Peru declares Colombian leader Petro 'persona non grata'

Peru's Congress has declared the Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, "persona non grata" for comparing the Peruvian police to Nazi troops. The motion, approved last night with 72 votes in favour, 29 against and 7 abstentions, also urges the government to "guarantee" that Petro "does not enter the national territory". Last weekend, the Colombian leader criticized the mobilization of police officers in central Lima, as unions and social organizations gathered a few blocks away to protest against President Dina Boluarte.

"They march like Nazis against their own people, breaking the American Convention on Human Rights," Petro said on the occasion. In response, the Peruvian parliament called his words "unacceptable", considering them "an offense to the Peruvian police, to the Republic of Peru and, trivializing the Holocaust, also an offense to all the Jewish people". Petro, along with the governments of Mexico, Bolivia and Argentina, have expressed their support for deposed former Peruvian president Pedro Castillo, whose removal has sparked a wave of protests in Peru, resulting in the deaths of at least 48 civilians so far.

Peru two months have already passed since the start of anti-government protests demanding the resignation of President Dina Boluarte. Protesters took to the streets again in the capital Lima this weekend. Boluarte took power on December 7, replacing Pedro Castillo, removed from his post by parliament after trying to dissolve him.