News and Politics | June 03, 2008 | 44 comments

Peruvians to protest US military presence

source: http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=9160

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cubbingabout
Social organizations called to a general strike to protest against the presence of US troops in Ayacucho, in central Peru. The general strike will take place on July 8, according to a decision taken by the Ayacucho Defense Front after it was announced that 70 US American soldiers had been deployed in the area. Another 350 military troops will arrive soon.

Front chairman Iver Maravi said protesters will demand the withdrawal of the foreign troops, because its presence, which was approved by congressional conservative forces, goes against national sovereignty and dignity.

Army chief Gen. Edwin Donayre claimed the US troops will only perform humanitarian tasks, without settling a permanent base in Peru.

However, former Army officer and opposition leader Ollanta Humala ruled out Donayre's words.

Humala said the water wells and school classrooms to be built by the American troops can be built by Peruvian workers and engineers.

Former Minister of Defense and Congressman David Waisman agreed with military analyst Jose Robles on that the Ministry of Defense is lacking transparency regarding the number of US military troops that has been authorized to enter Peru.
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44 comments // Peruvians to protest US military presence

  • Peruvianist
    • 0
      Peruvianist  
    • Image

    • I am Peruvian and I lived in the US. I could spend hours writing here about the unfair country that is Peru, dominated by a small elite of whites and mixed Indigenous people who reject their Native heritage and run the country from Lima, exploiting the majority of Peruvians.

      But I will focuse on one thing: the US is trying to take over Peru and use it as a base to mantain its dominace in the region.

      After the passage of the US-Peru Free aTrade Agreement last year by the US Congress (a corrupted deal supported by Obama, Clinton and McCain by the way) natural resources of Peru -oil, gas, fishing, minerals, forests and water- will be readily available to US corrupted and abusive corporations.

      But most Peruvians didn't want the FTA. Neither we support the current government run by Alan Garcia, a right-wing genocidal and thief who pretends to be a leftist. Garcia has only 30% of approval rates natiowide, while in Ayacucho -where the USAF base is planned to be- his approval is only 10%.

      The US needs a military base in Peru to protect the interests of corporate America, and to protect the abusive elites of Lima. It's not a new thing: the US has invaded with its military and got into Latin American internal affairs since Monroe declared the American imperialism, oficially.

      The US wants to control South America, and its natural resources. They wanto to continue Plan Colombia and their interests on the drug production, and to stop the influence of hugely popular socialist goverments of the region. The conservative side of American society wants to keep their imperialist dominance over our countries, but we are sick and tired of it.

      Humanitarian tasks? Why doesn't the US governmetn start at home, let's say in Lousiana and Mississippi, or in any ghettos of its big cities, where Americans kill each other in a daily basis. Why doesn't the US help 12 million people -including millions of Peruvians- who live in the shadows as undocumented workers in US soil? Look at those people dying in the border with Mexico, dying in the desert trying to cross a border of poverty and racism. Help your people, who are losing their homes and jobs. Spend your tax money on those who paid for it.

      Bush and its US military need to leave Peru alone, keep your soldiers away. Peruvians can take care of ourselves, first we need to change the way this country is run.

    • 4 years ago
  • smart362
  • proudcbwife
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      proudcbwife  

    • My husband is currently deployed to Ayacucho to build a water well. They are NOT trying to invade Peru, nor do they plan on setting up permanent bases. They are simply there to perform humanitarian tasks. Yes they do have security -because it's still a dangerous area. & It's no different than the security they would have at a base in the US.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
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      celestialceiling  

    • The Ayacucho (Eye-ah-coo-choo) Basin is located within central Peru and consists of several archeological sites which date from 23,000 B.C. to 1470 AD. The basin itself has been a host to an estimated 23 civilizations from the Wari to the Inca. Though there are many sites within the Ayacucho Basin, the civilization known asthe Ayacucho, occupied a relatively long timespan of roughly 2,000 years, and was the second civilization to live within the Basin. Ayacucho has been known by many names such as Flea Cave, Ayacucho, and by the multitude of archeological sites found in the Ayacucho Basin.

      Today, Ayacucho is inhabited by farmers, villiagers, peaceful people who continue some of the practices of their ancestors.

      Why in the world would US troops march into this region?

      If Irsael is seen as a BIRTHPLACE - So is this.

      What's the next ancient history the Bush admin. intends to wipe out?

