The Chamber of Commerce of Cuzco reported that his region had great economic losses in the tourism sector due to the two-day stoppage in various archaeological sites, as a result of the CAS Workers’ Union of the Decentralized Directorate of Culture Cusco (DDC) complying with the blockades on the 3rd and 4th of november.
Jhon Gonzales, president of the Cusco Chamber of Commerce, estimated that the economic losses are notable. Hundreds of tourists who booked months in advance were unable to fulfill their itinerary.
The paralysis was not only at the level of the historic sanctuary of Machu Picchu, but also included all the archaeological centers under the control of the Ministry of Culture, such as Sacsayhuamán, Qenqo, Pisac, Pucapucara, Tambomachay, Chinchero, Moray, Ollantaytambo, among others.
“In a day of paralysis of tourism, approximately S / 2.5 million is lost”, said Gonzales in an interview with RPP.
Likewise, it indicated that the Cusco Chamber of Commerce issued a statement in which it expresses its disagreement with this type of work stoppage and invited the union to take other actions.
It is worth mentioning that the stoppages were carried out because the workers demand the repeal of a decree that obliges the DDC to allocate its funds collected by tourism to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. They assure that the decision cuts the budget managed by the archaeological parks, preventing their preservation and optimal management.
In case the Executive does not exclude the DDC of Cusco from the new norm, the social unions announced another stoppage for November 17.
Finally, Gonzales mentioned that nothing is being done by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers (PCM) to deal with the conflicts.
“Regarding this problem, which is permanent, nothing is being done completely, on the contrary, we have authorities that are not competent for the position, therefore they do not know how to deal with conflicts and instead of providing a solution, they are worsening the problem.”, pointed out the president of the Cusco Chamber of Commerce.
