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Photo composition showing Peruvian repressive forces shooting at protestors (Photo: Ernesto Benavides/AFP) blended with an image of a Peruvian protester holding a banner with a cartoon of Dina Boluarte stained in blood and a caption reading "asesina" (murderer). Photo composition: Orinoco Tribune.
Bolivian authorities reject Boluarte’s accusations of Bolivia sending ammunition to Peru and highlight human rights violations by the Peruvian de facto ruler.
On Tuesday, January 24, de facto Peruvian President Dina Boluarte said that her government had received “unofficial information” indicating that some of the deaths in Peru’s heavily repressed protests were the result of dumdum (expanding) bullets. She remarked that this type of weapon could have entered through the border with Bolivia.
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Boluarte accused the Ponchos Rojos indigenous group of being involved in the entry of arms and ammunition from Bolivia to Peru to arm protesters.
On Thursday, January 26, Bolivian Government Minister Eduardo del Castillo declared that “there is no diversion of arms from the Plurinational State of Bolivia to the Republic of Peru. That version is totally untrue.”
Minister Castillo warned of the excessive use of violence during the protests in Peru and the “flagrant violation of human rights” by Boluarte’s regime, dismissing her accusations as a “smoke screen” to “hide” this situation.
How did the Peru-Bolivia tension begin?
Boluarte has been accusing Bolivia of interference since Bolivian President Luis Arce highlighted “the people’s struggle” to “recover democracy” in reference to the protests in Peru.
However, the Bolivian authorities have reiterated that they cannot remain silent in the face of the critical situation in Peru. According to the Ombudsman’s Office, 57 people have been killed since the protests began after the ousting of former President Pedro Castillo in December 2022.
On Thursday, January 26, Peru’s Congress declared former Bolivian President Evo Morales persona non grata for criticizing Boluarte’s repressive policies. In fact, on January 9, the Peruvian Ministry of the Interior prohibited the entry of Morales and eight other Bolivians at the request of the de facto president.
(HispanTV)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
