Fiestas & Protests

So here I am in an internet cafe after a day of being bed-ridden and let me tell you about yesterday.
I am going to spare you the details of suffering of both food poisoning and altitude sickness but move on to something that is way more important and close to my heart.
There have been protests in our region for close to 50 days now. You may have heard of protests occuring in the high Andes around Lake Titicaca and Machu Picchu but what strikes closer to where I am calling home are the blockades that are occuring only a few hours away. Our way in to Chachapoyas had to be changed last week due to a blockage to the west of us. We luckily made it into town when we did as the road to the east of us is now blocked as well. Why are they blocked? Well, what you may not know is how the Free Trade Agreement affects the lives of those who live on the lands of these natural resources. Chachapoyas is in the middle of the Amazonas region of Peru, located in the northeast portion of the country. Many aboriginal groups live in this area and for the last while, they are being pushed out of their homes for the sake of ¨development¨. Just yesterday, the government´s police force opened fire from helicopters on those protesting just 3 hrs away from us. The initial number was 20 dead but by mid-afternoon the numbers had climbed to 100 then by evening to 200. Right now the numbers being reported in the news both here and abroad are still very conservative at only 20 or 30 but the truth is that it is 10 times that. Reports from the lines include children as young as 4 being a part of the victims.
One of our Peruvian counterparts is an aboriginal from the Condorconqui group who is one of the groups protesting right now. It has been hard on most of our group as this relates closely to those around us. We were able to collect funds last night and help our Condoconqui friend purchase medicine and food to send to the front lines to help those injured in what is truly a massacre on those protecting their rights.
The reports from the Peruvian Prime Minister stating that it is a plot on the native´s part against democracy is ridiculous as just yesterday power was cut to all of Chachapoyas for several hours to stop all communication from getting out. How´s that for democracy?
If you want to read up on more info, please check out rabble.ca and look up Ben Powless´article on protests in Peru.
Naturally I will be keeping you updated from my end! Ciao