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The Alter Strom, in the sea resort of Warnemünde, Germany.

The Royal Canal in Ireland.

Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:

1. Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:
   1. Those connected to existing lakes, rivers, or oceans. Included are inter-basin canals, such as the Suez Canal, Erie Canal, and the Panama Canal.
   2. Those connected in a city network: such as the Canal Grande and others of Venice Italy; the gracht of Amsterdam, and the waterways of Bangkok.
2. Aqueducts: water supply canals that are used for the conveyance and delivery of potable water for human consumption, municipal uses, and agriculture irrigation. Rills and acequias are small versions.

Types of artificial waterways[link]

The Danube-Black Sea Canal in Romania

Canals are created in one of three ways, or a combination of the three, depending on available water and available path:

• A canal can be created where no stream presently exists. Either the body of the canal is dug or the sides of the canal are created by piling dirt, stone, concrete, or other building materials. The water for the canal must be provided from an external source like other streams or reservoirs. Examples include canals that connect valleys over a higher body of land, like Canal du Midi and Canal de Briare.
• A stream can be canalized to make its navigable path more predictable and easier to maneuver. Canalization modifies the stream to more safely carry traffic by controlling the flow of the stream with dredging, damming, and modifying its path. Examples include Basse Saône, Canal de Mines de Fer de la Moselle, and Aisne River. Riparian zone restoration may be required.
• When a stream is too difficult to modify with canalization, a second stream can be created next to the existing stream. This is called a lateral canal. The existing stream usually acts as the water source and its banks provide a path for the new body. Examples include the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Canal latéral à la Loire, Garonne Lateral Canal, and Canal latéral à l'Aisne.

Smaller transportation canals can carry barges or narrowboats, while ship canals allow seagoing ships to travel to an inland port (e.g., Manchester Ship Canal), or from one sea or ocean to another (e.g., Caledonian Canal, Panama Canal).

Features[link]

The flight of 16 consecutive locks at Caen Hill on the Kennet and Avon Canal, Wiltshire, England

A canal boat traverses the longest and highest aqueduct in the UK, at Pontcysyllte in Denbighshire, Wales

At their simplest, canals consist of a trench filled with water. Depending on the stratum the canal passes through, it may be necessary to line the cut with some form of watertight material such as clay or concrete. When this is done with clay it is known as puddling.

Canals need to be level, and, while small irregularities in the lie of the land can be dealt with through cuttings and embankments, for larger deviations, other approaches have been adopted. The most common is the pound lock, which consists of a chamber within which the water level can be raised or lowered connecting either two pieces of canal at a different level or the canal with a river or the sea. When there is a hill to be climbed, flights of many locks in short succession may be used.

Prior to the development of the pound lock in 984AD in China by Chhaio Wei-Yo^[1] and later in Europe in the 15th century, either flash locks consisting of a single gate were used or ramps, sometimes equipped with rollers, were used to change level. Flash locks were only practical where there was plenty of water available.

Locks use a lot of water, so builders have adopted other approaches. These include boat lifts, such as the Falkirk wheel, which use a caisson of water in which boats float while being moved between two levels; and inclined planes where a caisson is hauled up a steep railway.

To cross a stream or road, the solution is usually to bridge with an aqueduct. To cross a wide valley (where the journey delay caused by a flight of locks at either side would be unacceptable) the centre of the valley can be spanned by an aqueduct - a famous example in Wales is the Pontcysyllte aqueduct across the valley of the River Dee.

Another option for dealing with hills is to tunnel through them. An example of this approach is the Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal. Tunnels are only practical for smaller canals.

Some canals attempted to keep changes in level down to a minimum. These canals known as contour canals would take longer winding routes, along which the land was a uniform altitude. Other generally later canals took more direct routes requiring the use of various methods to deal with the change in level.

Canals have various features to tackle the problem of water supply. In some cases such as the Suez Canal the canal is simply open to the sea. Where the canal is not at sea level a number of approaches have been adopted. Taking water from existing rivers or springs was an option in some cases, sometimes supplemented by other methods to deal with seasonal variations in flow. Where such sources were unavailable, reservoirs - either separate from the canal or built into its course - and back pumping were used to provide the required water. In other cases, water pumped from mines was used to feed the canal. In certain cases, extensive "feeder canals" were built to bring water from sources located far from the canal.

Where large amounts of goods are loaded or unloaded such as at the end of a canal a canal basin may be built. This would normally be a section of water wider than the general canal. In some cases, the canal basins contain wharfs and cranes to assist with movement of goods.

When a section of the canal needs to be sealed off so it can be drained for maintenance stop planks are frequently used. These consist of planks of wood placed across the canal to form a dam. They are generally placed in pre existing grooves in the canal bank. On more modern canals, "guard locks" or gates were sometimes placed to allow a section of canal to be quickly closed off, either for maintenance, or to prevent a major loss of water due to a canal breach.

History[link]

Ancient canals[link]

The Grand Canal of China at Suzhou

The oldest known canals were irrigation canals, built in Mesopotamia circa 4000 BC, in what is now modern day Iraq and Syria. The Indus Valley Civilization, Ancient India, (circa 2600 BC) had sophisticated irrigation and storage systems developed, including the reservoirs built at Girnar in 3000 BC.^[2] In Egypt, canals date back at least to the time of Pepi I Meryre (reigned 2332–2283 BC), who ordered a canal built to bypass the cataract on the Nile near Aswan.^[3]

In ancient China, large canals for river transport were established as far back as the Warring States (481–221 BC), the longest one of that period being the Hong Gou (Canal of the Wild Geese), which according to the ancient historian Sima Qian connected the old states of Song, Zhang, Chen, Cai, Cao, and Wei.^[4] By far the longest canal was the Grand Canal of China, still the longest canal in the world today, and the oldest extant one. It is 1,794 kilometres (1,115 mi) long and was built to carry the Emperor Yang Guang between Beijing and Hangzhou. The project began in 605 and was completed in 609, although much of the work combined older canals, the oldest section of the canal existing since at least 486 BC. Even in its narrowest urban sections it is rarely less than 30 metres (98 ft) wide.

Greek engineers were the first to use canal locks, by which they regulated the water flow in the Ancient Suez Canal as early as the 3rd century BC.^[5][6][7]

Middle Age[link]

Thal Canal, Punjab, Pakistan.

In the Middle Ages, water transport was cheaper and faster than transport overland. This was because roads were unpaved and in poor condition and greater amounts could be transported by ship. The first artificial canal in Christian Europe was the Fossa Carolina built at the end of the 8th century under personal supervision of Charlemagne.
More lasting and of more economic impact were canals like the Naviglio Grande built between 1127 and 1257 to connect Milan with the Ticino River. The Naviglio Grande is the most important of the lombard “navigli”^[8] and the oldest functioning canal in Europe.
Later, canals were built in the Netherlands and Flanders to drain the polders and assist the transportation of goods.

Canal building was revived in this age because of commercial expansion from the 12th century. River navigations were improved progressively by the use of single, or flash locks. Taking boats through these used large amounts of water leading to conflicts with watermill owners and to correct this, the pound or chamber lock first appeared, in 10th century in China and in Europe in 1373 in Vreeswijk, Netherlands.^[9] Another important development was the mitre gate, which was, it is presumed, introduced in Italy by Bertola da Novate in the 16th century. This allowed wider gates and also removed the height restriction of guillotine locks.

To break out of the limitations caused by river valleys, the first summit level canals were developed with the Grand Canal of China in 581–617 AD whilst in Europe the first, also using single locks, was the Stecknitz Canal in Germany in 1398.

Early Modern Age[link]

Dutch canal in Negombo, Sri Lanka

The first to use pound locks was the Briare Canal connecting the Loire and Seine (1642), followed by the more ambitious Canal du Midi (1683) connecting the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. This included a staircase of 8 locks at Béziers, a 157 metres (515 ft) tunnel and three major aqueducts.

Canal building progressed steadily in Germany in the 17th and 18th centuries with three great rivers, the Elbe, Oder and Weser being linked by canals. In post-Roman Britain, the first canal built appears to have been the Exeter Canal, which opened in 1563. The oldest canal built for industrial purposes in North America is Mother Brook in Dedham, MA. It was constructed in 1639 to provide water power for mills.
In Russia, the Volga-Baltic Waterway, a nationwide canal system connecting the Baltic and Caspian seas via the Neva and Volga rivers, was opened in 1718.

Industrial Revolution[link]

Lowell's power canal system

• See also: History of the British canal system
• See also: History of turnpikes and canals in the United States

Canals were important for industrial development. The greatest stimulus to canal system building came from the Industrial Revolution with its need for cheap transport of unprecedented quantities of raw materials and manufactured items.

In Europe, particularly Britain and Ireland, and then in the young United States and the Canadian colonies, inland canals preceded the development of railroads (1780-1840) during the earliest phase of the Industrial Revolution. The opening of the Sankey Canal in 1757, followed by the Bridgewater Canal in 1761, which halved the price of coal in Liverpool and Manchester England, respectively, triggered a period of "canal mania" in Britain so that between 1760 and 1820 over one hundred canals were built.

