Peru declared a state of emergency on the border with Chile, and announced that it would strengthen customs controls with the army in light of expectations of a wave of illegal immigrants, as well as to combat crime, according to a decree approved by the government on Friday (28).
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This measure was announced to counter the possible arrival of migrants who may leave Chile given the possible victory of far-right presidential candidate José Antonio Cast, who has promised to expel migrants in an irregular situation.
Dozens of people were detained, Friday (28), on the border between Chile and Peru, which is approximately 150 kilometers long, where the main crossing point is located between the Peruvian city of Tacna and the Chilean city of Arica.
A video posted by the governor of the Arica border region, about 2,200 kilometers north of Santiago, shows dozens of people trying to leave Chile through the Chacallota-Santa Rosa checkpoint.
The state of emergency will remain in effect for 60 days in the border areas of Palca, Tacna and La Yarda-Los Palos in the Tacna region (south).
The measure also aims to “address crime and other cases of violence,” according to the Peruvian decree.
The text adds: “The Peruvian National Police maintains control of internal order, with the support of the Armed Forces.”
Peruvian Interior Minister Vicente Tiburcio traveled to the border in Tacna, where he told the press that “the state of emergency will remain in effect for 60 days” starting on November 29.
The minister said that soldiers would be mobilized “immediately” at the Santa Rosa border point in Peru.
Chilean Security Minister Luis Cordero said on Friday that “there is a concentration of migrants who want to leave the country and are facing difficulties in entering Peru.”
Cordero did not specify the number of migrants gathered at the site.
The ultra-conservative Kast, who is the favorite to win the runoff scheduled for December 14 in Chile against leftist candidate Janet Jara, promised to expel 330,000 illegal immigrants, most of them Venezuelans, whom he links to the wave of insecurity.
Peru’s interim president, José Gehry, had predicted the decision on the social media network X.
“We are not considering declaring a state of emergency at the border with Chile to gain peace of mind in the face of the risk of unauthorized entry of migrants, which could threaten the security of citizens of our country,” Gehry wrote in X.
The state of emergency was approved at an extraordinary meeting of ministers held on Friday evening.
Peruvian Chancellor Hugo de Zella said that Lima and Santiago will discuss this issue starting Monday in a “bilateral committee for cooperation in the field of migration,” which was formed specifically to address the situation.
He stressed that “the state of emergency in Tacna will allow us to immediately increase the police and military presence in the region, especially in the border area.”
He also stressed that Peru will no longer receive illegal immigrants. Since 2015, more than 1.5 million Venezuelans have arrived in the country, fleeing a humanitarian and political crisis.
The head of Peruvian diplomacy declared, “We will not allow illegal immigration, and we do not have the conditions or capacity to receive more immigrants.”
This is not the first time that Peru has militarized the border with Chile. In April 2023, the region remained under a state of emergency for two months due to the influx of undocumented Venezuelan migrants.