Emergency Bulletins from the International Emergency Committee to Defend the Life of Dr. Abimael Guzmán

Emergency Bulletin #57 (January 1996)

INDEX

• LIMA SUPREME COURT PRESSES FOR RETRIAL OF DR Guzmán
• U.S. ACTIVIST TO SERVE LIFE SENTENCE FOR "TERRORISM" IN PERU
• PERUVIAN ACTIVISTS DENIED ASYLUM IN SWEDEN
• U.S. NAVY'S ISLAND BASE IS DRUG SMUGGLING POINT
• NEWS OF THE IEC CAMPAIGN (Mexico, Venezuela, Greece, Holland, Germany, Denmark, and Turkey)
• NEWS ABOUT PERU
  • "FACELESS JUDGE" TRIALS EXTENDED FOR A YEAR
  • HALF OF PERU'S SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN MALNOURISHED
  • 9-MONTH BALANCE OF PAYMENTS DEFICIT $59 MILLION
  • PERU JOINS BRADY PLAN
  • PERU GENERALS CHARGED WITH DRUG-TRAFFICKING
  • PEASANTS REPORT COCA-EATING BUTTERFLIES
  • PEASANTS SEE FEW OPTIONS AS COCA PRICES FALL
• NEWS ABOUT PEOPLE'S WAR

LIMA SUPREME COURT PRESSES FOR RETRIAL OF DR. Guzmán

On October 26, Alexandro Rodriguez, the head of the Lima Supreme Court, announced that the Court would be forming special civil tribunals made up of "anonymous judges" to re-try Dr. Guzmán due to "irregularities in the original trial." The Court's announced intention is to try Dr. Guzmán for a variety of charges, including "terrorism, murder, assault, and serious damage to private property." It was also announced that, for security reasons, the trial would be held inside the Callao Navel Base itself. Rodriguez went on to say that similar proceedings would be organized for 650 other cases of political prisoners originally tried in military courts. One of the specific complaints of the Lima Supreme Court was that the original trials of Dr. Guzmán and the other political prisoners were held under military jurisdiction, and should have been held in the civil courts themselves.

This announcement gave rise to an immediate flurry of infighting within Peruvian ruling circles. Fujimori himself appeared before the press the next day and stated that "I'm going to give the order to disallow any trial, whether in civil court or in the Callao Naval Base. The government is committed to that. Guzmán has already been condemned and will stay in prison for the rest of his life. I soundly reject, and will ignore, the Supreme Court's decision." This is Fujimori's view not only regarding any new trial for Dr. Guzmán, but also for all the other 650 cases the Supreme Court announced that it would re-try. Within a few days, Rodriguez had been called before the Judicial Authorities Executive Committee, where a motion to censure him was dropped at the last moment. The Lima press commented that tremendous pressure had been placed on Rodriguez, who was said to be in danger of losing his post.

For more than three years, the IEC campaign has been exposing the trial of Dr. Guzmán and the thousands of other Peruvian political prisoners for being a farce that failed to comply with even the most minimum international legal standards or with Peru's own commitments agreed in international conventions. Six successive international delegations of lawyers, doctors, human rights activists and others have taken this message to Peru. And every single time the delegations have been attacked, mocked and hounded by the authorities there, and the message completely rejected. The Lima Supreme Court itself has repeatedly refused to allow Dr. Guzmán's international lawyers to visit their client. Thus the admission by the Supreme Court that Dr. Guzmán's trial was marked by "irregularities" is a belated admission to the internationally accepted fact that the trial of Dr. Guzmán must be regarded as "null and void."

However, the acknowledgment by Lima's high court of the "irregularities" in Dr. Guzmán's trial and of the need for a new trial has not been made with the intent of freeing him; on the contrary, it is clear that the Court's plans are intended to be a means of carrying out a new round of attacks on Dr. Guzmán and the People's War in Peru. Implicit in the Court's reasoning is the view that the way the original military trial was conducted did not really go after Dr. Guzmán strongly enough and did not make sufficient use of that opportunity to hit back at the People's War. It seems that the Lima Court would like to hold more of a "show trial." There has been talk of having a large number of witnesses, undoubtedly drawn from Peru's elite, testify as to the harm done them by the People's War. After all, one newspaper said, the PCP has represented the most dangerous "terrorist threat" in the world! This kind of show trial, especially carried out in today's situation where the death penalty has once again been reinstated in Peru, could well pose new dangers to the life of Dr. Guzmán.

At the same time, the Lima Court's plan would also run certain risks for the regime. Not least of these is: how could the regime put on a new trial on the grounds that the previous trial was unjust without accepting a defense role for the international lawyers and the IEC, which has mobilized millions worldwide to denounce the trial and prominently brought this pressure to bear within Peru itself? Indeed, any such development would require the IEC to mobilize quickly to try to use the change in the situation to break the isolation of Dr. Guzmán and thwart the goals of the new trial. This concern is undoubtedly one of the reasons why Fujimori has so far slammed the door on the plans of the Lima Court and brought Rodriguez himself under attack.

For the moment, it seems that Fujimori has the upper hand in this fight. However, all the various factors behind this struggle are not clear, and it is not impossible that there could be quick developments in this situation which would require the IEC to take immediate action. We call on our readers and supporters to remain vigilant and be prepared to act quickly to intervene in various ways should the Lima Supreme Court's plans be implemented.

U.S. ACTIVIST TO SERVE LIFE SENTENCE FOR "TERRORISM" IN PERU

Former member of Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), Lori Berenson, was arrested on Thursday, November 30th in Lima, Peru. Berenson, 26, of New York City, was charged with being a leader of Peru's pro-Cuban Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA). She has since been sentenced to life imprisonment by a "faceless" military judge. Berenson, paraded before reporters on January 8th at anti-terrorist police headquarters, did not respond to questions shouted by reporters, instead giving her own statement. "I am being condemned for worrying about the hunger and misery that exists in this country," she said. "There is an institutionalized violence that has killed the best sons of the people and have condemned the children to die of hunger." "If it is a crime to worry about the subhuman conditions in which the majority in this country live, then I'd accept my sentence."

Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, after reviewing the proceedings, stated "The military courts of Peru violated every principle of due process of law. They are not concerned with truth, or justice, but are instrument of repression." Their proceedings are secret. Prosecutors and judges wear masks and are anonymous and 'faceless'. The accused are terrorized, presumed guilty, forced to testify, not informed of the charges against them, not able to meaningfully cross examine witnesses against them, and not empowered to summon witnesses or produce evidence for their defense. There is no real trial at all, much less a fair trial. The military tribunals are simply war by other means. They convict whoever they choose to convict."

The Committee to Support the Revolution in Peru stated "our committee opposes any and all attacks by he Fujimori regime against people who stand with the struggle of the Peruvian people." Heriberto Ocasio, CSRP national spokesperson who is also a member of the IEC steering committee said "it is absolutely right for North Americans to stand with the struggle of the Peruvian people against a fascist government that has the 100% backing of the U.S. government."

PERUVIAN ACTIVISTS DENIED ASYLUM IN SWEDEN

The Swedish government has rejected five out of six asylum requests from Peruvian supporters of the Shining Path and MRTA, granting one request on humanitarian grounds, officials said. All six men sought asylum on grounds that their life would be in danger in Peru.

Immigration authorities denied the requests because "People who have been active in organizations that work with terror, violence, and torture as methods are not entitled to asylum in Sweden," according to Swedish Immigration Minister Leif Blomberg. [Agence France Presse. October 12, 1995]

The Swedish authorities are establishing a notoriously reactionary record in dealing with immigrants -- especially Peruvian activists. The last known case of an activist deported to Peru was that of an IEC supporter who was immediately arrested upon arriving in the airport. He was subsequently imprisoned and tortured. In their zeal to assist propping up the Fujimori regime, Swedish authorities are deporting activists back to a country with a well-known record of torture, massacre, genocide and oppression. And this is done hypocritically under the guise of non-approval of "torture, terror, and violence."

