Bolivia: Indigenous groups protest against highway construction plans

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Bolivia: Indigenous groups protest against highway construction plans

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Hundreds of indigenous groups protested a highway construction plan through indigenous land.

21 September,2011 04:06 pm

Hundreds of indigenous Bolivians arrived in La Paz Tuesday after a 370-mile (595-km) march protesting a government plan to build a 185-mile (298-km) long highway that would bisect their protected park in the Amazon forest.The protesters, who belong to the Isiboro Secure territory, known by its Spanish acronym TIPNIS, clashed over the weekend with police while trying to reach the capital.The marchers - who began their trek in Trinidad, in the northern Beni province, on August 15 - arrived in capital La Paz demanding that the government halt the construction of the highway project. Words at the top of their banners read, TIPNIS for territory and dignity.Indigenous leader Vilma Machaca said they hoped to send a message to President Evo Morales.Criticism of the president by the indigenous community - once seen as the base of his support - has mounted since the project was announced.Meanwhile, environmental activists say the road will encourage illegal settlement and deforestation in the region. But according to the government, the planned highway will likely further infrastructure investment in the impoverished Andean nation. On Tuesday, Bolivias Vice President, Alvaro Garcia Linera, said the project could help in many ways.The government has also noted that the route will promote much needed development, emphasising that measures will be taken to protect the rainforest.In June, Morales angered activists by saying the road would be built whether they liked it or not.The $420 million (U.S.) road will link the Amazon plains of Beni to Chapare. It will be funded by Brazil and built by a Brazilian company.