As well as industrial uses, the Royal Military Canal on the Romney Marsh was built so as create a barrier against invading troops, and hiding places for British troops during the Napoleonic Wars.^[10]

Aqueduct over the Mohawk River at Rexford, New York, one of 32 aqueducts on the Erie Canal.

Canal companies were initially chartered by individual states in the United States. These early canals were constructed, owned, and operated by private joint-stock companies. Three were completed when the War of 1812 broke out; these were the Santee Canal (opened 1800) in South Carolina, the Middlesex Canal (opened 1802) in Massachusetts and the Dismal Swamp Canal (opened 1805) in Virginia. The Erie Canal (opened 1825) was chartered and owned by the state of New York and financed by bonds bought by private investors. The Erie canal runs about 363 miles (584 km) from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie. The Hudson River connects Albany to the Atlantic port of New York City and the Erie Canal completed a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of around 565 ft. (169 m). The Erie Canal with its easy connections to most of the U.S. mid-west and New York City soon quickly paid back all its invested capital (USD $7 million) and started turning a profit. By cutting transportation costs in half or more it became a large profit center for Albany, New York and New York City as it allowed the cheap transportation of many of the agricultural products grown in the mid west of the United States to the rest of the world. From New York City these agricultural products could easily be shipped to other U.S. states or to Europe, etc. Assured of a market for their farm products the settlement of the U.S. mid-west was greatly accelerated by the Erie Canal. The profits generated by the Erie Canal project started a canal building boom in the United States that lasted till about 1850 when railroads started becoming seriously competitive in price and convience. The Blackstone Canal (finished in 1828) in Massachusetts and Rhode Island fulfilled a similar role in the early industrial revolution between 1828–48. The Blackstone Valley was a major contributor of the American Industrial Revolution where Samuel Slater built his first textile mill.

In addition to their transportation purposes, parts of the United States, particularly in the Northeast, had enough fast-flowing rivers that water power was the primary means of powering factories (usually textile mills) until after the American Civil War. For example, Lowell, Massachusetts, considered to be "The Cradle of the American Industrial Revolution," has 6 miles (9.7 km) of canals, built from around 1790 to 1850, that provided water power and a means of transportation for the city. The output of the system is estimated at 10,000 horsepower.^[11] Other cities with extensive power canal systems include Lawrence, Massachusetts, Holyoke, Massachusetts, Manchester, New Hampshire, and Augusta, Georgia.

19th century[link]

US canals circa 1825

Competition from the railway network from the 1830s, and in the 20th century the roads, made the smaller canals obsolete for most commercial transportation, and many of the British canals fell into decay. Only the Manchester Ship Canal and the Aire and Calder Canal bucked this trend. Yet in other countries canals grew in size as construction techniques improved. During the 19th century in the US, the length of canals grew from 100 miles (161 km) to over 4,000, with a complex network making the Great Lakes navigable, in conjunction with Canada, although some canals were later drained and used as railroad rights-of-way.

In the United States, navigable canals reached into isolated areas and brought them in touch with the world beyond. By 1825 the Erie Canal, 363 miles (584 km) long with 82 locks, opened up a connection from the populated Northeast to the Great Lakes. Settlers flooded into regions serviced by such canals, since access to markets was available. The Erie Canal (as well as other canals) was instrumental in lowering the differences in commodity prices between these various markets across America. The canals caused price convergence between different regions because of their reduction in transportation costs, which allowed Americans to ship and buy goods from farther distances for much lower prices compared to before. Ohio built many miles of canal, Indiana had working canals for a few decades, and the Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River system until replaced by a channelized river waterway.

Three major canals with very different purposes were built in what is now Canada. The first Welland Canal, which opened in 1829 between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, bypassing Niagara Falls and the Lachine Canal (1825), which allowed ships to skirt the nearly impassable rapids on the St. Lawrence River at Montreal were built for commerce. The Rideau Canal, completed in 1832, connects Ottawa, on the Ottawa River to Kingston, Ontario on Lake Ontario. The Rideau Canal was built as a result of the War of 1812 to provide military transportation between the British colonies of Upper Canada and Lower Canada as an alternative to part of the St. Lawrence River, which was susceptible to blockade by the United States.