Sweden to expel Peruvian baby with "unfit" mother. On October 11, 1995, Reuters filed the following report: "Swedish immigration authorities have decided to expel a one-year-old Peruvian baby with her mother" who has not been able to care for her. "The decision, upheld in a review of the case Tuesday, has been so unpopular that" even "the police and welfare authorities have refused to assist in carrying out the expulsion to Peru." The child has been in state care since shortly after her birth because her mother was not able to care for the baby herself. The authorities announcing the decision failed to reveal which "terror organization" the baby belonged to!

U.S. NAVY'S ISLAND BASE IS DRUG SMUGGLING POINT

The Washington Post reported on November 1st, that a $10 million cocaine shipment was seized in the sands of the U.S. Naval Station in Vieques, Puerto Rico. Vieques, a small island off the commonwealth's eastern coast dominated by the Naval facility, has a population of 9000 and is a "protectorate" of the U.S. military. The Navy occupies two-thirds of Vieques's 33,000 acres, and the facility, part of the U.S. Naval Station Roosevelt Roads, is used to stockpile bombs and munitions and for military exercises. A 60-year-old security guard who discovered the shipment was severely tortured by unidentified assailants, and all of the base security guards, working for a private contractor, are being bombarded with a series of menacing phone calls because they caused the seizure of 728 kilos of cocaine. Lt. Comdr. Ed Barker, the base public affairs officer, said the Navy is investigating whether base personnel are involved with traffickers! The Navy is installing a $9 million radar system in Vieques and the town of Lajas in southwest Puerto Rico to peer deep into Peru and gather intelligence. Every so often, fishermen find bales of marijuana floating off the jigsaw-shaped shorelines, locals say. Police have discovered discarded sacks used for packaging cocaine at Red Beach and Blue Beach, both of which belong to the Navy. "The fact that there's major drug smuggling going on [in Vieques] shouldn't be news to anybody," said Jeffrey P. Morrow, resident agent in charge for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. He claimed the Navy "wouldn't tolerate the use of government property for the shipment of drugs." Jeff Shed, a Miami-based DEA spokesman, told the San Juan Star, "The drugs are dropped by air, landed on clandestine landing strips, even brought in on container ships hidden among legitimate cargo." The DEA agent, however, failed to clarify who else but the U.S. Navy could maintain and operate a clandestine landing strip in the base.

NEWS OF THE IEC CAMPAIGN

Mexico: In the morning of September 12 a delegation of individuals entered the Peruvian embassy in Mexico City to deliver a 3-page protest letter that was signed by nine prominent lawyers, human-rights activists, and others. The IEC delegation met a representative of the Fujimori regime who at first tried to portray the delegation as misinformed. But the delegates insisted that the embassy official must explain why Dr. Guzmán continues to be held in isolation. "Dr. Guzmán's case is an exception, he doesn't have any rights," responded the official in an attempt to explain the regime's trampling on their own laws and international treaties. When confronted with specific facts about certain prisoners, the embassy official admitted the use of torture and pretended to be sorry. Meanwhile, outside the embassy a group of activists from the Committee to Support the Revolution in Peru were chanting denunciations of the regime's atrocities against Dr. Guzmán and the Peruvian people, and aired their support for the continuation of the People's War. The September 24, 1992, speech of Dr. Guzmán was reenacted several times. The IEC delegation and the demonstrators then moved to the premises of La Jornada, the major daily newspaper, where a prominent human-rights activist went in to give a copy of the protest letter to the editor. Outside, the demonstrators halted traffic while handing out hundreds of IEC flyers and other leaflets.

On September 23, a successful joint meeting was held by the IEC-Mexico and CAGPP. A large portion of the people attending were workers from the Tabasco state.