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
  • celestialceiling
  • clayjj05
  • clayjj05
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      clayjj05 [removed]  

    • celes please report me your a fucking idiot using retarded facts and yes im attacking right now.

      With that said....

      They have guns becuase they are in a dangerous area, my friend in hawaii have guns.

      Protestors... LOL a couple of people waving a sign above their head, hardly represents a protest.

      They enjoy our millions in aid dont they?
      Lets cut the idiots out of the money tree, and how quickly they would fold.

      Oh and i forgot everything on the "ol might internet" is correct.

      Im in the Army as an X ray tech assigned to fort sam houston, i havnt heard of any wars in south america. So maybe thats your opinion

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  
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    • South America embraces Ahmadinejad

      Red carpets, brass bands, bear hugs and a hero's welcome: there is at least one part of the Americas that loves Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

      South America this week greeted the Iranian president as a brother and benefactor, defrosting him after his icy reception in New York. The leaders of Bolivia and Venezuela embraced Mr Ahmadinejad and blessed Iran's nuclear programme, underlining how much influence Washington has lost over a region it once considered its backyard.

      Saturday September 29 2007

    • 4 years ago
  • jlaboy
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      jlaboy  
    • celestialceiling:

      The American people were lied to about Iraq, but Im pretty sure they weren't told they were going there to build schools and roads. As far as my opinions on South America, I think my opinions are a little but more rounded than yours as I live in South America. Like I said beforem Bush is bad, but this is a good thing the military is doing.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
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      celestialceiling  

    • If you do a little research, instead of just throwing your opinions around, you may learn that South America was the next target after the Middle East.

      Bush knows he's in trouble, but he's got to finish the big plans.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
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      celestialceiling  

    • "protesters will demand the withdrawal of the foreign troops, because its presence... goes against national sovereignty and dignity."

      Does the US have any respect for the rest of the world?

    • 4 years ago
  • jlaboy
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      jlaboy  
    • celestialceiling:

      I think Robert Gates has shown to differ with Bush since he started, and I think to threaten national sovereignty, the US need to send more than just an engineering unit that are there for humanitairian efforts. Everyone knows GW has been the worst President ever, but I think this is one of the few things right he has done.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
  • celestialceiling
  • jlaboy
    • 0
      jlaboy  
    • celestialceiling:

      Probably the same reason Naval Helicopters dropping aide in Burma have guns, they are the military, it is SOP. People in Venezuela protest against Hugo Chavez everyday somewhere, Im sure that the entire country does not want him out of the country.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
  • clayjj05
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  
    • clayjj05:

      you're telling me that the men in the photo are all engineers? How many years of training does one need to become a qualified engineer? What are they going to be building? Could I become an international engineer by volunteering for the US Army? Would you drive your car over a bridge that I build?

    • 4 years ago
  • jlaboy
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      jlaboy  
    • clayjj05:

      It traditionally takes 4 years of University education to achieve a BS in engineering. They will most likely have 3 to 4 civil engineering officers to act as planning and foreman, and the rest of the unit will be enlisted for the grunt work. They will typically reinforce already standing infstructure. Brigdes, water lines and buildings.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  

    • When you compare this story to what's going on in the Amazon (which Peru is home to part of) the story takes on many new meanings.

      We tried to dominate energy resources in the Middle East and now we're after South America.

      I don't think Bush knows how to share

    • 4 years ago
  • jlaboy
    • 0
      jlaboy  

    • Since the people of Peru don't need help from the EE UU, maybe they shouldn't call them when bad stuff goes down. Deny the aid dollars they so readily accept.

    • 4 years ago
  • a_mo
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      a_mo  

    • I was born in the 80s. But I can tell you the army is a lot different now than it was 30 years ago. The leadership is also a lot different.

      I don't blame the people of Peru for protesting, but it is ignorant to deny good help when you get it. This is a humanitarian mission where I suspect the US is trying to build a better image in South America. If they don't want the help, fuck it, less trouble for the US.

    • 4 years ago
  • Enjoy_Cannabis
  • clayjj05
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      clayjj05 [removed]  

    • What are you talking about enojy we are not in a war with Peru, we are helping them build some very needed infrastructure. My friend is an army engineer in hawaiii right now and he has some myspace pictures of what they can do. There work is excellent and i think peru made a good desicion by asking for american help.
      Thisis a humanitarian mission, not some chance to take over another country.

