wr2014_web_0

WORLD REPORT 2014Group, a government death squad, are also serving sentences ranging from 15to 25 years for the assassination in 1991 of 15 people in the Lima district ofBarrios Altos, and for six enforced disappearances. In June 2013, PresidentHumala rejected a petition to grant Fujimori a presidential pardon requested byhis family on grounds of ill-health. Media reports indicated that a commissionon presidential pardons had determined that Fujimori was not suffering from aterminal or degenerative illness or grave psychological problems.Judicial investigations into other cases have been subject to long delays andhave resulted in few convictions. In a report issued in August 2013 to mark thetenth anniversary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report, thehuman rights ombudsman found that, despite initial efforts, Peru had failed toimplement a specialized judicial system with sufficient staff and resources tobring most cases to court. According to the ombudsman, as of April 2013, 113 ofthe 194 cases it monitors had been closed or were in the early stages of investigation,and only 32 had resulted in a sentence.In June 2013, the Constitutional Court held that a 1986 massacre in El Frontónprison during the first administration of former President Alan García, in whichat least 130 inmates were killed, was subject to a statute of limitations since itdid not constitute a crime against humanity. The court’s opinion disregarded a2000 ruling of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the case of Durandand Ugarte, which ordered Peru to investigate these events and hold thoseresponsible accountable. In September, the Ministry of Justice asked theConstitutional Court to correct the ruling on the grounds that a majority of thejudges had rejected the petitioners’ argument that the opening of trial proceedingsin the El Frontón case was unconstitutional, and that the court had notbeen asked to rule on whether the crimes committed were crimes againsthumanity. As of October 2013, the court had not responded.Military JurisdictionThe jurisdiction of military courts to hear human rights cases involving membersof the military remains an issue. Legislative Decree 1095 adopted in 2010by the administration of President García permits military courts to try cases inwhich members of the military engaged in public security operations areaccused of abuses against civilians. International human rights bodies have274