Brazil: The Brazilian journal "Critica Marxista" published an editorial note in its November issue under the heading "In Defense of the Life of Dr. Abimael Guzmán." In the public notice the editors raised their "concern about serious threats cast on the life of political leader Abimael Guzmán" by "the bloody and belligerent Peruvian dictatorial regime" and announced the Editorial Board's decision to join the international campaign. The IEC Coordinating Committee welcomes the decision and look forward to closer cooperation with the editorial board of "Critica Marxista." There is a clear need and now more desire to inform the Brazilian people about the international campaign and the situation in Peru.

Venezuela: The monthly bulletin "REVOLUTIONARY REBELLION," published in Caracas since December, 1994, is regularly informing its readers of developments in the campaign and has reprinted several IEC leaflets and articles.

Greece: A successful meeting was organized in late October at the National Technical University of Athens in defense of the life of Dr. Guzmán. Speakers put forward their analysis of the treatment of political prisoners and the current counterinsurgency tactics, and lively discussion followed. A number of Greek publications including Prin and A/synechia, continue to inform their readers about Peru and Dr. Guzmán. In its recent series of articles on Peru, The Prin printed the entire interview with Rev. Yasutake, while A/synechia continued its ongoing coverage with a tear-out page of a Greek/Spanish protest letter to Fujimori. IEC supporters and activists have contacted a wide spectrum of people, raising their awareness of the situation in Peru, and collecting signatures and financial contributions for the IEC. Among hundreds of recent signatories to the IEC Call is Mikis Theodorakis, the well-known Greek composer and former deputy in parliament who had composed Canto Heneral of Pablo Neruda.

Holland: The Committee in Solidarity with the People of Peru (SCPP) sent a letter to Fujimori strongly protesting the treatment of Dr. Guzmán, other political prisoners and their lawyers. In the letter, Fujimori is reminded that his hooded judges "trials" are reminiscent of the old Spanish Inquisition and that solitary confinement is a cruel form of torture. Citing the May 21, 1995, comments by Fujimori to Brazilian newspaper O Globo, the committee states that "this is a threat to kill Dr. Guzmán" and a plan for "premeditated murder." The letter ends with demanding an immediate end to Dr. Guzmán's isolation as a step toward complying with international conventions. Identical letters were also sent to U.S. and Peruvian embassy in Holland.

The Iranian Students Association in the Netherlands has added its voice to the campaign by signing the IEC call.

Germany: In Frankfurt, on October 27, activists took an 8-meter-long banner with IEC slogans (in German, Farsi, Turkish, English) to the Frankfurt University student union. Hundreds of leaflets were distributed and speakers used a megaphone to address the students in four languages. Lively discussions were held and a large number of students signed a petition in support of Dr. Guzmán. The IEC video "You Must Tell The World" was shown in the cafeteria where a number of students watched with interest.

Turkey: On October 15, prisoners from Buja prison in Izmir sent a message to IEC in response to the Coordinating Committee's message. The prisoners reaffirmed their support for Dr. Guzmán, the struggle in Peru, and the IEC campaign. Both messages were published in a number of newspapers, including Ozgur Politica.

Denmark: The Emergency Committee in Copenhagen carried a concentrated effort to popularize the IEC campaign in schools, universities, workplaces, and among labor unions throughout summer and fall. As part of this effort and marking the third anniversary of Dr. Guzmán's historic cage speech, the Committee held a well attended meeting on September 14. But the efforts of the activists also raised alarm in some reactionary headquarters, where people became worried about what they called "Shining Path activities" in Denmark. A reporter of the Danish Radio called the person in charge of public facilities of the commune where the meeting was held, and interviewed him live in an apparent and unsuccessful bid to restrict the IEC activists' use of the facilities. The stakes were raised higher when one of the most reactionary parliamentary parties present in the council proposed that groups like the IEC should not be allowed to receive support from the council by the use of its facilities. Local papers raised the heat further by publishing interviews with leaders of the party under the heading "Shining Path in the Lurskovsgade - Fremskridspartiet hunts terror movement in Vesterbro Kulturhus." Confronted with these pressures, the activists redoubled their efforts and have gained even more support among the people.

