Fujimori's Peru: Deception in the Public Sphere

Pitt Latin American Studies

by Catherine M. Conaghan

Alberto Fujimori ascended to the presidency of Peru in 1990, boldly promising to remake the country. Ten years later, he hastily sent his resignation from exile in Japan, leaving behind a trail of lies, deceit, and corruption. While piecing together the shards of Fujimori’s presidency, prosecutors uncovered a vast criminal conspiracy fueled by political ambition and personal greed. The Fujimori regime managed to maintain a facade of democracy while systematically eviscerating democratic institutions and the rule of law through legal subterfuge, intimidation, and outright bribery. The architect of this strategy was Fujimori’s notorious intelligence advisor, Vladimiro Montesinos. With great skill, Fujimori and Montesinos created the appearance of a democratic public sphere but ensured it would work only to suit their personal motives. The press was allowed to operate, but information exchange was under strict control. The more government officials tampered with the free flow of ideas, the more they inadvertently exposed the ills they were trying to cover up. And that proved to be their downfall. Merging penetrating analysis and a journalist’s flair for narrative, Catherine Conaghan reveals the thin line between democracy and dictatorship, and shows how public institutions can both empower dictators and bring them down.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics

304 pages, Hardcover

First published August 28, 2005

Reviews

[Nicko · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Japanese guy becomes te president of Peru!?

[Cole Belling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and super interesting look at how Fujimori dismantled democracy. Maybe a bit too exclusive of some needed context about the military dictatorship, the Belaúnde/García administrations, Peruvian economy, and Sendero Luminoso.

[Emily Ding]

I've been fascinated with Fujimori—the Peruvian-Japanese ex-president now behind bars for corruption and violations of human rights—ever since I first heard about him—in part because he's Asian, but also because of his daring exploits in dealing with the terrorist group Sendero Luminoso—such as in the case of the hostage crisis at the Japanese embassy in Lima: when he infiltrated it by ordering troops to build an underground tunnel from across the road in order to save the hostages—all played out on live TV. "He had balls," a Peruvian friend told me. "I was proud to say he was my president. Colombians would tell me they admired Fujimori too. They wished they had someone like him so they wouldn't still be at war with terrorists."

Indeed, Fujimori is generally credited with ridding the country of terrorism, albeit with his Machiavellian the-ends-justify-the-means approach of execution without trial. Corruption was also endemic under Fujimori's administration, with his notorious right-hand man and head of the intelligence service, Vladimiro Montesinos, carrying out his bidding. Many Peruvians I've met don't agree with Fujimori's methods in hindsight, but acknowledge that Peru would not have progress economically as it had done if Fujimori hadn't ridden the country of terrorists.

However, this book deals centrally with his subverting and eschewing of parliamentary democracy and party politics to seek re-election, twice, after saying he wouldn't do so. It deals more with the political process that Fujimori bent to his will than other aspects of his presidency. The Japanese hostage crisis and other interesting episodes are explained only briefly. If you're looking for a general introduction to Fujimori and Peru during his watch, this isn't really the book—but it's an informative read if you want to find out more about the man and his political machinations.