LIMA (AFP) – After a fortnight-long break, Peruvians took to the streets again on Wednesday, blocking roads countrywide to demand the resignation of President Dina Boluarte, who took over from her ousted predecessor in December.
Protesters used stones and burning tyres to barricade main routes in the southern regions of Puno, Cusco, Apurimac and Arequipa, as well as Junin in the centre, chanting for Boluarte to leave.
In the capital Lima, police dispersed dozens of demonstrators with tear gas as they tried to reach Congress, while in Arequipa, officers used tear gas to break up hundreds of protesters.
Boluarte took over on December 7 as the South American country’s first woman president following the impeachment and arrest of Pedro Castillo after he tried to dissolve Congress and rule by decree.
Castillo, a leftist former rural school teacher and union leader, faced vehement opposition from Congress during his 18 months in office, and had been the subject of criminal investigations into allegations of widespread graft.
His ouster sparked nationwide protests, with Peru’s rights ombudsman reporting 22 people killed in clashes and more than 600 injured.
Boluarte’s government declared a 30-day nationwide state of emergency, while she attempted to calm the uproar by seeking to bring forward elections.
The demonstrations died down over the holiday period, but by Wednesday the protesters had remobilised.
“There are 10 blockades, mainly around Puno,” government spokesman Alberto Otarola told reporters in Lima. According to the ombudsman, 30 of the country’s 195 provinces have been affected.