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NEWS ABOUT PERU

"FACELESS JUDGE" TRIALS EXTENDED FOR A YEAR

Peru's Congress, October 6, 1995, extended for a year the use of "faceless" anonymous judges to try guerrilla suspects despite complaints the tribunals have convicted hundreds of innocent Peruvians. Congressman Daniel Espichan of Fujimori's Change 90-New Majority party said the extension was necessary because "nobody has said the war against terrorism is over." The "faceless judge" trials started with Dr. Guzmán in September, 1992, and since then, some 4,000 have been convicted and sentenced.

HALF OF PERU'S SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN MALNOURISHED

LIMA, October 17, 1995 (Reuters) - Nearly half of school-age children in Peru are chronically malnourished despite the... economic "miracle" a nutrition expert said. Mario Benavente, head of the private College of Nutritionists, said... malnutrition was worst in rural areas, with the highest level of 78 percent in the... jungle province of Atalaya. The national average was 48 percent. "The problem of our country is a hidden hunger, which has been there for many years and continues at really worrying levels." Benavente said. Half of Peru's 23 million people still live in poverty and more than two-thirds of the workforce is either unemployed or underemployed, according to official figures.

9-MONTH BALANCE OF PAYMENTS DEFICIT $59 MILLION

Peru's balance of payments showed a deficit of $59 million in the first nine months of 1995, compared with a $2.178 billion surplus in the same period of 1994, the Central Bank said. The current account deficit grew to $2.676 billion in the January-September period from a $1.317 billion gap posted in the same period last year, the bank said in its weekly report. The trade deficit widened to $1.629 billion in the nine-month period, compared with a $622 million gap in the period last year, it said. Exports reached $4.141 billion and imports hit $5.769 billion in the period compared with $3.335 billion in exports and $3.957 billion of imports in January-September last year. The deficit in services rose in the first three quarters to $618 million from $382 million in the same period last year. Current transfers reached $308 million in the period versus $368 million in the 1994's first nine months, the bank said. The financial and capital account posted a surplus of $2.617 million, down from $3.495 billion in January-September 1994, it said. The public sector was $111 million in the read compared with a $390 million deficit in the same period last year. The private sector posted a surplus of $1.184 billion compared with a $2.638 billion surplus in the period last year, it said. [Reuters 28 Nov. 95].

PERU JOINS BRADY PLAN

Fujimori announced this during his closing address to a conference organized by the Economist in Lima. Peruvian lawmaker Andres Reggiardo said the arrangement Peru reached within the Brady Plan "offers more expeditious solutions to our problems and a higher rating among foreign creditors and investors." Under the 'Brady deal,' some $4.4 billion of Peru's unpaid debt will be converted into bonds with annual debt service payments of $300 million.

The finance minister, Mr. Camet, in London to meet potential investors, said the government could service the Brady bonds - named after former US Treasury secretary Mr. Nicholas Brady - without raising borrowing. He said tax revenues will be the source of finance to service the bonds because he expected it to rise to 20 percent of GDP. Tax receipts now total 14 percent of GDP, up from 4 percent in 1990. The agreement reached with the steering committee of creditor banks is just the start. "Without the Brady Plan there could be no agreement with the IMF, and without the backing of the IMF Peru could not negotiate with the Paris Club" Fujimori said. Fujimori emphasized, however, that his administration feels "this is not the right time" to tell Congress and the citizenry all the details of the agreement because "a few years" will be necessary to think the issue through! [Source: EFE news agency, Madrid, October 28, 1995, and Financial Times, London, November 21, 1995]

PERU GENERALS CHARGED WITH DRUG-TRAFFICKING

Twelve army officers, including two generals, were arrested for drug-trafficking offenses, Peruvian state prosecutor Juana Cordova de los Santos told reporters on October 31. The officers were linked to Jaime Sobrevilla and McDonald Perez among the accused. Observers suspect the recent arrests could be an indication of internal feud among army, police, and the Montesinos-dominated National Intelligence Service over the control of the lucrative trafficking proceeds.

