Announcement of arrival at strategic balance
In 1989, the PCP-Sendero Luminoso announced that it had reached "strategic equilibrium", which meant a supposed parity of forces with the State. This announcement marked a strategic shift that intensified violence and subversive actions throughout the country.
In the framework of the announcement of the arrival of the "strategic balance" in 1989, the PCP-SL modified its strategy in several areas of the country, including Villa El Salvador (VES), seeking to dispute the hegemony of the left and to unmask the supposed uselessness of its peaceful option for social change. This announcement marked a change of profile in the Shining Path strategy, significantly increasing their actions with acts of sabotage, propaganda and violence. The declaration of the strategic balance represented the perception of the PCP-SL of having reached a parity of forces with the Peruvian State in its people's war. After this announcement, there was a notable increase in violence in Lima and other regions of the country, with an escalation that would continue until 1992.