The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hugo de Zelaonce again marked a clear line around the case of the former premier Betssy Chavez: The Peruvian Government does not and will not consider a forceful intervention in the Mexican embassy in Lima to proceed with her arrest, despite the sentence of more than 11 years in prison that weighs on her for the failed coup d’état of December 2022.
In statements given this Monday during a press conference, the chancellor was categorical in ruling out any scenario of an incursion into the diplomatic headquarters.
“That is not under evaluation. Peru respects international law and the inviolability of diplomatic missions,” he emphasized, in an attempt to deactivate versions that pointed to a possible extreme measure.
The diplomatic conflict worsened on November 3, when De Zela himself reported that the Government of Mexico had granted diplomatic asylum to Chávez Chino within its embassy.
The decision was considered by the Peruvian Executive as incompatible with the judicial situation of the former official, which led to the breaking of diplomatic relations with the North American country.
Since then, the request for safe conduct made by Mexico to allow the former congresswoman to leave the national territory remains on hold, while Peru seeks international legal support to support its position.
International consultations underway
The chancellor explained that the Executive chose to activate multilateral mechanisms and bring the debate to the level of the Organization of American States (OAS). According to him, the Peruvian mission to said organization has been coordinating with several countries a proposal for the Permanent Council to request a technical opinion from the Inter-American Juridical Committee.
“The objective is to clarify the correct application of the Caracas Convention on Diplomatic Asylum, especially in cases of people with a final sentence for serious crimes against the constitutional order,” said De Zela, who revealed that he has already held informal conversations in Washington with representatives of different States.
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