During the presentation they made about the violent events in ayacuchothe head of the Joint Command of the Armed forcesEP Division General Manuel Gómez de la Torre Araníbar, and the head of the Intelligence Division of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the armed forcesEP Brigadier General Rubén Castañeda Layseca, expressed the gradual recovery of affected airports and highways due to acts of vandalism. However, They did not offer explanations about the 9 deaths and 14 gunshot woundsin areas where there were only members of the Army equipped with Galil rifles.
According to the autopsy protocols of the fatalities, most died from gunshot wounds to the thorax and stomach. The Regulation on the Use of Force (RUF), of March 15, 2020, which defines the actions of uniformed officers in situations of a state of emergency, prohibits the indiscriminate use of firearms.
Generals Gómez de la Torre and Castañeda ignored whether they had informed the prosecution of Ayacucho – which has begun the investigation into the death of 8 citizens – on the circumstances in which members of the Commando Company No. 2 shot people, as evidenced by videos and photographs of the incidents.
Although the death of the eight people in Ayacucho, the head of the CCFFAA, General Manuel Gomez de la Torrecalled those who came out to protest “bad Peruvians.”
“As you have been able to experience the situation, for a few days, bad, very bad Peruvians have tried to create chaos in our beloved Peru,” General Gómez de la Torre began his presentation.
The military authority implied that the security forces used firearms in reaction to the attacks by the vandals.
“We have been in that space of time, we have suffered attacks both the National Police like the Armed Forces on behalf of these bad Peruvians.
Protesters enter the Ayacucho airport. Photo: The Republic
They are completely wrong. However, our law enforcement forces have remained firm in the face of this threat to our national security, we have been gradually recovering normality on our highways, in our airports, in our cities,” said General Gómez de la Torre.
The military authorities explained that the greatest coverage was focused on preventing the capture of the Ayacucho airport. It was not explained why people who were on the outskirts, and were only spectators of the incident, received bullet wounds.
On the contrary, General Rubén Castañeda justified the use of force.
“Why did they try to take over the Ayacucho airport? Because it is very critical. It is used to carry the personnel who are reinforcing the security and control of both the National Police and the Armed Forces. We have been bringing people from different parts of the country to take them to apurimac, first, and then to Ayacucho, which are critical places. If they had taken the Ayacucho airport, with the roads blocked, we would not have been able to deal with (the acts of violence). That is why it was very important for the Armed Forces and the Condition operate our airports”, indicated General Castañeda.
“Armed Forces personnel may use firearms against people when strictly necessary, and only when less extreme measures prove insufficient or inappropriate,” the RUF points out. And he specifies: “In any case, it is forbidden to shoot indiscriminately.”
Instead of reporting on the context in which the deaths of nine civilians occurred, General Rubén Castañeda offered a presentation on the recovery of airports and the release of blocked roads.
“The mobilizations and concentrations are taking place at the national level, but the most violent have been between December 14 and 15. On the 16th, we have had 5 violent demonstrations. But as of today (yesterday Saturday), at 7 in the morning, happily, due to the joint participation of the Armed Forces, the National Police, the Prosecutor’s Office and the State, we still do not have any demonstration at the national level,” he said in detail.
Regarding the perpetrators of the violent actions, the head of the Intelligence Division of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces said:
“There are some radical groups that take advantage of the social gaps in our population to deceive them and demonstrate or lead them to their bad intentions,” said General Castañeda.
194,611 protesters mobilized
Between December 7 and 16, 194,611 demonstrators came out to protest in 144 locations in the country, according to the Commander General of the National Police, PNP Lieutenant General Raúl Alfaro Alvarado.
He also reported that 183 detainees and detainees were registered, in addition to 23 deaths, in the same period.
The boss of the PNP reported three officers wounded by gunshots: Yus Marín Cárdenas, Elmer Fuentes Yucra and another named Montero Guerra.
He said that twelve police stations and police units were affected and the number of injured troops reached 291 as of Friday. He also mentioned the recovery of traffic on blocked roads.
