[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 25 (Thursday, February 11, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E221-E222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            FREEDOMS IN PERU

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 11, 1999

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I introduced this resolution in the 105th 
Congress to express concern over interference with freedom of the press 
and the independence of judicial and electoral institutions in Peru. I 
am reintroducing this resolution today because my concerns have not 
been allayed.
  I have been one of Peru's strongest supporters in Congress. Under 
President Alberto Fujimori's presidency, Peru has also become a good 
partner in the war against drugs. Now that coca prices in Peru have 
dropped to historically low levels, there is a real chance to help 
farmers grow legitimate crops. I have been pleased to encourage our 
European allies to join us in seizing this opportunity to promote 
meaningful alternative development in Peru.
  Nonetheless, I am concerned that the independence of Peru's 
legislative, judicial and electoral branches is being increasingly 
compromised. We must, of course, continue to fully engage Peru in our 
important bilateral relationship, particularly in our shared fight 
against drugs and terrorism. However, despite these very positive 
aspects in our relationship, the United States should not be expected 
to turn a blind eye to interference with freedom of the press and the 
independence of judicial and electoral institutions in Peru.
  The continuing actions taken by the government of Peru against Baruch 
Ivcher, the Israeli-born owner of television station Channel 2, have 
become emblematic of government interference with freedom of expression 
in Peru. It is chilling that these acts of blatant intimidation were 
precipitated by Channel 2's exposes of abuses--including alleged 
torture and murder--by Peru's intelligence service.
  Recently, President Fujimori overruled his military-run Interior 
Ministry and publicly supported a decision to issue a new Peruvian 
passport to Mr. Ivcher. While the Peruvian government says this is a 
positive step, Mr. Ivcher and members of his immediate family are still 
being subjected to arbitrary criminal prosecutions. It is time for 
President Fujimori to exercise the decisive leadership that is his 
hallmark and properly resolve this very troubling case.
  This resolution resolves that the erosion of the independence of 
judicial and electoral branches of Peru's government and the 
intimidation of journalists in Peru are matters for concern by the 
United States. It would be very unfortunate if these trends were to 
undermine Peru's hard won stability and progress.
  This resolution also calls for an independent investigation and 
report on threats to press freedom and judicial independence in Peru by 
the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of 
American States. I believe that it is most appropriate for the Inter-
American community to look into these matters.
  I am pleased that the distinguished ranking Democratic member of our 
Committee, the gentleman from Connecticut, Sam Gejdenson, has joined me 
in co-sponsoring this resolution.
  I am including for insertion at this point in the Congressional 
Record a recent opinion column by Mr. Baruch Ivcher published on 
February 4 in the New York Times and an editorial by The Washington 
Post published on the same day.

                [From the New York Times, Feb. 4, 1999]

                      Peru's Endangered Dissidents

                           (By Baruch Ivcher)

       On July 13, 1997, the Government of Peru took my Peruvian 
     citizenship away. Now it is asking Interpol to arrest me, my 
     wife and my daughter. What was my crime? Believing in freedom 
     of the press.
       When Channel 2 in Lima, of which I was the majority 
     shareholder, broadcast reports on the use of torture by the 
     intelligence service, military involvement in drug 
     trafficking and--this was the piece de resistance--the 
     million-dollar income of the head of the intelligence 
     service, the Government of President Alberto Fujimori 
     apparently decided the station had to be silenced and I had 
     to be punished.
       I was a foreign-born Jew, and that seemed to be all the 
     ammunition they needed. I was accused of treason and of 
     selling Israeli arms to Ecuador when it was having border 
     clashes with Peru. Within days, the Government ``discovered'' 
     that my naturalization 13 years before had been a ``fraud.'' 
     It took my nationality, and with it all my rights in Channel 
     2 (now a reliable supporter of the regime).
       I fled the country and have been sentenced to 12 years in 
     prison in absentia. Peru has issued Interpol warrants for my 
     arrest and--as if that weren't enough--the arrest of my wife 
     and daughter, and the Government is now prosecuting my 
     defense lawyers. The Government is deaf to appeals from 
     Peru's Cardinal and groups like the Inter-American Human 
     Rights Commission.
       Why won't President Fujimori listen? Why has the 
     persecution against me and others instead gotten worse?
       It is possible that the military and the intelligence 
     service have so much control now that Mr. Fujimori is 
     hamstrung. But it is also true that Mr. Fujimori wants to be 
     elected to an unconstitutional third term next year. When 
     Peru's Constitutional Tribunal ruled in May 1997 that he 
     could not run again, he had the judges who voted against him 
     removed. To win that third term, Mr. Fujimori seems 
     determined to blast away any obstacle.
       One method is Government-orchestrated campaigns of 
     harassment and intimidation, like the current one against 
     Angel Paez, an investigative reporter. Jose Arrieta, who was 
     head of Channel 2's investigative unit, suffered the same 
     abuses and has been granted asylum in the United States. 
     Vicious smears

