Peru's Congress defies Vizcarra's threat to dismiss lawmakers in key vote

Record ID: 1434351

  • Title: Peru's Congress defies Vizcarra's threat to dismiss lawmakers in key vote
  • Date: 30th September 2019
  • Summary: LIMA, PERU (SEPTEMBER 30, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF PERUVIAN PRIME MINISTER SALVADOR DEL SOLAR ARRIVING AT CONGRESS LAWMAKERS WALKING UP STEPS HOLDING BANNERS, ASKING CONGRESS TO HE SHUT DOWN (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) OPPOSITION LAWMAKER, MAURICIO MULDER, SAYING: "The President of the Republic does not know the text of the constitution. He is wanting to become the" thug of the neighbourhood," and is trying to prevent Congress from exercising its constitutional duties. Today a meeting has been called to elect the members of the constitutional court." GENERAL OF CONGRESS VARIOUS OF LAWMAKERS DURING SESSION DEL SOLAR STEPPING INTO CONGRESS DEL SOLAR SURROUNDED BY LAWMAKERS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PERUVIAN PRIME MINISTER SALVADOR DEL SOLAR, SAYING: "I'm here at the time this congress wants to make the most important decision to elect magistrates for the constitutional court." DEL SOLAR LEAVING CONGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PERUVIAN PRIME MINISTER SALVADOR DEL SOLAR, SAYING: "We urge Congress to define today, if it gives us the confidence and therefore considers that we must give transparency and care to the election of the constitutional magistrates or if it denies it, we additionally urge it to be today." CONGRESS EXTERIOR
  • Embargoed: 14th October 2019 20:11
  • Keywords: Vizcarra Peru Congress constitution
  • Location: LIMA, PERU
  • City: LIMA, PERU
  • Country: Peru
  • Topics: Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA002AYUPHS7
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Peru's opposition-run Congress voted to elect the first of up to six new justices to the country's top court in a plenary session on Monday (September 30), in defiance of President Martin Vizcarra's threat to close parliament if it did so.
    Vizcarra said on the eve of the vote that he would invoke a constitutional article to close Congress to defend the country from what he described as a corrupt mafia that had captured Congress and had set their sights on the Constitutional Tribunal, a likely referee in any legal dispute between lawmakers and the government.
    Opposition lawmakers have vowed to resist any attempt to send them home and have accused Vizcarra of trying to orchestrate a power grab.
    (Production: Carlos Valdez)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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