Anti-government protests in Peru in anger at new president
Unrest has started to spread across Peru, with anti-government protesters blocking roads and storming the international airport in Peru’s second city Arequipa, as anger at the new president intensified on Monday.
Supporters of the former president – the leftwing Pedro Castillo, took to the streets in anger at his impeachment and arrest.
His successor and former deputy, Dina Boluatre proposed bringing the general elections forward by two years to April 2024 in response to the protests.
Castillo called the new president’s plans a “dirty game.”
Peru protests escalating – roads blocked, airport stormed
The protests erupted over the impeachment of Mr Castillo last Wednesday.
So far seven people have died in clashes with the security forces.
The former president was accused of corruption and detained for attempting to dissolve the opposition-controlled Congress, just hours before it was due to vote on his impeachment.
Supporters of Mr Castillo say that Ms Boluarte was not elected by the people, they are demanding a new election, and some are calling for Congress to be shut down and Mr Castillo released.
Protesters blocked roads and set fire to vehicles on Monday. An estimated 2,000 people stormed the airport, blocking the runway and forcing flights to be suspended for several hours.
Ms Boluarte – the first woman to lead Peru – said she would submit a bill to Congress to hold elections in April 2024 instead of April 2026.
She said she would also propose constitutional reforms to achieve “a more efficient, transparent and participatory system of government”, but did not go into detail about those reforms.
Ms Boluarte was sworn in as president on Wednesday and said she would serve out the remainder of Mr Castillo’s five-year term in office in full.
How Ms Boluarte deals with the protesting will be a key test for her presidency and whether she’ll even be able to hold onto power until April 2024.
Peru’s politics have suffered from instability for years, with the legislature and executive almost constantly at loggerheads. She is the sixth president to hold power in as many years.
