Peru president appoints new PM amid political turmoil
October 7, 2021
Peruvian President Pedro Castillo on Wednesday named environmentalist and human rights activist Mirtha Vasquez as his new prime minister, replacing her controversial predecessor Guido Bellido who resigned hours earlier.
Bellido's resignation as prime minister, which he said was at President Castillo's "request," also dissolved the entire cabinet, as per Peruvian law.
"Today I inform the country that we have accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Guido Bellido Ugarte, whom we thank for his services rendered," Castillo said in a televised message. Bellido had been in office since July.
Who is the new Prime Minister?
Vasquez was tipped by Castillo as prime minister just hours after Bellido's resignation. The appointment of Vasquez, 46, is being seen as a concession to the moderate wing of the informal leftist coalition backing the administration.
Unlike Castillo or Bellido, Vasquez is not a member of the Marxist-Leninist Free Peru party.
She belongs to the left-wing Broad Front, which has made environmental issues a policy focus.
A lawyer by training, she defended Maxima Acuna, a peasant farmer, in a prominent case against Newmont Mining Corp's Yanacocha gold mine that drew headlines around the world.
Why was Guido Bellido sacked?
While the president did not give a reason for removing Bellido, who was seen as far-left compared to the more pragmatic Castillo, it comes as the leftist administration grapples with political instability.
The appointment of Bellido, an electronic engineer, and a political novice, was controversial from the very beginning.
He was little-known before taking the role, but according to local media, he was investigated for an alleged "apology for terrorism" over remarks he made shortly after taking up his seat in parliament in June.
Bellido also came out in defense of his labor minister who had been questioned by Congress in a formal hearing for allegedly having been a part of a Maoist insurgency in his youth.
Maria del Carmen Alva, president of Congress, and a member of right-wing Accion Popular welcomed the president's decision to replace Bellido.
adi/wmr (AFP, Reuters)