Thousands of anti-govt protesters teargassed by Peru police (PHOTOS, VIDEO)
Riot police blocked the passage of thousands of anti-government protesters marching on congress in Peru’s capital, Lima. Officers used tear gas and water cannon on activists who slammed government corruption and called on the president for change.
Clashes broke out between police and the protesters as the crowd
tried to push its way to congress. Hooded youths pelted riot
officers with stones, while some protesters burnt and trampled a
coffin-shaped box with President Ollanta Humala’s name on it.
Lima police Chief General Luis Praeli said 15 people were
arrested during the unrest
Protesters allege that President Humala has not implemented the
changes he promised in the public sector two years after his
election in 2011.
"The citizens, trade unions, youth are expressing our
opposition and our grievance against the policies of the
government of Humala, a government that promised a series of
changes, a series of reforms and all he has done in these two
years of government is not fulfill them," said protester
Javier Torres.
The protest is the latest in a wave of anti-government
demonstrations as discontent with Humala’s rule grows. His rating
in popularity polls has slipped to 33 percent, the lowest since
he assumed the presidency.
Public discontent focuses on new legislation that seeks to reform
government bureaucracy and universities. Civil workers are
worried that the new laws will lead to massive cuts in the public
sector.
‘Broken promises’
Professor Fernando Tuesta of the Peruvian Catholic University
told RT’s Spanish channel, RT Actualidad, that President Humala
had lost the support of the left without achieving the support of
the right.
“Humala has left himself dangerously isolated from the
left,” said Tuesta, adding that the Ollanta promised
“totally different policies” to the ones he has adopted
for the last two years.
Political analyst Yusef Fernandez stressed that Humala gained
popular support with pledges of a political and economic policy
based of the demands of the people, but never came good on his
promises. He told RT Actualidad that the real winners under
Humala’s rule had been foreign businesses investing in Peru.
