National Police and Armed Forces use excessive force against protestors

At least 49 people have been killed and more than 1,200 wounded, many from gunshots, amid violent repression by Peruvian security forces of protests that began in December. Most of the victims are from historically marginalized rural communities and Indigenous peoples.

On January 9 alone, at least 18 people were killed and dozens more were injured during repression of protests in the city of Juliaca, in the largely Indigenous Puno region.  
Both the National Police and the Armed Forces have used excessive force against protestors.

Police on the streets of Cusco on January 11, 2023. Credit: IVAN FLORES/AFP via Getty Images

Amid a prolonged political crisis in Peru, President Castillo announced the dissolution of Congress on December 7, a move that was blocked by the Constitutional Court and Congress. Castillo was arrested and Vice President Dina Boluarte was immediately sworn in as President.  

Indigenous women in Ayacucho light candles for protestors killed in the last month in Peru. Credit: JAVIER ALDEMAR/AFP via Getty Images
These events unleashed a wave of protests, especially in historically marginalized regions of the country. In response, the government deployed the National Police and the Armed Forces,  using excessive force against those who took to the streets to express their discontent.