Fighting terrorism in Peru
I am writing in reference to the article Was violence needed in Peru drama? (May 12, 1997) by Arief Budiman.
I would firstly like to express my satisfaction at finding someone in Indonesia with such a deep interest in my country and in Latin America, which, considering the distance between our countries, is not common.
Yet I would like to add a few details regarding this matter which you are probably not aware of.
The fight against terrorism in Peru has been a very difficult and costly task, both in terms of lives and funds. In Peru there are two terrorist groups, Shinning Path and the Tupac Amaru Movement, whose differences are only ideological. Both groups have engaged in indiscriminate bombings, murder and kidnappings, that have left more than 25,000 Peruvians dead and resulted in losses of more than US$20 billion. The groups have also became involved in the protection of drug dealers in the jungles of Peru, posing a serious threat to the Peruvian state.
It required a lot of work and sacrifice to reduce these terrorist groups to a level of almost inaction, capturing its major leaders and deterring its followers from becoming involved. This allowed Peru to become an important place for foreign investment with the consequential re-launching of our economy and the success already mentioned in your article.
You may well understand why it was impossible for the Peruvian government to even consider the release of any terrorist already in jail, putting at risk our difficult struggle for peace and our economic success, a request that nobody in Peru, in their wildest dreams, would agree on.
The storming of the Embassy of Japan by Peruvian troops was not a matter of popularity, but it was a matter of saving the lives of the hostages following a deadlock situation. To be hesitant with the terrorists was very dangerous. The private Peruvian television station has reconstructed this episode, and has showed how the troops had to fight the terrorists inside the house, in the mid of smoke produced by the bombs used to open doors and windows to rescue the hostages. In such complicated circumstances, it is impossible to request any terrorist to surrender.
I think everybody would have preferred a peaceful solution to this crisis, to have avoided the death of so many people: two soldiers, one hostage and 14 terrorists. Included in the latter were three teenagers who were taken by force from their families by the Tupac Amaru in the Peruvian jungle and trained as terrorists.
This peaceful solution was not possible by the intransigence of the leader of this group, Nestor Cerpa, who refused any solution suggested by the five mediators of the crisis.
I regret the misinformation of The Japan Times, depicting Nestor Cerpa Cartolini as a "non-violent intellectual who favored books over bullets and dialog over death". It is worth noting that Nestor Cerpa was a former worker who became a labor union leader after failing to enter university. He provoked a strike at a factory in Lima, in 1976, which led to the death of six labor workers and one policeman. Because of his action, he spent 10 months in jail and some time later he decided to join the terrorist movement Tupac Amaru. As a member of Tupac Amaru, he participated in several bombing attacks, the kidnapping of a large number of Peruvian businessmen, and the murder of a popular former Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
One former hostage said each time he tried to discuss politics and ideology with Nestor Cerpa during the hostage crisis, Nestor Cerpa could not answer any question and diverted the conversation, showing a complete lack of intellectual background.
ELARD ESCALA
Ambassador
Embassy of Peru, Jakarta