Peru experienced a Wednesday that opened up the country’s political instability, with an attempted coup by then-President Pedro Castillo, his dismissal by the National Congress, and then his arrest.
Upon being sworn in that afternoon, Dina Boluarte became the seventh Peruvian president in six and a half years. The last to complete a full presidential term in the country was Ollanta Humala, who in July 2016 was replaced by Pedro Pablo Kuczynski.
Less than two years later, PPK resigned due to allegations involving Brazilian construction company Odebrecht (which also hit Humala and predecessors Alan García and Alejandro Toledo).
His successor, Martín Vizcarra, who took over as vice president, was impeached in November 2020, also accused of corruption. Then came Manuel Merino, president of the Congress, who withdrew after just five days due to protests from the Peruvian population.
Francisco Sagasti, president of the Legislative, remained in office until July 2021, when he was replaced by Castillo, winner of a close race in the second round of the presidential election that year against the daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000), the right winger Keiko Fujimori.
The left-wing president had a management marked by allegations of corruption and survived two impeachment requests (called vacancy in Peru) before Congress removed him this Wednesday (7).
For Ricardo Bruno Boff, professor of the international relations course at the University of Vale do Itajaí (Univali), the political crisis of the last six and a half years in Peru has some structural elements: corruption, a certain judicial activism (“but that doesn’t mean in no way that the investigated politicians are innocent”, he noted), the unicameral model of Congress and greater ease, compared to other countries, for Parliament to propose the impeachment of the president.
Boff highlighted, however, that Castillo’s failure also had its own characteristics, in addition to the endemic corruption in Peruvian politics: his election was almost a protest vote, since he placed an outsider in the presidency (“the teacher who came from the countryside”, pointed out Boff) anchored in a dwarf party, with few seats in Congress.
The political inability of Castillo, who appointed five prime ministers in a year and a half in office, also weighed.
“I believe that there is a will to end this mess and the new president may have a more relaxed government and reach the end of her term, but that will depend on her political ability”, said Boff, who pointed out the need for a new Constitution. in Peru to build consensus and reduce political instability.
“Those who are in Parliament now will not want a constituent, because they are used to this model. It would only come out if the people take to the streets and say they can’t take it anymore”, she stressed.
instability inheritance
However, Boluarte itself has already reached the presidency with its own problems to solve. Although she has criticized Castillo for Wednesday’s coup attempt, the 60-year-old lawyer is also a member of Peru Livre, her predecessor’s small party, and has been in the crosshairs of Congress.
Earlier this week, a parliamentary committee filed a complaint that could result in his impeachment. Boluarte had been accused of violating the Constitution for holding a position in a private entity while holding public office, which is prohibited by Peruvian law.
In her first speech as president, Castillo’s replacement preached the need for political reform and the fight against corruption, but Eduardo Saldanha, professor of international law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUCPR), finds it difficult for Boluarte to lead the country to stability.
“There is an absolute institutional imbalance within Peru and I do not believe that any government that succeeds de Castillo will succeed in creating political stability without there being complete reform,” he said.
Saldanha pointed out that the pattern that pushed Peru to the precipice was established precisely in the government of Humala, the last president to serve the five-year term, with state rigging and corruption in the three powers.
“The only short-term alternative for creating stability, which will only come after great instability, is popular pressure,” he pointed out.
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