Peru declares state of emergency

[Bacchus39]

http://news.yahoo.com/peru-declares-state-emergency-032528785.html

By FRANKLIN BRICENO | AP – 12 hrs agoEmailShare1PrintLIMA, Peru (AP) — President Ollanta Humala declared a 60-day state of emergency Sunday in a northern region torn by more than a week of protests against a highlands gold mine, the country's biggest investment, by peasants who fear for their water supply.

The emergency restricts civil liberties such as the right to assembly and allows arrests without warrants in four provinces of Cajamarca state that have been paralyzed for 11 days by increasingly violent protests against the $4.8-billion Conga gold and copper mining project. U.S.-based Newmont Mining Corp. is the project's majority owner.

Dozens have been injured in clashes between police and protesters, some of whom have vandalized Conga property.

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Humala told Cajamarca during campaign swings before his June election that clean water was more important for him than gold. Many local inhabitants said they now feel betrayed by the president.