Prime Minister Rejects Calls To Remove Ministers Over VRAE Strategy

Prime Minister Oscar Valdes rejected Friday that Peru’s Interior and Defense ministers could be removed from their posts for their handling of a conflict with Shining Path remnants in the coca-growing Apurimac and Ene river valleys, or VRAE.

Valdes said that removing Defense Minister Alberto Otarola or Interior Minister Daniel Lozada would not be favorable for the government, daily El Comercio reported.

Valdes’ comments come as a number of lawmakers are calling for the ministers to resign following recent events in the VRAE that show the state has practically no Read more…

Sunat Chief Says Gov’t To Implement Mechanisms In June To Combat Illegal Mining

The head of Peru’s tax agency Sunat, Tania Quispe, said the government plans to establish by June mechanisms to halt the supply of chemical inputs and machinery that are used by illegal gold miners, state news agency Andina reported.

“We are talking about May or June at the latest,” Quispe said. “We plan to pull out all the stops in the  regulation process.”

Quispe said that Sunat, which also governs the customs superintendency Sunad, plays an important role in the government’s efforts to stem illegal mining by detecting Read more…

UNICEF Says Shining Path Remnants Violating Convention On Child Rights

Recent reports and photographs of Shining Path rebels in Peru’s southeast jungle have shown that the rebel group holds dozens of young children, kidnapped or born to kidnapped women, to train them as rebel soldiers.

UNICEF’s office in Peru said Tuesday that the use of children by remnant groups of the Shining Path rebels is a violation of the Convention of the Rights of the Child.

UNICEF said it “rejects the direct and indirect participation, forced or voluntary of boys, girls and adolescents in any situation of armed violence.”

“The utilization of children and adolescents on the part of the Shining Path Read more…

Van der Sloot May Be Extradited To U.S.

Peruvian authorities are evaluating a request to extradite convicted killer Joran van der Sloot to the United States, Radio Programas reported.

Van der Sloot, a Dutch citizen, pleaded guilty in January to the 2010 murder of Stephany Flores, a 21-year-old University of Lima business administration student whom he met at a casino in Lima’s tourist Miraflores district. He is serving a 28-year-prison sentence for that murder.

Van der Sloot is also the prime suspect in the 2005 disappearance in Aruba of US teenager Natalie Holloway.

The U.S. is seeking Van der Sloot’s extradition in order to face charges that he was Read more…

Peru Prepares Major Offensive Against Shining Path In VRAE – Report

President Ollanta Humala’s government is preparing a large-scale offensive against remnants of the Shining Path insurgency in the isolated coca-growing Apurimac and Ene river valleys, or VRAE, daily El Comercio reported, citing Reuters.

The report said the offensive is the biggest in almost two decades, and seeks to deliver a major blow to the Shining Path.

The initiative follows the kidnapping of 36 natural gas workers earlier this month Read more…

Peru To Send Inexperienced Soldiers To Dangerous Coca-Growing Region

Peru’s Defense Ministry plans to send a number of young soldiers into a dangerous coca-growing region as part of efforts to track down narco-terrorists that kidnapped 36 natural gas workers earlier this month, according to the  National Ombudsman’s office.

The office, known as the Defensoria del Pueblo, said the troops have only completed between 28 days and seven months of service. Four of the soldiers are younger than 21-years-old, daily El Comercio reported.

The soldiers were sent to a counter-terrorism base in the city of Satipo, located in Junin region, from April 11 to 13. Family members say, however, that the group is now being sent to the zone of Vilcabamba, in Cusco, which is where remnants of the Read more…

Peru Seeks 30 Year Sentence For Ex-Owner Of Peruvian Airlines

A Peruvian state attorney is seeking a 30 year prison sentence for businessman Cesar Cataño, the former owner of airline company Peruvian Airlines, for money laundering, newspaper El Comercio reported.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office accuses Cataño of laundering money from drug trafficking through a number of companies. El Comercio says these companies include Kanawaga Corporation SAC, Import Export Vizcar SA, Transportes Aereos Cielos Andinos SAC and Peruvian Airlines. 

A report by the Anti-drug police finds that Cataño has been unable to account for some $663 million between 1990 and 2000. Read more…

Peru Reiterates Position On Drug Legalization At Regional Summit

Foreign Relations Minister Rafael Roncagliolo has reiterated Peru’s position against legalizing drugs, state news agency Andina reported.

Roncagliolo made the comments at the Sixth Summit of the Americas, held during this past weekend in the Colombian coastal city of Cartagena. The issue of drug legalization was being touted as one of the big issues at the summit, as a number of Latin American leaders have hinted recently that this may be necessary in order to Read more…

Humala: Gov’t Aiming For “Zero Cost” To Shining Path Kidnapping

President Ollanta Humala said Thursday that Peru’s security forces are looking to resolve the kidnapping of up to 40 natural gas workers by suspected Shining Path rebels with “zero cost” to the hostages.

“We are taking into account the life of the workers,” said Humala, according to daily El Comercio.

Humala’s comments were his first since the 36 to 40 workers were kidnapped early Read more…

Report: Shining Path Seeks $10 Million Ransom For Kidnapped Workers

Shining Path rebels, suspected of kidnapping natural gas workers on Monday, have reportedly demanded a $10 million ransom, explosives, and clothes in exchange for the hostages, daily El Comercio reported.

The workers —between 36 and 40— were kidnapped early Monday morning in Kepashiato, a town located in the province of La Convencion in Cusco region.

Peru’s government has maintained military-like silence about the incident. On Monday, the Interior Ministry confirmed the kidnapping of the workers and that it was taking actions to rescue them, however it did not provide further information.

According to local news reports, a combined military-police force of 1,500 troops Read more…

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