This publication is the second in a series whose other components are the Rapporteurship Reports 'Forced Disappearance—State Commitments' (January 2017) and 'Forensic, Humanitarian, and Judicial Challenges in the Recovery and …
Books & Articles
17 documents in Truth and Reconciliation Commission - Peru
Most complaints of disappearance and torture in the department of Ayacucho date from 1983 and 1984; however, only those concerning the first of those years have advanced far enough to …
The content of this publication is a translation of the Abbreviated Version of the Peruvian Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission first published in Spanish in February 2004. …
During 1983 and 1984, Ayacucho witnessed thousands of detentions and disappearances. During curfew, combined patrols moved through the streets breaking down doors, entering homes, and detaining hundreds of people, who …
Twenty-two years after the murder of the eight journalists in Uchuraccay — deaths that were wrongly attributed for years to a decision by General Clemente Noel — Judge Ayala of …
Among the cases of serious violations of fundamental rights documented by the CVR during the years in which Alberto Fujimori was president are: torture and enforced disappearances, the extrajudicial execution …
Peru called elections for the first time in twelve years in 1980. Sendero Luminoso was one of the few leftist groups that did not take part and instead chose to …
The manual consists of three parts. 1. Normative instruments and procedures for forensic intervention. 2. Documents and proposals for the development of forensic investigations in Peru. 3. Comparative experiences with …
Now that Peru is preparing to close its wounds by confronting the past through a Truth Commission, it is necessary to remember the entire history — complete and without censorship. …
The peasant communities of Tastabamba, Putucunay, and Totota are located in the "Oreja de Perro," a vast and remote area in the district of Chungui, in the far southeastern corner …
Complaint by the CIDH against the State of Peru in the CAYARA case. On February 14, 1992, the Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos submitted to the Corte Interamericana de Derechos …
This report constitutes a complaint against Sendero Luminoso filed by the Ayacuchan congressman Alberto Valencia Cárdenas before the United Nations Human Rights Commission, headquartered in Geneva. Reading it constitutes a …
For over a decade, the word Ayacucho has been synonymous, among Peruvians, with violence and terror. We often forget that the form in which it manifests itself today has been …
This cable deals with the problems surrounding the investigation into the Cayara massacre, including conflicting testimony. Based on information from an Embassy source and other reliable information, the document draws …
The U.S. Embassy describes the criminal charges filed against Commander Alvaro Artaza Adrianzén (better known by his war name "Comandante Camión"), former head of the Navy garrison in Huanta. The …
We can characterize this war in a thousand ways: as a clash of ideologies, a tragic dispute between misguided dreamers and conformists, a struggle between strata of a society in …
It is hoped that this work on the department of Ayacucho will serve to understand the Sendero Luminoso phenomenon and the repression itself unleashed under the pretext of that movement's …
Showing 1–17 of 17 documents
Timeline Events 39
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Disappearance in Putaqa
A female affiant recounts the disappearance of her son and husband in Putaqa, San Miguel, La Mar, Ayacucho. The testimony was collected in December 2002 in Ayacucho. The affiant describes the situation of extreme poverty in which she was left after these events, pointing out that her daughter suffers from …
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Disappearance of son in Lima
A woman testifies about the disappearance of her son in the city of Lima. The testimony was collected in Ayacucho in December 2002. The mother recounts how, out of grief and anger over the disappearance, she took to drinking and learned to chew too much coca. The case illustrates the …
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Disappearance of companion in San Pedro de Cachi
The witness recounts the disappearance of her partner in San Pedro de Cachi, Huamanga, Ayacucho. The testimony was collected in November 2002. The absence of information about his whereabouts makes the uncertainty about his life or death even greater. Deprived of the possibility of seeing his body, in case he …
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Testimonies of violence in Ayacucho
During October 2002, the TRC collected multiple testimonies in Ayacucho on various acts of violence that occurred during the internal armed conflict. The testimonies include accounts of killings, disappearances, torture and sexual violence perpetrated by both the Shining Path and State forces. The statements document cases in various locations in …
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In-depth interview P179 on disappearances of MRTA militants in Huancayo
In-depth interview conducted in Huancayo documenting the disappearances of MRTA militants in the urban area during 1991, 1992 and 1993. The testimony indicates that the MRTA was hit hard in the urban zone, with many simultaneous disappearances, especially student members of the MRTA. The interviewee mentions that many good cadres …
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In-depth interview P201 - Testimony on MRTA's disappearance after confrontation
In-depth interview conducted in Curimarca with a woman resident of Huertas who witnessed armed confrontations in the area. The interviewee testified about the disappearance of the MRTA after the confrontations in the region. According to her account, after the confrontation, the MRTA was never seen again in the area, although …
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Disappearance in El Arabe
A declarant testified before the CVR about the disappearance of a brother and the death of two other brothers in El Arabe, José Crespo y Castillo, Huánuco. The events occurred in the context of the political violence that affected the region. The testimony reflects the profound pain and incomprehension at …
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Arrests and disappearances in Huanuco
