Pedro Castillo calls Boluarte a "usurper" and says he will not relinquish his position as Peru's president

The succession to the Peruvian presidency was not going to be an easy task, nor was it going to be a peaceful one. The first declarations of the former president of the Andean Republic after his arrest on Wednesday reveal the political confrontation with the country's executive. "I am speaking to reiterate that I am unconditionally faithful to the popular and constitutional mandate that I hold as president, and I will not resign or abandon my high and sacred functions", Castillo said on Twitter.

A reaction, Pedro Castillo's first after being detained, that comes after Congress approved the withdrawal of the special immunity of the former president, a prerogative of impeachment that Castillo enjoyed. With 67 votes in favour and 45 against, the measure paves the way for a trial for alleged crimes of rebellion and conspiracy.

Querido pueblo peruano grandioso y paciente: Yo, @PedroCastilloTe, el mismo que hace 16 meses me eligieron todos ustedes, para ejercer como presidente constitucional de la República. Les hablo en el trance más difícil de mi gobierno... (1/4)

— Pedro Castillo Terrones (@PedroCastilloTe) December 12, 2022

The former president has also branded Dina Boluarte, his second-in-command who took over the presidency after Pedro Castillo's failed coup d'état, as a usurper. "What was said recently by a usurper is nothing more than the same snot and slobber of the right-wing coup plotters", he added. Castillo also pointed out that he feels "humiliated, isolated, mistreated and kidnapped", but that he is still hopeful thanks to "the struggle of the sovereign people". 

The protests against Dina Boluarte and the Congress and in favour of the ousted Pedro Castillo have reached the height of violence. So far the clashes have left seven dead and hundreds of demonstrators and police injured, according to the Ministry of Health. The most violent clashes are taking place in the south of the country, in Apurímac and Arequipa, regions where a state of emergency has already been declared by the new Executive appointed by Boluarte last Saturday.

This worrying instability in the country has also forced the prime minister, Pedro Angulo, to form a crisis cabinet to re-establish the country's institutions. "With leadership and firmness, the cabinet appointed by President Dina Boluarte assumes the commitment to re-establish institutionalism in the country and we urge you to put the sacred interests of Peru first, seeking consensus to defend democracy and social peace", he announced.  

The head of the Ministerial Cabinet also informed Congress about the events in Andahuaylas and announced his decision to instruct each minister to go to an area of social conflict to "promote dialogue with elected authorities, social organisations and civil society in order to promote territorial development, social peace and governability", according to the press release published by the Andean government.

Alleged author of crimes of rebellion and conspiracy. This is the constitutional complaint against the former president following the attempted coup d'état presented by Peru's attorney general, Patricia Benavides. The defence of the rural teacher and trade union leader is facing a difficult charge. 

Following the resignation of Castillo's lawyer, Miguel Pérez Arroyo, Ronald Atencio has taken over the legal defence. He has already postulated his first lines on the case: questioning the health of Pedro Castillo by announcing in a televised speech the dissolution of Congress and the establishment of a government of exception.

"When the former president read the message written by others, he was given a drink a few minutes beforehand", the lawyer said. "Everyone saw that he was reading in a shaky way and I hypothesise more, in addition to shaky, he was a little sedated, groggy", the lawyer declared, demanding that a toxicology test be carried out. 

A line of defence that Castillo himself has followed in assuring that he does not remember ordering, in full use of his powers, the dissolution of the Cortes, the formation of a national emergency executive and the declaration of a state of emergency throughout the country.  

And the defence, if not through judicial means, attacks through political means. Pérez Arroyo claimed that Congress is orchestrating "a strategy of haste so that Castillo remains in prison". He also accused the Attorney General's Office of entering into "a political game that it should not have".

On the same political level, presidents and left-wing leaders in Latin America expressed their concern after the failed coup d'état in Peru. The governments of Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia and Argentina all claim that Castillo, from the day he took office, "was the victim of anti-democratic harassment, in violation of article 23 of the American Convention on Human Rights". They also called on the Peruvian authorities to respect what the Andean people decide at the ballot box. 

In response to the statements, the Peruvian Foreign Ministry recalled that Pedro Castillo is being held in custody for his decisions "contrary to the constitutional and democratic order", which constitute "a coup d'état".

Americas Coordinator: José Antonio Sierra.