Violence broke out in the South American country of Peru. Violent clashes broke out on Tuesday between supporters of former President Pedro Castilla and security forces. In this clash, 17 people died and 73 people were injured.
Most of them are women. Political differences are not new in Peru, which has a population of about three and a half million people. The dispute between the Parliament and the President has been going on for almost three years.
Supporters of former President Pedro are demanding that the government step down and hold fresh elections. Due to this violence broke out several times. However, this is the first time that such a large number of people have died. Observers believe that there are chances of declaring emergency in the country soon.
Peru has been in political turmoil for almost three years. The case that sparked the latest riots began in December. Hundreds of protesters gathered in the main plaza of the southern Peruvian Andes city of Puno on Tuesday.
Violence broke out when the security forces tried to prevent them. Former President Pedro Castilla was accused of corruption. Opposition started against him in the Congress and the demand for his resignation came to the fore. When Pedro Sasemira asked to step down from the post, the opposition started preparations for impeachment. Previous impeachment charges against Pedro have failed. It is expected to fail again now as well.
There are 130 members in the parliament. Pedro needs 65 seats to come to power. Meanwhile, the main parties in the parliament were united. Some of the smaller parties supported Pedro. However, Pedro’s political move was unsuccessful. 101 votes were cast against him in Parliament. So he had to give up his chair. Since then his supporters have been protesting across the country. Dina Bulerto is currently the President of Peru.