In 1993, there were 53 reports of detentions in the department of Huánuco, as a result of which 178 people are missing. The military authorities were identified as the main perpetrators of these detentions-disappearances. According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, this figure was lower in urban areas but not in …
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Disappearance of son and murder of three friends in Cayenne
On April 24, 1992 in Cayena, Juanjui, Mariscal Caceres, San Martin, a son disappeared and three of his friends were murdered. This event was perpetrated by the Shining Path PCP. The declarant narrates these facts in her testimony before the CVR. The case is part of the multiple acts of …
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Breaking the Silence Public Forum
Public forum held on March 8, 1992, where testimonies related to the violence of the internal armed conflict in Peru were discussed. Angelica Mendoza participated in this event and expressed her determination to continue the search for the truth about the disappearance of her family member. The forum was part …
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Disappearances and murders of UNCP students
In 1992, around 20 students from the National University of Central Peru (UNCP) disappeared within six months. Investigations suggest that a clandestine anti-subversive movement may have been behind the kidnappings and murders, with 14 of the students found dead. The authorities have not yet identified those responsible, and the hypothesis …
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Violence reaches its highest peak in the central region
In 1992, violence reached its highest peak in central Peru. Dynamite bombings, blackouts, sabotage, assassinations, disappearances, extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detentions and guerrilla fighting became daily occurrences. Fear and anxiety gripped the population throughout the region. Among the most serious events of that year were the Ulcumayo massacre on February 8, …
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Amnesty International report on disappearances, killings and torture in Peru
Amnesty International published a report dedicated to disappearances, murders and torture in Peru. The report provoked an angry and undiplomatic protest from the Peruvian Foreign Ministry. This international document highlighted the grave human rights situation in the country during the internal armed conflict. The Peruvian government's reaction reflected the existing …
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Culmination of PCP-SL's Red Month
The 'red month' of the PCP-SL culminated on June 19, 1991 with violent actions throughout the country. This period of intensified violence lasted from May 17, the anniversary of the beginning of the PCP-SL's war against the country, until June 19, a date that the subversive group called 'heroic day' …
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Start of SUTEP teachers' strike
The World Confederation of Organizations of Professional Teachers (CMOPE) alleges a series of murders, arrests and acts of violence against teachers who were members of the Single Union of Education Workers of Peru (SUTEP) since the beginning of the strike on May 8, 1991. The repression of this strike resulted …
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200 disappearances reported in Huancavelica
Senator Raúl Ferrero Costa, president of the Justice and Human Rights Commission, publicly revealed that during the first five months of Alberto Fujimori's government, around 200 people had disappeared in the department of Huancavelica. This denunciation took place in a context of growing concern about the government's respect for human …
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Disappearances of MRTA students in urban area
During 1991, 1992 and 1993, the MRTA suffered heavy repression in the urban areas of the department of Junín, particularly in Huancayo. Many student members of the MRTA disappeared in simultaneous disappearances. The situation worsened with the enactment of the Repentance Law, at which time many good cadres from the …
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Chillccahuico mass grave discovery
In December 1990, the Chillccahuico mass grave was found, along with the discovery of a clandestine cemetery apparently used by PNP groups and the 18 people murdered in Chumbivilcas. These events created a context of concern about the government's respect for human rights. As of that date, 4,800 cases of …
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Massacre in Chumbivilcas
Between April 20 and 30, 1990, a massacre took place in the province of Chumbivilcas that marked a milestone in the internal armed conflict in the region. The Peruvian Army implemented a new counter-subversive strategy, acting as an army of occupation in the area. As a result of these military …
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Military operation in Chumbivilcas
A Peruvian Army patrol composed of approximately 21 men left the Antabamba Military Base in an "intelligence operation" that for 12 days (from April 19 to May 1, 1990) went through five districts in the provinces of Antabamba (Apurimac) and Chumbivilcas (Cuzco). The military, dressed as peasants, raided different peasant …
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Incursion of Sendero Luminoso in Chiquián
Shining Path carried out an incursion in Chiquián, capital of the province of Bolognesi. After this raid, three people were arrested: Víctor Moreno Cotrina, Esaú Daniel Moreno Cotrina (father of a student) and a teacher from the school. According to the complaint, the police authorities of Huaraz did not admit …
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Navy counter-subversive operations in the Ucayali River
Between March and April 1990, the Peruvian Navy carried out counter-subversive operations on the Ucayali River in order to prevent armed actions by the PCP-SL during the electoral process. During 1989 and 1990, the Navy applied a counter-subversive strategy based on terrorizing the populations settled on the banks of the …
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Disappearance of Valuis Maravi by hikers
Valuis Maravi, a resident of Andas in Cochas, was disappeared by Shining Path militants in October 1989. His disappearance occurred after he proposed to his neighbors to denounce the Shining Path, in a context where the villagers were tired of the abuses and food shortages imposed by the new Shining …
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Combate de Molinos
