The Andes
Venezuela: Yukpa killed in land confrontation
Venezuelan army troops intervened in a confrontation between indigenous Yukpa residents and local ranchers over disputed lands, leaving one community member dead.
Tag: land
Africa
Darfur: ethnic war exploding again
Efforts by pastoralist militias to bar refugees from returning to their lands in Darfur have sparked yet a new wave of fighting and displacement—with 250,000 uprooted this year.
Palestine
Israeli forces evict ‘protest village’ near Bethlehem
Israeli forces evicted a protest village near the Kfar Etzion settlement compound south of Bethlehem, organized by the Popular Struggle Committee Against Settlements and the Wall.
Mexico
Mexico: municipal uprising against road project
Comuneros in the Mexican village of Tepoztlán seized the town hall and took the mayor captive to demand cancellation of a highway expansion they say violates their land rights.
The Andes
Colombian ambassador to US resigns over land-theft scandal
Colombia's ambassador in Washington, Carlos Urrutia, resigned after being implicated in the illegal transfer of lands from campesino communities to ag-biz companies, including Cargill.
Mexico
Anti-mining protests in Mexico, Canada
The July 22 Global Day of Action Against Open-Pit Mining, most widely observed in the Andean nations, also saw coordinated protests in NAFTA partners Mexico and Canada.
Mexico
Chiapas cancels carbon deal with California
The government of Chiapas cancelled a controversial forest protection plan that critics said failed to address root causes of deforestation and endangered indigenous peoples.
The Andes
Peru: deadline for payment on expropriated lands
Peru’s Constitutional Tribunal issued a decision ordering the government to honor debt owed for land confiscated under the agrarian reform that began in the 1960s.
The Andes
Colombia: ranchers fear ‘communist’ redistribution
Colombia's federation of cattle ranchers rejected the recent agrarian deal with the FARC, charging that it could lead to Venezuela-style expropriations of private property.
The Andes
Peru: peasant leader killed in Cajamarca
Carlos Vásquez Becerra, a campesino leader who opposed mining projects in Peru’s conflicted Cajamarca region, was found beaten to death in a canyon.
The Andes
Colombia: two dead in eradication protests
Following two weeks of escalating protests by local campesinos, two were killed as National Police troops opened fire at Ocaña in Colombia’s Norte de Santander department.
The Andes
Bogotá, FARC reach deal on land reform
Negotiators from Colombia's government and the FARC rebels signed an agreement on agrarian reform, calling for redistribution of illegally held or underused lands.