The Chamber of Mines of Peru regrets the death Rodolfo Illanes, Bolivia’s Vice Minister of Internal Affairs.
The Peruvian Chamber of Mines does not condone violence and regrets the death of Bolivia’s Vice Minister of Internal Affairs, Rodolfo Illanes. The Vice Minister was kidnapped by miners who were blocking a road in protest for labor demands and was killed by his captors.
The CPM believes in the respect of fundamental rights such as life, which is one of the main responsibilities of a civilized society.
For this reason, CMP’s Executive Director, Mr. César Gallardo Vela, said: “Those of us working in the mining sector are called to solve controversies. We are called to create an understanding environment to prevent violent situations from happening. The effort to prevent violence lies in strengthening the mechanisms of dialogue, understanding the needs, recognizing the cultural diversity, the social, economic, and political situation of the country. I reject all types of violence and I regret the death of the Vice Minister of our brother country”, he expressed.
Bolivia’s Minister of Defense, Reymi Ferreira, informed that President Evo Morales was deeply affected by the news of Illanes’ death. “The president is deeply affected,” said Ferreira. He also asked the justice system to clarify this case and to hold those responsible accountable.
Rodolfo Illanes was a criminal lawyer who had assumed his current position in March of this year. He was at the site of the road blockade in the Altiplano town of Panduro. Trying to solve the protests carried out by miners opposing reforms to the General Law of Mining Cooperatives. The law allows unionization.
On the other hand, the Minister of Mining, César Navarro, assured that the leaders who are driving the mobilization, against unionization, endorsed the elaboration of that law; through a resolution in 2015. “When they state their opposition to the incorporation of this law, they are denying in a strict way what they themselves have supported”, he commented.
Navarro explained that last year leaders of the Confederación Nacional de Cooperativas de Bolivia (CONCOBOL); and the Federación Nacional de Cooperativas Mineras (FENCOMIN); signed a resolution supporting unionization. This resolution also establishes the recognition of unions of the public service cooperatives.
The town of Panduro, located 160 kilometers from the city of La Paz, is one of the first points of the blockade by the cooperative miners.
