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WORLD NEWS Saturday 4 June 2022
Immersed in crisis, Peru neglects Amazon’s destruction

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Peru mining, logging and coca
has descended into one of plantations.
the worst political crises in “Agriculture is now firmly
its history and protection of established,” as the lead-
its Amazon rainforest is fail- ing driver of deforestation,
ing, according to a report concentrated in the cen-
published Thursday. Peru is tral and southern Peruvian
home to the second-larg- Amazon, said MAAP direc-
est portion of the Amazon tor Matt Finer. “This includes
rainforest after Brazil. The both widespread small-
country had pledged to scale agriculture as well re-
stop deforestation by 2021. cent large-scale activities
The South American coun- from new Mennonite colo-
try has been immersed in nies.”
political turbulence since The report, titled The Roots
2016. Corruption scandals of Environmental Crime
and disputes between the in the Peruvian Amazon,
executive and legislative identifies three actors be-
branches of government hind deforestation: big
have led to intense turn- businesses, such as palm oil
over four presidents in five companies; entrepreneur-
years. Peru’s current Presi- ial criminal networks, which
dent, leftist outsider Pedro profit from the trade in
Castillo, has already sur- This Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016 photo shows the deforestation of what was once pristine timber, land or drugs, and
rainforest, caused by gold mining, during a government raid on illegal wildcat mining operations
vived two impeachment in La Pampa, in Peru’s Madre de Dios region. cheap labor poorly paid
attempts since he took of- Associated Press workers who cut down trees
fice in July 2021. and plant coca crops.
The Peruvian Amazon (MAAP), an initiative of the declined, but still ranked as of the Amazon rainforest.” The products of these illegal
is massive larger than nonprofit Amazon Conser- the sixth highest on record. The Igarapé Institute com- activities end up in other
Ukraine, some 68 million vation Association, reports Peruvian official data, missioned the report from parts of the world. Most of
hectares (168 million acres). that deforestation in the which only goes through InSight Crime, a non-profit the gold exports go to Swit-
It holds the headwaters of Peruvian Amazon has hit 2020, agrees. organization focused on zerland, the United States,
the Amazon river as well as six historical highs in the Corrupt actors who benefit investigating crime in Latin India and Canada. Peru’s
Manú National Park, one past ten years. The analy- from environmental crime, America. domestic market absorbs
of the most biologically di- sis is based on data from together with the political As in Brazil’s Amazon, cat- most of the timber; what
verse areas in the world. It’s the University of Maryland, crisis have resulted in a lack tle ranching and agricul- is exported goes mainly to
a transition zone between which has kept records of government ability to ture are the main drivers China. Around 28 percent
the Andes mountains and since 2002. fight environmental crime, of deforestation. Agribusi- of Peru’s gold production
the rainforest lowlands, rich The worst year ever was the report said. “What’s ness companies and poor is illegal, according to the
in microclimates and ecol- 2020 when Peru lost around more, the Peruvian gov- migrants from other parts InsightCrime investigation,
ogy. 170,000 hectares (420,000 ernment continues to pri- of Peru seize land illegally. which also estimates that
But the Monitoring of the acres) of Amazon rainfor- oritize economic develop- Other illegal activities that most timber extraction is
Andean Amazon Project est. Last year, that number ment over the protection harm the forest are gold done without permits.q

Pakistan reports 7th polio case of this year amid outbreak

By MUNIR AHMED in the region often refuse hold of the Pakistani Taliban
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Paki- to get their children inocu- until recently, when the
stani health authorities lated. military claimed to have
on Friday confirmed the Pakistan’s Health Minister cleared the region of mili-
seventh case of polio so Abdul Qadir Patel issued tants following several wi-
far this year, saying it was a statement Friday, say- descale operations there.
registered in the country’s ing authorities were taking However, attacks still per-
former Taliban stronghold steps to protect the gains sist. Pakistan has for the past
in the northwest, a region made by the government’s 25 years carried out regular
bordering Afghanistan. polio eradication program inoculation campaigns in
The outbreak, after the in recent years. He urged which health workers go
first polio case of 2022 was parents to get their children door-to-door to give polio
registered in the same re- vaccinated. drops to children. Most of
gion in April, is a blow to Pakistan’s anti-polio cam- the workers are women, as
the Islamic nation’s efforts paigns are regularly they can get better access
to eradicate the disease, marked by violence. Is- to mothers and children.
which can cause severe lamic militants often target The anti-polio teams are A health worker gives a polio vaccine to a child in a neighbor-
paralysis in children. polio teams and police often escorted by security hood of Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, May 23, 2022
All seven cases have been assigned to protect them, forces. Associated Press
reported in North Wa- falsely claiming the vac- So far this year, the govern-
ziristan, a district in the Khy- cination campaigns are a ment carried out three na- northwestern Pakistan shot gunmen shot and killed a
ber Pakhtunkhwa province Western conspiracy to ster- tionwide anti-polio drives and killed a female polio police officer providing se-

where the government has ilize children. in January, March and in worker as she was returning curity for polio vaccination
launched an investigating North Waziristan, a former May. During the March home after a day of vac- workers, also in the coun-
into the outbreak. Parents tribal region, was a strong- campaign, gunmen in cinations. And in January, try’s northwest.q