Peru's Castillo should not have been ousted, Mexican president says

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Tuesday the will of Peru's electorate should be respected and that Pedro Castillo should not have been removed as president of the South American country.

Castillo was ousted last week after lawmakers voted to remove him following his failed attempt to rule by decree and dissolve Congress to avoid a third impeachment vote. The Mexican president was speaking at a regular news conference after the governments of Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia and Argentina on Monday jointly called for the protection of Castillo's human and judicial rights.

Lopez Obrador, like Castillo, identifies as a leftist, and he told reporters that the ousted Peruvian leader had won democratically "and cannot be removed." The Mexican president said he would continue to regard Castillo as Peru's leader until the matter was legally resolved.

A judge in Peru ordered last week seven days of preliminary detention for Castillo while authorities investigate him for alleged rebellion and conspiracy.