Peruvian ex-President Castillo is on trial for a failed attempt to dissolve Congress
LIMA, Peru (AP) — Former Peruvian President Pedro Castillo went on trial Tuesday charged with rebellion, grave abuse of authority and perturbing public tranquility in a case that has polarized the South American nation.
The charges stem from a failed effort by Castillo to declare a state of emergency and dissolve Peru’s Congress as legislators prepared an impeachment vote against him in December 2022.
Castillo failed to get the military’s support for his move, and was swiftly deposed by Congress and arrested after prosecutors accused him of trying to promote a coup. But the removal of Castillo, Peru’s first Indigenous president, sparked large protests in the south of the country, in which at least 49 people were killed in the weeks following the president’s ouster.
Castillo was replaced by then-Vice President Dina Boluarte, who now leads a conservative government and has built alliances with legislators from the nation’s traditional parties. The former president’s trial is taking place in a police base, where he has been held since he made his unsuccessful attempt to dissolve Congress and call for new elections.
Prosecutors have said they are seeking a 34-year prison sentence against Castillo, a former union leader and rural school teacher who won Peru’s 2021 election with a surprise victory over the nation’s political establishment.
The left-wing politician showed up at the trial half an hour late and in an opening statement he denied being guilty of rebellion.
“All I did was express the wishes of the people through a speech,” Castillo said of his effort to dissolve Congress. On Dec 7, 2022, Castillo read out a decree on national television in which he attempted to dissolve Congress and call for new elections.
Castillo did not bring a lawyer to the trail, which he has described as a “farce” on his social media accounts, and was instead appointed a public defender. The former president has tried to get one of the judges overseeing the trial removed, arguing she has already expressed her views on his attempt to dissolve Congress.
Castillo is also facing a separate investigation for corruption in which he has been accused of irregularly providing promotions to members of the military and avoiding standard procurement practices to grant a contract for a bridge.
Castillo had survived two impeachment votes before his unsuccessful attempt to dissolve Congress in late 2022.
He and his supporters have argued that conservative parties in Congress were blocking his policy initiatives and making it impossible for Castillo’s government to carry out efforts to increase government spending and bring education and infrastructure to neglected rural areas.
Castillo’s opponents have accused him of corruption and of undermining democracy through his attempt to dissolve Congress.
A similar move to shut down Congress by President Alberto Fujimori in the early 1990s led to several years of authoritarian rule.
Castillo’s removal from office has also created a rift between the government of Peru and left leaning administrations in Colombia and Mexico, where Castillo’s family sought refuge after he was deposed.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro, a longtime ally of Castillo, wrote on his X account Tuesday that Peru’s former president is being tried for rebellion because “he is poor and from the left.”
The Colombian president, whose government no longer has an ambassador in Peru, said authorities in Peru are “mocking” voters who elected Castillo in 2021. Peru is scheduled to hold elections next year. President Boluarate has said that as the former vice president, she is obliged to serve out the rest of Castillo’s term.
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By FRANKLIN BRICEÑO
Associated Press
