नवीनतम
Peru's president refuses to resign after Gen Z protests
NEW DELHI [Maha Media]: Peru's new President José Jerí refused to resign on Thursday following the death of a protester during a massive demonstration led by Gen Z activists demanding he step down.
About 100 people were also injured, including 80 police officers and 10 journalists, according to authorities, who said they were investigating the shooting and killing of the protester.
"My responsibility is to maintain the stability of the country; that is my responsibility and my commitment," Jerí told the local press after visiting Peru's Parliament, where he said he would request powers to combat crime.
The protests began a month ago, calling for better pensions and wages for young people, and expanded to capture the woes of Peruvians tired of crime, corruption and decades of disillusion with their government.
After Jerí, the seventh president in less than a decade, was sworn in on October 10, protesters called for him and other lawmakers to resign.
Peru's prosecutor's office announced on Thursday that it was investigating the death of 32-year-old protester and hip-hop singer Eduardo Ruíz, who prosecutors said was shot by firearm during the mass demonstration of thousands of young people. It wrote on the social media platform X that it has ordered the removal of Ruíz's body from a Lima hospital and the "collection of audiovisual and ballistic evidence in the area where the incident occurred, in the context of serious human rights violations".
Local media and security cameras showed video of Ruíz collapsing in a Lima street after a man fleeing from several protesters fired a shot. Witnesses said the shooter was running away because he was accused of being a plainclothes police officer infiltrated among the demonstrators.
At least 24 protesters and 80 police officers were injured in the demonstrations, according to Peru's Ombudsman's Office. Six journalists were struck by pellets and another four were assaulted by police, according to the National Association of Journalists.
The president expressed regret over the protester's death.
