Lima grinds to a halt as Peru's transit workers demand action against crime surge

LIMA (Reuters) -Public transport workers in Peru's capital of Lima went on strike on Thursday, stranding tens of thousands of people as they marched to Congress demanding action against a surging crime wave that has led to record numbers of murders.

The government urged employers and schools to prioritize remote work and classes due to limited transportation and possible clashes between protesters and police.

Murders in Peru spiked by more than a third to 2,059 in 2024 from 1,508 in 2023, government figures showed. Much of the violence has been blamed on criminal groups that often target businesses, including transport companies.

President Dina Boluarte, whose approval rating has fallen to all-time lows, announced that she would ask the Organization of American States to declare on gang, Tren De Aragua, a terrorist organization after a meeting with her cabinet on Thursday.

"Their bloodthirsty nature and use of terror leads nations to consider their modus operandi and objectives as terrorist in nature," Elmer Schialer, Peru's foreign affairs minister, said during the meeting with Boluarte and other security advisors in the government palace.

From January to March, homicides rose by 100 year-on-year to 562. Murders and extortion against transit workers have also risen, with over a dozen killed this year.

"This has to stop! Sixteen drivers have been killed by hit men this year alone," Martin Valeriano, leader of a transit union in Lima, told reporters during the march.

On Tuesday, three public bus drivers were shot and one was killed in separate incidents by unknown gunmen on motorcycles, according to witnesses and the police.

The government declared a state of emergency in mid-March to deploy soldiers to help battle street violence after Paul Flores, a famous Cumbia musician, was killed when his tour bus was raked with gunfire by unknown assailants.

During the march to Congress, transit workers flanked by hundreds of police officers carried signs reading: "No more driver deaths" and "Justice for the dead drivers," among others. 

Police Chief of Staff General Oscar Arriola said the government has mobilized 13,000 police and military personnel in Lima and the neighboring province of Callao to provide security for people traveling to work.

Police have also provided 22 buses to help transport people around the capital.

Boluarte set up a "war room" in March with police, the military and her cabinet to deal with the crime wave, but she has drawn criticism from opposition parties and transit unions as crime continues to rise.

(Report by Marco Aquino and Reuters Television; Writing by Alexander Villegas; Editing by Richard Chang and Lincoln Feast.)