Espinar province

Espinar
K'anamarka in the Espinar Province
Location of Espinar in the Cusco Region
CountryPeru
RegionCusco
CapitalYauri
Government
 • MayorLindley Alfredo Salinas Perez (2007)
Area
 • Total
5,311.09 km2 (2,050.62 sq mi)
Population
(2005 census)
 • Total
66,908
 • Density13/km2 (33/sq mi)
UBIGEO0808

Espinar is one of thirteen provinces in the Cusco Region in the southern highlands of Peru.

Geography

Some of the highest mountains of the province are listed below:[1][2]

Political division

The province is divided into eight districts (Spanish: distritos, singular: distrito), each of which is headed by a mayor (alcalde). The districts, with their capitals in parentheses, are:

History

On 21 May 2012, agricultural leadership in Espinar Province announced a strike against the planned expansion of Tintaya mine, a copper mine owned by the Swiss corporation Xstrata. The leaders' demands included higher environmental standards, more money for area development, and independent oversight of the mine.[3] Strikers occupied the roads to the mine over the following week, blocking all access. In response, President Ollanta Humala declared a state of emergency in the province, suspending constitutional rights,[4] and deployed police commandos against the strikers.[3] Two civilians were killed in the resulting clashes, and seventy police officers were injured.[4] On 30 May, provincial mayor Oscar Mollohuanca was arrested by the national government and accused of inciting protests against an expansion of a copper mine owned by Xstrata.[5] He was conditionally released on 13 July.[3]

Ethnic groups

The people in the province are mainly indigenous citizens of Quechua descent. Quechua is the language which the majority of the population (68.90%) learnt to speak in childhood, 30.75% of the residents started speaking in Spanish (2007 Peru Census).[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ escale.minedu.gob.pe - UGEL map of the province of Espinar (Cusco Region)
  2. ^ Peru 1:100,000, Condoroma 2640, Map prepared and published by the Defense Mapping Agency, Hydrographic/Topographic Center, Bethesda, MD
  3. ^ a b c Stephanie Boyd (18 June 2012). "Peru's great transformation". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Peru police arrest mayor who led mine protests". The Los Angeles Times. 30 May 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  5. ^ "Peru: Espinar protest mayor in 'preventative' detention". BBC News. 2 June 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  6. ^ inei.gob.pe Archived January 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine INEI, Peru, Censos Nacionales 2007

14°47′32″S 71°24′38″W / 14.792145°S 71.410447°W / -14.792145; -71.410447