As Peru President Martín Vizcarra tries to turn around the horrific rates of violence against women in the Andean country, he has promised a zero-tolerance stance against police officers tasked with investigating claims of domestic violence and attacks against women.
Vizcarra said Friday that any official who did not use due diligence to investigate any such claims could be fired.
“An officer that doesn’t respond to a complaint or claim from a woman will be sanctioned, taken out of duty or fired if they don’t take the claim seriously and with responsibility for the attacked women that turn to the police,” Vizcarra said.
New police recently graduated, giving Vizcarra the chance to tell them that one of their most vital duties in protecting Peruvians is to protect any women who are harmed.
“Wherever they are, in the commissions or in the patrol, the main objective is to fight violence against women,” the president said. “Clear instructions have been given and (Interior) Minister (Carlos) Morán is aware of them.”
Peru’s budget for attending its domestic violence crisis has increased by 300 percent under Vizcarra, as more measures are supposedly in place to prevent and respond to these gender-based attacks.
A survey from Plan International that was released a few months ago stated that Lima is the most dangerous city in the world to be a woman. Numerous attacks have been on the rise recently, like the horrific case of Eyvi Ágreda, who died after a man on a bus in Lima lit her on fire.
