ペルー先住民、ヒ素や鉛で健康被害多数　アムネスティ報告

【リマＡＦＰ＝時事】国際人権団体アムネスティ・インターナショナルは１８日、南米ペルーで大規模な鉱山事業の現場近くに住む多数の先住民が、体内に取り込まれた高濃度の金属や有害物質を調べる検査で陽性を示し、健康危機に直面していると警鐘を鳴らした。（写真は資料写真）
　アムネスティの報告書は、クスコ州南東部エスピナル郡の先住民カーナ人の健康を守る義務を、ペルー政府が「怠っている」と非難している。クスコには、同国の観光地として最も人気が高いマチュピチュ遺跡がある。
　調査の責任者マリア・ホセ・ベラメンディ氏はＡＦＰに対し、２０１８年から２０２０年にかけて同地域の１１の先住民の居住地で検査を行ったところ、８０００人が高濃度の鉛、ヒ素、カドミウム、水銀、マンガンの被害を受けていることが分かったと話した。
　アムネスティの米州ディレクター、エリカ・ゲバラ・ロサス氏は「科学的かつ独立したこの証拠は、エスピナルの地域社会が健康危機に直面していることを示している。政府は緊急にしっかりと対処する必要がある」と述べている。
　協力を志願した１５０人を対象にした検査では、７８％の人から健康を害する濃度の金属や有害物質が検出された。ベラメンディ氏によると、住民らは検査の間にも頭痛や腎臓、前立腺、歯、胃の不調を訴え、悪性腫瘍も２人から見つかった。
　ペルーは世界有数の銅、金、銀、亜鉛、鉛の産出国。鉱業はこの１０年間で同国の民間投資の１６％、輸出の６０％を占め、１８０万人の直接・間接雇用を創出している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2021/05/20-13:18）

Thousands of Peruvian indigenous people living near major mining projects face a health crisis after testing positive for high levels of metals and toxic substances, Amnesty International said in a report published Tuesday.
It accused Peru's government of failing in its health obligations towards the K'ana indigenous people in southeast Espinar province, in the Cusco region that is home to the country's most popular tourist attraction, Machu Picchu.
Research carried out between 2018 and 2020 on 11 indigenous communities in the area found that 8,000 people were affected by high levels of lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury and manganese, research chief Maria Jose Veramendi told AFP.
This scientific and independent evidence shows that the communities in Espinar are facing a health crisis that requires an urgent and robust response from the government, said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International.
The authorities must act to guarantee the right to health of the population and prevent Espinar from continuing to be another example of the failed state of Peru's health system.
Tests on 150 volunteers found that 78 percent had levels of metals and toxic substances that represented a risk to their health.
With the exception of manganese, which is a useful element in the human body in very small amounts, none of the other metals and toxic substances mentioned play an essential role in the functioning of the human body, said the report.
On the contrary, lead, cadmium and mercury are toxic even at low levels in the body and arsenic, especially inorganic arsenic, is highly toxic.
- Mining country -
Peru is one of the world's largest producers of copper, gold, silver, zinc and lead.
Mining accounted for 16 percent of Peru's private investment over the last decade, representing 60 percent of exports and generating 1.8 million direct and indirect jobs.
Veramendi urged health authorities to establish a permanent epidemiological surveillance program in Espinar to determine the total impact on the exposed population.
She said inhabitants had complained during the study of headaches, kidney, prostate and dental problems, stomach upsets and even cancerous tumors in two people.
Peru has been beset by social unrest in areas close to mining and hydrocarbon production for decades.
A state of emergency was called in several southern provinces, including Espinar, in 2015 after protests broke out against the Las Bambas copper production project -- the largest in the country -- leaving four dead.
According to the ombudsman's office, conflicts surrounding mining activities represent 41 percent of social conflicts in the country.
Amnesty International said the state recognizes that 10 million inhabitants -- close to a third of the population -- are at risk of exposure to heavy metals, with more than 20 percent (6.8 million) at risk from metalloids such as arsenic.
Veramendi added that private companies have an obligation to not violate the human rights of populations, and the state has an essential responsibility to supervise that corporate responsibility.