Maria Elena Moyano, thirty-three years old in 1992, founded the Popular Federation of Women of Villa El Salvador (FEPOMUVES) when she was twenty-four and was its president for many years. She knew her ties to the left, her popularity as Villa's vice mayor, and feminist beliefs made her a prime Shining Path target. In one interview with the Lima daily La República, Moyano admitted that for many years she did not criticize the guerrillas publicly, even though she disagreed with their methods, because she thought they were committed to improving society. But, as guerrillas began to train their sights on her colleagues, she did speak out.
Moyano was the final speaker at a march on September 27, 1991, to protest Shining Path threats, and she gave a series of interviews to newspapers and magazines calling on the Shining Path to end its violent attacks. Convinced by her colleagues that her life was in danger, she left the country briefly in November. On her return, she asked for and was assigned two police bodyguards. At year's end, she was honored by La República as the Personality of the Year.
On February 14, 1992, Moyano was one of the few well-known public figures to protest publicly and energetically against the Shining Path armed strike called for that day. The next day, at a local barbecue to raise funds for a local women's committee, an assassination squad trapped her. Guerrillas seriously wounded one bodyguard, shot Moyano, and then destroyed her body with dynamite as Moyano's two sons and nephew watched.
The murder caused outrage and anger. Moreover, it marked a critical turning point in the attitude of independent organizations confronted by the Shining Path. No longer were women leaders in positions as vulnerable as Moyano's willing to risk attack. Instead they restricted their work, resigned or left the country. "[FEPOMUVES hasn't] met since her death, and we believe some of the newer leaders are not to be trusted," Alicia, a FEPOMUVES activist told Human Rights Watch in 1992.
Although Peru's internal civil war has cooled down in recent years, women continue to be targeted for attacks by both sides. President Fujimori has pledged to "drastically punish" soldiers and police officers who commitrape, but there have been no concrete steps to investigate allegations of rape in detention or punish members of the security forces who have committed rape. Human Rights Watch continues to receive reports of detainees raped by soldiers. To our knowledge, the pattern of impunity for uniformed rapists persists. In addition, the recent amnesty law insulates security officers from future investigations and prosecutions for past abuses.
Violations of women's basic rights by both sides routinely go unpunished, as do human rights abuses in Peru more generally. However, female victims of human rights abuse face an added obstacle, particularly with regard to the prosecution of rape. Courts require significant physical evidence of force and routinely accept evidence of women's alleged sexual history. Because military courts are secret, their conduct is unknown, but police and soldiers accused of rape and tried under the code of military justice are often acquitted. They are never made available to civilian courts for prosecution. The government should repeal the amnesty law and investigate both the previous rapes and the rapes that continue to occur. Moreover, as part of its efforts against the Shining Path, the government should take concrete steps to protect any female activist threatened by the guerrillas. And the Shining Path, which supports members who murder women as furthering its cause, cannot continue to do so. The Shining Path must instruct its members that violence against women is not tolerated by the leadership and punish any members that commit such acts.
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