Some high-ranking police generals are reported (in Lima papers) to have personally appropriated the assets of the recently convicted traffickers.

PEASANTS REPORT COCA-EATING BUTTERFLIES

The General Trade Union Confederation of Peasant Workers of Bolivia (CSUTCB) has reported that a plague of butterflies has been detected in Peru and Bolivia. It does not rule out that this may be the result of a laboratory experiment. CSUTCB Relations Secretary Hector Bravo said "our comrades have told us during the last few days about a plague of butterflies, caterpillars, and insects that ... are playing havoc with the coca crops as they feed on coca leaves." Bravo said what is really interesting is that this off-white butterfly does not attack other crops, only coca. [source: Radio Nacional, La Paz, October 24, 1995].

PEASANTS SEE FEW OPTIONS AS COCA PRICES FALL

With prices for the plant that produces cocaine at rock bottom, thousands of dirt-poor peasants in Peru's Upper Huallaga Valley are finding it hard to try alternative crops. "If someone can guarantee us another crop to sell, we'll rip out the coca leaf ourselves." said Juan Soto, a coca grower. "If not, what can we do? If no one buys from us, we're going to persist with coca." Some 200,000 peasants are totally dependent on coca cultivation in the Huallaga, Aguaytia-Pachitea and Apurimac valleys, official figures show. Coca leaf prices in Peru, plunged from $60 per 12 kg (24 pounds) sack in April to less than $5 a sack today. People say the prospects for alternate crops are dim. "The problem is that all agricultural prices are below their costs of production," said coca consultant Ivan de Rementeria. "The farmer really has no alternative." At the root of the issue is an agricultural crisis in Peru that successive governments have not been willing and able to solve. In early 90's, the Peruvian magazine Si reported that the PCP had done, in areas under their control, what the government has never done - helped the peasants to gradually replace coca leaf production with food crops for local consumption. Meanwhile, in Tocache, a town of 40,000 mostly peasants an merchants, some 70 percent of the businesses have closed due to economic ruin, local authorities said. "Other products have not covered their costs. Coca did." [source: RTw, November 1, 1995].

PEOPLE'S WAR:

* On October 2, Maoist rebels clashed with the army in Alto Pacae in Leoncio Prado province of Huanuco department. Several soldiers were killed or captured in combat. [El Comercio, October 4, 1995].

* October 5, a PCP unit of around 100 clashed with two army patrol units in the vicinity of Aspuzana in the department of Huanuco. Fierce fighting lasted some 12 hours and 15 soldiers were killed. [La Republica, October 6, 1995].

* Shining Path guerrillas carried out a series of attacks in several Peruvian Amazon jungle communities, according to reports Friday, October 6. Maoist rebels carried out the attacks late Wednesday and early Thursday in Pucayacu, Muranillo, Caimito and other communities near the Huallaga River in a region about 230 miles (380 km) northeast of Lima. Preliminary reports said 20 people had died, but Fujimori told Radioprogramas del Peru that there were only five fatalities. The attacks occurred on Wednesday and Thursday. One television report said guerrillas blockaded the road to Pucayacu late Wednesday night and a rebel unit entered the town at dawn. The reports said soldiers arrived later in the morning but guerrillas had left. [Reuters].

* October 6, 1995, a People's Liberation Army unit took over the village of Sharmira in Tingo Maria. The entire local paramilitary ronda and army were smashed. In the villages of Pucayacu and Cotomorillo, province of Leoncio Prado, a total of 13 paramilitary and army soldiers were killed. Seven army garrisons were reported burned by the rebels. [El Mundo, October 7, 1995].

* Lima. October 7, 1995. PCP activists supported by armed propaganda units fanned out in Lima shantytowns posting red flags on rooftops and distributed leaflets among the population. [La Republica, October 8, 1995].

* At 7:30 p.m. October 7, 1995, a textile factory in Lima was attacked and two incinerators were blown up with explosives. The attack is believed to be in response to recent massive layoffs of workers without benefits.

