Last January, Peru21 He warned about the possible exclusion of the “mestizo” and “white” words of the list of ethnic self -identification responses of the 2025 National Census card. The measure, alerted this newspaper, could leave out 66% of Peruvians who in the 2017 Census was self -identified under those two terms “for its ancestors, customs or traditions.”
The third vice president of the Congress of the Republic, Alejandro Cavero, then sent a request for information on the questions of the National Census 2025 to the head of the National Statistics and Informatics Institute (INEI)Gaspar Morán Flores.
As he has known now Peru21through a response trade sent to Cavero on January 8, the head of the INEI points out that the card that will be applied in the census process that will be carried out between August and October of this year “is in the process of review together With public sector entities, academia, representatives of civil organizations and researchers. “
In the document, in addition, the official notes that “special attention has been given in the variable of ethnic self -identification for its importance for the implementation of public policies and the need to maintain the categories of self -identification for comparability purposes.”
In this line, in addition, it states that the mestizo and white options of the census card has not been eliminated and adds that a multisectoral commission of the National Censuses 2025 will be installed “as an advisory body of the highest level” in the census operation.
This instance “will be responsible for reviewing and evaluating the proposal of the census card before its final approval in order to ensure that information allows identifying the cultural diversity of our population without exclusions of any nature,” he added.
Anti -technical proposal
Weeks ago, the researcher and founder of the Wiñak Center, Camilo Ferreira, in statements to Peru21TVexpressed concern about the possible changes in the list of ethnic identification responses, and warned that it would be an anti -technical modification to relegate the “mestizo” and “white” denominations to the category of “others” because “two thirds are being invisible of the population “.
“In any survey,” others “is used to group minority and not majority responses,” he said, and warned that what would be achieved with it is to “artificially increase the percentage of indigenous population to justify policies such as prior consultation and intercultural approaches, which would increase its political influence and access to resources. “
Congressman Cavero, meanwhile, indicated that as long as there is not yet a final version of the census, it will wait for it to be defined to verify if the relevant corrective are carried out.
In progress
This newspaper requested more information on the subject from INEI. Subsequently, through a statement to public opinion, he confirmed that the questions of the census cards “are in the process of review and validation” in order for their elaboration to “respond to technical criteria.”
“One of the basic principles of national censuses is that of comparability with the censuses previously executed in the country and with the censuses of the countries of the region,” he added.
He also reported that an inter -institutional technical committee of ethnicity statistics – integrated by state institutions, civil society organizations, international organizations, representatives of indigenous peoples and the Afro -Peruvian population, in addition to the academy – “is reviewing and evaluating the formulation of The question about technical self -identification. “
In the document, also, it is reiterated that the multisectoral commission of which the INEI chief accountable in the office sent to Congressman Alejandro Cavero, on January 8, will be installed only in the coming weeks “and will be in charge of evaluating The proposal of the census card before its final approval. “
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