Under pressure from the street, Peruvian President Dina Boularte announced, in a televised message in the middle of the night from Sunday to Monday, that she was going to present a bill aimed at advancing the elections from 2026 to April 2024 while the country is shaken by demonstrations that left two people dead during the day.
Claiming to understand the “will of the citizens”, Ms. Boluarte, vice-president until her inauguration on December 7 after the dismissal of President Pedro Castillo, said that she had “decided to take the initiative for an agreement […] to advance the general elections to April 2024”, after the crisis caused by the failed attempt of Mr. Castillo to dissolve the Parliament.
Dina Boluarte also announced the declaration of a state of emergency in the areas most affected by the demonstrations. “I gave instructions to regain control of the internal order and the fundamental rights of citizens,” she said,
Two people died and at least five people were injured on Sunday in Andahuaylas, a city 750 km from Lima, during growing protests in the country against the new president and the arrest of former president Pedro Castillo.
Protests have multiplied across the country, especially in cities in the north and in the Andes. Thousands of people mobilized in the streets of Cajamarca, Arequipa, Tacna, Andahuaylas, Cusco and Puno, demanding the release of the former head of state, but also new elections.
“We regret the death of two people and several injuries in clashes. I urge the population to remain calm, “said Interior Minister César Cervantes on RPP radio, shortly after an initial report from the police reporting one dead – a teenager – and five injured.
“The life of no Peruvian deserves to be sacrificed for political interests. I reiterate my call for dialogue and the renunciation of violence, ”launched the president on Twitter.
The day before, clashes in Andahuaylas had resulted in a balance sheet of 20 wounded (16 civilians and 4 policemen). The violence resumed on Sunday with tear gas fired by police and stone throwing at protesters.
Andahuaylas, located in the Apurimac region, is the region of origin of Ms. Boluarte, described as “treacherous” by supporters of the deposed ex-president.
The police station in Huancabamba, a town in Apurimac, was set on fire, according to RPP radio.
In Lima, between 1,000 and 2,000 people demonstrated in front of Congress shouting “Castillo you are not alone, the people support you” and waving signs accusing “Dina (Boluarte) and the Congress” of being “rats corrupt”. They were dispersed with tear gas early Sunday evening.
Lima has always turned its back on Mr. Castillo, a rural teacher and union leader disconnected from the elites, while he was supported by the Andean regions since the 2021 elections.
Agrarian unions and peasant and indigenous social organizations called Sunday for an “indefinite strike” from Tuesday, rejecting the Congress and also demanding early elections and a new constitution.
According to the communiqué of the Agrarian and Rural Front of Peru, which calls for the “immediate release” of Mr. Castillo, he “did not perpetrate a coup” when he unsuccessfully tried to dissolve Parliament.
He was arrested a few hours later by his own bodyguard on his way to the Mexican embassy to seek political asylum. He is accused of “rebellion”.
jail letter
Ms. Boluarte formed a government on Saturday with an independent and technical profile, with a former prosecutor, Pedro Angulo, as prime minister.
This announcement did not calm the protests.
The demand for new elections is associated with a massive rejection of Congress: according to November polls, 86% of Peruvians disapprove of Parliament.
At the same time, the theory, put forward by the former chief of staff and Mr. Castillo’s lawyer that the former president was drugged without his knowledge during his failed coup attempt, is exciting the country.
In a letter that Mr. Castillo allegedly wrote in prison, he claims that a “camouflaged” doctor and nurses and a “faceless” (hooded) prosecutor “forced” him to take blood samples without his consent , evoking a “Machiavellian plan”.
The president of the Institute of Forensic Medicine, Francisco Brizuela, told him that the ex-president had “refused to submit” to the tests.