At least 30 injured, six detained during protests against Peru government

At least 30 people have been injured, including nine journalists, in weekend protests in Lima against the Peruvian government.

Hundreds of protestors marched Saturday and Sunday under a heavy police presence.

The demonstrations, led by young people against the national government and Congress, ended in clashes with the security forces.

Groups of young people threw rocks, sticks, and firebombs at the police force, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets, according to journalists.

Press and human rights organisations reported heavy police repression after collecting testimonies from people being beaten or injured by these types of projectiles, including nine photographers or journalists covering the march.

These protests were called by the so-called “Generation Z” – a group of activists ranging from 18 to 30 years old who oppose the Dina Boluarte government, Cobngress and a recent pension reform approved by the legislative majority aligned with the Executive branch.

“I feel outraged, completely cheated by the government ... and this Congress that serves all the political parties,” said 28-year-old Xiomi Aguilar during the protest.

Aguilar described the political system as “a mafia entrenched in the state.”

According to a police statement, 19 uniformed officers and two civilians were injured during the demonstrations. In addition, “six people have been arrested, three on Saturday, and three on Sunday, for rioting and violence against police personnel,” said General Felipe Monroy, head of the Lima police region, at a press conference.

The National Association of Journalists in Peru said in a statement that nine reporters and photographers had been hit by rubber bullets in the clashes.

Protests have escalated in Peru over the past six months, following a wave of extortion and murders committed by organised crime groups.

Social unrest increased after Congress passed a law last week requiring young people to contribute to private pension funds, despite increasing job insecurity and an informal employment rate exceeding 70 percent.

Now into the final stretch of her term, which ends in July 2026, Boluarte is facing record unpopularity ratings. Almost 80 percent of Peruvians say they feel ashamed of the government, rising to 85 percent for Congress, according to the firm Datum of 1,200 people published on Sunday by the El Comercio newspaper.

–TIMES/AFP