International

Peru: Faced with threats, natives ask for weapons to defend their lands

Photo: PL

May 5 |

Two Amazonian indigenous leaders, whose territories and their own lives are threatened by drug traffickers and illegal loggers, ask the Peruvian government for weapons to defend their ancestral habitat.

The demand was presented to the foreign press by Yanet Velasco, leader of the Central de Comunidades de la etnia Asháninka del Río Ene (CARE) and Herlín Odicio Estrella, president of the Federación Nativa de Comunidades de la etnia Kakataibo, both located in the central Peruvian Amazon.

Yanet Velasco pointed out that drug traffickers and tree predators invaded areas of the territories of the 19 Asháninka communities that make up her organization, an invasion that included, she said, the murder of 20 Amazon defenders from various organizations since 2020.

It was recently announced the arrest of a suspected hitman who shot dead in April 2023 the leader Santiago Contoricó, of the Central Asháninka del Río Tambo (CART), in the region of Ucayali, bordering Brazil.

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This organization repeatedly denounced that Contoricó’s life was in danger because he was receiving constant death threats from drug traffickers, without the authorities providing him with protection.

“We do not trust the police, many of them are in collusion with drug traffickers, nor do we trust the officials of the regions of Junín and Huánuco, nor the prosecutors; there is no one to turn to,” said Kakataibo leader Odicio Estrella.

Faced with this situation, the natives decided to defend themselves by organizing themselves into indigenous guards against drug traffickers and other invaders of their ancestral territories.

To do so, they only have bows, arrows and some old shotguns, so for years they have been asking the Armed Forces to provide them with more modern weaponry, but they have not received any response.

The leaders even went to the United Nations to denounce the depredation and appropriation of part of their lands and also raised the problem with Peruvian parliamentarians, without finding a solution.

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They pointed out that drug and timber traffickers act in concert for the common interest of keeping native lands occupied or gaining them for their illicit activities.

As they need people to work for them and have economic power, the intruders promote the access of settlers from other regions and create fictitious population centers to legalize their presence in the habitat of the Amazonian nations.

Yanet Velasco highlights the fact that among these settlers there are criminals wanted by the police who join drug traffickers to grow coca leaf and produce cocaine, or carry out other activities such as contract killings.

They also use threats to pressure native inhabitants to also grow coca leaf, promote consumerism, and try to persuade young indigenous people to do the same in order to earn money.

The Asháninka leader pointed out that her people are interested in preserving the environment in the territory, maintaining their way of life and subsisting on fishing, hunting and the cultivation of food products, to which they add potentially exportable cacao, coffee and sesame plantations.

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But to do so, they need to preserve their communally owned lands, where drug traffickers establish clandestine airstrips to transport drugs to neighboring countries such as Brazil, the platform for shipments to Europe.

Their fight also faces erroneous policies, such as the maintained and already ceased policy of programs financed by the European Union and United States cooperation, which financed alternative crops to coca grown by colonists and promoted the granting of land titles to them on lands that are part of indigenous territories.

In addition, municipal governments build roads in the middle of the jungle, with the obvious purpose of facilitating access to drug traffickers and illegal loggers.

International

Mexico City Mayor Invites U2 to Perform at Iconic Zócalo Plaza

Irish rock band U2, which spent Tuesday and Wednesday filming a new music video for its song Street of Dreams in the Historic Center of Mexico City, received an invitation to perform at the capital’s iconic Zócalo square from Mayor Clara Brugada.

Brugada shared the invitation through social media posts accompanied by photos and a video showing her meeting with the band members.

“This is an invitation for you to perform in our wonderful public square, the Zócalo. You are welcome here, and we would love to have you,” Brugada said in the video while handing a document to Bono, the band’s lead singer.

Bono responded by saying that the group would like “to begin its new tour in Mexico City.”

Referencing one of the band’s most famous songs, In the Name of Love, Brugada said she was greeting Bono along with The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr..

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“Welcoming U2 to our capital means celebrating music, connection and the emotion that can be felt in every corner of this city,” Brugada wrote in one of her messages. “We are a city open to the world, vibrant and full of stories shared from the stage to the streets.”

She also described the Zócalo as “the country’s most important public square” and a cultural landmark for Latin America.

Over the years, the Zócalo has hosted massive concerts by internationally renowned artists and bands including Roger Waters, Paul McCartney, Manu Chao, Café Tacvba, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Los Tigres del Norte, La Maldita Vecindad, Silvio Rodríguez, Joan Manuel Serrat, Rosalía and Shakira, drawing hundreds of thousands of fans.

International

Marco Rubio Urges China to Help Restrain Iran Amid Gulf Tensions

Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Washington hopes to persuade China to take a more active role in stopping Iran from escalating tensions in the Persian Gulf, arguing that the crisis directly threatens Asian commercial interests.

“It is in China’s interest to resolve this situation. We hope to convince them to play a more active role in getting Iran to stop what it is doing now and trying to do in the Persian Gulf,” Rubio said during an interview with journalist Sean Hannity on Fox News while traveling aboard Air Force One.

The top U.S. diplomat said the conflict and concerns over the possible disruption of the Strait of Hormuz have already affected China’s interests.

Rubio noted that “a Chinese cargo ship was struck over the weekend,” referring to the exchange of attacks reported last Friday between Iran and the United States.

The remarks come amid growing international concern over rising tensions in the region and the potential impact on global trade routes and energy supplies.

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International

Trump floats Vance-Rubio potential Republican ticket for 2028 election

U.S. President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubiocould potentially form a Republican presidential ticket for the 2028 elections.

Speaking during a dinner with law enforcement officials as part of National Police Week, Trump publicly praised both officials and said they could make “an ideal team” for the next presidential race.

“Who likes JD Vance? Who likes Marco Rubio?” Trump asked attendees before adding that the pair “sound like a good combination.”

The president highlighted his vice president’s performance in office, stating that their current partnership has been highly effective. “JD is perfect, that has been a perfect formula,” Trump told reporters later.

He further suggested that a Vance-Rubio pairing could represent a strong presidential and vice-presidential ticket, although he stopped short of offering any formal endorsement.

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“I think it sounds like a presidential candidate and a vice-presidential candidate,” he said, while clarifying that his remarks should not be interpreted as an official backing of any future campaign.

So far, neither Vance nor Rubio has publicly confirmed any intention to run in the 2028 presidential election.

Rubio previously sought the Republican nomination in 2016 but withdrew after losing the primary race to Trump. Later, in a December 2025 interview with Vanity Fair, he said he would be among the first to support Vance if he decided to run for the White House.

Vance, meanwhile, has recently dismissed speculation of any political rivalry with Rubio amid growing discussion about potential future GOP leadership.