Peru to challenge Shining Path human rights ruling News
Peru to challenge Shining Path human rights ruling

[JURIST] Peru plans to mount a legal challenge to a decision from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) [official website] ordering a $20 million judgment be paid to the families of deceased rebels and calling for the government to publicly honor the rebels, Peruvian President Alan Garcia [official website] said Tuesday. The IACHR's November ruling [materials, in Spanish] held Peru liable for the death of at least 41 Shining Path rebels [FAS backgrounder] in a 1992 prison riot that took place weeks after former President Alberto Fujimori [JURIST news archive] disbanded congress, suspended the constitution, and seized government control with military assistance. Garcia said that taxpayers should not be required to pay the judgment. He has previously assured the international legal community that despite the unfavorable decision, Peru will remain a member of the IACHR.

Fujimori was released on bail [JURIST report] in May while Chile courts decide whether he should be extradited to Peru, where he faces corruption and human rights charges [Trial Watch backgrounder; JURIST report], including authorizing an illegal death squad and abuse of power. Human rights activists have said the decision presents Peru with an opportunity to admit culpability for human rights abuses committed during the civil war of the 1980s and 1990s [BBC timeline]. BBC News has more.