Bolivia suspends road project after indigenous protest
Bolivia’s President Evo Morales has suspended plans to build a major highway through indigenous peoples’ land in the Amazon rainforest.
environment
Painkillers and pens used to placate Peru’s Indians as gas giants move in
Half of the Nahua died after their land was first opened up by Shell for oil exploration in the 1980s.
Outrage at HidroAysén Dams Raises Environmental and Political Consciousness in Chile
Since mid-April, the planned construction of 5 hydroelectric dams in the ecologically rich region of Aysén in Southern Chile has produced persistent floods of protesters in the streets and plazas of cities spanning the length of the country.
Rebellion in the Brazilian Amazon
More than 80,000 workers all over the country paralyzed the work of “progress” in the form of hydroelectric plants, refineries, and thermoelectric generating facilities.
Bolivia enshrines natural world’s rights with equal status for Mother Earth
Law of Mother Earth expected to prompt radical new conservation and social measures in South American nation
We Have Everything And Lack Everything: In Mexico, Community Police Resist Mining Companies
…a series of regional assemblies were held in the Costa Chica and Montaña area in southeast Guerrero leading to the decision that the communities would start their own police force comprised of volunteers.
Ongoing, Unresolved Issues Likely to Perpetuate Tension in Bolivia
A combination of widespread drought, followed by intense flooding in some regions; accusations of commodities speculation; alleged smuggling operations sending large amounts of contraband Bolivian goods to neighboring nations; worldwide food price increases; plus Bolivian government plans to control the prices of certain staple goods has caused strikes, protests and nation-wide sugar shortages in recent weeks.
Ecuador Court Frees 3 Indigenous Leaders Jailed on Terrorism Charge
The three are charged over events that took place on 30 September 2009, when confrontations between demonstrators protesting against a new water law and the national police ended with the death of a Shuar Professor Bosco Wismua, who suffered a fatal blow to the head.
Women at the Forefront of Grassroots Organising in El Salvador
Women are playing a leading role in a powerful social movement addressing natural resource protection, adaptation to climate change, and corporate accountability in this coastal village in El Salvador.