Protests sweep Peru, rattling Garcia's new cabinet
By Diego Ore
LIMA, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Thousands of people demonstrated in five provinces in Peru on Wednesday, threatening politicians and torching a police station, in a crucial first test of President Alan Garcia's new cabinet.
In unrest that began earlier this week, dozens have been injured in clashes with police who shot tear gas into crowds, and three police were released early on Wednesday in Moquegua after being taken hostage.
Protesters in the provinces of Tacna and Moquegua demanded a fair share of taxes generated by local mines. In Cuzco province, they hoped to prevent a mining company from taking water for a power dam, and in Cajamarca crowds surrounded local politicians to press for a new highway. In San Martin, they set fire to a police station, RPP radio said.
Garcia overhauled his cabinet this month in a bid to end a wave of protests that has plagued Peru this year, quell a corruption scandal and lift his popularity rating from around 20 percent.
His new prime minister, Yehude Simon, a prominent leftist, was named to dissuade the opposition from taking to the streets and make sure social programs reach the poor, who have been left behind during a 7-year economic surge.
But Simon, a former left-wing activist who was imprisoned for 8 years in the 1990s over ties to the Tupac Amaru insurgency, has so far failed to prevent conflicts.
Simon said he would not tolerate violent protests and threatened to prosecute people who block roads. He said talks could start once the protests stop.
"If they want to talk, they can come talk. We aren't closing any democratic space," he said.
He told protesters in Moquegua they will need to give up control of a bridge they took over before Congress will vote on a bill they want passed that would give their province a bigger share of mining royalties.
Defense Minister Antero Flores said the government would not be forced into making concessions.
"I think discipline must be imposed. Dialogue is important but not when a gun is aimed at your head," Flores said.
Despite nearly a decade of fast economic growth, some 40 percent of Peruvians live in poverty. Critics say Garcia has not done enough during two years in office to spread wealth from a boom in mining exports to the poor. (Additional reporting by Teresa Cespedes; Writing by Terry Wade; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
