Development and Violence in Ayacucho

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 incubating for centuries. What has changed, as with national poverty, is the magnitude and scale of events that, it should be said, are not exclusive to this region. It is the entire country that is in question. There is a consensus that violence combated with violence only deepens the malaise and prolongs the times of fear — ten years of experience seem to confirm this. Ayacucho is a department defined by its rural character and a clear Andean ethnic identity; the landscape is Andean and life is marked by agrarian cycles; time is still measured in quantifiable dimensions and climatic conditions. The rhythm of all life depends on what happens or does not happen in the countryside, on what the peasants — who make up the majority population — do or do not do. (Excerpt from the introduction).