Protests against the new government in Peru left two people dead and several injured on Sunday during a clash in the interior of the country. There were demonstrations and calls for a national strike to demand the resignation of President Dina Boloart and the holding of new elections.
Mobilization has grown in cities north and south of the Andes for the fourth day, rejecting Congress and demanding the release of former left-wing President Pedro Castillo, who was overthrown in the last seventh.
Thousands of people gathered in Cajamarca, Arequipa, Tacna, Andahuaylas, Huancayo, Cusco and Puno, according to images broadcast by local television stations. In Andahuaylas, police reported two deaths and multiple injuries, including a police officer, as protesters attempted to take over the city’s airport.
“We regret that two people died and several were injured during the clashes,” Interior Minister Cesar Cervantes told local radio RPP. “I ask the residents to calm down.”
Shock Battalion reinforcements will arrive at this station to contain the thousands of protesters in Andahuaylas, located in the Apurímac region, Dina Boluarte’s hometown. He attacked people with slingshots and stones, while the security forces repelled them with tear gas, according to photos published by the press.
RPP radio reported that the headquarters of the Huancabamba police station, in Apurimac, was set on fire. In the same city, protests had left 16 civilians and four police officers injured the previous day.
Indefinite shutdown
Agricultural unions, peasant and indigenous organizations have announced an indefinite strike starting next Tuesday, in addition to calls for a closure of Congress, early elections and a new constitution, according to a statement from Peru’s Agricultural and Rural Front. The collective also calls for Castillo’s “immediate release”.
In Lima, the left-wing party of Peruvian Livre has called for a demonstration this afternoon in San Martin Square, the epicenter of political demonstrations in Peru. Lima has always turned its back on Castillo, while Andean regions have agreed with him since the 2021 elections.
Congress, which is dominated by the right, has announced that it will meet this afternoon to analyze the situation.
“Until now, the president has not been clear about the big question: Are we in a transitional government or are we facing a power that intends to stay until 2026?” political analyst Giovanna Pinaflor told AFP. “It must make it clear that its role is to facilitate the new general elections, and that this is the path that will herald that it has some stability that will allow the current government not to be like the previous ministries and end up regressing.”
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