Peru's new leader swears in cabinet, amid ongoing protests
The new cabinet is made up of individuals who are viewed as technicians and nonpartisan politically.
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Peruvian President Dina Boluarte posing with her appointed ministers during a ceremony at the Palacio de Gobierno, in Lima, Peru, on December 10, 2022. (EPA-EFE/Paolo Aguilar)
After Pedro Castillo was removed as president and Dina Boluarte was sworn in in his place, Peru's new leader Dina Boluarte unveiled a new cabinet on Saturday as street demonstrations calling for new elections continued.
Boluarte, the country's first female President and Castillo's leftist Vice President, presided over the swearing-in of 19 ministers, eight of whom are female, at the presidential palace.
The new cabinet is made up of individuals who are viewed as technicians and nonpartisans politically. A former prosecutor with expertise in corruption cases has been named as her new chief of staff.
On Saturday, a significant demonstration in Lima calling for new elections and against Castillo's removal was scheduled.
The 60-year-old lawyer Boluarte has declared that she will complete Castillo's term through July 2026, but on Friday she did rule out holding an early election for president, which is a major demand of the street protesters who have been obstructing traffic and setting tires on fire all over this nation with a history of political unrest and instability.
The Vice President of Peru, Dina Boluarte, was swiftly sworn in as president on December 7 after Pedro Castillo was ousted by Congress and detained by the police earlier over corruption allegations involving himself and his family, just 17 months after his election,
During the session in which she was sworn in, Boluarte said she is assuming the presidency "in accordance with the Constitution of Peru, from now until July 26, 2026," the date on which Castillo's term would have expired.
📸Así se realizó la ceremonia de juramentación de Dina Boluarte como primera Presidenta del Perú. 👉 https://t.co/g2WpOmHbgG
— Diario El Peruano (@DiarioElPeruano) December 7, 2022
Foto: Congreso/ Víctor Vásquez pic.twitter.com/KPG9CpZiKN
Castillo announced on December 7 the temporary dissolution of Congress and said he would rule by decree, just hours before a vote was scheduled on his impeachment.
Castillo claimed that after the far-right Fuerza Popular's failed attempt at impeachment, he established an emergency government to take the place of the right-wing-dominated and extremely unpopular Congress of the Republic and declared early congressional elections.
The head of state has consistently been accused of corruption and leading a criminal organization, all of which he vigorously denies. "This intolerable situation cannot continue," Castillo said in a televised address.
He said he would form a new Congress "as soon as possible to draft a new Constitution within a period of no more than nine months."
"From this date and until the new Congress is established, the country will be governed by decree-law. A national curfew is decreed as of today from 10:00pm to 4:00am."
He also announced the "reorganization of the justice system, the judiciary powers of the public ministry, the national board of justice and the constitutional court."
