Hundreds of demonstrators marched through the center of Lima to demand Pollarte’s departure, with some chanting “Dina is murderer”, before police fired volleys of tear gas to disperse them.
The crisis that began after the overthrow of leftist President Pedro Castillo early last month stems largely from the disparity between the country’s elite and the rural poor indigenous people of the southern Andean region who see in Castillo the hope of making their lives better.
The unrest has left 46 people dead so far, and Interior Minister Vicente Romero expected it not to recede soon.
“Social protests will continue. We are working intensively with the Ministry of Defense to find a solution,” Romero told state television.
After a large mass demonstration last week in Lima, it was decided to organize a similar demonstration on Tuesday, despite the authorities declaring a state of emergency.
“We demand Dina’s resignation as soon as possible,” said Edmunda Canaguera, 60, who came to Lima from the southeastern Andes to take part in the protests. “She does not listen to the people.”
The demonstrators are also calling for a new constitution, the dissolution of Congress, and new elections.
Civil organizations condemned the security forces’ repression of the demonstrators, but the minister defended the police and praised their “amazing” capabilities.
“We are currently witnessing the highest levels of violence since the 1980s,” Romero said, when the authorities were confronting militants from the left-wing Shining Path organization.
The minister blamed the protests on a group of “unidentified persons” who are financing them, revealing that 540 policemen were injured.
The authorities claim that the protesters are being “manipulated” by drug dealers and illegal miners.
On Monday, the number of roads cut off reached more than 80 in different regions of Peru.
Authorities have closed down the Inca citadel in the popular tourist area of Machu Picchu since Saturday, and more than 400 tourists who were stuck there over the weekend have also been evacuated.