Peru's Constitutional Court pauses probes into President Dina Boluarte

Al Jazeera

8 hours ago

The Constitutional Court of Peru has paused investigations into Dina Boluarte until her term ends in 2026, citing her position as the country's sitting president.
On Tuesday, the court suspended probes led by the public prosecutor's office that looked into alleged misconduct under Boluarte.
'The suspended investigations will continue after the end of the presidential term,' the ruling explained.
One of the most significant probes had to do with Boluarte's response to the protests that erupted in Peru in December 2022, after the embattled president at the time, Pedro Castillo, attempted to dissolve Congress.
Instead, Castillo was impeached, removed from office and imprisoned, with critics calling his actions an attempted coup d'etat.
His removal, in turn, prompted months of intense public backlash: Thousands of protesters blocked roads and led marches in support of the left-wing leader.
Boluarte, who took over the presidency, declared a state of emergency in response, and the subsequent clashes between the police and protesters killed more than 60 people and left hundreds injured.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights found that, in certain parts of the country, 'the disproportionate, indiscriminate, and lethal use of force was a major element of the State response to the protests'.
It noted that 'a significant number of victims were not even involved in the protests'.
In January 2023, Attorney General Patricia Benavides launched a probe into the actions of Boluarte and her ministers. By November of that year, Benavides had filed a constitutional complaint, accusing Boluarte of causing death and injury to protesters.
The public prosecutor's office later set aside part of the investigation, which delved into whether Boluarte's actions amounted to 'genocide'.
Boluarte has denied any wrongdoing and instead called the protest probe a distraction from the attorney general's own public scandals.
But Boluarte has continued to face probes into other aspects of her presidency.
Police in 2024 raided her home and the presidential palace as part of the 'Rolex case', an investigation prompted by media reports that Boluarte owned multiple luxury watches and high-end jewellery that were beyond her means to purchase. Critics have accused her of seeking illicit enrichment.
Boluarte, however, said her hands were 'clean', and Congress denied motions to impeach her over the 'Rolex case'.
Another investigation looked into her absence from office in 2023, when Boluarte said she had to undergo a 'necessary and essential' medical procedure on her nose — though critics have said it was a cosmetic procedure.
Her absence, they argue, was therefore a dereliction of duty, done without notifying Congress. In that case, too, Boluarte has denied the charges.
Peru has weathered much instability in its government: Boluarte is the sixth president in seven years, and virtually all of Peru's presidents have faced criminal investigations, if not convictions, in the last quarter century.
Boluarte, however, had petitioned the Constitutional Court to stop the investigations until her term is over.
She is set to exit her office on July 28, 2026, after calling for a new general election in March. She has faced public pressure to resign since taking over for Castillo in December 2022.