PERU: University protests leave three dead

Three people died and at least 20 others were wounded in clashes in the southwestern Peruvian region of Huancavelica during a general strike against the creation of a new university using the facilities of an existing institution, reports the Latin American Herald Tribune.

The regional representative of the National Ombud's Office, Abel Chiroque, told Efe that hours after a man died last Tuesday at the scene of the clashes another man and a 14-year-old boy succumbed to their wounds. A 23-year-old university student, Oswaldo Quispe Lazaro, died last Tuesday during the clashes after being hit by buckshot.

University students, backed by several regional civic organisations, have been on strike since 14 June to protest a law that creates the National Autonomous University of Tayacaja. The law calls for the new university to use the facilities of a branch of the National University of Huancavelica, which demonstrators say will drain the existing institution's financial and logistical resources.
Full report on the Latin American Herald Tribune site