From August 19th to 22nd, nine representatives of the Consultative Council of Indigenous Organizations of the Putumayo, Napo, and Bajo Amazonas Territories and the Regional Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the East (ORPIO) of Loreto visited Lima to hold meetings with the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP), the Secretariat for Management and Dialogue of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, representatives of the Congress of the Republic, and members of civil society organizations.

The purpose of the Indigenous advocacy was to socialize and communicate the creation of the Platform of Indigenous Organizations for Sustainable Infrastructure in Loreto and to express the deep concern of Indigenous organizations in Loreto regarding the construction of the Bellavista-Mazan-Salvador-El Estrecho Highway, which is being promoted in disregard of the opinions and rights of Indigenous peoples. To date, the Peruvian State is failing to create any framework of trust and protection for the fundamental rights of Indigenous peoples in the face of this project.

The Indigenous representatives reiterated to the State that there is no transparency in the consultation process, neither prior to the development of the technical files for the road, nor in the project design processes. They continue to work with information collected more than 14 years ago and that does not consider the territorial and environmental rights of Indigenous peoples, taking into account that the forests that sustain the life, culture, and future of the Maijuna, Kichwa, Bora, Yagua, Ocaina, Murui, Secoya, and Ticuna peoples, and which are located in the Maijuna Kichwa Regional Conservation Areas (ACRMK), Ampiyacu Apayacu (ACRAA), and the proposed ACR Medio Putumayo Algodón, would be destroyed by the aforementioned highway.

The Consultative Council of Indigenous Organizations of the Putumayo, Napo, and Bajo Amazonas Territories, together with ORPIO and AIDESEP, are fully open to dialogue with the State, provided that this occurs within the framework of respect for current legal processes and respect for the life and dignity of the Indigenous peoples of the Loreto region.