(Lima) The human rights association Human Rights Watch (HRW) warns in a report published on Wednesday about the possible execution of dozens of people by the Peruvian security forces during the repression of anti-government demonstrations which made a fifty deaths between December and February.
“The Peruvian military and police are responsible for deaths that could amount to extrajudicial or arbitrary executions, as well as other brutal abuses against protesters and bystanders during protests between December 2022 and February 2023,” the report said. .
The dismissal at the beginning of December of former President Pedro Castillo, accused of having attempted a coup d’etat by wanting to dissolve the Parliament which was preparing to oust him from power, and his replacement by Dina Boluarte, his former vice-president, sparked a wave of violent protests that were harshly suppressed across the country.
“For weeks, as security forces killed protesters and bystanders, the Boluarte government seemed to turn a blind eye,” César Muñoz, associate director of the Americas division of HRW, said in the report.
“Investigations into these killings must be impartial and thorough, and must reach all those responsible for the abuses, including at the highest levels of government,” she adds.
The protests have also resulted in law enforcement deaths: six soldiers drowned after being swept away by a river while trying to flee threatening protesters, and one policeman was killed.
In total, more than 1,300 people were injured, including hundreds of police officers.
Justice is investigating President Boluarte, 60, but also several ministers and former ministers for alleged crimes of “genocide, aggravated homicide and serious injury”.
The Peruvian government has categorically denied these accusations. Dina Boluarte enjoys immunity, by virtue of her position, until the end of her mandate in July 2026.
