The Peruvian government declared a state of emergency on Monday in the provinces of Lima and Callao to stem a rise in crime, in a move that follows the killing of a popular musician over the weekend. President Dina Boluarte also floated the possibility of extending the use of the death penalty in Peru to address the country’s security problems.
The declaration and Boluarte’s statements came after Paul Hambert Flores García, singer of the cumbia group Armonia 10, was shot dead while traveling with his bandmates in their bus.Peru’s Interior Ministry said Sunday that police are treating the shooting as a deliberate attack.According to police documents obtained by CNN, authorities believe shots were fired from a motorcycle, hitting the right side of Armonia 10’s bus with three bullets, one of which struck the singer, who was admitted to the hospital with “cardiorespiratory arrest.” The documents show that police have requested access to surveillance video related to the shooting.
On Sunday, the Ministry of the Interior said it had deployed several units of the Peruvian National Police to identify and capture those responsible for the shooting, which they have classified as a deliberate attack. Furthermore, the president would need to secure the necessary votes from legislators, which she has been unable to obtain for some of her other initiatives.
Following Boluarte’s statements, the Council of Ministers declared a state of emergency in Lima and Callao for 30 days, authorizing the deployment of Peru’s Armed Forces to support the National Police. Peru is experiencing a serious security crisis. Several public schools reported days ago that they were being extorted by criminals, prompting them to propose virtual classes, according to state television station TV Perú. In September 2024, transportation unions, which also reported being extorted by criminals, carried out a workers strike as a warning to the Boluarte government and marched toward Congress. At that time, a state of emergency was also declared in several parts of the country.
