The group – believed to be members of an indigenous community – from the Urarinas region in Loreto province, said their action was aimed at drawing attention to the issue, Peruvian news agency RPP Noticias reported. It said 70 passengers, including foreign nationals from the UK, US, Spain, France and Switzerland, were being held after traveling on riverboats. These include a one-month-old child, people with disabilities and pregnant women, the report said. Protesters claim two children and a woman were killed in the area due to oil spills from a 40-year-old pipeline on the Cuninico River. Community members told local media that they plan to keep the tourists for about six to eight days. Officials have traveled to the region to address the controversy. One of the detained foreigners reportedly raised the alarm on Facebook. “The sooner they are heard, the sooner they will let us go. Help me share, we are physically well. Help me help them be heard,” she wrote on Facebook. Communities in the area had already blocked ships on the river in protest. The last oil spill of about 2,500 barrels in the Cuninico River was reported on September 16. The 500-mile pipeline is owned by state oil company Petroperu, which said in a statement at the time that the spill was the result of “deliberate” damage.
title: “Britons Among 70 Boat Passengers Seized By Gang In Peru Local Media Report Global News " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-22” author: “Lillian Seifert”
The gang – believed to be members of an indigenous community – from the Urarinas region in Loreto province, said their action was aimed at drawing attention to the issue, Peruvian news agency RPP Noticias reported. It said 70 passengers, including foreign nationals from the UK, US, Spain, France and Switzerland, were being held after traveling on riverboats. These include a one-month-old child, people with disabilities and pregnant women, the report said. Protesters claim two children and a woman were killed in the area due to oil spills from a 40-year-old pipeline on the Cuninico River. Community members told local media that they plan to keep the tourists for about six to eight days. Officials have traveled to the region to address the controversy. One of the detained foreigners reportedly raised the alarm on Facebook. “The sooner they are heard, the sooner they will let us go. Help me share, we are physically well. Help me help them be heard,” she wrote on Facebook. Communities in the area had already blocked ships on the river in protest. The last oil spill of about 2,500 barrels in the Cuninico River was reported on September 16. The 500-mile pipeline is owned by state oil company Petroperu, which said in a statement at the time that the spill was the result of “deliberate” damage.