At least 60 protestors have been killed by police and military in Peru in the aftermath of the US supported coup that has plunged the country into martial law. Many more have been injured, thousands arrested, and there are even reports of forced disappearances. The Alliance for Global Justice’ Eduardo Garcia spoke with people on the ground in Lima: “Last night after our call I had a convo with a couple of comrades that participated in the National March and they said it was a feast for the police. They mentioned it took them over seven hours to get back home while they waited for police to stop chasing demonstrators, and saw many injured on their way. They have also heard of a few cases of what could be forced disappearances-according to what they said, there’s been testimonies of cars picking up demonstrators.”

We also spoke with George Ygarza, a Peruvian-US-er, solidarity activist, and candidate for PhD who is studying issues relating to mining and resistance in Peru. He told us that the level of police militarization that is being seen in the Andean and Amazonian provinces outside of Lima is unprecedented. Police militarization is one of the “security” measures being exported by the US to other countries, along with border militarization and mass incarceration.

We need to take urgent action now to show our solidarity with Peruvian workers and with indigenous and farming communities to stop the repression and to change the US policies that are behind it.