More demonstrations in Peru as the US urges for ‘restraint’

Demonstrators blocked roads and staged mass burials for those slain in violent protests that have gripped Peru on Wednesday, as the United States pleaded for “restraint” on both sides.

In almost a month of rallies demanding the resignation of President Dina Boluarte, who seized office after the ousting and incarceration of her predecessor Pedro Castillo on December 7, forty people have perished.

As a result of the fatalities, the Peruvian prosecutor’s office announced on Tuesday that it was initiating a genocidal inquiry into Boluarte and other key officials.

The core of the protests is in the Aymara area of Puno, on the border with Bolivia, where thousands of citizens carried the coffins of 17 protest-related deaths through the streets of Juliaca.

Each casket included a portrait and the flag of Peru. “Dina shot and killed me,” read the inscription on Edgar Huaranca’s coffin, which was carried by six family members.

In an effort to reduce tensions, the administration has enforced a three-day curfew in the area.

According to land superintendents, a roadblock spread to eight of the nation’s twenty-five provinces.

Hundreds of demonstrators clashed with police in Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire, resulting in 22 injuries, including six police officers, one of whom is in critical condition, according to the health ministry.

Additionally, Iran has sentenced three additional individuals to death for the Amini protests.

After rallying to demand the president’s resignation, the residents attempted to reach the city’s airport.

In Arequipa, the second largest city in Peru, hundreds also demonstrated against the administration, while in Tacna, on the border with Chile, an indefinite strike highlighted by acts of vandalism began.

Wednesday, a group from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights came in the country to investigate the protests and allegations of political repression in response to the dead toll.

In a crackdown on migrant labor exploitation, Spanish police have arrested 43 individuals.

Wednesday, the United States called for caution and the use of limited force, and backed a probe into the scores of deaths.

A State Department official stated, “We recognize the right to peaceful protest and to express grievances through democratic channels, and we call for calm, dialogue, and for all parties to exercise restraint and nonviolence.”