US embassy cable - 05LIMA1564

UNCLAS LIMA 001564 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PINS, PHUM, ASEC, PE 
SUBJECT: GOP RESPONDS QUICKLY TO CAMPESINO UNREST IN 
ANDAHUAYLAS 
 
REF: LIMA 12 
 
Sensitive But Unclassified, Please Handle Accordingly 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY.  The GOP responded quickly to road blockages 
last week by campesinos around Andahuaylas, Apurimac 
Department, declaring a 30-day state of emergency on 4/3, 
substantially increasing police presence in the area and 
offering to send a high-level negotiating commission to 
address the demonstrators' demands for higher potato prices 
and improved roads.  The GOP, recognizing that this is the 
same volatile region where the Ethno-Cacerista uprising took 
place three months ago, has been quick off the mark to ensure 
that the latest unrest is dealt with expeditiously and 
peacefully.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (U) The Government declared a 30-day state of emergency on 
4/3, in the provinces of Andahuaylas and Chincheros, located 
in the northwest corner of the Apurimac Region.  The action 
came in response to protests carried out by several hundred 
local farmers demanding higher prices for their products. 
The protesters blocked all of the roads leading to the city 
of Andahuaylas, and took over the local airport, blocking the 
runway.  They demanded that the government purchase 7,000 
tons of potatoes, as over-production had dropped the price 
for this crop to about three U.S. cents per kilo (from 
previous levels of around 17 cents), and they also called for 
better roads to get their produce to market.  Officials 
reports said 15 people were injured in clashes linked to the 
strike activity. 
 
3. (U) The state of emergency decree suspends certain 
constitutional guarantees: it permits warrantless search of 
homes, restricts the right of free transit, and prohibits 
public assemblies and demonstrations.  The decree authorizes 
the National Police, with the support of the Armed Forces, to 
take measures to maintain control of internal order in the 
affected provinces.  This was the second time this year that 
a state of emergency decree was issued for Andahuaylas; the 
previous instance resulted from the Ethno-Cacerist uprising 
in January (Reftel). 
 
4. (U) Speaking for the Government, Deputy Agriculture 
Minister Julio Escudero said the protesters should call off 
the strike for 48 hours.  If they did, a high-level 
government commission would meet with them, but Escudero 
averred that the Government would not negotiate under 
pressure.  Vice Minister of Social Development Mario Molina 
also pledged that the GOP would buy 5,000 tons of potatoes 
from small producers through its food distribution program 
(Pronaa).  Despite initial rejection by some sectors, peasant 
leaders announced 4/4 that they had agreed to a 48-hour 
suspension of the strike to allow the arrival of the 
government commission.  When it became clear that the roads 
and airport were still blocked, however, Agriculture Minister 
Manuel Manrique said the commission would not travel until 
the blockades were lifted.  Manrique also accused Congressman 
Michael Martinez, who has also been an outspoken proponent of 
cocalero interests, of spurring on the protesters in order to 
serve Martinez's personal political interests. 
 
5. (SBU)  Interior Ministry Intelligence Director Jorge 
Cardenas told Deputy Polcoun on 4/4 that the situation on the 
ground had not changed appreciably and that demonstrations 
were continuing, but the police were moving to put 
reinforcements in place and take control.  Cardenas said that 
by the end of the day, the PNP would have three times its 
normal contingent operating in the Andahuaylas area.  As of 
the morning of 4/5, 300 police officers were reported to be 
encamped in San Jeronimo, on the outskirts of Andahuaylas, 
and access to the airport had been restored. 
 
6. (SBU) COMMENT:  The GOP's prompt dispatch of police 
reinforcements to Andahuaylas and its offer to send a 
high-level commission to address the demonstrators' demands 
reflects the Government's concern about this area's 
volatility in the wake of the January Ethno-Cacerista 
uprising.  By contrast, the GOP has not/not expressed an 
intention to engage in a similar dialogue with cotton growers 
who have carried out blockages of the Pan American Highway 
near Ica recently.  END COMMENT. 
STRUBLE