The president of Peru, Martín Vizcarra, called on Friday to fight against corruption in favor of democracy without threats, or armoring, by opposing criticism on the judicial ruling that keeps the opposition leader Keiko Fujimori in preventive detention since Wednesday.
Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra’s approval rating shot up 16 points to a high of 61% in October, after he adopted a harder line with the opposition-run Congress, a monthly Ipsos poll showed on Sunday.
Peru's ex-president Alberto Fujimori said from his hospital bed on Thursday that a return to prison would be a “death sentence,” the day after a court revoked a pardon for crimes against humanity. Fujimori, 80, addressed a plea to Peru's President Martin Vizcarra and the country's judiciary in a video recorded at his bedside.
Peru’s opposition-run Congress renewed its confidence in the cabinet of President Martin Vizcarra on Wednesday, averting a political crisis that could have forced new legislative elections.
Peru's president is facing a standoff with lawmakers over his call for a referendum on anti-corruption measures and constitutional reforms.
The head of Peru's judicial branch resigned on Thursday in the wake of a mounting corruption scandal involving secret phone recordings capturing numerous judges making behind-the-scenes deals on everything from promotions to criminal sentences.
Thousands of Peruvians marched Wednesday evening in Lima to protest against corruption in the justice system, after recordings of unproper behaviour by judges and members of the Council of the Magistracy were aired.The demonstration began from Plaza San Martin and toured Lima's historic downtown on its way to the Main Courthouse building and back to Plaza San Martín.
President Martin Vizcarra said that the Peruvian government will enforce a “zero tolerance” policy against corruption amid a spreading bribery scandal that has involved at least three former presidents.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson spent the first of his five-day visit to Latin America in Peru on Saturday 19 May. In the first visit of a British Foreign Secretary to Peru in over 50 years, Mr. Johnson joined Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra and other high level Peruvian officials on a visit to Iquitos, located in the Amazon.
Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra opened on Friday a subdued Summit of the Americas decrying widespread corruption and urging regional leaders to join forces in increasing transparency and boosting civil society. Addressing Western Hemisphere leaders in an auditorium where a number of seats were left notably empty, Peru's new president said that rather than accept corruption as a deep-seated scourge impossible to eliminate, governments should adopt concrete measures that prevent it from ever taking place.