Peru: Two cabinet members resigned Friday, adding to the pressure on Peru’s fledgling government in the aftermath of deadly protests that have rocked the country since former President Pedro Castillo’s removal from office and arrest last week.
Education Minister Patricia Correa and Culture Minister Jair Perez resigned on Twitter, citing the deaths of people during the unrest.
“This morning I presented my letter of resignation from the position of education minister. The death of compatriots has no justification. State violence cannot be disproportionate and cause death,” she stated this on her Twitter account.
Peru’s Congress also rejected a proposed constitutional amendment on Friday that would have pushed presidential elections to December 2023, one of the protesters’ main demands.
Peru’s political crisis
Peru has been in political turmoil for years, with multiple leaders accused of corruption, impeachment attempts on a regular basis, and presidential terms cut short.
The cabinet resignations call into question the government of former Vice President Dina Boluarte, who was sworn in on December 7 after Castillo was removed from office by a congressional vote hours after attempting to dissolve Congress.
Castillo’s removal sparked angry protests, with demonstrators demanding early elections, the closure of Congress, a constituent assembly, and Boluarte’s resignation.
Protests raged on Friday, with major roads blocked and five airports forced to close. According to authorities, at least 16 people have been killed in the protests so far.
Eliana Revollar, head of Peru’s ombudsman’s office, told local radio RPP that the death toll could be as high as 20.
According to local authorities, eight people were killed in clashes between security forces and protesters in Ayacucho on Thursday, after a Supreme Court panel ordered Castillo’s 18-month pretrial detention while he is investigated on charges of “rebellion and conspiracy.”
Castillo has denied any wrongdoing and claims to be the country’s legitimate president.
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UN on Peru’s situation
The United Nations expressed “deep concern” on Friday over reports of minors killed or detained during the protests.
The ombudsman’s office said in a statement that a criminal complaint has been filed with prosecutors specialising in human rights in the Ayacucho province of Huamanga to determine “responsibility for the serious violations” there.
On Wednesday, Boluarte’s government declared a state of emergency, granting police special powers and limiting freedoms such as the right to assemble, but it appears to have had little effect in quelling the protests.
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