12 de December de 2024 Press Release

Two years after the repression of protests in Peru, justice for the victims is still pending

Lima, Peru. December 11th, 2024. – Today marks two years since the first death occurred during the lethal repression of the 2022 and 2023 protests in Peru. During these mobilizations, the Peruvian police and army fired bullets, pellets and tear gas, causing the death of 50 people and leaving more than 1400 people injured. These actions were marked with a clear racist bias against people from indigenous and peasant communities. There are indications that the repression was an intentional and coordinated strategy, which would point to the possible responsibility of high-ranking officials of the Peruvian State, including the president and her ministers. This is, without a doubt, one of the most serious episodes of human rights violations in Peru’s recent history.

Peru is going through a serious crisis of respect for human rights. As international human rights organizations, we express our concern about the lack of access to justice for the victims, two years after these serious events. We recognize that there have been important advances in the investigations, particularly the formalization of investigations against police and military commanders, by the Special Team of Prosecutors for Cases with Victims during Social Protests (EFICAVIP).

However, the stagnation of the investigations against President Dina Boluarte and her ministers is worrying. In July 2024, the Attorney General’s Office filed a constitutional complaint with the Peruvian Congress against these officials for the deaths and injuries that occurred in the protests. Congress must evaluate the complaint and if it is approved, the immunity of the president and the ministers should be lifted, which would allow the Attorney General’s Office to proceed with the investigations against them. More than 5 months after the presentation of the complaint, Congress has not evaluated it, in breach of its own regulations.

At the same time, the lack of comprehensive medical care for the victims is worrying. Although the State established a Multisectoral Commission to provide immediate attention, the measures adopted are not enough. Among other things, this has meant that hundreds of injured people continue to have no access to adequate medical treatment two years after the events.

We also note that the lack of access to justice for victims of repression occurs in a context of weakening civic space in Peru, where the Peruvian Congress has introduced numerous initiatives that put at risk the rights to peaceful assembly and association, and judicial independence. Noting all of the above, we make the following calls:

 

To the Attorney General’s Office:

• Ensure that ongoing criminal investigations into the deaths and injuries that occurred in the protests are not hindered; are fast and independent; and include concrete evidence against senior commanders who may be held responsible.

To the Peruvian Congress:

• Without further delay, examine, with diligence and impartiality, the constitutional complaint against the president and her ministers, so that criminal investigations can continue.

To the Presidency and Council of Ministers (PCM):

• Effectively, promptly, and diligently provide comprehensive medical care to victims of the repression of the 2022 and 2023 protests.

To US authorities:

• Implement the provisions of the Leahy Act in a timely and forceful manner to ensure that the U.S. government is not providing assistance or training to agents and units involved in repression.
• Suspend the transfer of arms to Peru until ongoing investigations are completed.

To the international community:

• To express with their Peruvian counterparts their concern about the slow pace of investigations and to continue demanding accountability.

 

Organizations:

• Amnesty International
• Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL)
• International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
• Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)
• Due Process of Law Foundation (DPLF)