In April 1989, approximately 80 members of the MRTA detachment were moving towards the Junin highlands with the intention of taking Tarma, when they encountered Army forces in the district of Molinos, Jauja province, and engaged in combat. The confrontation resulted in the death of 62 people identified as MRTA …
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Presence of the Navy in the Ucayali River
Between 1989 and 1990, the Peruvian Navy applied a counter-subversive strategy based on terrorizing the populations settled along the banks of the Ucayali River and its tributaries. They used helicopter gunships to bomb different villages, considering them, a priori, as 'red zones'. Pucallpa's aguajales became the walking cemeteries of dozens …
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Navy's counter-subversive strategy in Ucayali
Between 1989 and 1990, the Peruvian Navy applied a counter-subversive strategy based on terrorizing the populations settled along the banks of the Ucayali River and its tributaries. They used helicopter gunships to bomb different villages, considering them, a priori, as 'red zones'. Pucallpa's aguajales became the walking cemeteries of dozens …
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Irregular detentions in Leoncio Prado
Between 1989 and 1992, 313 cases of irregular detentions were registered in the province of Leoncio Prado, of which 183 people are missing. According to the CVR database, in this province between 1989 and 1994 around 232 people lost their lives and 198 are missing. Most of the cases took …
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Mass graves in Ayahuanco
In July 1986, mass graves were discovered in Ayahuanco. This discovery occurred in the context of the intensification of the internal armed conflict in the Ayacucho region. The discovery of these mass graves is evidence of the magnitude of the violence that affected the area during the period of the …
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Mass arrests in Nuñoa
Combined forces detained about 150 people in Nuñoa between June 19 and July 12, 1986. Of the detainees, 88 people were transferred to Ayaviri. Some of the detainees died during or after the transfer. These detentions occurred in the context of the intensification of PCP-Sendero Luminoso actions in the Puno …
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Murder of civilians in Pucayacu
On August 4, 1985, the military murdered and buried seven civilians in mass graves in Pucayacu, province of Huanta, Ayacucho. These people had previously been detained in the Municipal Stadium of Huanta, where members of the Navy were stationed. Around August 16, approximately fifty people detained in that place were …
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Armed attack in Callqui
On August 1, 1984, fifteen armed men arrived in the hamlet of Callqui, province of Huanta, Ayacucho. This event is part of a series of successive reports of disappearances and assassinations that caused a commotion in political circles during that period. The attack in Callqui-Nisperoniyoc included the murder of evangelists, …
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Investigation of missing detainee cases
EP General Adrián Huamán Centeno decided that the cases of unidentified detainees would be investigated by the PIP (Peruvian Investigative Police). This decision was made in the context of allegations of human rights violations and disappearances in the emergency zones, particularly in Ayacucho. One day later, on January 20, in …
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Abuses by sinchis of Vilcashuamán
During 1984, members of the Vilcashuamán Sinchi station committed serious abuses against the civilian population. One affiant recounts that these police officers looted farms and animals, arbitrarily detained people, disappeared them and raped women. These abuses were part of a broader pattern of violence against the civilian population in the …
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Discovery of mass graves in Huamanguilla and Pucayacu
During 1984, in the context of increasing violence and terror in Ayacucho, the first mass graves were discovered in Huamanguilla and Pucayacu. These findings showed the magnitude of the human rights violations committed during the period when the Navy was operating in the area and the Self-Defense Committees had been …
2 media 18 docs -
Disappearances reported in Ayacucho
Sonia Goldenberg, a journalist from the news program Visión, publicly denounced the disappearance of Ayacucho citizens on September 11, 1983. This denunciation took place in a context of intense military operations in Ayacucho under the command of General EP Clemente Noel Moral. In response to the denunciation, General Noel Moral …
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Arrest of 15 authorities of Quispillacta
In May 1983, the military detained 15 authorities and community members from Quispillacta, Cangallo district. The detainees were taken to the Totos barracks. They were later killed and buried in a mass grave. This event was part of the counter-subversive strategy implemented by the Armed Forces after entering the area …
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Period of counter-subversive military campaign 1983-1985
During this period, a counter-subversive military campaign with inadequate strategy resulted in numerous human rights violations. Military operations began on December 30, 1982. The number of extrajudicial executions and various human rights violations reached catastrophic proportions in proportion to the size of the population in the area. Clandestine detention and …
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Entry of the Armed Forces in Ayacucho
In January 1983, the Armed Forces took control of the counter-subversive struggle in Ayacucho through the installation of the political-military command. The new head of the political-military command of Ayacucho, General Clemente Noel Moral, arrived in the region with the idea, shared by the "hard" sectors of the army, of …
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Internal armed conflict in Chungui
The district of Chungui was one of the territories most affected by the internal armed conflict in Peru. Between 1980 and 2000, 1,381 people were recorded dead and missing, almost 17% of the district's population counted in 1981. The conflict involved actions by the PCP-Sendero Luminoso, the Armed Forces, and …
1 media 10 docs