Lima, October 1 (teleSUR-RHC)-- The Peruvian government declared a 30-day state of emergency on Tuesday in three provinces throughout the country following violent clashes between protesters and police, which left four people dead and fifteen people injured.      

Under the presidential decree, the armed forces will now support the national police in maintaining order in these provinces. The state of emergency also suspends the rights of freedom of movement and assembly.

The violence began after protesters began demonstrating against the proposed expansion of Las Bambas mining project in Apurimac, which they claim will have a negative environmental impact.

The project is planned to produce 400,000 metric tons of copper annually from 2017 and is expected to increase Peru’s GDP by 1.4 percent, according to Prime Minister Pedro Cateriano.  
   
However, protesters are concerned the project will cause severe environmental damage to the surrounding areas.

El Tiempo newspaper reported on Wednesday protesting residents suspended their demonstrations against the mine for 72 hours in an attempt to force dialogue with the government after confrontations escalated in casualties.

The announcement comes as the UK-based NGO Global Witness released a publication documenting high levels of violence carried out against Peru’s environmental activists. The report also noted that between 2002 and 2014, at least 57 murders took place in Peru, the most of them stemmed from conflicts over mining projects.   

Despite having stood for office on environmental issues, Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has approved several controversial extraction projects. The government has authorized over a dozen projects without prior consultation of the communities in which the projects are located.