In France, a steady linking of all the river systems — Rhine, Rhône, Saône and Seine — and the North Sea was boosted in 1879 by the establishment of the Freycinet gauge, which specified the minimum size of locks so that canal traffic doubled in the first decades of the 20th century.^[12]

Many notable sea canals were completed in this period, starting with the Suez Canal (1869) - which carries tonnage many times that of most other canals - and the Kiel Canal (1897), though the Panama Canal was not opened until 1914.

In the 19th century, a number of canals were built in Japan including the Biwako canal and the Tone canal. These canals were partially built with the help of engineers from the Netherlands and other countries.^[13]

Modern uses[link]

Canals can disrupt water circulation in marsh systems.

Large-scale ship canals such as the Panama Canal and Suez Canal continue to operate for cargo transportation, as do European barge canals. Due to globalization, they are becoming increasingly important, resulting in expansion projects such as the Panama Canal expansion project.

The narrow early industrial canals, however, have ceased to carry significant amounts of trade and many have been abandoned to navigation, but may still be used as a system for transportation of untreated water. In some cases railways have been built along the canal route, an example being the Croydon Canal.

A movement that began in Britain and France to use the early industrial canals for pleasure boats, such as hotel barges, has spurred rehabilitation of stretches of historic canals. In some cases, abandoned canals such as the Kennet and Avon Canal have been restored and are now used by pleasure boaters. In Britain, canalside housing has also proven popular in recent years.

The Seine-Nord Europe Canal is being developed into a major transportation waterway, linking France with Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Canals have found another use in the 21st century, as easements for the installation of fibre optic telecommunications network cabling, avoiding having them buried in roadways while facilitating access and reducing the hazard of being damaged from digging equipment.

Canals are still used to provide water for agriculture. An extensive canal system exists within the Imperial Valley in the Southern California desert to provide irrigation to agriculture within the area.

Cities on water[link]

An intersection of two canals (Grachten) in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Griboyedov Canal in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Canals are so deeply identified with Venice that many canal cities have been nicknamed "the Venice of…". The city is built on marshy islands, with wooden piles supporting the buildings, so that the land is man-made rather than the waterways. The islands have a long history of settlement; by the 12th century, Venice was a powerful city state.

Amsterdam was built in a similar way, with buildings on wooden piles. It became a city around 1300.

Other cities with extensive canal networks include: Alkmaar, Amersfoort, Bolsward, Brielle, Delft, Den Bosch, Dokkum, Dordrecht, Enkhuizen, Franeker, Gouda, Haarlem, Harlingen, Leeuwarden, Leiden, Sneek and Utrecht in the Netherlands; Brugge and Gent in Flanders, Belgium; Birmingham in England; Saint Petersburg in Russia; Hamburg and Berlin in Germany; Fort Lauderdale and Cape Coral in Florida, United States.

Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City is a UNESCO World Heritage Site near the centre of Liverpool, England, where a system of intertwining waterways and docks is now being developed for mainly residential and leisure use.

Canal Estates (commonly known as bayous) are a form of subdivision popular in cities like Miami, Florida, Texas City, Texas and the Gold Coast, Queensland; the Gold Coast has over 700 km of residential canals. Wetlands are difficult areas upon which to build housing estates, so dredging part of the wetland down to a navigable channel provides fill to build up another part of the wetland above the flood level for houses. Land is built up in a finger pattern that provides a suburban street layout of waterfront housing blocks.

Boats[link]

Two Panamax ships in the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal, Panama.

Inland canals have often had boats specifically built for them. An example of this is the British narrowboat, which is up to 72 feet (21.95 m) long and 7 feet (2.13 m) wide and was primarily built for British Midland canals. In this case the limiting factor was the size of the locks. This is also the limiting factor on the Panama canal where Panamax ships are limited to a length of 294.1 m (965 ft) and a width of 32.3 m (106 ft). For the lockless Suez Canal the limiting factor for Suezmax ships is generally draft, which is limited to 16 m (52.5 ft). At the other end of the scale, tub-boat canals such as the Bude Canal were limited to boats of under 10 tons for much of their length due to the capacity of their inclined planes or boat lifts. Most canals have a limit on height imposed either by bridges or by tunnels.

Lists of canals[link]

Amsterdam gracht

• Europe
  • Canals of France
  • Canals of Amsterdam
  • Canals of Germany
  • Canals of Ireland
  • Canals of Russia
  • Canals of the United Kingdom
• North America
  • Canals of Canada
  • Canals of the United States

See also[link]

UK Waterways portal

References[link]

Notes[link]

Bibliography[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: canals

• British Waterways' leisure website - Britain's official guide to canals, rivers and lakes
• Leeds Liverpool Canal Photographic Guide
• Triumphs of Canal Building
• Information and Boater's Guide to the New York State Canal System
• "Canals and Navigable Rivers" by James S. Aber, Emporia State University
• National Canal Museum (USA)
• London Canal Museum (UK)
• Canals in Amsterdam
• Canal du Midi
• Canal des Deux Mers
• Canal flow measurement using a sensor.

