The US ambassador in Peru, Lisa Kenna (left) shakes hands with de facto president of Peru, Dina Boluarte. Photo: Twitter/@presidenciaperu.
A report by Vijay Prashad and José Carlos Llerena Robles, published by Eurasia Review on December 14, revealed that the US was plotting the downfall of the president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, ever since his electoral victory in 2021.
The report states that right before the Congress was going to vote on his impeachment, Castillo’s lawyers had reassured him that he would most certainly prevail over the motion and remain in office.
They also told him that he held the upper hand given that his approval rating had risen to 31%, while that of the Congress was at 10%.
Yet, Castillo seemingly did not listen to his lawyers’ pieces of advice and instead resorted to announcing the temporary dissolution of Congress, as well as the establishment of an exceptional emergency government—a decision that made him appear guilty of charges fabricated against him as he fled for his safety.
After a vote was carried out in spite of Castillo’s announcement dissolving the Congress, Castillo and his family rushed to the Embassy of Mexico in Lima, for safety. But the military arrested the Peruvian leader before he could get there.
Was his decision of dissolving Congress uncalculated?
Peru: Death Toll in Protests Rises to 20, Government Crisis Unravels
While an initial response might seem an obvious yes, the details of his ousting are much more complex than they appear.
Ever since right-wing Keiko Fujimori had been defeated in the 2021 elections, she attempted several times, along with her associates, to impeach Pedro Castillo and remove him from the presidency.
She has close ties with individuals connected to the US government and its spy agencies.
For instance, one of Fujimori’s team members, Fernando Rospigliosi, “had in 2005 tried to involve the US Embassy in Lima against Ollanta Humala, who contested in the 2006 Peruvian presidential election,” the report states.
Likewise, in 2021, Vladimiro Montesinos, a former CIA asset who is currently jailed in Peru, sent commands to Pedro Rejas, a former commander in the Peruvian army, to go “to the US Embassy and talk with the embassy intelligence officer” to influence the 2021 Peruvian presidential election.
Prior to the start of the electoral race, the US had appointed a former CIA agent, Lisa Kenna, as its ambassador in Lima.
The U.S. Ambassador in Peru is Lisa Kenna, a long-time CIA officer and State Department senior official. pic.twitter.com/xSnAC4tK32
— Kawsachun News (@KawsachunNews) June 13, 2021
On December 6, just the day before Castillo’s ousting, she met with Peru’s Minister of Defense Gustavo Bobbio, and posted a tweet condemning Castillo’s announcement on dissolving Congress a day after it was issued.
— Embajadora de los EE.UU. en Perú (@USAmbPeru) December 8, 2022
On December 8, the US recognized, through Kenna, Peru’s new government and its new president, Dina Boluarte.
The report adds that a key figure in the pressure campaign was identified as Mariano Alvarado, “operations officer of the Military Assistance and Advisory Group (MAAG), who functions effectively as the US Defense attaché.”
“We are told that officials such as Alvarado, who are in close contact with the Peruvian military generals, gave them the greenlight to move against Castillo,” the report notes, adding that the last phone call Castillo received before he left the Government Palace came from none other than the US Embassy itself.
“It is likely he was warned to flee to the embassy of a friendly power, which made him appear weak,” the report concludes.
🇵🇪 In Peru, supporters of President Pedro Castillo continue to clash with the police. pic.twitter.com/cUDrgYQpNB
— 🅰pocalypsis 🅰pocalypseos 🇷🇺 🇨🇳 🅉 (@apocalypseos) December 14, 2022
In a written letter posted on Twitter on December 14, Castillo expressed the following:
On behalf of the thousands of Peruvian brothers and sisters who have taken to the streets and are spending the night there, on behalf of the children, young people, housewives, peasants, peasant communities, defense fronts, merchants, transporters, street vendors, artisanal fishermen, miners young peoples, artisans, farmers, teachers and the working class; I express my greetings and gratitude to my brothers: President of Colombia; President of Mexico, President of Bolivia; and President of Argentina for his identification and solidarity with my people and our legitimate Government.
As is well known, I was chosen by the forgotten men and women of Peru, by the dispossessed, neglected for more than 200 years.
Since I took office, they have not stopped for a minute in rejecting the people’s will. Nefarious attitudes such as refusing to grant me permission to go to the sister nations of Colombia and Mexico. In this difficult context, the Congress wants to silence my people with the role of the press, which has just received 1.8 billion soles to silence the massacre and the crisis throughout Peru, money that my government allocated for the Second Agrarian Reform, as well as for the Christmas bonus for the National Police and Teachers.
It is urgent to recover that.
I reiterate my gratitude to the brother presidents of Colombia, Mexico, Bolivia and Argentina. I tell you that we will remain firm and we will not renounce or abandon the just cause and the popular will of the Peruvian people.
Sincerely,
Pedro Castillo Terrones
Constitutional President of Peru
En nombre de los miles de hermanos peruanos que se han volcado a las calles y pernoctan allí, en nombre de los niños, jóvenes, amas de casa, campesinos, comunidades campesinas, frentes de defensa, comerciantes, transportistas, ambulantes, pescadores artesanales, mineros… (1/7) pic.twitter.com/iI3CsOi5vE
— Pedro Castillo Terrones (@PedroCastilloTe) December 14, 2022
On December 13, Peruvian judge Juan Checkley postponed that day’s hearing until the next day to decide whether ousted President Pedro Castillo will be released from detention on alleged charges of conspiracy and corruption.
The reason for the delay was that defense attorneys said they had not received all documents from the public prosecutor.
Although Castillo had hoped to be released, the judge handed him 18 months of preventive detention, in a hearing plagued with irregularities.
