“Her government began with blood and remains unpunished”: Cardinal Pedro Barretto criticizes Dina Baluarte’s two years in power

Two years after Dina Baluarte took office as President of the Republic, Cardinal Pedro Barretto confirmed that the beginning of her government was “marked by blood, blood that remains unpunished.”

In an interview with RPP, the former archbishop Huancayo also said that the killings during the protests against the president “is something that should make us think, unite with all Peruvians, so that the life of a brother or sister” of Peru, here in our territory, will be brutal get by.”

Barretto, on the other hand, said that although he tried in vain to help former president Pedro Castillo through the National Accord, he assured that “it is worth it.”

“His invitation to go to the Palace, logically, it was a way of saying that there is rapprochement. It was obvious, but (…) I clearly told him that the National Agreement is the way to move forward, because the National Agreement has six very clear points of support for moving forward. (…) I told the president that he could go and we met with Max Hernández (Secretary of the Agreement) and Oscar Maurois, who was already a former minister of Pedro Castillo, to help,” he said.

He also noted that he met with the ex-head of the state, who has now been released, because he sought “the good of the country at any cost.”

“I at least wanted to help him, but later I realized that the corruption was very evident and I publicly said (…) that Pedro Castillo was an obstacle to democracy,” he said.

At another moment of the dialogue, the cardinal noted that similar to the crisis of confidence in Peruvian politics, the same thing is happening in other countries of the world.

“We are talking about the political problem in France, we are talking about Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, that is, the world is in turmoil, and this is nothing new, St. John 23, at the beginning of the Second Vatican Council, said that the situation is very difficult and the church must unite to respond to these great challenges,” he explained.

In this sense, he noted that Peruvian politics should be evangelized. “Politics seeks the common good. We are all politicians, including cardinals. We are all politicians because we are interested in the common good of the city, and we cannot, from our faith, free ourselves from this criticism, help ensure that democracy is real, that it represents the will of the people,” he stressed.

Archbishop A Lima, Carlos Castillowas named a cardinal Pope Francis in a solemn atmosphere of St The Vatican.

This event, which took place in St. Peter’s Cathedralmarks a milestone in the history of Peruvian Catholic Churchas Castillo becomes the country’s sixth cardinal. During the Public Consistory, he received a red hat and a cardinal’s ring, symbols of his new responsibility in the Church.

At the age of 74, he joins a select group of Peruvian cardinals, including such distinguished figures as Pedro Barrettoformer archbishop-emeritus of Huancayoin Juan Luis Cipriani.

The ceremony coincided with the opening of the cathedral in Mother of Godand gathered 21 prelates from different continents. When entering the village College of CardinalsCastillo takes on the role of adviser to the Pope, a position that means being a trusted person in making important decisions for the Church.

In addition, he will have a decisive role in the election of the new Pope. If the current supreme pontiff retires or dies before Castillo turns 80, he will be able to participate in a conclave to choose his successor.