Peru's Prime Minister Anibal Torres on Monday affirmed that the fight against citizen insecurity constitutes a national goal on which an agreement can be reached.
"It (citizen insecurity) is a terrible evil, and we have started to confront it. There may be dissenting opinions or criticism from the press about one or more measures that we have adopted; the important thing is that we have started to create public safety, because only in this way can there be a safe environment for economic activities," he said.
The Cabinet chief emphasized that social development or an improvement in the quality of education, health, infrastructure, and agriculture is impossible without economic growth.
"Therefore, the aim is to ensure public safety throughout the country, and that is possible. It is quite clear to us. We want to make Peru the safest country in Latin America, but we do not have all the solutions; we are willing to listen to different opinions," he stated.
Mr. Torres affirmed that his administration declared a state of emergency in Lima, Callao, Comas, and San Juan de Lurigancho —a measure that sparked opposition.
"It is a flexible measure that can also be applied to the rest of the country if requested by regions or localities. This measure is already yielding its first results. Important arrests have been made, and crime is being hit," the high-ranking official expressed.
A second measure, he said, is the one that bans two passengers on a motorcycle, which only applies to Lima and not to areas where motorcycles are the main means of transportation.
Thirdly, Mr. Torres continued, there is a proposal to equip Serenazgo (municipal patrol guards) with non-lethal weapons, taking into account that many of its members have served in the Armed Forces, the National Police or security companies, so they are fully trained to use them.
His remarks were delivered on Monday in an interview with Diario Uno.
(END) VVS/RMB
Published: 2/21/2022