Particle.news

Download on the App Store

Culture Ministry Files Criminal Complaint Over Racist Abuse on Lima’s Metropolitano

Prosecutors received an Article 323 filing that could gauge Peru’s weak follow‑through on discrimination cases.

Overview

  • The Procuraduría of the Ministry of Culture lodged a complaint with the Fiscalía de la Nación naming Carmen Alejandra Argumedo Alegre over the September 22 incident on a Metropolitano bus.
  • The filing invokes Penal Code Article 323 on ethno‑racial discrimination, an offense punishable by up to three years in prison.
  • The complaint asks prosecutors to open an investigation into conduct recorded on an ATU‑administered service and widely shared on social media.
  • The Defensoría del Pueblo condemned the racist phrases and urged immediate prosecutorial action while calling on the ATU to reinforce anti‑racism awareness in public transport.
  • Officials highlighted chronic enforcement gaps—4,737 discrimination complaints nationwide from 2017–2022 but only 25 final convictions—and reminded the public of the Alerta contra el Racismo program and the free 1817 reporting line.