Ombudsman's Office demands immediate cessation of compulsory social immobilization because it is unconstitutional

In the face of the declaration of a State of Emergency issued by the government, which provides for the mandatory measure of social immobilization from 02:00 to 23:59 hours today, Tuesday, April 5, the Office of the Ombudsman held that the measure adopted by the Executive Branch “is unconstitutional because of the absence of due motivation and because it is absolutely disproportionate to the events of social protest recorded in Lima and Callao.”

It further states that “the Constitutional Court, in consistent jurisprudence, has stated that states of emergency and the measures imposed under their protection must inexcusably meet the criteria of proportionality and necessity”, but that “these requirements are not met in the present case, since no reason has been expressed that justifies such strict social immobilization, it has not been stated how it will contribute to the preservation of social order”.

“The irremovability order does not take into account the severe impacts it will cause to workers in the country, the majority of whom work in informal conditions, which is why their right to work will be affected in the same way as other rights such as food, health and education”, read the statement by the Office of the Ombudsman.

Moreover, “given the untimely nature of the measure, its consequences will be even more damaging and will generate alarm among the population in circumstances where calm and serenity are needed to resolve the conflict generated by the demands of carriers and farmers. The untimely manner in which the measure has been taken violates the duty of legal predictability that every State must have towards citizenship.”

In its last two points of its statement, the Office of the Ombudsman also points out that states of emergency are not mechanisms used to manage social conflicts, “that is what the processes of dialogue that the government itself has promoted are for and whose commitment to meet with the guilds in conflict is still pending”.

MESSAGE TO THE NATION

Pedro Castillo said in his message to the Nation that although every protest in the country is a constitutional right, it must always be done within the framework of the law.

“Faced with the acts of violence that some groups have wanted to create through the blockade at the Lima and Callao accesses, and in order to restore peace and internal order, the Council of Ministers decreed a state of emergency suspending constitutional rights relating to liberty and personal security, the inviolability of the home and freedom of assembly in the province of Lima and Callao”, he said in his speech.

The head of state also called for continuing to work together to promote national growth and development, but stressed that this development must be fair and equitable to directly benefit all Peruvians in the national territory.

For this reason, he indicated that a set of measures had been taken to improve the income of Peruvians and that families were not affected by the increase in the prices of basic necessities.

“These measures approved in the framework of the dialogue in the city of Huancayo, not only benefit the population of Junín, but all families, especially the most vulnerable. You will soon see the effects of the actions taken, the agreements came as a result of dialogue, between representatives of the Executive, local authorities, leaders of carriers, farmers and the population,” he said.

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