MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Support for Peruvian president plummets to an 18 month low

The deadly clashes with protesting indigenous groups are showing up in the Peruvian public opinion polls.

Peruvian President Alan Garcia's approval rating has fallen to its lowest level in 18 months, hurt by the deadly Amazonia clashes between security forces and indigenous protesters that killed at least 33 people, officially, and over 50 according to Indian sources.

The firm Ipsos Support says only 21% of Peruvians surveyed approve of President Garcia's management, a drop of nine points since a poll in mid-May. Three-fourths of those polled disapproved of the president's performance having increased 14 points, from 62 to 76%.

It is the third consecutive month Garcia's rating has diminished, putting him at his lowest level since December 2007. Published Sunday in the newspaper El Comercio, the poll surveyed 1,000 people in 16 Peruvian cities during June 17-19. The firm says it has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.

Among those who support the president, 38% give him credit for trying to improve the international standing of Peru; but among those who disapprove they signal negatively “repeated mistakes”, 37%; handling of the indigenous conflict, 37% and 36% the increase in food prices.

Nevertheless Lima remains as the ruling party’s stronghold with 26% together with the north of the country, 23%, but in the rest of the country the rejection percentage increased considerable, point out Ipsos Apoyo.

An overwhelming 84% criticized the handling of the incidents in Amazonia, where indigenous groups demanded the repeal of decrees which they considered damaging for their ancestral lands, since it opened the area to logging, mining and hydrocarbons exploration.

The almost three months long conflict followed by the deadly clashes turned into the worst political crisis confronted by President Garcia in his three years of government. The Executive backtracked and finally annulled the controversial decrees last Thursday.

Over half the Peruvian population, 53% supports the repeal of the lands’ legislation and 57% say that the indigenous groups’ claims are correct and must be respected. Furthermore 92% says Ipsos Apoyo, said the government should have consulted with the indigenous communities before passing the legislation.

In related news Peruvian Economy and Finance minister Luis Carranza emphatically denied that the country is heading for recession.

“We’re not in recession and even more important, will not fall in recession” said Carranza. “Those spreading those rumours ignore economic data and are wilfully trying to scare people for political reasons”, added Carranza.

He said the Peruvian economy will rebound in the third and fourth quarters after suffering a mild second quarter. The economy expanded 1.8% in the first quarter.

Apparently the rumours were born out of April’s negative growth estimate of minus 2%, breaking a sustained expansion record of 93 months.

Carranza emphasized that the Peruvian economy will end 2009 with an expansion of 3%, one of the very few in Latinamerica to achieve such a goal. Last year the economy expanded 9.4%.