New President Inaugurated After Peru's Disputed Election (2021)

Pedro Castillo has been sworn in as Peru's new president.

Before the inauguration, Castillo met with various South American presidents, including Guillermo Lasso of Ecuador.

As he assumed his leadership position, Castillo said Peru will now be governed for the first time by "a peasant" and he will be dedicated to the redistribution of Peru's assets to benefit the lower classes.

The king of Spain, King Felipe VI, was also in attendance.

Presidente Castillo said he will not live in government palace, also known as Pizarro's house, named for the Spanish conquistador who defeated the Incas 500 years ago.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Peru's revolving door of the presidency.

The president elected last year, Pedro Castillo,

a former small-time farmer from a remote

rural area .. has been removed from the

presidency.

The Peruvian Congress voted 101-6 to oust

Castillo.  He has been jailed for rebellion.

Dina Boluarte is the new 'presidenta' and the

first female leader of Peru.

Castillo was attempting to dissolve Congress,

but the legislators got there first.

Peru has been averaging about one new

president per year since 2016.  Almost every

president in the past four decades has been

charged with corruption linked to

multinational corporations.

Source... Washington Post, New York Times

Dina's tenure.

Dina Boluarte had been serving as vice-president

when she was suddenly elevated to the presidency

this week.

Peru has had some interim presidents who served

for extremely short periods.  There were three

national presidents in the year 2020, including

an interim president  However,

Presidenta Boluarte says she will serve for all

the remaining time in the Castillo term, until

July 2026.

Castillo was the latest of the many Peruvian

presidents against whom corruption has been

alleged in recent years.  The current charges

against him include rebellion against

the state.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Peruvians protest what happened to

Presidente Castillo.

Around Peru this weekend, many citizens --

including many supporters of ousted

Presidente Pedro Castillo -- engaged in

sometimes-violent protests and demanded

new elections.  Castillo has wide support in

many rural areas where the people identify

with the one-time farmer who rose to the

highest office in the land.

In the mountain town of Andahuaylas

(pop. 42,000), two teenagers were repoted

killed in confrontations with police during

the weekend.

Here in the capital city of Lima, police

used tear gas to hold back hundreds of

protesters .. and elsewhere thousands

participated in the demonstrations.

The authorities had to shut down the

airport in Andahuaylas after protesters

set fire to the transmitter room, which

normally provides navigation services

for air travel.

Source... The Guardian, as posted at

www.cuencahighlife.com

Presidenta announces she will

arrange for early elections.

Castillo's vice presidenta, who became

his successor as president -- Dina Boluarte --

has announced she will send a bill to

Congress this week to hold the next

presidential election in 2024.

Boluarte had wanted to serve out the

presidential term until 2026, but the

mood of the people is not allowing that.

cccmedia in Lima

Updating the presidential situation.

Two thousand protesters blocked the

runways at the Arequipa international

airport yesterday .. interrupting air travel

at Peru's second largest city.

Police eventually used tear gas to disperse

the protests and enable flights to resume.

From his imprisoned state, the impeached

presidente  tweeted that he was being

held hostage due to the new presidenta,

whom he considers a 'usurper' who is

playing 'a dirty game'.

Source... BBC News

  -- cccmedia in Lima

Two thousand protesters blocked the runways at the Arequipa international airport yesterday .. interrupting air travel at Peru's second largest city.

Cancelation of hotel reservations for new years is generating economic losses in Cusco.

https://www.larepublica.co/globoeconomi … no-3507934

Peru State of Emergency.

The government of Peru is instituting a State of

Emergency in an attempt to control demonstrations

following the ouster of Pedro Castillo, presidente.

The emergency measure will limit the rights of the

people to gather in large groups.

Presidenta Boluarte is calling for calm.

Source... The New York Times

Defense minister explains military

aspects.

Amid protests in 14 regions of Peru,

the nation's defense minister has

announced that the Peruvian military

is being employed to protect

hydroelectric plants, airports and other

key infrastructure facilities in the country.

