Asian surprise throws monkey wrench at trying Chile-Peru relations

The surprising arrival of the former president of Peru Alberto Fujimori in Chile’s capital, the already tense relations between Chile and Peru got more difficult with his arrival Sunday last from Japan. The former leader is wanted on more than 20 charges that include corruption and human rights abuses,

Fujimori’s charter jet plane left his self-imposed exiled in Japan, made an hour stop-over in Tijuana Mexico and arrived early Sunday afternoon in Santiago.

However, there are reports stating Fujimori may have boarded the charter private jet in Tijuana, creating speculation on how did he get to Mexico and if in fact did he entered Mexico from the United States. But, is only speculation.

Fujimori’s arrival embarrassed Chilean officials because Custom officers failed to execute an international warrant for his arrest.

Following an internal investigation the Custom officer who received the plane at its private terminal at Santiago’s International Airport has been removed from his job as his superior: for failing to follow due process and failure to check the identities of the passengers and crew of the private jet.

But once the government became aware of Fujimori’s presence, it promptly advised Peruvian officials. Peru asked that a 1932 bilateral treaty for wanted criminals be enforced. In the early hours of Monday morning Fujimori was arrested pending the arrival of an extradition order.

To date Chilean Courts have denied Fujimori bail. He is under arrest at the Prison Guards College in central Santiago.

But why is Fujimori in Santiago?

His lawyer Cesar Nakazaki said: “Chilean courts give him guarantees and protection.” There is a history with Chile’s Supreme Court that rarely extradites wanted criminals to the country where the alleged crimes were committed. In fact, two former Fujimori advisors successfully fought off extraditions back to Lima.

“My client wants an expedited extradition hearing, because it reduces charges and it forces Peru to lay charges common to both Peruvian and Chilean law,” Nakazaki said.

“Chile is the only place Fujimori can get a fair trial because Peru does not respect the rule of law.”

Nakazaki alleges all legal proceedings in Peru, “have shown a systematic violation of the right to a proper defense on two grounds: first, when the law demanded that a lawyer be appointed it was not; and when they were appointed late in the hearing all the lawyers had a similar pattern of action: they never attended any hearing, never acted on behalf of the defendant Fujimori.”

Nakazaki’s conclusion is that in Chile with an extradition hearing in place the 21 pending cases against Fujimori “will be stricken from his record because the right to a proper defense was never followed.”

Fujimori believes he can get a fair trial here.

But his presence has rarified the tense relations between Chile and Peru.

Last week Peru’s Congress passed legislation seeking to redraw the sea border it shares with Chile. That move was the latest and most serious of a number of irritants that have plagued the bilateral relations in the past two years.

Chilean President Ricardo Lagos, said he hopes “this issue of former President Fujimori does not become an obstacle in the bilateral relations with Peru.”

President Lagos would like that “this issue does not turn into a major difficulty, in the conflicting points of view, we have with our borders in the Pacific Ocean.”

Santiago is awash with Peruvian officials and Lima based human rights activists. The place of detention has become a focal point for the Peruvian press and members of the large immigrant Peruvian community, resident in Santiago, protesting his presence and demands that Fujimori be sent to Lima.

Chile’s Embassy in Lima has become a battle ground between protestors and supporters of Fujimori.

To further complicate matters the vice President of Peru David Waisman accused Chile of “acting like clowns” in letting Fujimori into the country.

It is that kind of rhetoric that worries University of Chile political scientist Guillermo Holtzmann.

“This situation has been forced towards an extradition hearing that must meet the legal and jurisdictional test of Chilean Courts and that is a minor issue. If the extradition is not granted it will create powerful political backlash here in Chile and in Peru,” Holtzmann speculates.

“If extradition is granted then Peru has another problem because Fujimori will be there.”

Holtzmann says the unfolding “events are playing into Fujimori’s strategy beyond the charges he faces.”

Fujimori has given Chile a large headache. Peru wants him back and soon so he can be tried in a Lima court.

And to further complicate matters, Japan sent a note asking about the treatment of a Japanese citizen named Alberto Fujimori, just as Chile and Japan are in the middle of free trade talks.