Peru's new president under fire for child sex comments

[Jim Burton]

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Balcazar was on Wednesday named Peru's interim leader, for a period of just over five months until the next election, after predecessor Jose Jeri was impeached on graft allegations.

He became the South American country's eighth president in a decade.

But Balcazar's nomination has angered rights and women's groups.

In 2023, he told a congressional debate about ending child marriage that "early sexual relations aid a woman’s psychological future."

Peru that year passed a legal reform to ban marriage for anyone under 18. Previously, teenagers could get married with their parents' consent.

The CNDDHH rights coalition expressed concern Thursday at the appointment "of an authority figure with a controversial public record and statements that justify sexual violence against girls."