Dividing Peru in two is not new. But this fragmentation has become more visible and heard in recent days. Last Saturday, about 5,000 people took to the streets in Lima to express their condolences Not satisfied with the current government of President Pedro Castillo. On Thursday, only five days later, the majority of citizens in the capital and fourteen cities did the same in the streets and squares, but to support the administration of the rural master who took power a year and a half ago. This emotion deep in the skin is experienced in a very special context. On the 20th, a high-level mission from the Organization of American States will arrive in Peru with the aim: to check whether democracy is threatened by coup forces or, on the contrary, the government is occupied by a network of corruption.

Peru responds, the opposition march

In this era, the legality of mobilization depends on drones. Aerial shots determine the size of the march. The frames of television cameras are often suspected. Last Saturday, there were doubts about how many people Ryakshina Peru could gather, National demonstration in favor of the vacant seat of Pedro Castillo. However, as the hours passed, the irrefutable panoramic photos spread on social networks: it is estimated that the call in Lima was up to 5,000 demonstrators.

Omar Coronel, a sociologist at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, considers it one of the most successful opposition marches in recent times, although it is still small compared to the pre-pandemic marches. They reaffirmed the unity of this bloc with an anti-communist social identity and, in addition, created the feeling of a permanently mobilized sector in the country. This has attracted media attention.

Jorge Malmburg, the Latin Television correspondent who covered the march, recounts details that don’t happen often. It was not the young people that made the bulk of the march, but the old and the old. The brigade’s campaign was not a typical right-wing group, but rather was led by former officers of the national police and armed forces. Most of them were parents and grandparents. I can’t say it was huge, but it was the first big demonstration of another kind of opponent,” he says.

There were several complaints from citizens about police repression at that rally. The main reason is the misuse of horses to disperse the demonstrators. In 2020, the judiciary issued a ruling banning the Al Fursan Police from exercising social control. “There could have been misfortune, because all the people gathered. There were excesses,” claimed retired PNP general Alberto Jordan. The demonstrators in Lima were unable to reach the Congress of the Republic or the Palace.

For political scientist Valerie Tarazona, the Peruvian right is trying to create a story with heroic edges. “They focus on creating an era around the heroism of their advocates to oppose the villain that is the Castillo family. Not just (Pedro) Castillo, but his family and his environment. But the truth is that they create a monster where the only thing there is a lone boss full of fears, because he was not adept at creating his corruption networks to the point that they caught him very quickly,” he explains.

On November 20, a high-level delegation from the Organization of American States will visit Peru for a few days to analyze the turbulent political situation in the country after requesting Peter’s Castle To activate the democratic charter. Sociologist Omar Coronel believes that it is no coincidence that opposition rallies are organized these days. In fact, it has been announced that the second edition of Reacciona Perú will take place exactly on November 20. “There is a strategy to show the world, especially now with the coming of the OAS, that there is a huge disapproval. When you check the opinion polls, the government has 60-70% disapproval, but that has not yet manifested itself in the streets, because there is not much enthusiasm for the opposition. , he says.

Capture Lima, march in favor of Castillo

The Congress of the Republic woke up, Thursday, to the presence of hundreds of demonstrators in downtown Lima. It was one of the groups that responded to the call to take Lima, a demonstration called by various political, rural, and union organizations to demonstrate in favor of the president, Pedro Castillo, and against Parliament. Although the rally was scheduled for the afternoon at Plaza dos de Mayo and Plaza San Martín, as the morning wore on, more groups who wanted to close Congress and change the Constitution began to join. The day before, Congress had doubled its security and closed the doors of its headquarters. In addition, they suspended their activities in order to avoid mobs.

It turns out that some of the leaders who led the mobilization had met in the previous days with Luis Alberto Mendeta, chief of the technical staff of the presidency. For this reason, there are suspicions that the march, rather than being spontaneous, was conceived in the palace. Be that as it may, the irony is that unlike Reacciona Perú, which mainly had a response from Lima, Toma de Lima was developed on a national scale. In the capital, it is estimated that there are about 3,000 protesters. But it extended to the coast, mountains and forests in at least 14 regions.

The final fact that could perpetuate this tension is that the Subcommittee on Constitutional Accusations of Congress approved by majority the final report proposing the removal of President Castillo for five years from any public office. It is assumed that these crimes are treason to the country and committed in violation of the constitution because they spoiled the possibility of granting access to the sea to Bolivia in an interview with an international network. The street patiently awaits the next explosions.

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