Friday, April 11, 2008

Bad News for Alberto Fujimori?

This is very good news:

A Peruvian court on Tuesday convicted a former general and three members of a military death squad of kidnapping and murder in a ruling that prosecutors say could set a precedent in the trial of former President Alberto Fujimori. The four were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 15 to 35 years in connection
with a 1992 massacre [...]
In a separate courtroom, Fujimori is being tried for allegedly authorizing the death squad to fight the guerrillas.
Jose Pelaez, the prosecutor in Fujimori's trial, said guilty verdicts in Tuesday's ruling would "establish a precedent" in the former president's case. "If the men who carried out the acts are found guilty, undoubtedly, the man at the top of the command chain, the man behind it all, Fujimori, also will be condemned for the same acts," he said before the verdict was issued.


Things are definitely starting to look grim for Fujimori. He's already guaranteed to have to serve jail time after his conviction on lesser charges. I'm not quite as confident as Pelaez that the conviction of the soldiers and the general guarantees that Fujimori will be found guilty, but the case certainly sets a precedent that doesn't bode well for the former president. Certainly, it's excellent news that the soldiers and military leaders who committed and authorized attacks on civilians are being punished with jail time; that in and of itself is a major step towards rectifying past human rights abuses in Peru. And with the precedent set, Fujimori, who as president commanded and oversaw all military (and paramilitary) activities in Peru in the 1990s is on even thinner ice. He may still be found not guilty, but the conviction of the military men was definitely a step in the right direction, and a sign of hope that other leaders involved in human rights abuses in Peru in the 90s will not get off lightly.