Lima: Thousands of police officers were deployed in the capital Lima as hundreds of protesters marched towards the downtown area on Thursday (local time), while fierce clashes broke out in the southern city of Arequipa, CNN reported. Protesters want new elections, the resignation of President Dina Boluarte, changes to the constitution, and the release of former President Pedro Castillo, who is currently in pre-trial detention. Outrage initially fueled by the country’s political instability has only increased as the death toll continues to rise, reports CNN. At least 53 people have died and 772 others have been injured in unrest since Peru’s protest movement began in December, the national ombudsman’s office said on Thursday.
Smoke was seen billowing from fields around Arequipa’s international airport, which suspended flights on Thursday (Jan 19), as several people tried to scale a fence, according to live footage from the city. Protesters shouted “killers” and threw stones at the advancing police. CNN reported that the country is witnessing its worst violence in decades, which erupted after Castillo’s ouster, as protesters resisted the current government’s calls for political change.
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Demonstrators marching in Lima on Thursday demanded the resignation of President Bolluarte and called for early general elections – while also defying the state of emergency imposed by the government on Sunday. General Victor Sanabria, head of Peru’s national police for the Lima region, told local media that 11,800 police officers were deployed in Lima, along with key locations such as the parliament, the prosecutor’s office, selected TV stations, the Supreme Court and the army headquarters. getting extra security.
Authorities have been accused of using excessive force against protesters, including firearms, in recent weeks. Autopsies of 17 civilians killed during protests in the city of Juliaca found wounds caused by firearm projectiles, the city’s chief of legal medicine told CNN. At the root of the crisis are demands for better living conditions that have not been met in the two decades since democratic rule was restored in the country. While Peru’s economy has boomed over the past decade, many have not taken advantage of it, with experts noting chronic deficiencies in security, justice, education and other basic services in the country.
Castillo, a former teacher and union leader who had never held elected office before becoming president, is from rural Peru and positions himself as a man of the people. Many of his supporters come from poor areas and hope that Castillo will bring better prospects for the rural and indigenous people of the country. While protests have occurred across the country, the worst violence has occurred in the rural and indigenous south, which has long been home to the country’s coastal whites and mestizos, who are individuals of mixed ancestry, CNN reported.
Peru’s legislative body is also viewed with suspicion by the public. According to Peruvian law, the president and members of Congress are not allowed consecutive terms, and critics have noted his lack of political experience. In a poll published in September 2022 by IEP, 84 percent of Peruvians disapproved of the performance of Congress.
The MPs are not only perceived to be pursuing their own interests in the Congress but are also associated with corrupt practices. The country’s desperation has been reflected in his years of a revolving-door presidency. The current President Bouluard is the sixth head of state in less than five years.
(With inputs from ANI)