Mining Extractivism in Indigenous Territories in Peru
BY LUIS A. HALLAZI MÉNDEZ FOR INDIGENOUS DEBATES
For centuries, colonialism constructed an image of Peru as a mining country. This narrative has been sustained by a relevant participation of extractivism in the Peruvian economy, from economic activity to exports and foreign direct investment. Recently, mining in the Andean Region has been joined by illegal gold mining in the forests and Indigenous Territories of the Amazon. Indigenous Peoples are resisting the advance of organized crime through autonomy and territorial control.