On May 14, public transportation organizations led a national strike to demand the resignation of President Dina Boluarte and Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzén over the failure of their government to rein in extortionist mafias that have murdered transport workers.
The strike occurred after the extension of a state of emergency in some working class districts of Metropolitan Lima and Ventanilla in Callao, coupled with a mass deployment of police and military personnel in these areas.
Trade unions, including confederations such as the industrial CGTP and the teachers union SUTEP, students, small business owners and various social organizations participated in the protest. While the strike was partially observed in Lima, it gained full support in southern regions like Arequipa, Cusco, and Puno. The regional strikes highlighted demands related to conflicts with transnational mining companies, socio-environmental issues and unfinished infrastructure projects.
This strike was distinguished from previous ones due to the scope of its demands.
Víctor Contreras, president of the Gamarra [micro and small] Business Federation, stated they were protesting “in defense of life,” demanding “not one more death” and calling for the president’s resignation for incompetence. The strike also called for the repeal of the “pro-crime” Law No. 32108, which complicates the classification and punishment of criminal organizations and impedes investigations, with the aim of protecting both corrupt politicians and their criminal associates.
While some bus lines continued to operate in Lima, the strike led to street blockades and route suspensions.
In Lima, transportation groups continued operating despite the dangers involved. The bus company “El Chino,” which was a victim of extortion, along with another company, Etuchisa, resisted striking even after some of their drivers were murdered.
Residents of San Juan de Lurigancho (SJL) voiced their frustration on social media, stating, “We’re tired of waking up to death threats.” Many are facing extortion threats against their families and businesses, with small vendors, like those selling chicken broth, facing demands to pay 10 to 15 soles daily.
The strike saw increased involvement from university students and clashes with the National Police (PNP), which deployed over 13,000 officers throughout Metropolitan Lima. In the poor neighborhood of Pro in Los Olivos, police blocked a rat-shaped puppet symbolizing the protest. As marchers approached the Congress building on Abancay Avenue, police used tear gas to restrict them to two lanes to keep protestors at a distance.
The strike saw stronger participation from residents in Puno, Arequipa, and Cusco, located in the southern Andes, resulting in roadblocks, business closures and cancelling of school classes.
Infobae reported:
In Puno, the strike had a major impact, as urban transportation was completely paralyzed, and major markets closed. Burning tires blocked the northern and southern exits of the city, and hundreds of protesters took to the streets.
From 4:00 a.m., protesters blocked the highway to Bolivia with burning tires and metal barricades, obstructing the Ilave Bridge.
Teachers from Puno joined the demonstrations, which affected the Desaguadero, Ilave, and Juliaca-Cusco highways. One banner read, “Dina, murderer, Huancané repudiates you,” highlighting the rising tension among the 7,000 inhabitants of the Aymara village of Huancané.
Public outrage has surged after 13 miners were found dead in Pataz, La Libertad. Last seen alive on April 25, their bodies were discovered on May 4 bearing signs of having been murdered execution-style after prolonged torture. Evidence suggests possible police involvement. Mining is vital to Peru’s economy, making up 62 percent of exports. The country is the world’s second-largest copper exporter and the largest gold producer in South America. Illegal mining operations, often subcontracted by wealthy Lima-based families, continue to flourish amid rampant corruption.
Dina Boluarte began her administration in December 2022, replacing elected president Pedro Castillo in a parliamentary coup and issuing shoot-to-kill orders to the police in response to protests in the southern Andean regions, where Castillo had strong support. As a result, 50 people were killed by security forces.
Boluarte was initially elected vice president as Castillo’s running mate on the ticket of Perú Libre, a right-wing nationalist party that disguises its policies with Maoist rhetoric. She quickly shifted her allegiance to Keiko Fujimori and the far-right Fuerza Popular party. She rapidly became the most unpopular leader in Peru’s history, with 97 percent of the population disapproving of her presidency.
In Cusco, transportation was disrupted as local authorities supported protesters who blocked streets and burned tires, leading to the deployment of over 800 police officers to restore order. The newspaper El Comercio reported:
The city of Cusco woke up paralyzed by the regional strike called by various social organizations...Unlike Lima, there are no urban or public transportation services throughout the imperial city. Furthermore, school classes are being held online, and some markets have not opened.
Cusco is South America’s main tourist center, attracting 2 million visitors annually. The government fears that ongoing strikes could deter tourism and raise the country’s risk rating, increasing international borrowing costs.
In addition to demanding the resignation of the president and prime minister, strikers in Cusco called for the completion of the Southern Peruvian Gas Pipeline and the Antonio Lorena Hospital. The protests, led by local organizations, opposed a law that permits illegal settlements and mining companies to access property titles without consulting indigenous communities.
Tensions have also risen in Arequipa due to the Tía María mining conflict involving residents from the Tambo Valley. El Comercio reported that strikers there:
...blocked the roads protesting against the rule of Dina Boluarte and the Tía María mining project. From early morning, protesters blocked the La Curva sector in the Deán Valdivia district with sticks and stones, causing traffic congestion and leaving trucks and private vehicles stranded.
The eighth transport strike has intensified political divisions. Martín Ojeda, director of the International Chamber of the Transport Industry, labeled the May 14 protest as “completely politicized.” He noted that informal transport sectors mainly support it, while calls for President Dina Boluarte’s resignation lack backing from major employer associations.
The strike led to Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzén’s resignation amid mounting congressional opposition, but President Boluarte has clung to power. Former Foreign Minister Javier González-Olaechea suggested dismissing constitutional complaints against Boluarte would damage Peru’s image internationally.
The strikes against the Boluarte government reveal the determination of the oppressed masses in Peru, but also highlight the severe limitations of the policies pursued by strike leaders. Despite eight successful strikes in the past year involving millions of participants, these efforts have produced little change, either in improving conditions for Peru’s workers and oppressed or in removing the hated regime.
The movement has suffered in particular from the lack of strong working class participation, with leaders of small business groups and employer associations dominating. Given the dominance of these organizations, there is a real danger that the popular demand directed against the Peruvian political establishment of “Throw them all out!,” combined with the call for a get-tough-on-crime policy, could pave the way to a dictatorial regime supported by military and police forces.
Real change can come only through a break with all parties of the Peruvian bourgeoisie. With presidential elections set for April 2026, there are already 43 candidates on offer, not one of whom offers a real alternative. It also demands a revolt against the trade union bureaucracies like the Stalinist-led CGTP that subordinate the working class to the capitalist state and work to divide and restrain workers’ struggles.
The ravages committed by organized and politically connected criminal gangs, together with staggering levels of social inequality and the highest per-capita COVID death toll on the planet are all manifestation of the organic incapacity of the Peruvian national bourgeoisie to overcome the legacy of colonialism and imperialist oppression.
This confirms Trotsky’s Theory of Permanent Revolution, which explains that in colonial and oppressed countries only the fight for power by the working class, leading the rural masses behind it, can advance the struggle against imperialism and ensure genuine national liberation and democratic and social rights for workers and the oppressed.
This requires uniting the struggles of the working class across national borders in a fight for socialism. Increasingly intolerable conditions for working people are fueling a powerful upsurge of class struggle not only in Peru, but across Latin America and the entire world. The key task is to provide this movement with political and programmatic leadership by building sections of the International Committee of the Fourth International in every country.