The death of Alberto Fujimori, the deeply divisive former Peruvian president, comes amid a resurgence of interest in the former strongman – both from supporters and detractors.
And in some regards, the usual customs following the demise of a former leader are being observed.
Politicians, relatives and defenders of Fujimori have publicly expressed their condolences. Peru’s government has declared three days of national mourning during which the country’s Congress will be suspended. The flag is being flown at half-mast, and a wake will be held at the Ministry of Culture.
But others rejoiced at news of his passing; Fujimori was, after all a controversial figure in Peru, a country he led and then fled before being extradited back from Chile and serving time in prison for bribery and ordering the murder of 25 people.
As a scholar writing a book about human rights violations in Peru under Fujimori, I see Fujimori’s death from cancer at age 86 on Sept. 11, 2024, as a reason to reflect on where Peru is now. It is also an opportunity to express concern that any attempt to absolve the Fujimori legacy of its crimes may signal democratic backsliding.
Litigation is still underway
Fujimori served as president for a decade after first winning Peru’s 1990 election. Two more electoral victories followed. But even after being ousted from power by lawmakers in 2000, he remained a powerful presence in the country’s politics.
His death coincided with new legal investigations into human rights abuses, including allegations that his administration forced thousands of Indigenous Peruvian women to be sterilized and reportedly disguised this campaign as a family planning initiative.
The ongoing probe implicated both Fujimori and his former health ministers. A court case over the Fujimori administration’s forced sterilization campaign, Celia Edith Ramos v. Peru, is now pending at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica.
The president of DEMUS, a women’s rights group based in Peru, said that despite Fujimori’s death, the organization “won’t give up” until it gets truth, justice and reparations for victims.
Revered to the end
Despite his many legal woes, and a 1992 “self-coup” that temporarily suspended the Peruvian constitution and dissolved the nation’s legislature, many Peruvians still revered him till the end. His daughter Keiko Fujimori had declared just two months ago that her ailing father planned to run for president again in 2026.
His death is likely to further ignite the resurgence of “Fujimorism,” a largely right-wing movement centered around the legacy of the former president and his family’s political party.
The death of Alberto Fujimori, the deeply divisive former Peruvian president, comes amid a resurgence of interest in the former strongman – both from supporters and detractors.
And in some regards, the usual customs following the demise of a former leader are being observed.
Politicians, relatives and defenders of Fujimori have publicly expressed their condolences. Peru’s government has declared three days of national mourning during which the country’s Congress will be suspended. The flag is being flown at half-mast, and a wake will be held at the Ministry of Culture.
But others rejoiced at news of his passing; Fujimori was, after all a controversial figure in Peru, a country he led and then fled before being extradited back from Chile and serving time in prison for bribery and ordering the murder of 25 people.
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