Peruvian president detained after being ousted and accused of coup d’état

The president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, was arrested this Wednesday and is at the police headquarters in Lima, after being removed by Congress, accused of trying to carry out a coup d’état by announcing the dissolution of that body.

The Peruvian Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered the arrest of Castillo, who is at the police headquarters in Lima, where he went with his family and former Prime Minister Aníbal Torres, reported the Europa Press agency.

For about half an hour, Castillo’s whereabouts were unknown, reported the Efe agency.

“We reject non-compliance with the constitutional order and urge the population to respect the Constitution and remain calm. In the same way, trust in state institutions”, the Peruvian police had said, minutes before confirming Castillo’s arrest.

The parliament of Peru today approved a motion of censure against the President of the country for “moral incapacity”, with 101 of the 130 votes in favor, hours after Pedro Castillo announced the dissolution of this body, the creation of an “emergency government” and the institution of a curfew.

Congress also asked Vice President Dina Boluarte, who immediately rejected Castillo’s actions, to assume the presidency, as stated in the Constitution, reported the Europa Press agency.

Boluarte was summoned to 15:00 (20:00 Lisbon time) today to take office as the new head of state and, in this way, become the first female ruler in the country’s history.

The decision was announced by the speaker of parliament, José Williams, after Castillo was dismissed by the plenary.

Castillo had disclosed that until the formation of a new parliament, “the Government would be directed by decree-law”, noting that he intended to “convene as soon as possible a new Congress with constituent powers to draw up a new Constitution in a period not exceeding nine months “.

Members of its own government, Peruvian state institutions and opposition leaders denounced the attempted “coup d’état” and requested the intervention of the Armed Forces and the international community.

Peru’s ministers of the economy, foreign affairs, labor and justice resigned in protest at Castillo’s decision.

The People’s Office, an autonomous government body, said in a statement, before this vote by Congress, that, after years of democracy, Peru is on the way to a constitutional collapse “which can only be called a coup [de Estado]🇧🇷

The joint heads of the Armed Forces and the National Police of Peru, on the other hand, rejected the constitutionality of Castillo’s dissolution of Congress, according to a statement cited by the AP.

At the international level, the Peruvian ambassador to the United States, Oswaldo de Rivero, the representative to the UN, Manuel Rodríguez Cuadros, and the ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS), Harold Forsyth, have already announced their resignation from their positions.