Tourist Destination Shut Down After Anti-Government Protests

(PatrioticPost.com)- Machu Picchu has been shut down to visitors after anti-government protests continue to rage on in Peru, according to The Daily Caller. The protests have reportedly left 50 dead since socialist President Pedro Castillo was removed from office.

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The popular tourist attraction has been shut down indefinitely last week after the city experienced damage, according to the country’s Ministry of Culture. 400 people, and at least 300 foreigners, are stranded at the site near the town of Aguas Calientes in the Inca citadel.

Demonstrators have been demanding the resignation of Peruvian President Dina Boluarte since early December, according to AFP. The government has responded to areas hit by violence by imposing a state of emergency. Rail services have also been suspended after demonstrators damaged the track.

“The closure of the Inca trails network and the Machu Picchu citadel has been ordered due to the social situation and to preserve the safety of visitors,” the Ministry of Culture said in a statement.

One Chilean tourist expressed concern that there will be no train to pick them up.

Tourism Minister Luis Fernando Helguero says that tourists cannot leave because the “railway has been damaged in different places.” He added that some tourists have opted for a six-hour walk to Piscacucho, the closest village to Machu Picchu. But he noted that few people can make the journey.

The state of emergency now reportedly covers close to one-third of the country as left-wing demonstrators are trying to sustain the pressure on the government and demand new elections.

Boluarte has remained steadfast and refused to step down. Castillo, who was president for nearly a year and a half, was impeached and removed from office after he reportedly tried to dissolve Congress and form a new provisional government to re-write the country’s constitution, according to The Daily Caller.