(Lima) Amnesty International presented Wednesday to the President of Peru, Dina Boluarte, “evidence” of abuses by the police who shot and “repeatedly” killed demonstrators.
“We have presented the evidence we have gathered that law enforcement has used excessive, disproportionate and repeatedly lethal force, using their weapons against people who are protesting,” said Erika Guevara, director of the Americas at Amnesty, following his meeting with President Boluarte.
“President Boluarte assured that at no time had she given the order to use lethal weapons to control the demonstrators”, according to Erika Guevara.
Evidence was gathered on 46 cases of human rights violations, according to Amnesty, which collected testimonies from victims of repression and their families in Lima (center), Ayacucho, Andahuaylas and Puno (southeast) and was also based on the evidence collected by the Peruvian authorities.
An investigation has been opened into whether security forces killed protesters during the crackdown on anti-government protests on December 15, Peru’s prosecutor’s office said on Monday, after reports from local media that several people were shot by soldiers.
The investigation, conducted by a prosecutor’s office specializing in human rights in the department of Ayacucho (south), targets police and army personnel.
According to the Peruvian Ombudsman’s office, at least eight people, including a minor, were killed in Ayacucho during clashes with security forces on December 15 as they demonstrated for the resignation of President Dina Boluarte.
A report by the Peruvian news site IDL-Reporteros shows that the soldiers, armed with Galil assault rifles, shot and killed six unarmed demonstrators, when they had already been expelled from the airport.
Protests in Peru, which began on December 7 after the impeachment and arrest of leftist President Pedro Castillo, have left 48 people dead, including a policeman.
The demonstrators demand the dissolution of Congress, a new constitution and the resignation of Dina Boluarte, who as vice-president took the reins after the arrest of Mr. Castillo.
After a peak in mobilizations in mid-January, the clamor in the streets has died down in the past week, with fewer demonstrations and fewer roads blocked by protesters.