In a marathon session late Monday and early Tuesday morning, the Peruvian Congress approved President Ollanta Humala's appointment of Pedro Cateriano as prime minister and the presidential cabinet, thereby avoiding a political crisis. The congressional vote was divided, with left-wing legislators opposing the appointments due to Cateriano's strong defense of the neoliberal model and the Tia Maria mining project, which has sparked large scale protests by the affected indigenous communities along with government repression of their movement. The new primer minister asked Congress for emergency powers for the Executive Branch to adopt legislation on the economy, security, and social policies. A vote on the request was postponed. Rael Mora reports from Lima. teleSUR
