Peruvian Leftist Leader Hugo Blanco Passed Away

On Saturday, the remains of Hugo Blanco were transported from Sweden to Cusco city, where Peruvians held a funeral ceremony in honor of the former member of the Revolutionary Workers' Party.

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Initially, Blanco's body was taken to the auditorium of the San Antonio Abad University in Cusco. Subsequently, the tribute to the former leftist legislator started from the main square of Cusco, where citizens marched towards La Almudena Cemetery. 

"Land or death, we shall overcome!" chanted the crowd during the burial of the historic peasant leader.  "This democracy is no longer a democracy. Dina assassin, the people repudiate you!" was another phrase that echoed during the funeral procession. 

According to his relatives, the former senator died on June 25 at the age of 88 while he was hospitalized in Stockholm for a brain tumor. 

The tweet reads, "The people of Cusco bid farewell to the historic leader Hugo Blanco singing 'Dina, assasin' in the Almudena cemetery."

Born in Cusco in 1934, Hugo Blanco dedicated himself from a young age to the struggle for the rights of Indigenous peoples and the defense of the environment. 

He joined the Trotskyist movement at the age of 20 while residing in Argentina. Upon his return to Peru, Blanco joined the Revolutionary Workers' Party, where he became a key figure in the farmers' struggle for land and a promoter of various grassroots organizations. 

In the 1960s, Blanco led the Quechua uprising for agrarian reform. He was arrested, tortured, and prosecuted in a trial where the Peruvian state sought the death penalty against him. 

Subsequently, Blanco was sentenced to 25 years in prison. During that period, he undertook 14 hunger strikes while international solidarity campaigns were organized in his defense.