Face to face between protesters and the police in La Joya, in the Arequipa region, on January 6, 2023. DIEGO RAMOS / AFP
Clashes in Peru between police and protesters demanding the resignation of President Dina Boluarte left seventeen people dead in Juliaca on Monday, January 9, in an attempted invasion of the city’s airport in the south-east of the country, the defender announced people (local mediator).
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers Resumption of demonstrations in Peru against the background of the “authoritarian drift” of Dina Boluarte’s regime
“We confirmed today in Puno seventeen deaths in clashes with law enforcement agencies near Juliaca Airport,” Agence France-Presse (AFP) told a source at the Puno Ombudsman’s Office on anonymity.
On January 8, 2023, violent clashes erupted between protesters and law enforcement officials in Juliaca. STRINGER / Portal
The demonstrators are demanding the resignation of Dina Boluarte, who came to power in December, a new parliament and the immediate holding of elections, which have already been brought forward from 2026 to April 2024.
Unlimited strike
The epicenter of the protests is the Puno region bordering Bolivia. The population has been on an indefinite strike since January 4th.
The demonstrations began after the dismissal by Parliament and the arrest of Pedro Castillo on December 7, 2022 after his attempt to dissolve Parliament in what was described as a “coup d’etat”. Since then, demonstrators have been calling for new elections. At least twenty people were killed in clashes with police in mid-December.
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers The political crisis in Peru reveals an ungovernable country