The Peruvian government declared a state of emergency on the evening of Friday, November 28 at the border with Chile and announced it would send soldiers to reinforce controls, fearing a wave of migrants fleeing the possible election of a far-right president.
This measure must be implemented in the Tacna region (south) for sixty days, anticipating the possible victory of the far-right Chilean candidate Jose Antonio Kast in the presidential election, who promised to expel people in an irregular situation.
“The National Police of Peru maintains order, with the support of the armed forces”specifies a government decree. Around fifty soldiers will be deployed ” immediately “indicated Peruvian Interior Minister Vicente Tiburcio, adding that fifty others will join them in early December.
A video published by the governor of the border region of Arica, in northern Chile, shows dozens of people trying to reach Peru, at the Chacalluta-Santa Rosa border post.
“We are afraid that they will evict us by force”
“They don’t want to let us enter Peru (…) we are afraid that they will evict us by force” from Chile, a Venezuelan migrant told digital media on condition of anonymity The Clinic. The Peruvian channel Radio Tacna for its part broadcast images of people with children in their arms near the border post.
“There has been a concentration of migrants wishing to leave the country and who have encountered difficulties entering Peru”explained to the press the Minister of Security, Luis Cordero, without specifying the number of people concerned.
In Chile, the ultraconservative José Antonio Kast is the favorite in the second round of the presidential election on December 14 against left-wing candidate Jeannette Jara. He promises to expel the more than 330,000 illegal immigrants in Chile, mainly Venezuelans whom he associates with criminality.
In April 2023, Peru declared a state of emergency for two months and the militarization of its borders in the face of the arrival of migrants from Chile, who are required to have proper documentation to enter the country. The army then supported the police operations.
