Progress on Peru's oil field standoff

On Friday, the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Jungle (Aidesep) expressed solidarity with the demands of the indigenous people who seized 14 oil wells owned by Pluspetrol, and criticized the Peruvian government for its slowness in organizing a dialogue between the oil company and its opponents. Aidesep, an umbrella organization for dozens of Peru’s indigenous groups, specifically called out the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and the National Office for Dialogue and Sustainability (ONDS), and noted that the Peruvian government has already declared an environmental emergency in Pampa Hermosa’s river valleys due to the oil extraction. Once again, the Pampa Hermosa indigenous group has demonstrated its communications savvy.

Possibly in response to the criticism, the ONDS on Sunday organized a meeting between representatives of Pluspetrol and the indigenous communities in the Loreto region. The ONDS High Commisioner, Julio Rojas, appreciated both parties’ disposition to try to find consensus through dialogue, and called on the indigenous people to prioritize the use of dialogue instead of the use of force to achieve its social and environmental goals. Ana Jara, president of the Council of Ministers, expressed confidence that significant progress would be made towards a solution during the meeting.

In unrelated news, the Peruvian press highlighted Bloomberg’s report on the resiliency and strength of the Peruvian economy. Bloomberg particularly praised Peruvian president Ollanta Humala for his foresight in attracting investment to energy and agriculture projects in order to reduce the country’s dependence on its mining sector. Despite this dependency, according to the president of Minas Buenaventura, the Peruvian mining can stay strong and continue to develop even with lower international mineral prices. The outlook is good for the Peruvian economy.