Peru Wants Its Army to Fight Gangs. It Does Not Have the Law Yet
Peru · SECURITY
Key Facts
- —What happened Peru’s government wants criminal gangs reclassified as hostile groups so the army can fight them directly.
- —How big a jump The category exists in a 2010 law used until now only for terrorist organisations, not gangs.
- —The catch No bill, decree or published text exists yet in the official gazette, so it is still only a plan.
- —The real story Most fear is over extortion rackets, which likely fail the law’s test of engaging the armed forces in hostilities.
- —Who it touches Transport unions call a stoppage in Lima and Callao for 25 August over extortion and fuel prices.
- —What comes next Congress must still grant delegated powers to legislate, and any new definition must appear in El Peruano.
Peru is proposing to treat criminal gangs the way it once treated Shining Path. The legal fit is the problem.
Peru’s government wants criminal gangs reclassified as hostile groups, so the armed forces can fight them directly. It has not happened yet.
What Is Actually Being Proposed
The government says it will ask Congress for special powers to write laws itself. With them, it would let criminal gangs be declared hostile groups.
Defence Minister Rafael Belaúnde Llosa announced the request. The reporting is dated 20 August 2026.
That is a request for permission to legislate. It is not a bill that has passed, and it is not a decree in force.
Nothing has appeared yet in El Peruano, the official government gazette. So this is still a plan, not a change in the law.
What a Hostile Group Means in Peruvian Law
The category already exists. It sits in Decreto Legislativo 1095, which governs when the armed forces may use force.
Until now it has applied to terrorist organisations. Declaring a group hostile moves the encounter closer to the rules of armed conflict than to policing.
A retired police general who once led the anti-terrorism directorate set out the three tests. The group must be organised and hold weapons able to take on state forces. It must also engage in hostilities against the military or police.
That is a high bar, and it was written with an insurgency in mind.
The practical difference is the use of lethal force. Soldiers operating under those rules are not policing a crime scene.
Why the Fit Is Doubtful
Most of what Peruvians are actually frightened of is extortion. Gangs demand payments from bus operators, shopkeepers and builders.
An extortion racket is organised, which satisfies the first test. Whether it holds weapons capable of confronting the armed forces is a different question.
Whether it engages in hostilities against the military is more doubtful still. Extortionists avoid the state rather than fight it.
On the criteria as written, a lot of Peru’s criminal economy would not qualify as hostile groups.
That gap between the problem and the tool is the main criticism of the plan.
The Bukele Comparison
Commentators have called this a Bukele-style step, after El Salvador’s president. That framing is partly the government’s own.
President Keiko Fujimori has referred to Bukele’s plan more than once when discussing her request for powers against crime. She has spoken of firm measures inspired by him.
The legal instrument itself is not called a Bukele plan. The label belongs to the politics rather than to the statute.
El Salvador’s model rests on mass detention under a suspended constitutional regime. Peru is proposing something narrower and differently constructed.
What Else Is in the Package
The proposal is broader than the hostile groups question. The armed forces would take over perimeter security at several major prisons.
Named facilities include Ancón I, Lurigancho, Challapalca, El Milagro in Trujillo, Cerro de Pasco and Sarita Colonia in Callao.
Border control is the other element. Soldiers would also police crossings, with an emphasis on organised crime operating near the frontiers.
These are deployments, not legal reclassifications. They do not need the same delegated powers.
Transport Workers Are Striking on 25 August
The second half of this story is on the road. Urban transport associations have called a stoppage for Tuesday 25 August.
The scope is Lima and Callao rather than the whole country. ANITRA, one of the associations, says more than 15,000 vehicles will stop.
A stoppage across the whole country would depend on how talks with the government go.
The demands are about extortion and fuel prices. Drivers say they are being killed and taxed by gangs on their own routes.
The Number Behind the Anger
A transport leader has put attacks on transport workers at 113 so far in 2026, against 107 in the whole of 2025. He attributes the count to the public prosecutor’s office.
That is already above last year’s total, with four months of 2026 still to run.
What This Means for Visitors and Residents
For anyone in Lima on 25 August, expect reduced bus and combi service and heavier traffic on the routes still running.
The Metropolitano and the metro are operated separately and are usually less affected. Check before travelling rather than assuming.
The wider security debate matters more over time. Soldiers on the streets change how a city feels long before they change a crime statistic.
Nothing in the proposal affects visa rules, residency or business registration. This is a policing question, not a migration one.
What to Watch
The first marker is whether the request for delegated powers is actually sent to Congress, and in what terms.
The second is whether Congress grants them. Delegated powers are routinely narrowed in the process.
The third is the text itself, published in El Peruano. Until then the definition of hostile groups is unchanged.
The fourth is 25 August, which will show how much support the transport associations really have.
More: Peru news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Has Peru classified gangs as hostile groups?
No. The government has said it will ask Congress for delegated powers to change the law. No bill, decree or published text exists yet.
What is a hostile group in Peruvian law?
A category in Decreto Legislativo 1095, a 2010 law used until now for terrorist groups. The group must be organised, hold weapons able to take on state forces, and fight the military or police.
Would street gangs meet that test?
On the criteria as written, many would not. Extortion rackets generally avoid confronting the armed forces rather than engaging them.
When is the transport strike?
Tuesday 25 August 2026, in Lima and Callao. The association ANITRA says more than 15,000 vehicles will stop. A stoppage across the whole country would depend on talks with the government.
Where does the figure of 113 attacks come from?
A transport leader gave the figure, citing the public prosecutor’s office. The comparison is with 107 attacks in all of 2025.
Connected Coverage
Peru rolls out a fuel subsidy of up to 20% to calm transport strikes
Sources
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief