Protests continue against Peru's oil industry

The Achuar indigenous people aren’t the only ones protesting against Pluspetrol in Peru. The inhabitants of Pichanki, a city in Peru’s central Jenin region, plan to go on strike to protest Pluspetrol’s gas exploration project in the city.  Congressman Federico Pariona told the press, “Five months have already passed and the people decided to resume the strike, this time indefinitely, because they do not see the political will on the part of the government to dialogue more with the people.” He added, “There is a lot of disinformation among the people. They do not understand what the exploration project is about. They believe the company will harm them and pollute the environment. What the government has to do is explain what the project is about.”

The successful communications strategy of the Achuar indigenous group in its conflict with Pluspetrol has created a roadmap for other Peruvian indigenous activists groups. The Achuar group has very proactively engaged the press during all of its disputes with Pluspetrol, ensuring that its version of events is the loudest. If the residents of Pichanki want to win concessions from the Peruvian government or from Pluspetrol, they would do well to follow the Achuar’s example.

Meanwhile, Pluspetro and the residents of Loreto are no closer to a negotiated solution to their standoff. The local indigenous people still occupy 14 oil wells and are maintaining their blockade of the Tigre River. Pluspetrol’s senior representative in the area, Fernando Meléndez Celis, is sick with pneumonia, so negotiations have been postponed until Wednesday. The Peruvian government has sent Julio Rojas, the High Commissioner of the National Office for Dialogue and Sustainability, as its lead negotiator for the talks.