The crisis of informality and its impact on politics and citizenship in Peru.

In a context where the new presidency of the Congressional Board was being defined, the country faced parallel realities that reflect the complexity of citizenship in an increasingly informal society. The tragedy of public transport bus accidents, which have claimed lives and left a trail of fear on the roads, is not an isolated event; rather, it is part of a broader web that involves informal mining and the deregulation of transport. This situation highlights how informal and illegal sectors impact political decisions and the everyday lives of citizens. A recent investigation by this newspaper has revealed that Eduardo Salhuana, the current president of the Board, has received visits from numerous informal mining organizations since early 2023. This influence has translated into the legislative agenda, underscoring a phenomenon that many prefer to overlook: the intersection of interests between formal politics and the informality surrounding it. In a country where five people die weekly in traffic accidents due to regulatory noncompliance, the question of safety and respect for the law becomes urgent and relevant. Public discourse regarding informality has been framed almost exclusively in economic terms. However, it is imperative to take a step further and consider how the relationship between the individual and the law is redefined in this context of growing informality. Danilo Martucelli's theory of the "desformal society" allows exploration of the complexity of a reality where norms are no longer absolute and where citizens' behavior becomes opportunistic, depending on circumstances and the social acceptance of their actions. The notion of relative citizenship emerges as a key concept to understand how democracy functions in contemporary Peru. Citizenship, far from being a fixed state, presents itself as a continuum where citizens oscillate between compliance with the law and transgression, depending on social pressure and the consequences their actions may entail. In this context, individualism becomes a survival strategy, where decisions are made based on a cost-benefit calculation, blurring the line between civic behavior and corruption. This transitory nature of individual action generates a moral ethic profoundly influenced by relativism. Citizens may, at one moment, accept corrupt practices and, at another, become defenders of legality. This ambiguity is reflected in political behavior, where support for certain legislators or participation in protests may be attributed more to personal interests than to a clear political ideology. It becomes evident that the idea of a republican citizen, committed to collective well-being, is in crisis. Critical analyses from intellectual elites often simplify this complexity, stigmatizing the actors involved and frequently demonizing informal practices. However, behind this condemnation lies a reality that is much more intricate. Pressure groups, including artisanal miners, use the same institutional channels as other political actors to articulate their demands, revealing a political landscape where the categories of "formal" and "informal" intertwine in an almost indistinguishable manner. The issue of informality in Peru is not limited to the economy. It extends to politics, where proposed reforms in various areas seem to clash against a wall of cultural and structural resistance. Reformist fetishism, which proposes superficial changes as the magical solution, ignores the reality of a citizenship that operates in a system where norms are elastic and their compliance is selective. In the face of this dynamic, the normalization of political apathy and the consolidation of general disaffection become concerning. The perception that voting is a choice between the "lesser evil" reflects a system that has lost its legitimacy in the eyes of many. With no solid parties or charismatic leaders to mobilize the masses, the electoral landscape is reduced to a collection of individualities, each dealing with its own uncertainty in a country struggling to find its way. Thus, relative citizenship becomes a distinguishing feature of contemporary Peruvian democracy. The lack of a common narrative to unite citizens, combined with social fragmentation and distrust in institutions, poses a monumental challenge. The solution does not simply lie in the implementation of reforms but in the need for profound reflection on how our relationship with law and politics has been constructed in a context where informality seems to have come to stay. The history of informality in Peru is ultimately a reflection on the identity and future of a nation in constant transformation.