On Thursday, the streets of Lima, the capital of Peru, were filled with angry protesters. Hundreds of people took to the streets, demanding that the government of President Dina Boluarte do more to fight the rise of organized crime in the country. This protest came at a time when major world leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden, were arriving for a big meeting called the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, which was set to start on Friday.
The protests had been planned for days. Peruvian transport unions, which represent bus and taxi drivers, had announced a 72-hour strike earlier in the week. They were upset because criminal groups were demanding money from transport companies and even killing drivers. The workers, joined by Peru’s largest union group, the General Confederation of Workers, decided they needed to speak out against the government’s failure to protect them.
As videos from the protests spread on social media, people could hear activists shouting slogans against the government, accusing it of not doing enough to stop the violence. Back in September, the government had declared a 60-day state of emergency in Lima, hoping to stop the rising crime. But many protesters felt it wasn’t enough and wanted to make their voices heard now, during the APEC forum, hoping that international attention would force the government to take action.
One protester, Madeleine Rojas, shared her frustration: “We are being extorted every day, we are tired of it. Peru does not have a good international image, that is why we are here,” she said.
Another protester, Walter Carrera, who represents the National Association of Transporters, said, “We want the international community to know that they are killing us, and there is no real policy to fight organized crime and public insecurity.”
As the protests grew, people also began to criticize Peru’s involvement with the APEC forum. Some believed that Peru didn’t gain anything from being part of the group and didn’t want world leaders to ignore the problems at home. Protesters burned U.S. flags and carried signs that read, “Get out, imperialist Yankees,” and “APEC trash looters out.”
The protests became even more intense when demonstrators tried to march to the Lima Convention Center, where the APEC event was taking place. Police blocked their path, and the situation turned violent, with clashes between the protesters and authorities.
Despite the unrest, the government insisted that the APEC meetings would go ahead as planned. To ensure security, 13,000 police officers were deployed to protect the event. But the message from the streets of Lima was clear: Peruvians were fed up and wanted their government to take action against the violence that was threatening their lives every day.
