ACT NOW: PERU: Alarming death toll amid repression

Urgent Action

SPEAK UP TO SUPPORT FAMILIES SEEKING JUSTICE IN PERU

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Campaign

Protect the Protest: Security Forces Must Be Accountable For Opening Fire On Protests

Thousands of people took to the streets across Peru between December 2022 and February 2023 following the arrest and replacement of then-president Pedro Castillo. Even though the protests were overwhelmingly peaceful, the police and army responded by opening fire with live ammunition, as well as shooting tear gas cannisters and metal pellets at close range - with predictably lethal consequences.

Photo: Ernesto Benavides/AFP via Getty Images

At least, 49 people were killed and more than a thousand were injured, including bystanders and people seeking to help the wounded. Amnesty’s investigation concludes that the repression was not only unlawful. It was racist because it disproportionately targeted Indigenous people and campesinos (rural farm workers), who have historically suffered discrimination, unequal access to political participation and the denial of their human rights.

Photo: Juan Carlos Cisneros

Families of the victims in Juliaca, Andahuaylas and Ayacucho have joined together to raise their voices for justice, redress, and respect for their right to peaceful protest without discrimination. These three locations in Peru’s Southern Andean region were the epicentre of lethal attacks by the security forces during the protests.

Photo: Joseph Durand

To date, no public officials have been arrested in connection with the human rights violations that were committed - neither security forces who fired the weapons, or commanding officers who ordered or allowed unlawful use of force.

Investigations of the deaths and injuries by the Attorney General’s Office have been slow and incomplete. Weapons and ballistic evidence were not seized promptly after the events occurred. The army and police have failed to cooperate and provide complete records on the weapons and ammunition used during operations.

Photo: Joseph Durand