| La Resistencia Dios, Patria y Familia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader | Juan José Muñico |
| Dates of operation | 2018 |
| Country | Peru |
| Motives | Opposition to left-wing and progressive groups |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Slogan | God, Homeland and Family |
| Status | Active |
| Allies | |
La Resistencia Dios, Patria y Familia (English: The Resistance God, Homeland and Family), commonly known as La Resistencia, is a far-right neo-fascist militant organization that promotes Fujimorism in Peru.
Ultraconservative groups began to emerge in Peru around 2017 when proposals to introduce gender studies to education curricula occurred. [1] La Resistencia was founded in 2018 by Juan José Muñico, a politician of Popular Renewal who had reportedly been involved in the murder of a veteran of the Cenepa War in 1998 according to IDL-Reporteros. [2] [3] The organization began as a platform to support Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of Alberto Fujimori and leader of Popular Force. [4] Fujimori at the time served as the head of the Congress of Peru during the administration of Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, attracting La Resistencia since she held much of the political power in Peru. [2] Members of the group were seen associating themselves with Popular Force politician Rosa Bartra according to Perú.21. [4]
Following the dissolution of the Congress of Peru by President Martín Vizcarra during the 2019 Peruvian constitutional crisis, La Resistencia's support would decline slightly towards Keiko Fujimori, with the group instead beginning to support far-right politician Rafael López Aliaga and the National Solidarity party, which would later be restructured as Popular Renewal. [4] During the 2020 Peruvian parliamentary election, Muñico and Rosa Batra would both run unsuccessfully for a seat in Congress on the National Solidarity ticket. [4]
During the 2020 Peruvian protests, La Resistencia acted against protesters, destroying a makeshift memorial dedicated to two demonstrators killed. [5]
During the 2021 Peruvian general election, Muñico threatened multiple groups that he alleged supported presidential candidate Pedro Castillo according to La República , stating "We are already pointing towards all those politicians, vacant presidents, opinionologists, NGOs, influencers, etc. who, knowing the danger of the country and our children are supporting the communist candidate. When the danger passes, we will remember it in their own homes..." [6] After Castillo was elected, La Resistencia said that the voting was fraudulent and supported Keiko Fujimori's claims. [7] On 2 July 2021, Sagasti would refuse to audit the second round of elections; Fujimori would accuse Sagasti of abandoning his "great responsibility to ensure fair elections." [8] Days later on 14 July 2021, hundreds of members of La Resistencia members attempted to storm the Government Palace in a similar manner to the January 6 United States Capitol attack, surrounding the vehicles of ministers of Óscar Ugarte and Solangel Fernández and attacking journalists, though La Resistencia was successfully repelled by authorities. [1] [4] [7] [9] Fujimori would admit her defeat on 19 July 2021, though she would continue saying that "votes were stolen" from her. [10] By October 2021, Fujimori began to distance herself from the group. [11]
During the presidency of Pedro Castillo, the group called for his ousting, with La Resistencia leader Juan José Muñico stating: [7]
"What Peru needs is an extreme right-wing government. In the Government we live in now, ... have taken over the Judiciary, the Prosecutor's Office, the Constitutional Court, the National Elections Jury. What we need is a strong government, which is not willing to give in anywhere. ... If our destiny is prison, then we will continue to do our activities in the streets"
After Castillo called for the Organization of American States to intervene in November 2022 following numerous attempts to remove him from office, members of La Resistencia protested against the delegation of the OAS High Level Group in San Isidro and were dispersed by police following attacks. [12]
While widespread protests against President Dina Boluarte occurred, La Resistencia members gathered outside of the headquarters of IDL-Reporteros, the home of its chief journalist Gustavo Gorriti and the home of journalist Rosa María Palacios of La República . [13] Nearby members of the Peruvian National Police watched on as members of La Resistencia attacked the IDL headquarters by throwing objects and explosives at the building while also issuing antisemitic statements and death threats towards Gorriti. [14] [15] The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the actions of La Resistencia for its actions of intimidating journalists. [13]
La Resistencia is Fujimorist organization that identifies as anti-communist and far-right, [7] being described independently as neofascist [2] [5] [16] [17] and antisemitic. [15] Sociologist Carmen Rosa Balbi described La Resistencia and similar groups as "fascist" and that such radicalization had not been observed in Peru since the 1930s. [1] Its members include current and retired military officers of the Peruvian Armed Forces who have been described as violent shock troops of the far-right in Peru. [4] [5] [13] [16] The group spread anti-lockdown and anti-vaccine sentiments during the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru while also promoting anti-LGBT violence and violence against women according to Público. [1] [4] [5] Members have been seen using fascist symbolism, wearing black uniforms, using the swastika, waving the Cross of Burgundy and gesturing the fascist salute at events, which was described as being similar to the Nazi salute. [1] [2] [5] [7] [16] [18] Despite these actions, La Resistencia has denied its support of fascism. [7]
The organization also has two sub-groups; Los Combatientes (The Combatants) and Los Insurgentes (The Insurgents). [1] [7] These two branches have been observed on social media disseminating disinformation, fake news and fascist imagery, according to Público. [1] [4] The leader of Los Combatientes, Roger Ayachi, has been observed making violent speeches according to La Tercera . [16]
The Constitution of Peru is the supreme law of Peru. The current constitution, enacted on 31 December 1993, is Peru's fifth in the 20th century and replaced the 1979 Constitution. The Constitution was drafted by the Democratic Constituent Congress that was convened by President Alberto Fujimori during the Peruvian Constitutional Crisis of 1992 that followed his 1992 dissolution of Congress, was promulgated on 29 December 1993. A Democratic Constitutional Congress (CCD) was elected in 1992, and the final text was approved in a 1993 referendum. The Constitution was primarily created by Fujimori and supporters without the participation of any opposing entities.
