Middle Class Problems

I would like to share this article, which does a fantastic job in covering many of the successes and failures that the last 10+ years of economic growth have brought Peru and in this case Lima, its sprawling capital.  The authors do an excellent job of highlighting many of the key issues facing the everyday citizen as well as the government and policy makers.  Well worth the read for anybody wanting to get a feel for the changes that have taken place in Peru over the last decade as well as the challenges that it currently faces.

Lima Mayor is my Name – Yellow is my Game

There has been a lot of commentary on Lima, Peru’s Mayor’s, Luis Castañeda, passion for the color yellow. It started with the unilateral decision – it is well known that the Mayor is not the best communicator – to paint over murals in Lima. His latest move is to remove all the flowers from Lima’s main square and in turn replant with yellow flowers. Besides covering up elements of color and artistic expression in what would otherwise be considered a fairly dull downtown landscape, it is the color yellow that is irked people even further. Bright yellow happens to also be the color of the Mayor’s political party, Solidaridad Nacional.

Colors and Symbols of Solidaridad Nacional

Many see this as a blatant act of political propaganda.

What concerns me is that the Mayor will not stop there. Perhaps his passion for yellow will lead him to redesign Peru’s flag.

Peru’s New Flag?

Let us hope that the Mayor and his followers stop before this lighthearted comment could potentially become a reality.

To Paint or Not to Paint: Lima’s Mayor’s Question

For those following Peruvian politics, one news item that has been gaining traction over the last couple of days is the painting over of murals by Lima’s Mayor, Luis Castañeda. The story started slowly but now has developed into a heated debate. There are those who take the position that murals are art and important pieces of culture. Others say that they are nothing more than gang symbols and heavily influenced by those who sympathize with the Sendero Luminoso.

However, what is missing in this debate is a much larger issue. Veiled under the debate of art or ugly is Peru’s never ending struggle to deal with its past history and culture and current need to progress and develop. It leads to such questions as how much of the past needs to be preserved? Are the two mutually exclusive or can they co-exist? What is culture and what forms does it take place? Does historical culture always prevail over more current expressions. I wonder that if these murals where found during a construction project and hail from an earlier era of Peruvian history that they would be classified as an important piece of cultural heritage and deemed untouchable.

So, Mr. Mayor let us not be too hasty in trying to cover up all forms of murals and other expressions of street art as future generations might be flocking to visit these forms of Peruvian culture just as they do now they museums and archaeological sites that contain artistic expressions of previous cultures.

Transport in Lima

Transport in Lima

Although Lima is looking at continuing to build its transportation infrastructure, the fact that it is doing so at a snail’s pace will continue to plague its potential economic growth. For anyone who has traveled to the City of Kings, as with most major cities in Latin America, one of the first observations is the chaotic traffic. From a lack of roads, subways, bus system, or formalized taxis the problems that haunt this sector are many. Years ago there were plans to begin a number of projects.

During the first administration of Alan Garcia an elevated train system was started. For economic and other reasons this was never finished until the second Garcia administration several decades later. Lima does have one dedicated bus rapid transit line that traverses the city but his is only the start. Much time was wasted, again for largely political reasons, between putting the finishing touches on this line and looking to begin on a new line or even an extension of his existing line.

When it comes to urban mass transit Lima is behind the eight ball but hopefully they will continue to move forward because the hard working citizens of this dynamic city deserve nothing less than a safe, efficient, and reliable means of public transportation. As this plan moves forward another study for additional lines should be started immediately.