Shaking up the status quo
Corruption scandals have ensnared past Peruvian presidents; now a referendum could change the whole political system
LIMA, PERU >> When President Martín Vizcarra pledged in his inauguration speech in March to fight “at any cost” the corruption braking Peru’s economic growth and undermining faith in its democratic institutions, the response was a collective shrug.
For as long as most Peruvians can remember, incoming heads of state have made similar promises but then done little to tackle the cancer of systemic graft.
Meanwhile, Vizcarra, who had been serving as vice president as well as ambassador to Canada before replacing disgraced leader Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, was widely viewed as an accidental president. He appeared to lack the charisma needed to confront Peru’s entrenched interests, particularly the conservative Popular Force party of Keiko Fujimori, which dominates the Legislature and fervently defends the status quo.
But Vizcarra’s decisive response to a graft scandal engulfing the highest tiers of the judiciary — proposing a referendum to reform the political and legal systems — has some Peruvians talking of a once-in-alifetime opportunity to restore integrity to public life and revive citizens’ waning faith in democracy.
For them, the referendum holds the promise of shaking up an institutional landscape in which bribery is rampant, the courts frequently reach surprise verdicts that favor apparent criminals, and Congress lurches from one scandal to another, to the point where its approval rating is close to dipping into single digits.
The proposed plebiscite also appears to cleverly break the deadlock created Demonstrators hold a large Peruvian flag during a protest demanding judicial reforms and accountability for corrupt judges in Lima, Peru, last month.
by a weak executive besieged by a hostile Legislature that has plagued Peru since the July 2016 elections.
According to a study by anti-graft group Transparency International, the judiciary and Congress are viewed, by far, as Peru’s two most corrupt institutions.
The referendum, which must be approved by Congress, would allow Peruvians to vote to strictly regulate the private financing of political parties; reform the National Council of Magistrates (CNM), the panel that appoints judges and prosecutors; prohibit the re-election of members of Congress; and create a Senate to act as a check on Peru’s current single legislative chamber.
Marisa Glave, a leftist lawmaker previously critical of Vizcarra, praised his tactical sidestepping of the “obstructionism” of the Fujimori loyalists: “The president managed something brilliant. He has connected with the people in a society that is both fed up with corruption but also deeply apolitical. It has put the Fujimoristas in check.”
Samuel Rotta, head of the Peruvian chapter of Transparency International, agreed.
“This is a very important opportunity, one that is unlike previous opportunities because, in part, the president appears genuinely committed,” he said.
He predicts that Popular Force, whose congressional majority comes despite taking only 36 percent of the popular vote, will feel politically obliged to approve the referendum bill, although it may seek to delay and dilute it.
Some Fujimorista members of Congress have proposed adding new questions to the referendum, including the death penalty for pedophiles and a ban on same-sex civil unions. Jurists say both measures would be illegal under the Peruvian Constitution.
Daniel Salaverry of Popular Force, who is speaker of Congress, has avoided commenting on the merits of the referendum proposals, tweeting that the party wanted to consult policy experts, although he has said he will “prioritize” the referendum bill.
Other Fujimorista lawmakers have been more critical. One, Lourdes Alcorta, tweeted that the proposals for a second chamber and to end congressional re-election were “absurd” and “populist idiocies.”