Bolivia polls natives on jungle highway - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

Bolivia polls natives on jungle highway

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OROMOMO -

Bolivian President Evo Morales is taking his campaign to build a highway through pristine Amazon jungle directly to the affected communities.

Officials and international observers came to Sunday's meeting in the jungle town of Oromomo. It's one of 69 communities in the TIPNIS reserve that are to decide by Aug. 20 whether they want the 200-mile (310-kilometer) highway that is funded by Brazil. Each community gets one vote.

Morales government says the project will develop the country. But Bolivia's main lowlands Indian federation says it will cause environmental damage. It urges a boycott of the consultation, saying the process allows voting by recently arrived ranchers, coca farmers and other settlers whose connection to the land is less intense.

(Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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