    • 4 years ago
  • Enjoy_Cannabis
  • celestialceiling
  • celestialceiling
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  
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    • Peru is a representative democratic republic divided into 25 regions. Its geography varies from the arid plains of the Pacific coast to the peaks of the Andes mountains and the tropical forests of the Amazon Basin. It is a developing country with a medium Human Development Index score and a poverty level around 45%. Its main economic activities include agriculture, fishing, mining, and manufacturing of products such as textiles.

      The Peruvian population, estimated at 28 million, is multiethnic, including Amerindians, Europeans, Africans and Asians. The main spoken language is Spanish, although a significant number of Peruvians speak Quechua or other native languages. This mixture of cultural traditions has resulted in a wide diversity of expressions in fields such as art, cuisine, literature, and music.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  

    • If they are going there to build schools, why do they need those guns? Peru is an amazing country with a rich history.

      If the people of Peru are protesting, maybe we should listen.

    • 4 years ago
  • clayjj05
    • 0
      clayjj05 [removed]  

    • ed is 100% correct, just because our Iraq occupation has not gone over as well as predicted. It does not mean that our military can not help people who really need it.

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
  • Hawkmang
    • 0
      Hawkmang  
    • clayjj05:

      clayjj05, sure. But the question is not whether we can help, but rather, whether we should help. Even IF ADF chairman Iver Maravi and other Peruvians weren't pointing out that this is imposing on their national sovereignty would this be okay? As Peruvian Nationalist Party (PNP) leader Ollanta Humala points out the work that is to be done by U.S. troops could be accomplished by Peruvian construction workers and engineers. Also, I think that the Peruvian protesters who fear that this so-called humanitarian project will result in a permanent military base have every reason to harbor that concern. Consider that a great many of the military installations that we now maintain around the world were supposed to be "temporary." As Milton Friedman warned, "Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program."

    • 4 years ago
  • edmubnd
    • 0
      edmubnd  

    • I don't believe that this kind of deployment is a bad thing as a blanket statement - our troops can do some good around the world in select places at select times. It is also a healthy sign that there is a mix of both support and opposition from the citizens and leaders of the country to which we are lending our assistance. Hopefully, this is an operation that achieves its (clear and agreed-upon) purpose quickly and becomes something that we can point to as an example of positive American influence - such stories don't tend to get a lot of press these days.

    • 4 years ago
  • riverdeer
  • clayjj05
    • 0
      clayjj05 [removed]  

    • The peruvian government asked the United States for the assistance. Google It, the middle of Peru is as dangerous as Baghdad right now.

      If Peru was capable of doing it, they wouldnt be basically living Caveman style

    • 4 years ago
  • celestialceiling
    • 0
      celestialceiling  
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    • clayjj05:

      When you google: "peru" you're not going to learn how things really are there, unless you are willing to translate a spanish language website.

      Maybe I should ask my Peruvian girlfriend what she knows about this story...

    • 4 years ago
  • cubbingabout
  • diabolical44
  • Hawkmang
    • 0
      Hawkmang  
    • Image

    • cubbingabout, great post!

      The following is excerpted from Chalmers Johnson's new book, "Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic" (Metropolitan Books).

      "The total of America's military bases in other people's countries in 2005, according to official sources, was 737. Reflecting massive deployments to Iraq and the pursuit of President Bush's strategy of preemptive war, the trend line for numbers of overseas bases continues to go up.

      Interestingly enough, the thirty-eight large and medium-sized American facilities spread around the globe in 2005 -- mostly air and naval bases for our bombers and fleets -- almost exactly equals Britain's thirty-six naval bases and army garrisons at its imperial zenith in 1898. The Roman Empire at its height in 117 AD required thirty-seven major bases to police its realm from Britannia to Egypt, from Hispania to Armenia. Perhaps the optimum number of major citadels and fortresses for an imperialist aspiring to dominate the world is somewhere between thirty-five and forty."

      Chalmers Johnson interview
      http://current.com/items/88918521_nemesis_the_last_days...

    • 4 years ago
  • patriotgames1
    • 0
      patriotgames1  

    • Its brilliant to see that the people of Peru are doing something posotive about it, Next it will be permanant bases and more footholds to attack chavez from

    • 4 years ago
  • Eirianallt
  • Enjoy_Cannabis
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