The deposed Peruvian president Pedro Castillo is detained under legal conditions and does not suffer from “physical complications”, announced Thursday the Mediator of the Republic who saw the ex-head of state in detention.
“We met the former president and his technical defense team and verified that the conditions of detention comply with those provided for by the Penal Enforcement Code,” wrote the Ombudsman on Twitter, whose official accompanied a delegation from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) which visited the former leader in his prison.
“From the communication we had a while ago, [M. Castillo] told us that he is in a stable situation […] There are no physical complications,” Carlos Fernandez told AFP.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Castillo’s lawyer, Mr. Wilfredo Robles, had indicated on the deposed president’s Twitter account that he had “requested a meeting” between his client and the IACHR delegation in the country since Monday.
Mr. Castillo claimed to be “arbitrarily deprived” of his rights and asked that the meeting “be organized urgently”.
Members of the IACHR delegation met with authorities in Ayacucho, in the south of the country, where at least 10 people died in clashes with the soldiers who maintained order within the framework of the state emergency decreed by the government. Others traveled to Lima and Cusco.
22 dead
They met “organizations, social movements and leaders of indigenous peoples to collect testimonies on the protests and the context of the institutional crisis,” said the IACHR, an autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS).
According to the Peruvian People’s Defender, at least 22 people have been killed and more than 600 injured in clashes between security forces and demonstrators demanding the dissolution of parliament and the resignation of new president Dina Boluarte, former vice-president .
On Thursday, Human Rights Watch called on Peruvian authorities to “conduct immediate, thorough, and independent investigations” into the “murder” of protesters.
Violent protests have shaken Peru since December 7 and the dismissal and then arrest of ex-president Pedro Castillo who had tried to dissolve parliament and rule by decree, an action described as a “coup d’etat” by parliament and for which he is prosecuted for “rebellion” and “conspiracy”.
In an attempt to ease the crisis, parliament on Tuesday approved the postponement of general elections from 2026 to April 2024.