PERU: Nationalist Ollanta Humala, who led Peru's presidential vote on promises of revolution for the poor, said yesterday that he would head a pro-business government and responsible investors had nothing to fear.
Mr Humala, a former army commander, ran a confrontational campaign in which he pledged to restrict investment by big international companies.
He will face either market favourite and conservative Lourdes Flores or former president Alan Garcia in a run-off in May or June.
Mr Humala told foreign correspondents that a scare campaign by his rivals and Peru's media had deliberately misinterpreted his stance toward businesses.
"Let's be clear, nationalism isn't the same as nationalising companies, it's a love of your country. We are not going to expropriate anyone's business," said Mr Humala at his campaign headquarters in Lima.
"We are going to respect private property and guarantee investment. We don't want a traumatic shock in Peru or to deepen our divisions," he added.
Mr Humala, who has never held elected office, said any company that provided jobs, respected the environment, paid its taxes and helped train Peruvians was more than welcome in Peru.
"The point is that we don't just want economic growth. We want social development. We are not Chavistas," Mr Humala said, in reference to Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, an opponent of the US government who is gradually putting more of the economy under state control.
Peru's economy has been one of the top performers in Latin America since 2002 and expanded 7 per cent last year, but the half of Peruvians who are poor say they have seen no benefit.
"Obviously if a company flagrantly breaks its contract or doesn't pay sufficient royalties, then we will put a stop to that," he added. He named Transportadora de Gas del Peru (TgP), a consortium led by Argentina's Techint, as such a company that would face contract revisions because he said the royalties it paid were too low. TgP was not immediately available for comment. Former president Alan Garcia has also pledged to renegotiate the TgP contract if elected.
Mr Humala reiterated plans to levy a royalty on all mining companies regardless of contracts.