“Más que nos pegan, más que nos aman”

This phrase, which translates to “The more they hit us, the more we love them”, is a Peruvian saying that indicates the tumultuous relationship between the Peruvian people and their government. Our Spanish facilitator explained this saying to us after we learned about the history of the most recent presidents and the effect they’ve had on current relations within Peru. In order to explain why many Peruvians may exhibit lacking confidence in their presidential system, I’ll explain a little about what I found to be most interesting about their most recent presidents.

1985-1990 Alan Garcia
Center/left movement from the political party, APRA. Economic policies were enacted but ultimately failed, and under Alan’s presidency the national debt increased from $13 billion to $20 billion. Poverty rates increased from 16 percent to 45 percent, and there was immense job loss and frequent strikes that were poorly handled by the government. Perhaps most impressive was the rate of inflation during this era; prices increased by 22,000. One of our Peruvian facilitators remembers his mom carrying bags and bags of money to the market to purchase basic staples. Terrorism by the Sendero Luminoso and MRTA began to have a significant impact on the Peruvian people. In an effort to combat terrorism in the Campos, the Peruvian military was also responsible for many deaths. Confusion and chaos was prevalent within the rural areas of Peru, and both terror and economic decline were major issues during this presidency.

1990-2000 Alberto Fujimori
First off, this previous president is currently in jail on account of his human rights record. However, Fujimori is still heralded as the president who was able to successfully decrease terrorism and bring Peru out of the economic crisis. Terrorism came to Lima during Fujimori’s presidency, so the government was finally forced to react. Fujimori’s autocratic measures, which included dissolving both the constitution and the Congress, ultimately allowed the implementation of counter-terrorism measures and economic shocks. Fujimori sold state agencies and encouraged privatization, which helped improve the economy. However, he later bribed the media and committed fraud in the 2000 election. When this was uncovered, he fled to Japan and sent a fax indicating his resignation before he was sent to jail for human rights abuses. His presidency remains a duel legacy of economic recovery and anti-terrorism as well as fraud and criminal activity. Interestingly enough, his daughter is now campaigning for the 2011 presidency.

2000-2001 Valentín Paniagua Corazao
This president of congress served as interim president after Fujimori’s resignation and arrest. He started the Truth Commission, which was created to collect information about the terrorism that occurred within Peru.

2001-2005 Alejandro Toledo
Perhaps the most interesting fact about this president (for me, at least) was that he grew up in a family that hosted a Peace Corps volunteer. He came from a humble background and apparently was influenced strongly by the presence of the Peace Corps volunteer in his early childhood. One of his first actions as president was to invite Peace Corps back into Peru after their absence during the tumultuous terrorism years. His presidency was fairly stable without any huge improvements or disasters.

2006-Today Alan Garcia (Round 2)
Despite the economic downfall and terrorism activity that grew under Garcia’s first presidency, he managed to be reelected in the 2006 elections under the APRA political party. He is currently implementing a variety of social programs and construction projects. Decentralization is also a huge issue in Peru because a significant portion of resources are tied up in Lima and it is difficult for those living in more rural areas to access political power or economic resources. Garcia’s term will be up in 2011 and the legacy of his presidency is yet to be determined.