At least two people died Friday in clashes between police and miners, including a baby, media reports said, according to dpa. The police advanced against demonstrators at the Casapalca Mine, using batons and tear gas against hundreds of workers who had blocked a main east-bound road out of the capital Lima. The dead included a worker and a baby, the reports said. A dozen people were reportedly injured. The Casapalca Mine laid off 100 workers last month. Cabinet Chief Jorge Del Castillo has charged the decision by the mine was "abusive." But he said the mine's decision did not justify the extreme protests of the workers. At times, 10,000 busses, trucks and other vehicles were trapped in a traffic jam behind the road blockage. The union said the mine had refused to retract the job cuts. -- SPA
