Peru / virus: postponement of the reopening of Machu Picchu

The Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, the main tourist site in Peru, will not open on July 1 as the government had announced, local press reported Sunday, citing local authorities. The reopening of the site is delayed because of delays in the implementation of health security measures and the fear of the surrounding populations of a contagion of the new coronavirus, specifies the press.

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The Machu Picchu Management Unit (UGM) made this decision on the basis of reports from the authorities of the Cusco region, where Machu Picchu is located. "It will not open on July 1," said the mayor of the Machu Picchu district, UGM member Darwin Baca, quoted by the media. He said that a number of equipment, such as the tests, was still not available.

The regional governor of Cusco, Jean Paul Benavente, said that the Peruvian government still had to approve certain reopening protocols. "There is no official date for the reopening of Machu Picchu," said the governor.

Although living on tourism, the village of Machu Picchu is opposed to the reopening of the site, for fear of contagion in an area where few cases are currently reported. Machu Picchu guides had indicated their intention to start demonstrations against the reopening on Monday. "We are at increased risk of infection (...) we are not ready to receive visitors," said Oscar Valencia, president of the Machu Picchu Defense Front, quoted by the newspaper El Comercio.

The Peruvian government announced last week its intention to reopen the site in July, limiting the number of visitors to 675 per day.