Peruvians block highway over new vaccine mandates

A group of protestors blocked a portion of Peru’s Pan-American Highway, decrying the implementation of a government mandated vaccine passport in what might be South America's first anti-vax protest.

Setting fire to tires and blocking the road with debris, the protestors voiced outrage that they were unable to work because they had not yet received the COVID-19 jab and indicated that they refused to be vaccinated against their will.

As the protests raged, "The COVID-19 virus does not exist,” and “it’s all made up,” could be heard shouted by the unmasked crowds.

Earlier this month, the Peruvian government announced that a vaccination passport order would go into effect on Dec. 10 – requiring that people be fully vaccinated before entering public spaces – including places of work.

Employers who do not enforce the measure face fines and can be subject to other penalties.

According to Minister of Health Hernando Cevallos Flores, 1,759,346 individuals were vaccinated between Dec. 6 and Dec. 12 – presumably in response to the new vaccine passport rule. 

Peru witnessed similar protests two weeks ago when workers from the agriculture-export industry blocked the Pan-American Highway after employers demanded employees show their vaccination cards before clocking into work. Unvaccinated workers were turned away, missing out on a day of paid labor.

Such protests are rare in Peru – and Latin America – where individuals are generally respectful of mask mandates and popular vaccination campaigns have been well received among the population.

Although the vaccine roll-out was slow and fraught with logistical delays, 60.78 percent of Peruvians are currently fully vaccinated. In the United States, that number stands at 61.1 percent.