Documentary lauds Fujimori’s role in 1997 rescue

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Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori may be gone from the country, but he’s certainly not forgotten.

Fujimori is under house arrest in neighboring Chile, awaiting the outcome of an extradition petition from Peru on human rights and corruption charges stemming from his tumultuous presidency (1990-2000). Chilean authorities are expected to rule soon.

This week, media in Peru and Chile reported that a new documentary film has surfaced lauding Fujimori’s role in one of his tenure’s more sensational episodes—the 1997 commando operation that freed 72 hostages from the residence of the Japanese ambassador in Lima.

A band of leftist guerrillas had held the hostages for 126 days. In the rescue operation—known as Chavín de Huántar, after a pre-Inca ruin known for its subterranean passages—all 14 rebels, 2 commandos and 1 hostage died.

A photo released afterward showed a triumphant Fujimori striding amid guerrilla corpses. Questions still linger as to whether some of the leftists were executed.

The documentary, reportedly funded by the ex-president’s supporters, gives absolute credit for the successful operation to El Chino, as the ex-president is known, despite his Japanese, not Chinese, ancestry. Fujimori has long touted his role in the operation, which sent his popularity soaring. Critics call the documentary a propaganda vehicle to spur support in both Peru and Chile to clear Fujimori.

Posted by Patrick J. McDonnell in São Paulo and Andrés D’Alessandro in Buenos Aires