Violence does not stop with attacks on police stations and looting in Antapaccay

Violence does not let up in the mobilizations promoted against the government of Dina Boluarteand so far there are more than 580 policemen injured since the start of the protests, several of them seriously. This was confirmed by the general commander of the PNP, Raúl Alfaro.

The police chief explained that, only in the coup on Thursday, 70 police officers were reported killed throughout the country. “Four police officers from Puno who are being treated in our hospital have been evacuated,” also said the Minister of the Interior, Vicente Romero.

LOOK: It was a day of political violence, destruction and death in the country

The acts of vandalism do not have when to end. Yesterday there were attacks on police stations in Puno, while in Cusco the camp of the Antapaccay mining company was looted, which announced the suspension of its operations.

About a thousand people arrived yesterday at noon at the mining camp, located in Espinar (Cusco), to demand the stoppage of activities and the issuance of a statement requesting Boluarte’s resignation. A group violently entered the facilities, “looting workers’ belongings and company assets and burning some areas of the camp,” explained the mining company.

“Given these unacceptable facts and the risk it implies for our workers, the company announces the temporary stoppage of its operations,” reported Antapaccay.

Between January and November 2022, the company produced 135,987 fine metric tons (TMF) of copper, investing more than US$84 million.

For mining analyst Anthony Laub, if one takes into account that Las Bambas, which produced 232,540 TMF in the same period, is also being affected, “the mining sector is being put at risk.” “Added both mining companies, we are talking about a large amount of copper production that is put at risk. In addition, we send the message to the mining sector of the fragility that it has, ”he said.

In addition, Antapaccay contributed 60% of the canon budget and mining royalties from the Espinar province municipal budget. And it hires the services of more than 100 companies in the area, which generates indirect employment.

MORE VIOLENCE

In Arequipa, vandals attacked the Police again –with stones and blunt objects– for several hours, on the second day of trying to take over the Alfredo Rodríguez Ballón airport, which continues to not operate after being affected the day before. The protesters also blocked the Arequipa-Puno highway.

In the latter region, a group of misfits burned the Zepita police station (Chucuito, Puno) during the afternoon, which had been closed and was without personnel as a precaution.

In addition, there were attacks and attempts to take over the Desaguadero and Ilave police stations. In this last, Peru21 learned that three subjects with Molotov cocktails, gasoline and other elements were detained.

Hours earlier, another group of vandals managed to burn the Binational Border Assistance Center (Cebaf), a customs post on the border with Bolivia. “These actions are not consistent with the right to peaceful protest,” condemned the Foreign Ministry, which stressed that this harms trade in the area.

Other clashes occurred in Chao (La Libertad), where protesters threw explosives at the Police who were seeking to free part of the Panamericana Norte highway.

In Lima, the mobilizations that began peacefully turned violent over the hours, with direct attacks on law enforcement and infrastructure, such as the Colmena del Metropolitano station, which was attacked with stones.

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