His Excellency Ollanta Humala
President of Peru
Incumbent
Assumed office 28 July 2011
Prime Minister	Salomón Lerner Ghitis Oscar Valdés
Vice President	Marisol Espinoza Omar Chehade (resigned)
Preceded by	Alan García
Leader of the Peruvian Nationalist Party
Incumbent
Assumed office November 2005
Preceded by	Position established
Personal details
Born	(1962-06-27) 27 June 1962 (age 49) Lima, Peru
Nationality	Peruvian
Political party	Peruvian Nationalist Party
Spouse(s)	Nadine Heredia (1999–present)
Children	Illariy Nayra Samin
Alma mater	Chorrillos Military School Pontifical Catholic University of Peru
Signature
Website	Official website
Military service
Allegiance	Peru
Service/branch	Army
Years of service	1980–2005
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Battles/wars	Internal conflict in Peru Cenepa War

Ollanta Moisés Humala Tasso (Spanish pronunciation: [oˈʎanta mojˈses uˈmala ˈtaso]) (born June 27, 1962) is a Peruvian politician and the President of Peru. Humala, who previously served as an army officer, lost the presidential election in 2006 but won the 2011 presidential election in a run-off vote.^[1] He was elected as President of Peru in the second round, defeating Keiko Fujimori.

The son of Isaac Humala, a labour lawyer, Humala entered the Peruvian Army in 1982. In the military he achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel; in 1992 he fought in the internal conflict against the Shining Path and three years later he participated in the Cenepa War against Ecuador. In October 2000, Humala led an unsuccessful military revolt by 39 soldiers in the southern city of Tacna against President Alberto Fujimori;^[2] he was pardoned by the Peruvian Congress after the downfall of the Fujimori regime.

In 2005 he founded the Peruvian Nationalist Party and registered to run in the 2006 presidential election. The nomination was made under the Union for Peru ticket as the Nationalist party did not achieve its electoral inscription on time. He passed the first round of the elections, held on April 9, 2006, with 30.62% of the valid votes. A runoff was held on June 4 between Humala and Alan García of the Peruvian Aprista Party. Humala lost this round with 47.47% of the valid votes versus 52.62% for García. After his defeat, Humala remained as an important figure within Peruvian politics.

In 2011, Humala campaigned as a center-left leader with the desire to help to create a more equitable framework for distributing the wealth from the country's key natural resources, with the goal of maintaining foreign investment and economic growth in the country while working to improve the condition of an impoverished majority.^[3]

Military career[link]

Ollanta Humala is the son of Isaac Humala, an ethnic indigenous lawyer, member of the Communist Party of Peru – Red Fatherland, and ideological leader of the Ethnocacerista movement. Ollanta's mother is Elena Tasso.^[4] He is the brother of Antauro Humala, now serving a 25 years prison sentence for kidnapping 17 Police officers for 3 days and killing 4 of them and professor Ulises Humala.^[5] Humala was born in Peru and attended the French-Peruvian school Franco-Peruano in Lima. He began his military career in 1982 when he entered the Chorrillos Military School.

In his military career, Humala was also involved in the two major Peruvian conflicts of the past 20 years, the battle against the insurgent organization Shining Path and the 1995 Cenepa War with Ecuador. In 1992 Humala served in Tingo María fighting the remnants of the Shining Path and in 1995 he served in the Cenepa War on the border with Ecuador.^[6]

2000 uprising[link]

In October 2000, Humala led an uprising in Toquepala against Alberto Fujimori on his last days as President due to multiple corruption scandals. The main reason given for the rebellion was the capture of Vladimiro Montesinos, former intelligence chief who had fled Peru for asylum in Panama after being caught on video trying to bribe an opposition congressman. The return of Montesinos led to fears that he still had much power in Fujimori's government, so Humala and about 40 other Peruvian soldiers revolted against their senior army commander.^[7]

Many of Humala's men deserted him, leaving him only 7 soldiers. During the revolt, Humala called on Peruvian "patriots" to join him in the rebellion, and around 300 former soldiers led by his brother Antauro answered his call and were reported to have been in a convoy attempting to join up with Humala. The revolt gained some sympathy from the Peruvian populace with the influential opposition newspaper La República calling him "valiant and decisive, unlike most in Peru". The newspaper also had many letters sent in by readers with accolades to Ollanta and his men.^[7]

