Peru’s Congress approved this Tuesday (20) to anticipate the country’s general elections to April 2024. The election was originally scheduled for July 2026.
The measure seeks to ease the political crisis established after the failed attempt at a coup d’état on December 7 by then-president Pedro Castillo, who was eventually removed from office and arrested.
His deputy and successor in office, Dina Boluarte, has faced a series of violent protests that have already left more than 25 dead in the country. She, who initially said she intended to complete her presidential term in 2026, later declared herself in favor of bringing the elections forward.
The measure approved this Tuesday shortens the terms of office of the president and legislators of the country, which will end on July 28, 2024.
The project had 93 votes in favor and 30 against, in addition to one abstention. Eighty-seven votes were needed for approval. As it is a proposal that amends the Constitution, the measure still needs to go through a second vote before becoming law.
Perú Libre and other leftist parties opposed the postponement of the elections. A similar project, which proposed to advance the elections to December 2023, had been rejected by Parliament last Friday (16).
This Tuesday, a delegation from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), headed by Secretary Tania Reneaum, arrived in Lima to meet with authorities “in order to receive information about the institutional crisis and the protests.”
The IACHR met with Boluarte at the Government Palace, and plans to visit some cities in the country.
Also on Tuesday, Peru declared the Mexican ambassador “persona non grata” and ordered him to leave the country within 72 hours due to the granting of asylum to Castillo’s family members.
This Tuesday, relatives of the populist leader entered the Mexican embassy in Lima. It is not clear if they will remain in place or head to the US country.
The Peruvian government’s decision responds to “repeated manifestations” by Mexico “about the political situation in Peru, which constitute interference in our internal affairs”, said Chancellor Ana Cecilia Gervasi.
In recent weeks, Mexican President Andrés Mauel Lopez Obrador has been issuing statements of support for Castillo and reaffirming his offer of asylum to the ousted populist leader.
As soon as Boluarte took office, the Mexican leader said that his government would wait a few days to recognize her and declared that Castillo had been the victim of harassment since his victory in the elections and that his political opponents “do not accept that he governs”.
A week later, Mexico signed, along with Argentina, Bolivia and Colombia, a letter that urged Peru to protect Castillo’s human and legal rights — ambiguous, the note did not, however, ask for his return to office.
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