THOUSANDS OF PEASANTS TAKE OVER LAND IN NORTH OF PERU
"tuesday" [January 14] between 12,000 and 30,000 peasants "invaded" some 15,000 hectares La hectare = 2,47 acres] planted to cotton in the Piura valley in the north of Peru, °
A meager report a]! bebe in some European newspapers that on
"mney marched in closed ranks onto the lands which they consider to be their property," seid the dispatch, "According to certain reports, they were led by Castro-Communist leaders, .
"Up until now,” continued the news item, "the government at Lima has not intervened in the conflict, but has sent troops into the area, It is assumed that operations to dislodge the peasants will begin at any moment.
"Ig involves the biggest invasion of land that has occurred in recent years," The value of the land was put at $10,000,000.
The January 17 issue of ‘the Algiers daily ze Peuple printed the following report from Limas”
"The police of Peru, with the help of tear~gas bombs, guns and small planes, attacked some 15,000 peasants who invaded several cotton farms in the North of the country last Monday [January 13].
"During the skirmishing, more than a dozen peasants were gravely wounded by the police.
Ute officers of ‘the police said that the peasants faced the attack with stones and clubs,
"The peasants who were dislodged Wednesday from their lands. from which they had been dispossessed, again invaded the farms after night had fallen,
"In the recent period the. occupation of lands by the peasants has redoubled throughout the country in face of the refusal of the govern ment to carry out its promise for an agrarian reform and improvement in the standard of Living,"
BEN