Vatican City/Lima, Peru
Reuters
Pope Francis on Sunday called for an end to violence in Peru, where nearly 50 people have been killed during anti-government demonstrations in the past few weeks.
“No to violence, regardless of where it originates. No more deaths,” the Argentine Pope said in Spanish at his weekly address to thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square, briefly departing from the rest of the address, which was in Italian.
Pope Francis leads the Angelus prayer from his window at the Vatican, on 22nd January, 2023. PICTURE: Vatican Media/Handout via Reuters
Protests have flared in Peru since President Pedro Castillo was ousted in December after attempting to dissolve the legislature to prevent an impeachment vote.
“Violence extinguishes the hope of a just solution to problems,” Francis said.
Dozens were injured since tensions erupted again on Friday, as police clashed with protesters, with security forces in the capital Lima using tear gas to repel demonstrators who were throwing glass bottles and stones, as fires burned in the streets.
“I encourage all sides to take the path of dialogue among brothers of the same nation, in full respect of human rights and the rule of law,” Francis said.
The unrest, which until this week had been concentrated in Peru’s south, has prompted the government to extend a state of emergency to six regions, curtailing some civil rights.
Francis also called for peace and mutual forgiveness in Myanmar, where at least seven civilians were killed this week when armed forces launched air strikes on a village in the country’s central Sagaing region.
Myanmar has been gripped by fighting since the army overthrew an elected government in February 2021. Resistance movements, some armed, have emerged across the country, which the military has countered with lethal force.
Meanwhile, Peruvian police said they had arrested more than 200 people accused of illegally entering the campus of a major Lima university, while earlier authorities in Cusco shut the Incan citadel of Machu Picchu and the Inca trail as deadly anti-government protests spread nationwide.
Dozens of Peruvians were injured after tensions flared again on Friday as police clashed with protesters, with security forces in capital city Lima using tear gas to repel demonstrators throwing glass bottles and stones, as fires burned in the streets.
Alfonso Barrenechea, with the crime prevention division of the prosecutor’s office, told local radio station RPP that arrested 205 people at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos for illegally trespassing on the university’s premises and for allegedly stealing electronic goods.
A group of masked protesters stormed the campus late Friday and removed security personnel from the campus after taking vests and other equipment from them, the university said in a statement.
In videos circulating online, an armoured vehicle can be seen breaking down a door on the university campus to allow entry for security forces.
A demonstrator faces riot police amid anti-government protests after Peru’s former President Pedro Castillo was ousted, in Lima, Peru, on 21st January, 2023. PICTURE:
In the Cusco region, the gateway to Machu Picchu, Glencore’s major Antapaccay copper mine suspended operations on Friday after protesters attacked the premises – one of the largest in the country – for the third time this month.
Airports in Arequipa, Cusco and the southern city of Juliaca were also attacked by demonstrators, delivering a fresh blow to Peru’s tourism industry.
Cultural authorities in Cusco said in a statement that “in view of the current social situation in which our region and the country are immersed, the closure of the Inca trail network and Machu Picchu has been ordered, as of January 21 and until further notice”.
The imposing Incan citadel is a major tourist attraction, with over a million visitors per year, though that number was reduced due to the pandemic.
Protests have rocked Peru since former President Pedro Castillo was ousted in December after he attempted to dissolve the legislature to prevent an impeachment vote.
The unrest, which until this week had been concentrated in Peru’s south, has prompted the government to extend a state of emergency to six regions, curtailing some civil rights.