* October 11, 1995, the Chief of the Political-Military command in the Huallaga valley reported clashes with Maoist combatants in Alto Uchiza, Buenos Aires, Pacae, Jose Crespo y Castillo, and the districts of Progreso and Tocache of San Martin department. [Expreso, October 12, 1995].

* October 12, 1995 a PLA unit clashed with the army for several hours in 'San Antonio,' Tocache province. Other guerrilla actions against military and economic targets took place in the provinces of Tarma, Callao, Huacho, Pasco, Trujillo, Huancayo, La Oroya and Huanuco, and in the localities of Ambo, Yanabuanca, Santa Anita-Lima, and Chilia in central Peru. [El Comercio, October 17, 1995, and La Republica October 10, 1995].

* At least two soldiers died when an army patrol was ambushed by Maoist guerrillas on October 12, 1995. The confrontation occurred in San Antonio, Tocache province, Department of San Martin. [Lima newspapers, October 14, 1995].

* Ayacucho. On October 17, 1995, an army patrol was ambushed by Maoists in Pucayacu. Two soldiers died and three were wounded. In Vizcantan, a unit of Maoists ambushed and smashed another army patrol. One soldier was killed, three were wounded, and at least 12 Army officers were captured. [Expreso and El Comercio, October 18, 1995.]

* Two hundred local teachers of Amazonian town of Contamana were arrested by Marines on November 7, 1995, while attending a pedagogical meeting. They were all accused of links with terrorism. [Expreso and La Republica, November 8, 1995].

* Ayacucho, On November 8, 1995, PCP guerrillas entered the Town of Mollepata in Huanta, Ayacucho and executed a leading member of the paramilitary ronda. Reports also note that three military vehicles were destroyed and a collaborator was arrested. [Expreso, 9 Nov. 1995].

* November 10, 1995, Mario Vidalon Morales, a member of an army death squad, was executed by Maoist combatants in the intersection of Faucett and Chalaca avenues in the El Callao port. Previously, on November 4, an army captain was attacked in San Miguel, Lima by two Maoists driving a motorcycle. [Expreso, November 11, 1995].

* The PCP declared a three-day armed strike starting November 10, 1995, in Chumbivilcas province of Cusco. Numerous graffiti in support of the armed strike and the Peoples War appeared all over the province. [El Mundo, November 12, 1995].

* At least seven soldiers, including a lieutenant and a sub-lieutenant, were killed in a fierce confrontation between army patrols of the counterinsurgency battalion no. 313 and a PCP unit, according to a communiqué of the Joint Military Command. The encounter occurred in Nuevo Progreso district of San Martin department on December 16, and lasted several hours. [El Comercio and Expreso, December 18, 1995].

The rebels, armed with guns, dynamite, and grenades, initially surrounded the soldiers, inflicting considerable casualties on the Peruvian counterinsurgency unit, and then withdrew into the dense jungle. The following Tuesday, December 19, about 150 soldiers were still trying to catch up on the Maoist guerrillas before they could join up with another unit of between 50 and 60 guerrillas nearby. "We are chasing them on the ground because the weather is bad and we can't use helicopters," said an official from the Tarapoto army base in the northeastern Huallaga Valley.

Government officials have complained recently about increased guerrilla activity. "Just in the last six weeks, in November and December, more than 25 lorries have been attacked, including when they go in convoy," said a statement from the National Association of Land Cargo Transport published in the December 15, 1995, issue of La Republica newspaper. "The merchandise in the lorries is robbed, part of which is distributed among people of nearby villages and the rest burned... They act with complete impunity." [source: Reuters, December 19, 1995].

Meanwhile military sources still insist there are only between 200 and 400 isolated guerrilla fighters operating from three or four hideouts in highland and jungle regions who are waging a Maoist People's war to seize nationwide political power. The Peruvian regime's armed forces numbered around 300,000 and a third of Peru remains under a continued state of emergency.

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