New crisis of Powers in Peru culminates with Castillo behind bars

In a day of contradictory announcements from the Peruvian Executive and Legislative powers, this Wednesday the president of that country, Pedro Castillo, was arrested and is being held in the Prefecture of the city of Lima, this after the Peruvian Parliament voted in favor, with 101 wills, a vacancy motion against the president, who had previously publicly announced the temporary closure of the legislative body. Castillo's vacancy leads to the appointment as head of state of Vice President Dina Boluarte, who is expected to be invested by Congress.

The arrest of the now ex-president occurred minutes after he left, along with his family, the Government Palace after the announcement of his dismissal by Congress.

The session in which Castillo's vacancy was determined occurred after the president's announcement to temporarily close Congress and call elections for a new Legislative Assembly in nine months with constituent characteristics; one of his main electoral promises, which, according to analysts, he renounced to try to deal with the onslaught from sectors of the right that opposed and persecuted him even before assuming power and that maintained maximum pressure against him for at least four motions of censure against him, against his ministers and even accusing his relatives.

backless castle

It is worth noting that Castillo's announcement of the closure of Congress, several ministers of his Cabinet resigned in protest of the action that they called unconstitutional, however the president's initiative, which according to analysts has no legal basis, is not part of the reasons for the dismissal, but under the argument of moral incapacity due to accusations of corruption crimes, which would not be legal either, since the head of state has immunity to be tried for such accusations after the end of his term and not during his tenure.

Another relevant fact is that Vice President Boluarte, designated by Congress as head of the first magistracy, only 24 hours before, was weighing a complaint for an alleged constitutional violation, which was filed with 13 votes in favor and 8 against in the Subcommittee on Constitutional Accusations of Congress.

In his speech ordering the closure of Parliament, Castillo indicated that he also declared the "reorganization of the judicial system, the Public Prosecutor's Office, the National Board of Justice and the Constitutional Court" and ordered that all those carrying "illegal weapons must hand them over to the National Police within 72 hours and whoever does not do so commits a crime punishable by imprisonment to be established in the respective decree law." However, the Police and the Armed Forces did not obey the Executive's order.

It was learned that the now former president, Pedro Castillo, after being arrested, received from the Peruvian Public Ministry the notification that he will have 10 days in preventive detention for the development of his case in which the Peruvian Attorney General accuses him, among other charges. , of sedition and disturbance of the tranquility of the nation, as well as excess of power, in relation to his announcement of the closure of the Legislative.

Rapid changes in the landscape

This Wednesday began with the image of a president, Pedro Castillo, who was taking the lead against Congress, which in less than a year and a half of his administration advanced four vacancy motions that to this day had ended in dismissal. It was a "temporary closure" of the country's Congress, just hours after that Legislature carried out the debate for the vacancy motion against him. The announcement included a curfew decree between 10:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m., but the response of the Armed Forces and the Police was not to comply with the order.

The reaction of Castillo's Cabinet was censorship and at least six state secretaries resigned, along with Manuel Rodríguez Cuadros, who left his position as Peruvian ambassador to the United Nations.

Alejandro Salas, Minister of Labor and the Foreign Minister, César Landa, were the first to resign. "In strict adherence to my convictions and democratic and constitutional values, I have decided to irrevocably resign from the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs, in view of President Castillo's decision to close the Congress of the Republic, violating the Constitution," said the politician who was referred to. He indicated that he was very close to Castillo.

“I strongly condemn this self-coup and call on the international community to help the democratic reindictment in Peru. Castillo made this decision without my knowledge or support," Landa emphasized.

Kurt Burneo, head of Economy; Félix Chero, Minister of Justice and Human Rights; Rosendo Serna and Silvana Robles, Ministers of Education and Culture, respectively, presented their resignation, which was joined by the ambassador to the UN.

Castillo's ministers agreed to point out Castillo's announcement to violate the Constitution, and according to analysts, the Peruvian president could only suspend Parliament after that body denied him, at least twice, the constitution of a Cabinet, which would represent "a question of confidence" endorsed by the Constitution. But such a situation did not occur in the entire complex scenario of political destabilization that marked Castillo's entire presidency, which lasted less than a year and a half.

But that first image of the day with a Congress dissolved by the president, passed in a few hours to that of a president dismissed by the Legislature, the swearing in of the vice president, Dina Boluarte, as interim president and the subsequent arrest of Castillo, now accused by the Peruvian Attorney for sedition, disturbance of social peace and excess of power. none that coincides with the accusations of corruption, criminal association, treason and moral incapacity with which they tried to remove him and finally succeeded.

It is worth reiterating that the indications of being outside the Constitution when closing Congress formed part of the vacancy motion that received the overwhelming approval of 101 votes from congressmen.

Dina Boluarte was sworn in as president in Congress

In the development of the eventful day in which the political crisis in Peru worsened, the Congress of that nation swore in Vice President Dina Boluarte to assume as the new president after the dismissal of Pedro Castillo.

The now head of state indicated that she intends to finish the period for which she was elected as deputy president, now occupying the first magistracy.

After her appointment, Boluarte went to the Government Palace where she was received with presidential honors, this after proposing an evaluation of the most recent Peruvian crisis and a kind of truce with Parliament to advance the development of the policy of that nation that In less than a year and a half of Castillo's administration, he has been suffering events that disturb the peace of the country and the economic and social stagnation.

A relevant fact is that with this swearing in Boluarte becomes the first woman to occupy the first Peruvian magistracy in its entire history.

Six presidencies in six years

It is worth noting that Boluarte joins the string of irregular mandates that Peru has suffered for the last six years during which, up to now, six leaders have been sworn in, with only two leaders, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and Pedro Castillo, the only ones invested by popular vote .

Since 2018, the political instability in the country has led to the infamous record of five consecutive dismissals of the highest office, which began with the resignation of Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, elected in 2016, who was replaced by Martín Vizcarra, who was his vice president and was dismissed by Congress for "moral incapacity," as in the case of Castillo.

Then it was the turn, for just five days, of Manuel Merino, who resigned amid protests that left at least two dead and Francisco Sagasti was sworn in, who claimed to be leading a "transitional and emergency government" and was also marked by social protests that led to the discontent of the population who decided to bet on the unknown Pedro Castillo, who was dismissed this day and replaced by his vice president Dina Boluarte.

Mexico offers Castillo asylum

A few hours after the dismissal of Castillo and minutes after the swearing in of Dina Boularte as president of Peru, EFE Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said that his country "is willing to offer asylum" to the former Peruvian president Pedro Castillo, detained in Lima and removed from office by Congress."

The Mexican foreign minister added that he was making the offer to Castillo even though the ousted president "has not yet requested it."

Mexico calls for Castillo's human rights to be respected

Minutes after the Mexican foreign minister announced that he was offering Castillo political asylum, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Twitter that, being respectful of the self-determination of peoples and without seeking any interference in Peruvian internal affairs, he urged the respect for Castillo's human rights and regretted that, under sui generis truculences such as moral incapacity, Castillo's enemies have achieved their goal of removing the president-elect by popular vote, whom they persecuted even before assuming office.

"Non-intervention and self-determination of the peoples is a fundamental principle of our (Mexican) foreign policy," said López Obrador, adding that adhered to this principle "in the case of what happened in Peru," he considers "unfortunate that for the interests of the economic and political elites since the beginning of the legitimate presidency of Pedro Castillo, an atmosphere of confrontation and hostility has been maintained against him to the point of leading him to make decisions that have served his adversaries to consummate his dismissal."

"Hopefully human rights are respected and there is democratic stability for the benefit of the (Peruvian) people," said the Mexican president.