In the aftermath, the Army sent hundreds of soldiers to capture the rebels. Even so, Humala and his men managed to hide until President Fujimori was impeached from office a few days later and Valentín Paniagua named interim president. Later Humala was pardoned by Congress and allowed to return to military duty. He was sent as military attaché to Paris, then to Seoul until December 2004, when he was forcibly retired. His forced retirement is suspected to have partly motivated an etnocacerista rebellion of Andahuaylas^[2] led by his brother Antauro Humala in January 2005.^[8]

In 2002 Humala received a Master's degree in Political Science by the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

Political career[link]

2006 presidential campaign[link]

In October 2005 Humala created the Partido Nacionalista Peruano (the Peruvian Nationalist Party) and ran for the presidency in 2006 with the support of Union for Peru (UPP) .

Ambassador Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, the former Peruvian Secretary-General of the United Nations and founder of UPP, told the press on December 5, 2005 that he did not support the election of Humala as the party's presidential candidate. He said that after being the UPP presidential candidate in 1995, he had not had any further contact with UPP and therefore did not take part in choosing Humala as the party's presidential candidate for the 2006 elections.^[9][10]

There were some accusations that he incurred in torture, under the nom de guerre "Capitán Carlos" ("Captain Carlos"), while he was the commander of a military base in the jungle region of Madre Mia from 1992 to 1993. His brother Antauro Humala stated in 2006 that Humala had used such a name during their activities.^[11][12] Humala, in an interview with Jorge Ramos, acknowledged that he went under the pseudonym Captain Carlos but stated that other soldiers went under the same name and denied participation in any human rights abuses.^[13]

On March 17, 2006 Humala's campaign came under some controversy as his father, Issac Humala, said "If I was President, I would grant amnesty to him (Abimael Guzmán) and the other incarcerated members of the Shining Path". He made similar statements about amnesty for Víctor Polay, the leader of the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, and other leaders of the MRTA. But Ollanta Humala distanced himself from the more radical members of his family during his campaign.^{[14][15][dead link][16][dead link]} Humala's mother, meanwhile, made a statement on the March 21 calling for homosexuals to be shot.^[17]

Ollanta Humala's brother, Ulises Humala, ran against him in the election, but was considered an extremely minor candidate and came in 14th place in the election.

On April 9, 2006 the first round of the Peruvian national election was held. Humala came in first place getting 30.62% of the valid votes,^[18] and immediately began preparing to face Alan García, who obtained 24.32%, in a runoff election on June 4.

On May 20, 2006, the day before the first Presidential debate between Alan García and Ollanta Humala, a tape of the former Peruvian intelligence chief Vladimiro Montesinos was released by Montesinos' lawyer to the press with Montesinos claiming that Humala had started the October 29, 2000 military uprising against the Fujimori government to facilitate his escape from Peru amidst corruption scandals. Montesinos is quoted as saying it was a "farce, an operation of deception and manipulation".

Geographic distribution of Second Round votes, by winning candidate.

  Alan García, >2/3 of valid votes

  Alan García, <2/3 of valid votes

  Ollanta Humala, >2/3

  Ollanta Humala, <2/3

Humala immediately responded to the charges by accusing Montesinos of being in collaboration with García's Aprista Party with an intention to undermine his candidacy. Humala is quoted as stating "I want to declare my indignation at the statements" and went on to say "Who benefits from the declarations that stain the honor of Ollanta Humala? Evidently they benefit Alan García".^[19][20][21] In another message that Montesinos released to the media through his lawyer he claimed that Humala was a "political pawn" of Cuban President Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in an "asymmetric war" against the United States. Montesinos went on to state that Humala "is not a new ideologist or political reformer, but he is an instrument".^[22]

On May 24, 2006 Humala warned of possible voter fraud in the upcoming second round elections scheduled for June 4. He urged UPP supporters to register as poll watchers "so votes are not stolen from us during the tabulation at the polling tables." Humala went on to cite similar claims of voting fraud in the first round made by right-wing National Unity candidate Lourdes Flores when she told reporters that she felt she had "lost at the tabulation tables, not at the ballot box". When asked if he had proof for his claims by CPN Radio Humala stated "I do not have proof. If I had the proof, I would immediately denounce those responsible to the electoral system". Alan García responded by stating that Humala was "crying fraud" because the polls show him losing the second round.^[23]

