LIMA, Peru – Human rights groups in Peru are complaining about setbacks in trials and leniency of punishments for security force members responsible for crimes against humanity during the Peruvian Counterinsurgency War.
The court dealing with these trials is the Sala Penal Nacional, the highest-level court dealing with human rights cases against members of the armed forces. Since 2009, the tribunal has acquitted 65 accused and convicted only 15. The rate of impunity within these trials is worrying human rights groups all over the country.
“There’s a clear tendency towards impunity on the part of the Sala Penal Nacional in cases of extremely serious human rights violations, that benefits members of the military and police who should be punished for the crimes they committed,” said Ronal Gamarra, executive secretary of the National Human Rights Coordinating Committee.
Many facing the tribunal have committed several crimes against humanity pursuant to orders from former Peruvian president, Alberto Fujimori. Gamarra, who took part in the trial against Fujimori, said that those defending the accused are, in essence, “paving the way for an amnesty for the members of the criminal commandos that acted under the former president’s orders.”
While support of the military is one of the main causes of delay in judicial proceedings, military supporters allege that the delay is actually caused by human rights groups and the judiciary. Peruvian Defense Minister and military supporter, Rafael Rey, recently reported that there is no information on the members of the military who were posted at a number of army counterinsurgency bases. The report noted that “there are no documents because in the counterinsurgency period military personnel were given their orders verbally, using aliases as a security measure.” Therefore, Rey concludes, military members being accused are victims of “judicial persecution.” But the lack of documents raises the inference that there was an attempt at hiding crimes against humanity.
Legal Defense Institute lawyer, Carlos Rivera, said that “in many cases, the trials drag on because the armed forces refuse to hand over information about the identity of the members of the military, who operated under aliases, or because they resist putting the accused at the disposal of the justice system.” In lights of these facts, the military nevertheless accuses human rights groups and the judiciary of dragging out the trials, he added.
In a related investigation of several acquittals, Rivera found an “alarming” willingness of the Sala Penal Nacional to acquit defendants based on “questionable arguments.” He noted that when perpetrators could not be identified for whatever reason, the tribunal would just assume the murders never happened.
Floria Cano, a lawyer with the Association for Human Rights, said that “Rey asks us to be tolerant of the [military]. Our response is that we are, and we will remain, intolerant of impunity.” She added that the survivors remain eager to find out the truth and to see justice done.
For more information, please see:
Terraviva – Peru Faces Severe Setbacks for Justice in Cases Involving Military – 21 June 2010
Global Issues – Rights-Peru: Severe Setbacks for Justice in Cases Involving Military – 19 June 2010
IPS – Severe Setbacks for Justice in Cases Involving Military – 19 June 2010
