The capital of Peru, Lima, woke up on Wednesday surrounded by security fences at strategic points in the city where a new protest against the government of Dina Boluarte has been called, which its organizers have called “the takeover of Lima.”
Officials of the Boluarte government had already warned in the previous days about the legitimate use of force that the police will make if necessary and of the possible responsibility that they will attribute to the organizers of the protest in case of destruction.
Local media covered areas of Lima and other regions of the country where protesters were expected to take to the streets early on Wednesday. According to the first reports there were no major disturbances. Public transport, in the morning hours, had not been interrupted and people went to their workplaces normally.
At the Jorge Chávez International Airport, access was restricted, today available only to passengers with tickets in hand. The same happens at the airports of Cusco and Juliaca, in the southeast of the country.
As the hours passed, the protesters began to gather in different regions of the country. Different peaceful marches have been taking place in the regions of Apurímac, Áncash, Cajamarca, Junín, Pasco, Piura, Iquitos, Puno, Cusco, Ayacucho, Tacna, Ica, Lambayeque, La Libertad and Arequipa.
In Lima, at the end of the afternoon, the demonstration seemed to end peacefully in Plaza San Martín, as usually happens when there are protests against the Government.
However, the plans changed when a group of people outnumbered the police officers who guarded the avenue that gives access to the headquarters of Congress and the Attorney General’s Office.
The main points of Lima, such as Plaza San Martín and Plaza de Armas, are protected by security fences and the national police are ready to activate on a larger scale in the event of violent acts.
For her part, President Boluarte sent a message on Tuesday in which she classified the protests as a “threat to democracy” and hinted that she is not willing to leave office.
“We do not understand why they are once again waving their war flags and announcing that they are going to Lima… wanting to take over the entire country from the center,” Boluarte said at a press conference surrounded by his ministers. “This is a threat to democracy, to the rule of law, to institutionality and we as a democratic government are not going to allow or accept it,” Boluarte warned.
The demonstrations on Wednesday seek the resignation of President Dina Boluarte and the Congress of the Republic, as well as the call for early elections.
In the US capital, a group led by the International Coordinator of Solidarity with the Struggle of the Peoples of Peru (CISOLPPERU), has called for a large international mobilization for the afternoon of this Wednesday, July 19, in front of the Peruvian embassy, in Washington, DC.
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