On June 4, 2006 the second round of the Peruvian elections were held. With 77% of votes counted and Humala behind García 45.5% to 55.5% respectively, Humala conceded defeat to Alan García and congratulated his opponent's campaign stating at a news conference "we recognise the results...and we salute the forces that competed against us, those of Mr Garcia".^[24]

Post-election[link]

On June 12, 2006 Carlos Torres Caro, Humala's Vice Presidential running mate and elected Congressman for the Union for Peru (UPP), stated that a faction of the UPP would split off from the party after disagreements with Humala to create what Torres calls a "constructive opposition". The split came after Humala called on leftist parties to form an alliance with the UPP to become the principal opposition party in Congress. Humala had met with representatives of the Communist Party of Peru – Red Fatherland and the New Left Movement. Humala stated that the opposition would work to "make sure Garcia complies with his electoral promises" and again stated that he would not boycott García's inauguration on July 28, 2006.^{[25][26][dead link]}

On August 16, 2006 prosecutors in Peru filed charges against Humala for alleged human rights abuses including forced disappearance, torture, and murder against Shining Path guerillas during his service in San Martín.^[27][28] Humala responded by denying the charges and stating that he was "a victim of political persecution". He said the charges were "orchestrated by the Alan Garcia administration to neutralize any alternative to his power".^[29]

2011 election[link]

Humala with his wife

Humala ran again in the Peruvian general election^[30] on April 10, 2011, with Marisol Espinoza his candidate for Vice-President.

On May 19, at National University of San Marcos and with the support of many Peruvian intellectuals and artists (including Mario Vargas Llosa with reservations), Ollanta Humala signed the "Compromiso en Defensa de la Democracia".^[31][32] He campaigned as a center-left leader with the desire to help to create a more equitable framework for distributing the wealth from the country's key natural resources, with the goal of maintaining foreign investment and economic growth in the country while working to improve the condition of an impoverished majority.

Going into the June 5 runoff election, he was polling in a statistical tie with opponent Keiko Fujimori.^[33] He was elected the 94th president of Peru with 51.5% of the vote.

Presidency[link]

After the news of the election of Ollanta as president the Lima Stock Exchange experienced its largest drop ever,^[34][35][36] though it later stabilised following Humala's cabinet appointees who were adjudged to be moderate and in line with continuity.^{[citation needed]} However he was also said to have inherited "a ticking time bomb of disputes stemming in large part from objections by indigenous groups to the damage to water supplies, crops and hunting grounds wrought by mining, logging and oil and gas extraction" from Alan Garcia.^[37] Though he promised the "poor and disenfranchised" Peruvians with a bigger stake in the rapidly growing national economy his "mandate for change...[was seen as] a mandate for moderate change" with his "orthodox" cabinet appointees and his public oath on the Bible to respect investor rights, rule of law and the constitution.^[38] He was officially sworn-in on 28 July 2011.

As part of his "social inclusion" rhetoric during the campaign, his government as led by Prime Minister Salomon Lerner Ghitis established the Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion in order to coordinate the efficacy of his social programmes.

Ideology[link]

President Humala received in the Moncloa Palace for Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy (25 January 2012)

Ollanta Humala has expressed sympathy for the former government of Juan Velasco, which took power in a bloodless military coup on October 3, 1968 and nationalized various of the country's industries whilst pursuing a favorable foreign policy with Cuba and the Soviet Union.^[39]

Foreign policy[link]

During his presidential candidacy in 2006 and his run for the presidency that he ultimately won in 2011, Humala has been closely affiliated with other pink tide leaders in Latin America in general and South America in particular. Prior to taking office in 2011 he toured several countries in the Americas where he notably expressed the idea of re-unite the Peru–Bolivian Confederation. He also visited Brazil, Colombia, the United States, Venezuela.

Since his election he has been on a state visit to Spain.^[40]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Resume on the National Electoral Panel (JNE) site (Spanish)

Articles

• "Peru Leans Leftward", April 10, 2006 Council on Foreign Relations
• "Breakdown in the Andes", September/October 2004 Foreign Affairs
• "Ollanta Humala's Path to Peruvian Presidency", August 5, 2011 Sounds and Colours
• "Rebellion in Peru", November 1, 2000 NPR's Talk of the Nation
• "Peru Report", October 30, 2000 NPR's Morning Edition
• "Peru's Election: Background on Economic Issues", April 2006 Center for Economic and Policy Research
• "Peru Elections Near: A Look at the Candidates", June 1, 2011 Washington Office on Latin America

See also[link]

