Seizure of Yauli

On January 5, 1984, a column of subversives of the PCP-Sendero Luminoso took the capital of the district of Yauli in the province of Huancavelica. After haranguing the assembled population, the Shining Path militants murdered two villagers who had refused to collaborate with them. This action was part of the PCP-SL's strategy to destroy the existing system of authorities and punish those who refused to support their armed struggle. The event occurred in the context of the intensification of violence in Huancavelica during 1983-1984, a period that saw the highest number of victims in the region.