Police forces containing a protest in Peru after the parliamentary coup d'etat against Pedro Castillo. Photo: SADAA Times.
This Sunday, February 5, a state of emergency was declared in Peru due to the intensifying of uprisings in the country since December 7, when right-wing forces carried out a parliamentary coup against President Pedro Castillo.
The streets of Lima continue to burn in the midst of significant battles between the police and protesters who insist on the resignation of the de facto government.
Madre de Dios, Cusco, Puno, Apurímac, Arequipa, Moquegua, and Tacna are the seven southern regions subject to the state of emergency protocols, which will be enforced for 60 days while the de facto government attempts to contain the deluge of Peruvians exhausted by the lack of democracy in a country run by a small oligarchy in Lima.
De facto President Dina Boluarte, accompanied by the head of the cabinet Alberto Otárola, Defense Minister Jorge Chávez, and Justice Minister José Tello are responsible for signing the decree.
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The Peruvian National Police (PNP) with the support of the armed forces will be in charge of enforcing “internal security,” with the exception of the region of Puno, where the armed forces, who had been tasked with enforcing “internal order,” executed multiple human right violations with their excessive use of force and took the lives of 69 Peruvians while repressing protests.
This decree was signed when a total of 26 people were arrested the previous day, while another 24 were injured by police and military repression during the protest that took place in Lima.
Frozen constitutional rights
During the state of emergency, the constitutional rights related to sanctity of the home, freedom of transit through national territory, and personal privacy are suspended, resolutions that have been heavily questioned by human rights advocates.
In the region of Puno, a “mandatory lockdown of all people in their homes” has been declared from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. for a period of 10 days.
Workers in the healthcare, food supply, pharmaceutical, and public service sectors, among others, are exempt from the lockdown.
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What does Peru expect with these protests?
The protesters’ demands include:
- Early general elections for 2023
- The resignation of the interim president, Dina Boluarte.
- The suspension of Congress and the call for a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution.
- Justice for more than 60 Peruvians who died during the demonstrations at the hands of the PNP and the armed forces.
The mobilizations in the capital, Lima, home to 33 million Peruvians or one third of the total population, have been relatively small so far but have increased in magnitude as protesters from other regions enter the city and more contradictions among the ruling class arise.
New national strike
A new massive demonstration was declared on Sunday and publicized on social media platforms and the local press by the main workers union in Peru in response to the violent repression against peaceful protests.
El principal gremio de trabajadores de 🇵🇪 convoca a huelga general indefinida a partir del jueves #9F en rechazo a la violenta represión del gobierno Boluarte contra las protestas pacíficas y la estigmatización de dicha central sindical y de su dirigente como "violentistas" pic.twitter.com/FCzCBf7cHH
— Jacqueline Fowks (@jfowks) February 5, 2023
According to a statement from the Workers’ General Confederation of Peru, an indefinite national strike has begun in both the private and public sectors as of February 9 at 12 a.m.
Apart from Boluarte’s resignation and the electoral advance, the protesters, who have taken to the streets since the ousting and arrest of Pedro Castillo, demand the dissolution of Congress and a Constituent Assembly while also asking for justice for the people who were murdered by police repression during the protests.
(RedRadioVE) by Joshua Mendoza with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/KZ
