probably only temporary relief

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Indian leader calls for end to protests in Peru
By ANDREW WHALEN, Associated Press Writer – Thu Jun 18, 11:20 pm ET

LIMA, Peru – A top Indian leader on Thursday called for an end to protests that left dozens dead in Peru's Amazon after Congress revoked two decrees that indigenous groups said would spur oil and gas exploitation and other development on their ancestral lands.

At a news conference after lawmakers voted 82-14 to lift the disputed decrees, Daysi Zapata, vice president of the Amazon Indian confederation that led the protests, urged activists to lift blockades of jungle rivers and roads set up beginning in April at points across six jungle provinces.

"This is a historic day for indigenous people because it shows that our demands and our battles were just," Zapata told a news conference. She added that the confederation is calling its members to "tell them to lift the measures."

While government officials in Lima reported that protests were already subsiding, Indians contacted by the Associated Press at a roadblock outside the jungle town of Yurimaguas had not yet lifted their blockade.

The protests turned bloody June 5 outside the jungle town of Bagua when security forces broke up a road blockade manned by activists. The government says 23 police and 10 civilians were killed, with one police officer missing. Indian leaders say at least 30 civilians died.

Confederation President Alberto Pizango left Peru for political asylum in Nicaragua on Wednesday after being charged with sedition and rebellion, and Indian leader Marcial Mudarra told the AP by telephone on Thursday that he and 35 others were still in hiding to avoid arrest.

Indians have opposed 11 pro-investment decrees issued by President Alan Garcia in early 2008 under special legislative powers granted him by Peru's Congress to enact a free trade agreement with the United States. They say the laws could affect 56 Amazon nations representing hundreds of thousands of Indians.

The legislature revoked two of the decrees last August after Indians blocked highways, waterways and a state oil pipeline. The protests had affected pumping by state oil company Petroperu through its northern pipeline, as well as production by Argentina's Pluspetrol.

But Garcia initially refused to review the remaining decrees when Indians resumed their protests in April, and his party blocked votes on them in Congress, arguing they were needed to bring investment and development to Peru's impoverished jungle.

Following the bloodshed, however, the government promised to ask Congress to revoke two of the most hotly opposed decrees, regulating forestry and agricultural land use. The two decrees fast-tracked large-scale farming, logging and other private companies looking to acquire land in the Amazon, where Indians have had difficulty in getting legal title to their traditional lands.

On Wednesday, Garcia recognized a "series of errors" in his management of the protests and apologized for failing to consult Indian leaders before enacting the decrees.

Congressman Mauricio Mulder, secretary of Peru's ruling party, said Thursday that his block voted to repeal the decrees "for reasons of the state," referring to unity with Garcia, rather than because they viewed the decrees as a threat to indigenous property rights in the Amazon.

Zapata and Congressman Freddy Otarola, spokesman for an opposition party, called on the government to "eliminate the seven other decrees" contested by the Indians.

The violence has major political and economic ramifications in Peru, and could herald further instability.

Conflicts largely pitting communities against the state or business interests rose to 268 nationwide last month, up from 83 at the start of 2008, according to government figures. Most involve foreign oil and mining companies and complaints of pollution and land infringement.

Garcia's missteps in his push to develop Peru's oil and gas resources will also likely slow investment just as the nation's economy is faltering amid low commodity prices.

Politically, Garcia is set to lose his second chief Cabinet minister in less than a year in crises related to oil development. Yehude Simon has promised to step down after settling the Indian dispute and his predecessor resigned in October amid a bribes-for-oil contracts scandal.