Communique #2
Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru
Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA)
To national and international public opinion:
1. The MRTA reiterates that the extreme measure of occupying the
residence of the Ambassador of Japan obeyed the necessity of
saving the lives of our detained comrades subjected to a harsh
prison regimen.
2. The treatment that we are giving to the persons detained is in
conformity with the standards of respect for human dignity that
has always characterized our organization.
3. We confirm that in order to to facilitate a political and
negotiated outcome to this situation, we acted to free
unconditionally all the women, as well as men with ill health
because of advanced age, including relatives of Mr. Fujimori
himself.
4. On the side of the government, nevertheless, there continues
being an attitude that affects above all the persons captured by
MRTA, since the cutting of the services of telephone, water and
light is in practice a repressive measure against the persons who
rather should receive the necessary support.
5. We confirm that the only possible solution is through
listening to our requests and proceeding to free all our detained
comrades.
6. We think that a gesture of this nature would help give the
first steps to an overall solution to the problem of political
violence through the path of dialogue and a more permanent peace
accord.
7. We have put that position to the persons we hold as prisoners,
especially the gentlemen of the diplomatic corps present here and
with whom we would be able to specify a timetable of steps to
establish in order to reach an integral solution.
8. We think that to continue with the attitude taken by the
government, some authorities and certain journalists of
continuing to describe us as "assassins and terrorists" in no way
contributes to a solution.
9. This position of dialogue proposed by MRTA is not new;
throughout all our existence we have always manifested it.
Therefore the government ought not to take it as a position of
weakness on our part, contemplating that with a policy of
attrition it can embrace the hope that we will finally surrender.
10. On the other hand, we point out that through the
International Red Cross we have requested a telephone
communication with our detained comrades with the purpose of
finding out what is their present state of health, and that once
the government made this gesture we would proceed to free a
significant number of detained persons not linked to the policy
of the government.
11. We wish to make clear to international public opinion that
the retention of the gentlemen members of the diplomatic corps
obeys the necessity of keeping personell that can guarantee the
necessary levels for the sake of seeking a peaceful solution.
12. Nevertheless we point out, with the same emphasis with which
we say and put forward integral solutions, that we confirm our
resolve in our demands and that whatever extreme measure may put
at risk the physical integrity of the detained persons will be
solely the responsibility of the government and of those who
adhere to the position that one ought not yield to the so-called
"terrorist blackmail", maintaining that false criterion by
denying the structural problems that originated the political
violence in Peru.
Cmdte Hemigidio Huerta, MRTA
Lima - December 20, 1996
Return
