Peruvian Police Work for Private Companies

An already discredited Peruvian police force is being questioned for its ties with transnational mining corporations. The deaths of two workers in protests over the highly controversial Tia Maria copper mine raise the issue of private companies hiring and financing the Peruvian police force. Executive Decree #4 emitted in 2009 authorized such arrangements. A member of the Broad Front says that workers and environmental activists have been subjected to torture inside police stations. 58 protesters have been killed by police since 2011. Such acts went on under contracts that were kept secret for many years. Police documents reveal that over 20 mining corporations hire close to 500 police officers, spending millions of dollars on salaries and direct payments to police departments. Peru’s Ombudsman says that such arrangements create a conflict of interest and that police should not be protecting private interests. Rael Mora reports from Lima for teleSUR.