López Obrador revealed that Pedro Castillo called him before being arrested to ask for political asylum

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador revealed this Thursday that, before being arrested, the ousted Peruvian president Pedro Castillo telephoned his office to seek asylumso he ordered the doors of the Mexican embassy in Lima to be opened to him

“He spoke to the office here so that they would inform me that he was on his way to the embassy, ​​but surely his phone had already been tapped,” López Obrador said in his daily morning conference.

The head of state said he had sought the chancellor Marcellus Ebrard and asked him to speak with the Mexican ambassador in Peru to grant him reception at the diplomatic headquarters in accordance with Article “tradition of asylum” of that country.

However, shortly afterwards a mob of people opposed to Castillo went to the area where the Mexican mission is located to obstruct access in case he sought asylum.

Castle he was arrested after being accused of carrying out a coup decreeing the dissolution of Congress and a state of emergency at the height of a political crisis in this South American country.

López Obrador regretted this Wednesday that “for the interests of the economic and political elites, an environment of confrontation and hostility” against Castillo.

The Mexican president has also called for Castillo’s human rights to be respected, for him to act according to the law and for his family to be protected.

Meanwhile, he described Castillo’s sacking as a “soft blow” and said Mexico would wait “a few days” to consider whether or not to recognize the new president, Dina Boluarte.

Furthermore, he attributed his departure to the “interests of economic and political elites”, which he also accused of the “conflict climate” that the ousted president has suffered since taking office in July 2021.

“We consider it regrettable that for the interests of the economic and political elites, since the beginning of the legitimate presidency of Pedro Castillo, a climate of confrontation and hostility has been maintained towards him, to the point of leading him to make decisions which have served his adversaries for consummate his dismissal with the sui generis precept of ‘moral incapacity'”, said López Obrador.

In a message on his Twitter account, the Mexican president clarified that “non-intervention and self-determination of peoples” is a “fundamental principle” of Mexican foreign policy.

Lastly, López Obrador expressed his wish that “human rights be respected and there be democratic stability for the benefit of the people” of Peru.

“If Pedro Castillo seeks asylum from Mexico, we will give it to him, but he has not requested it,” Ebrard told Mexican radio station Radio Formula, according to news agency Europa Press.

The Mexican president replied that he “doesn’t know” if good relations will continue with the new government of Peru, but ruled out a break. “We don’t know, no (relations are broken), but we will wait a few days, I think it is the most appropriate, it is not our intention to intervene in internal affairs, we are very sorry, yes, these things happen”, he insisted.

Fired and jailed

On Wednesday morning, former President Pedro Castillo dissolved Congress, decreed a state of emergency and ordered a curfew, in an attempt to prevent the legislative branch from dismissing him in the afternoon of the same day for alleged acts of corruption.

However, Castillo, who took office on July 28, 2021 as Peru’s first left-wing head of state, miscalculated. The military leaders did not support his decision, his ministers resigned en masse and with a majority of 101 votes, 6 against and 10 abstentions, Congress dismissed him for moral incapacity.

In less than a decade, Peru has had 4 inconclusive governments: Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018), Martín Vizcarra (2018-2020), Manuel Merino (2020) and now Pedro Castillo: one year and just over 4 months.

Handcuffed and in a helicopter, the former president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, is being held in the Barbadillo prison, in the Lima district of Ate, where Alberto Fujimori is serving a 25-year prison sentence.

Castillo is in prison, charged with rebellion and conspiracy or criminal conspiracy. The public prosecutor has already opened a file against the former Peruvian president for these allegations.

The Attorney General, the newspaper El Comercio reported this Thursday, has ordered the opening of an investigative procedure against the former head of state “for alleged crimes against the powers of the state and the constitutional order”, according to the modality of “rebellion” against the state.