Jailed former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori pardoned for ‘humanitarian reasons’
Fujimori governed from 1990 to 2000 and remains a polarising figure in Peru, where many loathe him for human rights violations carried out under his regime
Peru’s president announced on Sunday night that he granted a medical pardon to jailed former strongman Alberto Fujimori, who was serving a 25-year sentence for human rights abuses, corruption and the sanctioning of death squads.
President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski released a statement saying he decided to free Fujimori for “humanitarian reasons”.
The 79-year-old Fujimori, who governed from 1990 to 2000, is a polarising figure in Peru. Some Peruvians laud him for defeating the Maoist Shining Path guerilla movement, while others loathe him for human rights violations carried out under his government.
His daughter, Keiko Fujimori, narrowly lost Peru’s last presidential election to Kuczynski, and her party dominates congress. Her party mounted an attempt this month to oust Kuczynski over business ties to the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht, which is at the centre of a huge Latin American corruption scandal, but the president survived the impeachment vote late on Thursday.
Fujimori filed a request seeking a medical pardon more than a year ago, citing deteriorating health. He has said on his Twitter account that he suffers from arrhythmia, for which he has been hospitalised several times this year. He was taken from prison to a clinic on Saturday after suffering a drop in blood pressure, and supporters gathered outside the clinic to celebrate his pardon on Sunday night.
