Into the Quagmire: Human Rights and U.S. Policy in Peru

The government of President Alberto Fujimori has been seriously challenged by insurgent threat from Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) and the Movimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru (MRTA); both groups having been responsible for civilian casualties and other gross violations of the laws of war. However, Fujimori and his aides appear incapable and often unwilling to put a stop to abuses by armed state agents, whose violent conduct is defended by the government as an acceptable response to the insurgency. In twelve years of conflict, not a single military officer has been convicted and sanctioned for human rights abuses in the emergency zones. In fact, some military officers responsible for such violations have been promoted by Fujimori. In this report, Americas Watch recommends that no U.S. security assistance be granted to Peru as a part of the anti-narcotics program until the human rights situation improves dramatically.