July 11 (Bloomberg) -- Peruvian President Alan Garcia appointed Congress President Javier Velasquez as his cabinet chief and shuffled his cabinet a month after protests against logging and oil concessions turned deadly.
Velasquez, 49, a four-term congressman, is Garcia’s third cabinet chief since October. He replaces Yehude Simon, who was ousted after clashes June 5 in the country’s northern Amazon jungle between indigenous protesters and police resulted in the deaths of 34 people.
“Agitators are spreading, disturbing the tranquility of the country’s homes,” Garcia said. “I trust this will be my last cabinet, to spur the reforms the country needs to ensure continued growth.”
Beginning in early April, protesters blocked roads and oil and natural-gas installations, seeking to overturn laws that sought to award more concessions in the Amazon to loggers and oil companies. The clashes forced Garcia’s 17-member cabinet to tender their resignations and Congress to repeal two of the laws on June 18.
Garcia, whose five-year mandate expires in July 2011, also changed trade, production, agriculture, defense, interior, justice and labor ministers.
Garcia kept Finance Minister Luis Carranza and Energy Minister Pedro Sanchez. Former Foreign Trade Minister Mercedes Araoz, who negotiated free-trade agreements with the U.S., Canada and China, was named minister of production.
“Even with the prime minister resigning and President Alan Garcia appointing a new cabinet, DBRS believes there will be no changes to the basic pillars of the country’s economic policy,” Fergus McCormick, an analyst at Dominion Bond Ratings Service, said in a report yesterday.
“Peru’s BBB long-term foreign and local currency sovereign ratings are stable, firmly supported by the country’s sound macroeconomic policies, low debt burden and strong economic growth potential,” McCormick wrote.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Emery in Lima at aemery1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at barden@bloomberg.net
Javier Velásquez, head of Peru’s legislature has been named as Prime Minister by President Alan Garcia. Velásquez is from the President's party, APRA, and replaces Yehude Simon as Prime Minister after Simon resigned on July 10. Simon resigned due to a crisis over indigenous land rights which caused 34 deaths, the worst violence Peru has seen in 20 years. 
President Alan Garcia  
Along with Velásquez’s new role President Garcia has also reshuffled the cabinet and named seven new ministers. Former police chief Octavio Salazar has been named as interior minister.

Opposition Congressman Fredy Otarola has criticized Velásquez, claiming “Velásquez is more of the same” and that he does not "represent change."

Garcia, whose presidency runs out in 2011, has faced several tough years. According to the Agence France-Presse, Peru has gone from a economic strength to a weakness and Garcia also has record disapproval figures, with 67 percent of those polled having a negative opinion of him.