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| Tirade: Alberto Fujimori screamed at judges Monday during Day 1 of his trials in Lima, Peru. Francisco Medina/Reuters |
Fujimori outburst sets tone for Peru human rights trials
Peru's former leader let loose a tirade as his human rights and corruption trials began Monday.
from the December 12, 2007 edition
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Opponents do not deny these successes, but say they came with a high cost to the country's democracy.
When Congress balked at economic and legal changes, Fujimori simply closed it and the judiciary in April 1992, originally trying to govern alone with the Army and intelligence service. When that was not possible, he had a new Constitution written. The main change, foreshadowing a current trend in the region, allowed for immediate presidential reelection.
Fujimori ran and won again in 1995, and reinterpreted his own Constitution to allow for a third bid in 2000. He also won that contest, although later evidence would show that massive voter fraud committed throughout the electoral cycle helped him.
His third term only lasted four months. He fled Peru in November 2000, escaping a massive corruption scandal that would land his closest collaborators, including former Army chief Gen. Nicolas Hermoza and security adviser Vladimiro Montesinos, in prison.
Fujimori spent five years in Japan, his parents' homeland, but flew secretly to Chile in 2005, with the alleged intention of returning home in time for elections the following year. He never made it. Chilean authorities arrested him and the country's Supreme Court approved this past September seven of the 12 extradition requests filed against him.
Fujimori's supporters are confident that he will be exonerated and make a comeback for the 2011 elections.
Supporters confident
"Today was an opportunity to the president to set the record straight. He is the man responsible for Peru's good fortune. Peruvians are going to see through this charade. They are the real judges here and the verdict will be in our favor," says Rep. Carlos Raffo.
Recent trials of former collaborators, however, are not promising. Ten of Fujimori's former cabinet members were found guilty in late November of violating the Constitution because of their support for the 1992 move that closed Congress. Nine received suspended sentences, while one was given a 10-year sentence.
Even more damaging, his former security adviser and right-hand man, Mr. Montesinos, testified last week that he did not make any decisions on his own, always taking orders from Fujimori. That trial was about election fraud in 2000, but Montesinos, already found guilty in more than 20 cases from the Fujimori era, will also be one of the principal witnesses in the trial of his former boss.
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