Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra could face jail upon leaving the presidency of the Republic. The Office of the Attorney General has filed a complaint with the Congress against President Boluarte for the crimes of aggravated homicide and serious and minor injuries, in the context of human rights violations during the massive protests that occurred from December 2022 to February 2023.
The constitutional complaint includes former Prime Ministers Pedro Miguel Angulo Aranda and Luis Alberto Otárola Peñaranda, former Defense Minister Jorge Luis Chávez Cresta and former Interior Ministers César Augusto Cervantes Cárdenas, Víctor Eduardo Rojas Herrera and Vicente Romero Fernández.
The reported events, states a press release from the prosecutor’s office, “refer to the protests that occurred in the period between December 7, 2022, and February 9, 2023, in the regions of ApurimacArequipa, AyacuchoCusco, Junin, Ucayali, FistLima and Freedom“.
Relatives of victims of police and military repression demand justice
“As a result of the incident, 44 people died (41 from gunshot wounds and 3 from being hit by a blunt object (impact of a tear gas bomb)) and 116 people suffered serious and minor injuries (78 from gunshot wounds, 27 from being hit by a blunt object, 6 from a tear gas bomb and 5 from other objects),” the statement said.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office establishes that President Boluarte and the aforementioned ministers had power of command over the Armed Forces and the National Police.which is why they were able to avoid the violent repression of the protests. By failing to fulfill their constitutional and legal functions, they committed a crime of improper omission with eventual intent and They are responsible for the 44 deaths and 116 serious and minor injuries caused by the repression..
Protection in Congress
Congress may protect the president while she is in office, but not forever
This is the second complaint that the Public Prosecutor’s Office has filed against President Boluarte for the deaths in the protests which took place in Lima and the southern regions of the country after the vacancy was declared and former president Pedro Castillo was arrested.
The first complaint was filed on November 27, 2023 by the then Attorney General, Patricia Benavides, a few hours before her advisors were arrested for a corruption case and she was removed from the leadership of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. That complaint included the crime of genocide..
However, on July 18th, Benavides’ complaint against Boluarte was rejected by the Congressional Subcommittee on Constitutional Accusations, with 14 votes against and only four in favor.
Attorney General Juan Carlos Villena files new complaint against Dina Boluarte
A constitutional complaint seeks to have parliament authorize the prosecution of the accused authorityin this case the President of the Republic, before the Judiciary.
The denial of authorization or rejection of the constitutional complaint does not eliminate criminal charges, but postpones the process until five years after leaving office.
The new complaint was filed by the current Attorney General, Juan Carlos Villena, and does not include the crime of genocide.This criminal offence, for which there was no further evidence, was set aside and filed away.
On May 27, 2024, Villena also filed a constitutional complaint against Dina Boluarte for the bribery, for the Rolex watches, a pair of gold earrings and a Bangle bracelet, which he received from the regional governor of Ayacucho, Wilfredo Oscorimain exchange for benefiting him with increases in the regional budget.
The Rolex case complaint was admitted for processing by Congress.
Chain of command
The President of the Republic is the supreme commander of the Armed Forces.
The complaint against Boluarte establishes that the president has functional and operational control of the Armed Forces and the National Policeand the obligation to prevent and control situations that endangered the life and physical integrity of citizens participating in social protests, after the vacancy of former President Pedro Castillo was declared.
This chain of command started with the operational heads of the armed forces and police deployed to control public order, passed through the ministers of the interior and defense, the presidency of the Council of Ministers and had at the top the presidency of the Republic.
The prosecution indicates that there is no evidence of specific orders from senior executive authorities to prevent the death and physical attacks on protesters.; on the contrary, the use of indiscriminate and disproportionate force was encouraged. Among these indications is the appointment of the Minister of Defense, Luis Alberto Otárola Peñaranda, as President of the Council of Ministers.
Relatives of protest victims demand justice
Between December 10 and 11, 2022, police repression caused 6 deaths in Andahuaylas, but neither the president Boluarte, nor the National Police Command ordered the cessation of the use of firearmsaccording to a report by prosecutor Rosa Retamozo Eguía, of the Special Team of Prosecutors for Cases with Victims during Social Protestswhich was included in the constitutional complaint.
This explains, according to the prosecution, why on December 12 the police shot and killed Robert Medina Llanterhuay, 16, and seriously injured another child, Einer Quispe Navarro, 13, as well as Alcides Barzola Huamán, 23, in the town of Chincheros.
