BY BRIAN TAYLOR
Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori has been taking increasingly more aggressive actions towards the members of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA), who have been occupying the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima for nearly two months. At the center of the group's demands is the release of 400 MRTA political prisoners. Tokyo has urged Fujimori, to no avail, to tone down acts of provocation against the rebels, as it could threaten the lives of the 72 remaining hostages. In the midst of this unresolved crisis, Washington has initiated plans for a military intervention into that country to "combat drugs."

Fujimori, in the first week of this year, took a stance of "business as usual." He filled the positions of Peruvian government officials taken hostage December 17, downplaying the takeover as an "isolated incident," and said the economy would not be affected. The regime thought time was on its side - the media blitz would die down, and the rebels would soften if the government ignored them.

In a December 31 press conference, Nestor Cerpa Cartolini, the leader of the MRTA occupation force, said the group has "no time limit" on how long they will hold hostages until their demands are met. The rebels maintained their demands, including for the release of the political prisoners. On January 4, in response to Fujimori's rejection of their central demand two days earlier, rebels scaled the embassy roof and unfurled three banners. One said that unless MRTA demands are discussed there will be no solution; another read, "Mothers, wives, and children of our prisoners are also waiting for their [MRTA prisoners] freedom."

Prisons like `medieval dungeons'
The Washington Post ran a recent article entitled "Peru's Jails Find Few Defenders: Ex-Prisoners Describe Arbitrary Brutality." It tells the story of two journalists critical of the government, who spent a combined total of five years in prison "on suspicion of being Marxist guerrillas" before being released and told to "get on with" their lives. No formal charges were ever laid against the two. The article explains how the journalists' experiences are common among those snatched up as part of Fujimori's "antiterrorist campaign." Suspects have been imprisoned for years without being charged. Neither witnesses nor police can be cross-examined by defense lawyers, who often are denied access to their client until the day of the trial.

These undemocratic procedures were imposed after Fujimori suspended the constitution in April 1992, carried out mass arrests, and closed down Congress. While the legislature was eventually restored, many civil liberties were not.

Families of detainees have compared the prisons to "medieval dungeons". Inmates are denied access to music, diaries, and any books that are declared ideological; one prisoner was even denied the Memoirs of Winston Churchill. They are inadequately fed, live in six-by-six-foot quarters, and are allowed only a half-hour a month, and a half-hour every three months respectively, to see spouses and children.

After the first week of the standoff, Japanese prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto stated that both the guerrillas and the Peruvian government had committed errors and he feared an "unexpected accident" might take place if things were not resolved. Tokyo's stance throughout the takeover has been one of minimizing the provocation of the rebels and to negotiate with them. When asked to elaborate on what he meant by "government errors," the Japanese official declined.

The Fujimori regime's approach of downplaying the MRTA seemed to come to an end January 7 when "counterterrorism police" arrested two Japanese television reporters after they interviewed MRTA spokespeople.

Peruvian officials make a point of referring to Tupac Amáru as "terrorists," not rebels or guerrillas. They blame these "terrorists" for the economic crisis in that country. Fujimori pointed to the hostage seizure is an example of "feverish and destructive violence" that "has increased" poverty.

Hope for `puma' economy falters
In a recent tour to so-called "Asian tigers" - semicolonial countries that have been praised as a model of rapid growth -Fujimori promised to make Peru an "Andean puma." But at present the economy is at a standstill. Economic growth, which was 13 percent in 1994, fell to 2 percent in 1996. Ivan Sanchez, a 19-year-old who lives in Lima, commented to a reporter that although the economy is more stable, "there are not many jobs, which is what the people want." As many as 500,000 have been laid off from government jobs. Fujimori's popularity has fallen from 75 percent to 45 percent in polls.

The Peruvian president does still have a base of support. When his regime came to power in 1990 promising stability and "honest government," inflation had hit as high as 7,650 percent. He imposed brutal austerity measures to satisfy Peru's imperialist creditors. Inflation came down, but more than half of the country's population now lives below the official poverty line.

On January 12, the Peruvian government proposed a special commission that would review "all subjects" raised by the MRTA. This commission was to be composed on a mutually agreed upon group of three to five people. Three days later the MRTA agreed to the talks but then pulled out when the government suspended all visits to political prisoners, including by the Red Cross. Government representative Domingo Palermo then told reporters that further talks would be to negotiate the release of hostages and provide an "eventual exit" for those who seized the building, and would "not contemplate the liberation of prisoners."

Japanese prime minister Hashimoto, noting an escalation in activity by Peruvian cops who taunt rebels, throw debris over the walls of the courtyard, sneak around to doors, and boot them open, urged Lima not to "go too far." He warned Fujimori that Tokyo rules out any armed rescue in the Japanese ambassador's residence without their approval. Fujimori, whose police are creating a situation of increased tension, said that he would only respond militarily if a hostage is injured.

U.S. president William Clinton has praised Fujimori for "walking the very fine line ... between resolving this crisis peacefully without giving in to terror." In a recent move, Washington announced plans to allocated forces to engage in an "antidrug-trafficking" operation along the rivers in northern Peru.  
 
 
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