Six Questions and Answers on the Crisis in Peru – NRK Urix – Foreign News and Documentaries

1. What has happened?

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in protest after Peruvian President Martín Vizcarra took office. annulled by the National Assembly last Monday, November 10.

The protests were crushed by the police and two men in their 20s lost their lives. According to the country’s health authorities, one was shot 11 times, including in the head. The other died of a blow to the chest.

The incidents sparked backlash and protests across the country. This led to the resignation of the newly elected president, Manuel Merino, and his government.

2. What is the situation at the moment?

On Monday of this week he became a congressman Francisco Sagasti elected new interim president of Peru, after the resignation of Manuel Merino. The election took place by vote in parliament. Sagasti is, therefore, the third president of the country in a week.

3. Why was Martín Vizcarra fired?

According to more than a hundred years old paragraph in the Peruvian constitution, the parliament can remove the president if he is “morally incapable” of leading the country. It was this clause that was used when the center-right politician Martín Vizcarra was overthrown last Monday.

But there is great disagreement among experts on what such a provision entails, and the ousted president has asked the country’s Supreme Court to consider it.

4. Are there other reasons behind this?

The electorate’s justification for using the controversial clause is a corruption case from several years ago when Martín Vizcarra was governor of a small province in Peru. Then it is said that he received almost NOK 6 million in bribes in connection with two construction contracts. But Vizcarra denies it. He is not in charge of these matters either.

Therefore, many commentators believe that there are purely political motives behind the firing.

“Half of the members of Congress are being investigated for various crimes, from money laundering to murder,” he wrote. Latin American BBC.

5. What do the voters think?

Martín Vizcarra was a popular president. A poll conducted by the Ipsos Institute just before his impeachment shows that up to 57 percent of voters supported him.

And 79 percent of those surveyed said he should complete his presidency and then be brought to justice on the corruption charges. The presidential elections will be held in Peru in April next year.

One of the reasons for Viscarra’s popularity is that he has been actively fighting corruption. It has also brought him many enemies in a country with a widespread culture of corruption.

6. What happens now?

Therefore, a new president must be sworn in. Francisco Sagasti, 76, is a former World Bank employee. The majority in Congress hopes that there is now calm after the violent riots of recent days. But few commentators believe that people will accept such a solution.

This may mean that Peru is still plagued by political unrest and mass protests. The country is struggling with huge problems as a result of the corona pandemic. Peru has registered more than 1000 deaths per crown per million inhabitants – the highest number in the world after Belgium.