefits of this boom as it is a leader in the Peruvian market, along with Siderperú. (Business News - click here to read complete article by Pablo Gaete)


Penny signs on with Clarets

Burnley have completed the signing of Diego Penny after securing a work permit for the Peru goalkeeper. The 24-year-old has joined the Clarets for an undisclosed fee from Peruvian Primera Division side Coronel Bolognesi on a three-year contract. Lima-born Penny is currently his country's number one goalkeeper. (Sportbox - click here to read complete article)

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Friday June 27

Peru Trial To Pit Spymaster Against President

Six months into the murder trial of Alberto Fujimori, prosecutors have produced little hard evidence that the former Peruvian president approved of a death squad to eliminate rebel collaborators. But they're about to put a blockbuster witness on the stand in a trial that is riveting the nation. The de-facto head of Peru's intelligence service during Mr. Fujimori's decade in power, Vladimiro Montesinos, allegedly organized the Colina group, a squad of army killers who slaughtered 25 civilians during Peru's war against leftist rebels. He finally faces his former boss in court on Monday. (AP - click here to read complete article by Monte Hayes) 


Peru Focus of Rotary Club Project

Some Rotary Club members in Moore County are joining forces with their counterparts in Peru to improve the quality of life for some very needy children. The North Carolinians have joined forces with the Rotary Club of San Isidro Este-Lima, Peru, to outfit a classroom and to bring running water to the 115 children who reside in the Westfalia Kinderdorf orphanage in Cieneguilla, Peru (about two hours outside the capital city of Lima). (The Pilot - click here to read complete article)


Holmen Rotary takes on Peruvian water project

The efforts of the Holmen Rotary Club will mean clean, safe drinking water for hundreds — maybe even thousands — of people in a poor section of Lima, Peru. Last winter, the club, which is only about a year old, decided to take on its first international project. Dean McHugh, chairman of the club's international committee, went online looking for causes that would work and came across a proposed project from a Rotary Club in Lima that sought help getting water filters to an extremely poor section of the city of 10 million. (Holmen Courier - click here to read complete article by Randy Erickson)


Peru gunman shoots football supporters

A student has been shot dead and seven other Universitario club fans have been wounded while on their way to a league soccer match in Peru. Police Gen Javier Uribe told Lima's Radioprogramas that a gunman on a motorcycle yesterday opened fire on the eight fans, who were on their way to the National Stadium for a match between Universitario and Sporting Cristal. (Wales Online - click here to read complete article)


Hunter to travel to Peru, not Nigeria, on goodwill mission

The shoes will still make their way to Africa but Ron Hunter and his IUPUI basketball players won't accompany them. Hunter, who has collected more than 250,000 pairs of sneakers as part of his goodwill mission, Shoes for Hope, has had to shift locales because of escalating travel concerns in Nigeria. Recent information from the African country, including a new Muslim law that legislates how women may dress and when they can appear in public, forced Hunter to alter the team's July trip to Lima, Peru. (ESPN - click here to read complete article by Dana O'Neil)

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Peru: Morning News Roundup - Thursday June 26

Peru president calls EU immigration legislation abusive

Peruvian President Alan Garcia says immigration legislation approved by the European Union is abusive toward undocumented Latin American migrants. Garcia plans to meet with members of the Organization of American States this week to form a unified front against the new EU law, which he contends mistreats immigrants. (AP - click here to read complete article)


Cuba approves first therapeutic vaccine for lung cancer

Cuba has approved what is believed to be the world's first registered lung cancer vaccine and is offering it to Cuban and foreign patients in its hospitals. "It's the first such vaccine registered in the world," said Gisela González, who headed the project begun in 1992. The drug is in various clinical trials, some in Canada and Britain, and is expected to be approved next in Peru. (The Guardian - click here to read complete article by Rory Carroll)


Senerman to design building in Peru

Abraham Senerman, a well-known Chilean architect who took Santiago buildings to new heights, announced on Tuesday plans to design a new skyscraper in Peru. “We’re looking for a place to construct a tall, symbolic building that stands out,” Senerman said at a forum earlier this week, assuring that his real estate company, Inmobiliaria Titanium, will be ready to operate in Peru within one month. (The Santiago Times - click here to read complete article)


Gunman kills one, injures 7 in Peru

A gunman has killed a student and injured seven other Universitario club fans while on their way to a league football match in Peru. According to police Gen. Javier Uribe a gunman on a motorcycle targeted the eight fans, who were on their way to the National Stadium in Lima for a match between Universitario and Sporting Cristal, Canadian Press said on Thursday. (Press TV - click here to read complete article)


CDS 40, USS Farragut Join UNITAS In Peru

UNITAS 49-08, an annual multinational exercise conducted to enhance interoperability and mutual cooperation between Navies, began off the coast of Callao, Peru on June 21. The exercise, hosted by Peru this year, brings together nations with common interests in the Americas, and includes Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and the United States. Mexico is also participating in this year's Atlantic phase of UNITAS as an observer. (The Mirror - click here to read complete article by Omar A. Dominguez)


New gas field boosts Peru’s self-sufficieny ambition

Peruvian energy company Petro-Tech has found a new gas field on the country’s northwest coast that could give some 20 million cubic feet of gas per day boosting its bid for self-sufficiency, EFE news agency said quoting a newspaper report. The field, located on the coast of Piura, some 1,000 km north of Lima, could have potential natural gas reserves of between 350 million and 840 million cubic feet, El Comercio daily reported Wednesday. (Thanindan News - click here to read complete article by IANS)


48 hours in Lima, Peru

Got 48 hours to explore Lima? Long considered just a stopover on the way to the famous Inca ruins at Machu Picchu, Lima has emerged as a destination spot of its own in recent years. Reuters correspondents with local knowledge help visitors get the most from a weekend visit in the Peruvian capital: (Reuters - click here to read complete article)

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