COHA

On June 29, Radio Negro Primero, a community-based station in Venezuela, and affiliates, will examine the jailing and prosecution of Peru’s constitutional president, Pedro Castillo. The program, Battle of Ideas, hosted by William Camacaro (Senior Analyst for COHA) and Mary Dugarte (Venezuelan Journalist), will feature distinguished panelists: Roger Waters (renowned musician and human rights defender), Lilia Paredes de Castillo (wife of President Castillo), and Walter Ayala (constitutional lawyer and former Minister of Defense for President Pedro Castillo).

Pedro Castillo’s 2021 presidential victory marked a historic shift: a rural schoolteacher and union leader, propelled by Peru’s rural poor, Indigenous communities, and working-class voters, defeated Keiko Fujimori by just over 44,000 votes. Although he won by a narrow margin, his win nevertheless signaled a rupture with Lima’s political elite and a call for reform.

From the outset, his administration was besieged. A right-wing Congress, dominated by Fujimoristas, obstructed his agenda and launched three impeachment attempts in 18 months. Cabinet instability—dozens of ministerial changes in his first year—reflected both internal tensions and external obstructionism.

On December 7, 2022, facing imminent removal, Castillo announced the dissolution of Congress and called for new elections. Lacking institutional support, he was swiftly arrested and charged with rebellion, conspiracy, and abuse of authority. The stakes are high. Prosecutors are seeking a 34-year sentence. After his ouster, Dina Boluarte took office with right-wing backing, unleashing state violence against protesters—predominantly Indigenous and rural—that human rights groups have condemned as serious violations.

Critics argue Castillo’s case exemplifies the weaponization of legal tools to neutralize progressive leadership. For example, the vague constitutional clause of ‘moral incapacity’ was invoked during the impeachment process in lieu of a legitimate legal rationale. Moreover, his legal defenders maintain that his trial, now underway in a highly politicized climate, is marred by procedural irregularities and prolonged detention.

Castillo’s removal reveals the fragility of Peru’s democratic institutions when faced with demands for structural change. This episode also reflects a broader pattern in Latin America: the criminalization of leftist leaders who challenge entrenched power. Castillo’s plight is not just legal—it’s part of an ongoing struggle against oligarchic resistance to a politics of liberation.

Zoon Link: https://mailchi.mp/7dd44aa5e764/peru-pedro-castillo-a-kidnapped-president

Gyeonggi Provincial Government’s Sudden Cancellation Raises Concerns of Bias and Violation of Rights

An administrative decision by a South Korean government agency sparked international controversy, raising concerns about religious freedom.

On November 27, religious leaders and opinion leaders delivered a joint protest statement to the Government of the Republic of Korea condemning the cancellation of the venue rental on October 29th as an act of biased religious oppression through public power.

Signed by 402 organizations, 758 religious representatives, and 977 individuals across the globe, totalling 1,735 signatories, the statement emphasized the psychological and financial damage caused to the international participants and highlighted the need for accountability.

On October 30 the “Religious Leaders Forum and Graduation Ceremony,” a joint initiative by two prominent religious organizations, was set to take place in Paju, South Korea. The event was expected to draw over 30,000 participants from 78 countries, including 1,000 religious leaders representing Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism.

However, the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization (GTO), a public entity under Gyeonggi Province, abruptly canceled the venue rental at 11am on the morning of the event, when preparations were already underway.

This decision, made without prior notice, has resulted in significant financial damage to the international event and its organizers. As the first clause of Article 20 of the South Korean Constitution states: “All citizens shall enjoy freedom of religion”, they argue that the cancellation constitutes an unconstitutional act of discrimination against a specific religion, violating religious freedom, human rights, and due process of law and an act that divides the people and divides the country into two.

The Joint Protest Statement demands accountability for this situation and calls for an official apology from the Gyeonggi Provincial Government and the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization to both domestic and international religious organizations and the global community.

It also requires the government to take appropriate disciplinary actions against the officials responsible for handling this matter and to strengthen fair and transparent venue reservation procedures and preliminary consultation systems.

Over 88 global leaders including international law experts, religious leaders, education experts, heads of organizations, journalists from around the world sent official documents and protest letters to the Republic of Korea upon hearing the news of the cancellation of the event, expressing shock and disappointment at this administrative action and demanding prompt and appropriate measures.

In particular, international law experts from around the world, including those with experience as prime ministers, vice ministers of justice, chief justices of the Supreme Court, presidents of the Constitutional Court, lawyers, and professors of international law, pointed out that the cancellation of the event on this day was an act that violated the Constitution, and religious leaders expressed concern that it was a biased decision and an anti-peaceful act that infringed on religious freedom.

Since November 15, religious leaders and members of Shincheonji Church of Jesus have held rallies outside the Gyeonggi Provincial Office and Gyeonggi Tourism Organization, condemning the biased cancellation urging the government to address the issue and take measures to prevent recurrence.

Timeline of Events Leading to the Cancellation
● July 22: Notification of approval for the rental from 29th to 31st October by GTO.
● October 2: Full payment of the rental fee.
● October 16: A working-level meeting held to discuss the event’s size, arrangements,
safety plans, and special effects. The GTO reviewed all details and completed a
safety inspection. While Paju City was designated a danger zone due to potential
North Korean provocations, officials assured organizers that this designation would
not impact the event.
● October 23 & 28: Officials confirmed twice that ‘there are no plans to cancel the
rental’.
● October 28: A rally was hosted by ‘SUGICHONG’, a Christian council of capital area
of Korea urging the cancellation of a venue rental.
● October 29: At 11 o’clock on the day of the rental while the event was being set up,
the Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon unilaterally notified the
cancellation, citing security concerns related to recent North Korean actions and
activities by a North Korean defector group. Organizers allege that pressure from
opposing groups, including vested religious interests, influenced the decision.
● October 19-20, November 4: Notably, other events in the same area proceeded
without disruption.

See Also:

• Joint_Statement_of_Protest_to_the_Gyeonggi_Provincial_Governent part 1
• NewZealand.shincheonji.org/
• Facebook.com/nz.shincheonji/

COHA Editorial Board
Washington DC

The Council on Hemispheric Affairs (COHA) expresses its solidarity and heartfelt sympathy to the family and political partners in the struggle of attorney and activist, Kevin Zeese, who died suddenly early Sunday morning, September 6, 2020, at his home in Baltimore, Maryland.

COHA shared a commitment to the principles of non-intervention with Kevin Zeese, who opposed the unilateral coercive measures the US has imposed in violation of international law and which cause so much suffering for the peoples of Latin America. Kevin Zeese upheld these values in word and deed throughout his life.

For many years Kevin Zeese dedicated himself to building social movements in the United States to bring about positive change. He and his life partner, Dr. Margaret Flowers, were very active in 2011 in key groups (October2011 and Stop the Machine! Create a New World!) that joined forces with Occupy DC in the US capital. This movement opened a serious conversation about inequality in the United States that continues to this day. Kevin was active in the movement to support Chelsea Manning and indeed everyone’s right to information. He and Margaret also organized people to protest the Trump inauguration with civil disobedience actions in January of 2017, and Kevin was a leader in the anti-imperialist and anti-war movement in the United States, having helped organize conferences against NATO and serving as a leader of the US Peace Council and the United National Antiwar Coalition.

Kevin also understood the role of information in building social movements, as he and Margaret used their platform, Popular Resistance, to strengthen reporting from alternative media and social movements throughout the US and the world. In fact, Kevin was incredibly knowledgeable about people’s struggles around the planet and was often instrumental in helping other progressives sort through US hybrid warfare operations to get at the truth, usually through contacts with grassroots movements in different countries. Popular Resistance also hosts a Solidarity School in which activists learn about social transformation, furthering Kevin’s unflagging belief in the power of social movements to change our world.

Kevin Zeese was a legal advisor and one of the activists who defended the Embassy of Venezuela in Washington DC for several weeks in 2019, after the Trump administration violated diplomatic conventions by trying to hand the embassy over to self-appointed “authorities”, in violation of the United Nations Charter and several international treaties. Kevin and a collective of academics and professionals defended the legitimate government of President Nicolás Maduro and were not intimidated by the threat of fines or imprisonment. Their commitment led to a legal fight in US federal court where, after a months-long trial, federal charges supported by the Trump administration were finally dropped against the four Embassy Protectors.

In 2020 Kevin became the press secretary of the presidential campaign of Howie Hawkins, the Green Party candidate who believes in a platform of ecosocialism, the fight against inequality, opposing voter suppression, and reforming the current GOP-Democrat duopoly that leaves a large percentage of the U.S. people voiceless.

COHA expresses its profound solidarity with the family of Kevin Zeese, especially his wife and fellow activist, Dr. Margaret Flowers, whose ongoing commitment to the cause of social justice worldwide is a fitting tribute to this attorney who gave his all to the progressive and humanist ideals he believed in.