The Tumultuous Day of Dina Boluarte: The First Woman President of the Industrious Andragogical Republic of Peru
On Wednesday Dina Boluarte became the first female President of the country, capping off a dramatic day which saw her predecessor arrested for the crime of rebellion and impeached by lawmakers.
The tumultuous day began when then-President Castillo announced plans to dissolve Congress and install an emergency government, ahead of a looming impeachment vote by lawmakers, which Peru’s Ombudsman described as an “attempted coup d’état.”
The impeachment of his was never stopped, because of the string of cabinet resignations, fiery reactions from top officials and condemnation from regional neighbors.
“We condemn the breach of the constitutional order,” Peru’s Attorney General, Patricia Benavides, said in a statement. No authority can violate the constitutional mandates of the Constitution, no matter how power-hungry they may be.
It ends Castillo’s brief time in office. The former schoolteacher and union leader rose from obscurity to be elected in July 2021 by a narrow margin in a runoff, and was seen as part of a “pink tide” of new left-wing leaders in Latin America.
He promised on his platform to rewrite the constitution and give states more control over markets and resources, but he hasn’t been able to do it because of his lack of political experience and strong conservatism in Congress.
The leftist leader’s government has been in turmoil since he took office, with dozens of appointees, replacements, and even the resignation of ministers in little over a year.
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Three of the investigations her office had opened were the basis for a constitutional complaint against Castillo. The complaint allows Congress to carry out its own investigation against the former President.
Castillo has faced a cascade of investigations on whether he used his position to benefit himself, his family and closest allies by peddling influence to gain favor or preferential treatment, among other claims.
The former President faces five preliminary criminal investigations on allegations of masterminding corruption schemes while in office. They alleged that he led a criminal network that interfered with public institutions such as the ministry of transport and communications, ministry of housing, and the state-run oil company.
There are allegations that the former President had influence in the promotion of officers in the armed forces and national police.
Her sister-in-law Yenifer Paredes is under investigation for allegedly being a part of a criminal organization, money laundering and aggravated collusion. She was in custody until a judge revoked her “preventive detention” for 30 months. She has denied any wrongdoing.
Castillo said his entire family has been attacked because they don’t want him to finish his term.
In the same speech, Castillo admitted some of his closest allies should face justice over allegations of corruption, saying, “If they betrayed my trust, let justice take care of them.”
The fact that she would need the support of both political parties to be able to govern may not make her ascendency much easier.
A poll published September 2022 by IEP showed 84% of Peruvians disapproved congress’s performance. Lawmakers are perceived not only as pursuing their own interests in Congress, but are also associated with corrupt practices.
Dina Boluarte ruled out early elections on Thursday, the first day she was in office, following the ousting of her predecessor Pedro Castillo.
“I know that there are some voices that indicate early elections and that is democratically respectable. Boluarte said that she will look at other alternatives to better reorient the destinations of the country after taking over the Presidency.
Boluarte called for a “political truce to install a government of national unity” in her first speech as president, and promised to fight corruption through the help of the country’s Attorney General and Comptroller’s Office.
Boluarte said his first task was to fight corruption in all forms. “I have seen with revulsion how the press and judicial bodies have reported shameful acts of robbery against the money of all Peruvians, this cancer must be rooted out.”
LIMA, Peru — Perhaps the most telling detail of Pedro Castillo’s botched coup attempt this week was the fact that the high-stakes gamble may have been completely unnecessary.
The move was intended to preempt an impeachment debate on corruption charges scheduled for that afternoon. Many here think that Castillo, 53, a former rural schoolteacher and wildcat strike leader, would have been ousted had the debate gone ahead.
The result is that lawmakers had already twice tried to impeach him but on each occasion failed to reach the required two-thirds supermajority. The scenario seemed likely to repeat after the frantic vote counting on Wednesday morning.
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But Castillo’s address to the nation, his hands visibly trembling as he clutched the sheet of paper on which his speech was written, changed the calculus.
That then followed a brief period of uncertainty over the now ex-president’s whereabouts, until it emerged that his SUV had become stuck in Lima’s frequently gridlocked traffic on its way to the Mexican Embassy, where Castillo had been planning to request asylum.
After spending his first night in the cell, he appeared in court on Thursday. The judges ordered the ex-president to remain in preliminary detention for another week, despite his attorney’s attempt to have him released.
Also a political neophyte, it remains unclear whether the 60-year-old lawyer has the political skills to build a legislative alliance within the conservative-dominated Congress and bring the Andean nation’s six years of political turmoil to an end.
Boluarte appears better qualified, and should get a honeymoon period of several months, since Castillo faces at least six different corruption investigations.
The other piece of good news for Peru is that despite being tested almost to its limits, the country’s democratic institutions have survived this latest assault.
There have been only small protests and violence in the streets and most citizens appear to understand that, although lawmakers’ motives in seeking to oust Castillo may have been, in part, self-serving, ultimately the president simply had to go.
Maybe, just maybe, the new government and Congress will finally find some common ground in addressing ordinary Peruvians’ numerous serious challenges, from endemic food insecurity to the social fallout from the pandemic in a society which has had the highest Covid 19 mortality in the world.
Lawmakers in parliament voted against a constitutional reform that would have allowed early general elections in 2023 as the country explodes in protest.
Calls for early presidential and parliamentary elections have mounted since former President Pedro Castillo was ousted from power last week after he attempted to dissolve Congress and install an emergency government.
On Thursday, Castillo’s successor, President Dina Boluarte, had asked Congress “to take the best options to reduce deadlines and achieve the needed reforms” hold early elections.
But only 49 lawmakers voted in favor of the change to accelerate the elections process, with 33 against and 25 abstentions, failing to reach the 87 votes needed for the reform to pass.
“The constitutional reform that modifies the duration of the mandate for president, first vice president and congressmen elected during the 2021 elections and establishes the electoral process (and) general elections in 2023 has not been approved,” Congress President Jose Williams announced.
Castillo will stay in pretrial detention for 18 months, the country’s supremo court ordered on Thursday. Witnesses have protested outside the courthouse and around the country
Castillo, a former teacher and union leader from rural Peru, will remain in pretrial detention for 18 months, the country’s Supreme Court ordered on Thursday, as crowds of his supporters protested outside the courthouse and around the country.
At least 20 people have died in the unrest and at least 340 people have been injured, according to the Ombudsman office on Thursday. The ongoing protests have also stranded hundreds of tourists after Peru’s railway operator suspended trains to the area.
Lawmakers seem to be resistant to change so far. “Unfortunately, they haven’t heard and understood the people’s demands and they have rejected early elections, therefore they have the right to stay in the job until 2026,” Omar Cairo, professor of constitutional law at Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, told CNN.