UN rights chief urges ‘ calm’ as Peru awaits vote result amid close election

UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet expressed concern on Monday over rising tension in Peru eight days after presidential elections that have yet to yield a result, and urged all parties to “remain calm.”

Rightist candidate Keiko Fujimori, 46, has challenged the validity of tens of thousands of ballots cast Sunday as she narrowly trails behind left- wing hopeful Pedro Castillo in the preliminary count.

Unless she wins, Fujimori faces imminent trial on corruption charges which would otherwise be delayed until after her presidential term.

With over 99 percent of ballots counted, rural school teacher Castillo, 51, led by 48,000 votes or 50.13 percent to Fujimori’s 49.86 percent, according to the ONPE election body.

Fujimori has claimed fraud in the vote count, with official results now awaiting the outcome of a review by Peru’s National Elections Jury ( JNE).

The ONPE is responsible for organizing elections and the vote count, while the JNE resolves disputes and proclaims the winner.

“I am concerned that what should be a celebration of democracy is becoming a source of division, which is in turn widening the fracture in Peruvian society with negative human rights implications,” Bachelet said in a statement.

And she expressed concern that election officials were being harassed.

“If the rules of democracy are not accepted before, during and after the elections, social cohesion can dangerously crack,” Bachelet said.

Peruvians voted Sunday for their fifth president in three years after a series of crises and corruption scandals saw three different leaders in office in a single week in November 2020.

As is usual for Peru, the tail- end of vote counting was slow due to delays in delivering ballots from rural and jungle areas, and from abroad – where a million of the country’s 25 million eligible voters live.

The JNE is reviewing challenges to tens of thousands of votes cast at 165 polling stations countrywide – 151 of them disputed by Fujimori, and 14 by Castillo.

The process could still take several days.