Under the newly-imposed national

State of Emergency, the mililtary can be

employed to assist in police work and

protect key assets of Peru.

Source... CNN

  -- cccmedia in Lima

800 tourists stranded near famous site.

About 800 tourists are reported stranded

near Machu Picchu, the famous Incan

ruins site in southern Peru .. after protesters

managed to halt service via the train that

usually transports tourists from a nearby

town to the iconic ruins.

The national death toll in the wake of the

failed (alleged) coup attempt in Lima

stands at seven.

Protests by agrarian and indigenous

peoples in the region began early this week

in Cusco, historically the gateway city

to the World Heritage site at Machu Picchu.

Source... straitstimes.com

Cusco area update...

In Cusco, the protests have choked off roads

throughout the region, cutting off supplies

headed for local food markets and

copper mines, and 3,000 tourists are

stranded in the region, according to the

regional governor.

Tourist sites including Machu Picchu

cannot be accessed by visitors, he said.

Source... New York Times

LatAm governments support ousted presidente.

Four Latin American governments have produced

a joint statement in support of the impeached and

removed Sr. Castillo of Peru.

The governments of Colombia, Argentina, Bolivia

and Mexico say in their statement that

Castillo is the victim of ¨undemocratic harassment,¨

urging the leadership of Peru to recognize

¨the will of the people.¨

The statement does not mention Castillo's

former vice-presidenta, Sra. Boluarte, who has

been inaugurated as current president of Peru.

Source... The New York Times

Castillo to remain jailed for 18 months.

Peru's Supreme Court on Thursday ordered

that ousted presidente Pedro Castillo be held

as a prisoner for an additional 18 months.

The high court determined that Castillo is a

flight risk as he had sought asylum after his

impeachment at the Mexican embassy here

in Lima.  He faces ten years in prison if he is

convicted of rebellion or other alleged

coup crimes.

Castillo supporters have continued to

rally daily despite a 30-day State of

Emergency that forbids such protests.

Source.. AFP -- Agence France Presse,

as posted at Yahoo!News

  -- cccmedia in Lima

Move for early elections voted down.

Peru's Congress late this week voted down

a measure to move elections up to

December 2023, one year from now.

Protesters have been demanding early

elections since the ouster of

alleged coup leader and presidente

Pedro Castillo.

As many as 2,000 tourists remain

trapped inside Peru due to the

closing of some airports.

Source... Reuters

  -- cccmedia in Lima

Seven deaths in Ayacucho.

Seven protesters died on Thursday in clashes

with police in Ayacucho, according to

regional authorities.

  -- CBS News

Ayacucho in southern Peru had a 2017

population of 616,000, according to the

city's Wikipedia page.

  -- cccmedia in Lima

The text above summarises the ongoing political events well, but makes Peru seem like a war zone.

Peruvian politics have been a mess for decades but its economy fares better than most South American countries. However there only seems to be only a left versus right choice with each in it for the money.

Lima, Arequipa, Trujillo are all quite peaceful and have curfews and police presence to keep it that way.

Cusco & Macchu Piccu are disrupted through flight and rail cancellations but will be safe.

Some of the Andean towns are still frictional - but are normally well off the main tourist or expat route.

I have my Xmas pudding in Arequipa and I'm going to eat it even if Santa can't come due to curfew.

Best Wishes to all.

Presidential election moved up to 2024.

Peru has moved its next presidential election

to April 2024, from the original 2026 date.

The idea is to keep a lid on protests after

impeachment denied Sr. Castillo a full

five-year term that began last year.

The nation's airports are reported open and

operating..

I flew from Lima to Quito yesterday morning,

and there were no visible signs I encountered

of protests or trouble.

News source... www.cuencahighlife.com

  -- cccmedia in Quito

Machu Picchu developments from the protests.

The railway link between the iconic Inca ruins

and the city of Cusco has been blocked since

December 12, and hundreds of tourists were

reported stranded.

The tourists have mostly been airlifted out of

the Machu Picchu zone, back to Cusco.

It may take several more days to clear the

rail tracks.

Source... Cuenca Highlife