[[Page E222]]

     and even death threats are common weapons against such 
     journalists.
       A key tool Mr. Fujimori uses against his opponents is the 
     intelligence service, which was built up to combat terrorism. 
     Wire-tapping of the President's critics is a specialty. Then 
     there is the use of politically inspired prosecutions, like 
     the trumped-up tax case against Delia Revoredo. She was dean 
     of the Lima Bar Association and a member of the 
     Constitutional Tribunal; her troubles began when she cast her 
     vote there against a third term for Mr. Fujimori. She and her 
     husband lived in exile for a year, until an arrest order 
     against them was dropped. Bogus charges were about to be 
     filed against Mr. Arrieta as well, and have been made in my 
     case and others.
       To get away with these types of things, the Government 
     needs to control the entire judicial system. Today two-thirds 
     of Peru's judges have only temporary status, meaning that 
     they hold their positions at the pleasure of the Government 
     and cannot act independently. In addition, the National 
     Magistrates' Council, an autonomous body established in the 
     Constitution to appoint and dismiss judges and prosecutors, 
     has been largely gutted.
       Mr. Fujimori is eliminating the checks and balances that 
     make democracy possible. This is a disastrous course, for him 
     and for Peru. Without the rule of law and freedom of 
     expression, democracy in Peru will wither, foreign investors 
     will be scared away, and instability will be guaranteed. True 
     friends of Peru like the United States should be driving that 
     message home to Mr. Fujimori during his visit to Washington 
     this week.
                                  ____


                [From the Washington Post, Feb. 4, 1999]

                       More Than a Border Treaty

       The presidents of Peru and Ecuador are in town to celebrate 
     the signing of a border treaty that is a lot more than a 
     border treaty. It enables them to ask Americans not just to 
     recognize their diplomacy but also to invest in their growth 
     and stability. The two countries need development as well as 
     friendship. Settling what has been called the oldest and most 
     contentious conflict in South America lets the peacemakers 
     advertise themselves as serious modernizers. The new 
     agreement was designed precisely as an instrument of 
     modernization for both of them.
       Border disputes come from more than the lapses of 
     surveyors. This one came from historical and emotional roots 
     deep enough to touch basic sources of identity as well as 
     interest on both sides. The tenacity of nationalistic 
     feelings made it risky but essential for Ecuador's president, 
     Jamil Mahuad, and Peru's Alberto Fujimori to grasp the 
     nettle. This is how an agreement came to be negotiated that 
     marks a border and provides Ecuador a patch of Amazonian land 
     to honor its soldier dead. The agreement also provides a plan 
     to develop and integrate the two economies, especially in the 
     impoverished border region. Initial funding is what the 
     presidents seek in Washington.
       For all their psycho-diplomatic exertions, Peru and Ecuador 
     needed help from their friends, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and 
     the United States. The four arbitrated the final settlement 
     that the two had bound themselves to accept. Ecuador and Peru 
     deserve congratulations. Mr. Fujimori could build on the 
     spirit of the occasion by moving all the way to undo his 
     manipulation of the powers of the state against television 
     proprietor Baruch Ivcher, in a case with international 
     resonance. The dispute on that ``border'' needs to be 
     resolved, too.

     

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