• Humala administration

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Rafael Correa
President of Ecuador
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 January 2007
Vice President	Lenín Moreno
Preceded by	Alfredo Palacio
President pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations
In office 10 August 2009 – 26 November 2010
Preceded by	Michelle Bachelet
Succeeded by	Bharrat Jagdeo
Chairman of the PAIS Alliance
Incumbent
Assumed office 19 February 2006
Preceded by	Position established
Minister of Finance
In office 20 April 2005 – 8 August 2005
Preceded by	Mauricio Yepez
Succeeded by	Magdalena Barreiro
Personal details
Born	(1963-04-06) 6 April 1963 (age 49) Guayaquil, Ecuador
Nationality	Ecuadorian
Political party	PAIS Alliance
Spouse(s)	Anne Malherbe
Children	Sofía Anne Dominique Rafael Miguel
Residence	Carondelet Palace (Official) Quito (Private)
Alma mater	Catholic University of Guayaquil Catholic University of Louvain University of Illinois, Urbana–Champaign
Religion	Roman Catholicism
Website	Official website

Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado (6 April 1963)^[1] is the President of the Republic of Ecuador and was the president pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations. An economist educated in Ecuador, Belgium and the United States, he was elected President in late 2006 and took office in January 2007. In December 2008, he declared Ecuador's national debt illegitimate, based on the argument that it was odious debt contracted by corrupt and despotic prior regimes. He then pledged to fight creditors in international courts, and succeeded in reducing the price of the debt letters and continued paying all the debt.^[2] He brought Ecuador into the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas in June 2009. To date, Correa’s administration has succeeded in reducing the high levels of poverty, indigence, and unemployment in Ecuador.^[3][4]

Correa's first term in office had been due to end on 15 January 2011, but the new approved constitution written by the new National Assembly mandated general elections for 26 April 2009. In that election, Rafael Correa won in the first round with 51.9%^[5] of votes counted. It was the first time since 1979 in which a representative was elected without having to face a second round. Consequently, Correa began a new term in office due to end on 10 August 2013, which could be extended by reelection until 2017.^[6][7][8]

Correa's policies towards the media have been controversial. These have included lawsuits against journalists and media directors, government expropriation of private media outlets and promotion of new government-owned media. Critics charge Correa with running a campaign against the independence of the media.^[9][10][11] Among other actions, Correa brought a libel case against the newspaper El Universo and won damages of $40 million, confirmed by the National Court of Justice (Ecuador's highest court) as of February 16, 2012. The court also confirmed three-year prison sentences against a journalist and three executives of the newspaper.^[12] Following widespread condemnation of the sentences, Correa announced on 27 February 2012 that he would pardon the four individuals involved. He also said he would drop a separate case against two other journalists who produced a book purportedly exposing government contracts given to Correa's brother.^[13]

Background[link]

Early life[link]

A descendant of the Chilean politician Rafael Correa of Saa and Lazón and Delgado and Flaquito, Rafael Correa comes from a working class family in Guayaquil.^{[citation needed]} His father was Rafael Correa Icaza, born in the Province of Los Ríos, Ecuador, 23 March 1934 and deceased 10 June 1995; and his mother is Norma Delgado Rendón, born 1 September 1939.^[14] His parents had three more children: Fabricio Correa, Pierina Correa; Bernardita Correa(+).

When Rafael Correa was 25 years old, his father was caught smuggling drugs (cocaine) into the U.S. and was convicted and sentenced to 5 and half years in prison for his crime.^[15] Rafael had a troubled and difficult childhood - his father ended up committing suicide and the family struggled to make ends meet.^[16] Correa has publicly acknowledged this incident, he said: "...drug smugglers are not delinquents. They are single mothers or unemployed people who are desperate to feed their families". He even has plans to implement reforms to the laws that govern these type of crimes ("Ley de Control de Tráfico de Estupefacientes"). to allow some leniency for cocaine (or other drugs) smugglers. His antipathy towards the US government is in part due to this sad event in Correa's life.^[17][18]

He is married to Anne Malherbe, a teacher of Belgian nationality born in 1969, whom he met in 1990 at the Catholic University of Louvain. The couple have three children: Sofía, Anne Dominique and Miguel.^[19]

He carried out his primary and secondary studies in the Catholic school San José-La Salle, in Guayaquil.^[20] During his youth he was part and directed groups of Scouts of the Association of Scouts of Ecuador, as well as a troop of the Group 14 San José-La Salle, and afterwards, Group 17 Christopher Columbus that also helped to create.^[20]