Peru: Boluarte is Accused of Genocide of Indigenous Peoples

On Tuesday, the National Organization of Andean and Amazonian Indigenous Women of Peru (ONAMIAP) accused President Dina Boluarte of the deaths of Quechua and Aymara citizens during protests against her administration.

RELATED: 

Only 10 Percent of Peruvians Approve of President Boluarte

During a hearing convened by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH), ONAMIAP President Ketty Marcelo Lopez presented a report on the consequences of the brutal repression carried out by the armed forces and police.

This report asserted that Boluarte is responsible for the crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity, "in accordance with the doctrine and jurisprudence of international criminal law and the international law of Indigenous peoples."

Marcelo Lopez pointed out that the repression affected the Quechua and Aymara Indigenous peoples in the regions of Apurimac, Ayacucho, Puno, and Cusco.

"Peru is regressing in terms of human rights and Indigenous peoples' rights," she said, emphasizing that companies want to forcibly impose on communities a development model based on extractive activities, which is harmful to nature and people.

Marcelo Lopez labeled this model as genocidal and blamed a corrupt political elite for staunchly defending it, stating that they "collude with corporate, military, and media, who are responsible for stigmatizing us."

Regarding the criminalization of Indigenous communities involved in the protests, she warned that security forces continue to clandestinely investigate Indigenous leaders.

The repression of protests against the parliamentary coup in December 2022, which ousted President Pedro Castillo, resulted in the deaths of 67 people, with 49 killed by gunfire from the armed forces or the police.

Massacres of civilians were recorded in Ayacucho (Nov. 15 and 16, 2022, with at least ten civilians killed), Apurimac (from Dec. 10 onwards, with at least six dead), and in Puno (Jan. 9, 2023, with 18 protesters killed).

During CIDH hearings in Lima, relatives of repression victims denounced that investigations into these crimes are not progressing, and those responsible, both intellectually and materially, could go unpunished.