During the protests there have been repeated allegations of excessive use of force by police officers. | Photo: EFE

Lima, February 9 (RHC)-- The Public Prosecutor's Office of Peru announced on Tuesday the beginning of a preliminary investigation for 60 days against high commanders of the National Police (PN) for the arbitrary arrests of students that were made in the capital, Lima, during the protests against the government of President-designate Dina Boluarte.

The investigation will be conducted by the 4th Corporate Criminal Prosecutor's Office of Cercado de Lima under the crime of abuse of authority.  In the context of the protests, the uniformed officers violated the university autonomy and violently broke into the University of San Marcos in Lima.

The officers will also be investigated for the death of protester Víctor Santiesteban, who was hit in the head by a tear gas bomb on January 28th.

 A week before, on January 21, PN officers entered the premises of the university, where citizens from different regions who had traveled to Lima to join the peaceful protests were staying.  Using violence, the agents subdued student and social leaders who organized facilities on the university campus to provide shelter to their compatriots from regions such as Puno, Arequipa and Cusco, among others, mostly indigenous.

In addition, some 200 people were arrested.  Activists present on the campus denounced that the eviction took place without the presence of prosecutors, who later entered the campus to verify if human rights were respected.

The mobilizations in Peru began last December 7th, after the impeachment by the National Congress of former president Pedro Castillo.  In addition to demanding the resignation of Boluarte and her Cabinet, the demonstrators are demanding the closure of Congress, early elections and the calling of a constituent process to provide the country with a new Magna Carta.