Peru - 53.50
92
Three presidents, one week
Peru has been embroiled in a political crisis since 2016. A succession of short-lived and unsuccessful presidencies in Peru has trapped the country in a state of stagnation. This crisis culminated in November 2020 when President Martín Vizcarra was removed from office under Peru’s controversial “moral incapacity” law. Congress then elected Manuel Merino to the presidency. His presidency lasted only six days before mass protests forced him to resign and the President of Congress, Francisco Sagasti, assumed the presidency until the eventual election of Pedro Castillo. Castillo would remain president at the end of the scoring period. Most of Peru’s political woes can be traced back to the quasi-dictatorship of Alberto Fujimori, who ruled Peru from 1990-2000 but primarily carried out the will of the military. During his time in office, Peru’s party system was destroyed and it has not yet recovered. Despite his rampant human rights abuses and flagrant displays of corruption, Fujimorism remains a popular political ideology in Peru, demonstrated by the consistent popularity of Keiko Fujimori, Alberto’s daughter. Further compounding Peru’s problems is the continued activity of the Marxist-Leninist terror and piracy organization Shining Path. While Peru has been in turmoil for the past several years, they look to be emerging from the crisis and Peru’s future is likely one of positive development.
Human Rights - 45
Peru has functionally abolished the death penalty; the last execution was carried out in 1979. Peru only retains the death penalty for treason or crimes committed during wartime. Peru struggles with the active Marxist-Leninist terror and piracy organization Shining Path. While it does not have nearly the same influence that it did a few decades ago, Shining Path carried out bombings against military convoys in the Andes that killed five soldiers and two civilians across five attacks. Shining Path regularly engages in road piracy on rural Andes roads. The Peruvian National Police (PNP) have been accused on two occasions of carrying out arbitrary executions against protestors. Abuse of protestors was rampant during the Week of Three Presidents. Over two hundred protestors and three journalists were hospitalized during the week. Police repeatedly shut down peaceful protests. Starting November 9, 2020, police did not follow lawful arrest guidelines. Arbitrary arrest was rare under normal circumstances. The government temporarily suspended constitutional freedom from arrest without a warrant at the start of the COVID lockdown. The government arrested over 55,000 people for violating COVID lockdowns. In most cases, they were fined menial amounts and released. Prison conditions are very poor. Prisons were at 222% capacity throughout the year and lacked access to sanitation and medical facilities and healthy food. Corruption was rampant amongst guards, who allegedly accepted bribes to smuggle drugs and weapons into prison. Many prisons were largely self-regulating and across the prison system, guards did little to stop inmate-inmate violence. Trans Peruvians cannot serve regularly. Peru does not allow same-sex marriage or joint adoption. Abortion is legal to preserve the physical health of a woman.
Democracy - 69
Peru has been embroiled in a political crisis since 2016. President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski was sworn in in 2016 and resigned in 2018 to avoid impeachment. Vice President Martín Vizcarra was sworn in to replace him in a procedure in accordance with Peruvian law. President Vizcarra repeatedly clashed with the legislature and eventually dissolved it in 2019. January 2020 snap elections brought an unfriendly congress into power. In September Vizcarra survived an attempt to remove him from office but was ousted in November under the constitution’s controversial “moral incapacity” clause. The Congress then elected Manuel Merino who was forced to resign just six days into his presidency amidst mass protests. The President of Congress, Francisco Sagasti assumed the presidency, which he held until the election of Pedro Castillo in July 2021. The president is directly elected. The 2021 election cycle was marred with controversy as Keiko Fujimori repeatedly accused the government of rigging the election in favor of rival Pedro Castillo. Keiko Fujimori eventually conceded defeat to Castillo and outside observers noted that the election was free and fair. Congress is directly elected. Former President Vizcarra dissolved Congress in 2019 but January 2020 snap elections were ruled free and fair. Elections are generally free and fair but poor regulations surrounding campaign finance grant wealthy candidates an unfair advantage. This did not influence the results of the 2021 elections, however, as Castillo triumphed over the significantly wealthier Keiko Fujimori. Peru has not rebuilt its party system since its collapse under Alberto Fujimori. Peru’s party system is highly fragmented; political allegiances are fickle and short-lived. Despite this, Peru experiences regular transfers of power between rival political groups. Indigenous groups are disenfranchised.
Freedom - 64
Defamation is a criminal charge. Journalists are regularly convicted on defamation charges but almost always have their sentences suspended. State-run media is heavily censored. Abuse of protestors was rampant during the Week of Three Presidents. Over two hundred protestors and three journalists were hospitalized during this time. Police regularly shut down peaceful protests. Starting November 9, 2020, police did not follow lawful arrest guidelines. Arbitrary arrest was rare under normal circumstances. The government temporarily suspended constitutional freedom from arrest without a warrant at the start of the COVID lockdown. Over 55,000 people were arrested for not complying with COVID lockdowns. Most were fined menial amounts and released. Possession of small amounts of drugs is not punishable by jail time in Peru but over 60% of arrests are for drug-related offenses. Peru may issue gun ownership licenses for semi-automatic rifles and handguns. Membership in a rifle organization or a self-defense permit (which requires a justification) is required to own guns.
Economy - 57
Health - 62
Peru has a life expectancy of 77 years and an infant mortality rate of 1.1%. 19.7% of Peruvians are obese and 14% are malnourished. The malnourishment rate is significantly higher among indigenous Peruvians, sitting at roughly 38%. Peru’s universal healthcare system has rebounded since its collapse at the end of the twentieth century and now provides high-quality care to almost all Peruvians. 87.8% of Peruvians have access to clean, running water. Peru struggles with mosquito-borne tropical diseases, namely Zika.
Corruption - 12
The Peruvian judicial system is highly corrupt. Defendants often paid bribes to move their cases through queue faster. Judicial verdicts, especially in lawsuits, are regularly bought and sold. Police extortion is rampant, especially at road checkpoints. Public services must be bribed into action. Peruvian land administration is significantly less corrupt than in neighboring countries. Tax fraud is very easy to get away with in Peru. Peru’s borders are highly porous. This is largely due to poor border control rather than corruption as most of Peru’s borders are left unguarded. Public contracts are impossible to obtain without corruption.
Competency - 8
The government is failing to protect people from insurgency as Shining Path remains active in the country. Corruption remains rampant. The government is failing to secure its own borders, as large parts of Peru’s borders remain unguarded. Peru has been in the midst of a political crisis since 2016. The Peruvian government has not had a president serve for more than two years in as long.
Future - 82
Peru has recently exited a political crisis that lasted for half a decade. Despite attempts to undermine Peruvian democracy during the 2021 election cycle, the presidential election was administered freely and fairly. The Castillo administration spells a bright future for Peru as the Castillo administration has promised a number of reforms in the country.
Actions Abroad - 73
Peru has largely amended relations with longstanding rival Chile. Peru is part of the Belt and Road Initiative. Peru maintains closer relations with Taiwan than any other South American country except Paraguay, which maintains official relations with Taiwan. Peru is generally isolationist and maintains good relations with most nations.
2.7% of Peruvians live below the international poverty line and 20.2% live below the national poverty line. 6.24% of Peruvians are unemployed. Peru has an incredibly high economic disparity. Peru has a minimum wage of $294 per month. Peru has a strong universal healthcare system. Peru has done an excellent job of rebuilding its healthcare system after its collapse in the 1980s and 90s due to hyperinflation and terrorism. Most of the population is covered but some remote ranchers and tribes in the Andes and Amazon lack access. The Peruvian economy shrunk 11% in 2020 and grew 2% in 2019.