President Declares a State of Emergency
President Alejandro Toledo, facing a wave of strikes and protests, declared a state of emergency across Peru “for 30 days so that people can exercise their personal liberties and travel freely,” he said in a televised address. “The country cannot be shut down.”
Thousands of farmers and health workers joined teachers who have marched through the capital, Lima, occupied state buildings and stranded passenger buses and trucks loaded with food by blocking roads. The protests seek a raft of changes, such as salary hikes and tax cuts.
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