Peru protest turns deadly

An anti-mining protest in Peru turns deadly.

Two people were killed and 40 were wounded in the clashes.

Peru's interior minister declared a state of emergency following the violence.

One local resident said she clashed with government forces first hand.

(SOUNDBITE)(Spanish) FLORENTINA HUAMANI, LOCAL RESIDENT, SAYING:

"We are here in the struggle against all the bullets and all the bombs. Us women have gone head to head with the police and they have shamelessly kicked us and they have shamelessly beaten us with rocks,"

The protest over the spoils of natural resource wealth is one of hundreds of disputes that President Ollanta Humala has tried to defuse.

Critics of the president say he is too impatient and inflexible with the protesters and resorted to violence too quickly.

The conflicts threaten to delay investments in a sector that drives 60 percent of exports in Peru's fast-growing economy.

Sarah Sheffer, Reuters