Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, faced with a serious political and social crisis since coming to power two months ago, called on Friday for a broad dialogue to define “the country’s program”, which she described as ” fragile democracy.
“In search of peace, I openly call on all the political leaders of each of the parties, but also the leaders of social organizations, the workers, everyone in general, to come together in order to put on the table the program of the country,” she said at a press conference alongside Prime Minister Alberto Otarola.
“We live in a fragile democracy […] I think it is the most fragile in Latin America, but it is up to the Peruvians, to us, to strengthen this democracy, our institutions,” added Ms. Boluarte in a report on her administration.
Sixth head of state in Peru since March 2018, Dina Boluarte has faced almost daily demonstrations since the start of her mandate in early December. Violently repressed, they caused 48 deaths, mainly in the south of the country.
Ms Boluarte said protests “are not peaceful. They come out with sticks […] stones, which are also projectiles that cause damage […] Not everyone walks peacefully, they go out to generate violence, chaos and terror. »
The Peruvian president also stressed that “if there have been excesses on the part of the police, we regret these actions”, while recalling that “there are also injured police officers, many of them seriously”.
The demonstrations began after the ousting on December 7 of former President Pedro Castillo, accused of having attempted a coup by wanting to dissolve the Parliament which was about to oust him from power. Dina Boluarte, then his vice-president, replaced him with a view to completing his term until 2026.
Coming from the same Marxist-inspired party as Pedro Castillo, she is considered a traitor by the protesters, mostly of indigenous origin like the ousted president, who demand her resignation, but also the dissolution of Parliament and the convening of an assembly. constituent.
Between roadblocks, economic paralysis and a state of emergency in nine of the country’s 25 regions, the presidency and parliament have so far been unable to reach a consensus to end the crisis.
In December, Parliament advanced the presidential and legislative elections to April 2024 at first reading, but the presidency insisted that the legislative body advance the poll to October 2023, hoping to calm the dispute.
Invoking a procedural defect, the Parliament however blocked on February 3 until August any debate aimed at bringing forward the general elections.