Gustavo Andrés Gorriti Ellenbogen is a Peruvian journalist known for his reporting on rebel groups, government corruption, and drug trafficking. In 2011, the European Journalism Centre described him as having "been awarded more prizes than probably any other Peruvian journalist". He is the founder of IDL-Reporteros.
The mass media in Peru includes a variety of different types of media, including television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based web sites. Much of the print-based media in Peru is over a century old, with some newspapers even dating back to the time of independence.
Popular Force, known as Force 2011 until 2012, is a right-wing populist and Fujimorist political party in Peru. The party is led by Keiko Fujimori, former congresswoman and daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori. She ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in the 2011, 2016 and 2021 presidential elections, all losing by a narrow margin.
Fujimorism denotes the policies and the political ideology of former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori as well as the personality cult built around him, his policies and his family, especially Keiko Fujimori. The ideology is defined by authoritarianism, its support for neoliberal economics, opposition to communism, and socially and culturally conservative stances such as opposition to LGBT rights and school curriculums including gender equality or sex education. Opponents of Fujimorism are known as anti-Fujimorists.
José Pedro Castillo Terrones is a Peruvian politician, former elementary school teacher, and union leader who served as the President of Peru from 28 July 2021 to 7 December 2022. After facing obstruction by an opposing Congress of Peru and hostility from the media in Peru throughout his entire presidency, Castillo attempted to dissolve Congress through a self-coup on 7 December 2022 while citing Congress' efforts to block his attempted policies, resulting in the legislative body impeaching and removing him from office the same day.
Since 2016, Peru has been plagued with political instability and a growing crisis, initially between the President, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and Congress, led de facto by Keiko Fujimori. The crisis emerged in late 2016 and early 2017 as the polarization of Peruvian politics increased, as well as a growing schism between the executive and legislative branches of government. Fujimori and her Fujimorist supporters would use their control of Congress to obstruct the executive branch of successive governments, resulting with a period of political instability in Peru.
General elections were held in Peru on 11 April 2021. The presidential election, which determined the president and the vice presidents, required a run-off between the two top candidates, which was held on 6 June. The congressional elections determined the composition of the Congress of Peru, with all 130 seats contested. The election experienced increased political polarization, with conservative parties embracing far-right politics and the media in Peru attacking left-wing candidates.
Free Peru, officially the Free Peru National Political Party, is a Marxist political party in Peru. Founded in 2008 as the Free Peru Political Regional Movement, the party was officially constituted as a national organization in February 2012 by the name of Libertarian Peru. It was registered as a political party in January 2016 and adopted its current name, Free Peru, in January 2019. Its presidential candidate Pedro Castillo won the 2021 Peruvian general election against Popular Force nominee Keiko Fujimori. Free Peru has the second most seats in the Congress of Peru with 22 out of 130 total representatives, but its opposition continued to rule Congress after forming a larger alliance of seats led by the Popular Action party. Free Peru is a participant in the São Paulo Forum, an annual conference of leftist parties in the Americas. The party has formed an alliance with Fujimorists due to their strength within Peru's institutions.
IDL-Reporteros is an online newspaper based in Lima, Peru, that specializes in investigative journalism against corruption in Peru and to promote transparency with the nation. Since its founding, the newspaper has initiated over 500 investigations throughout Peru. The site has also been awarded both nationally and internationally for its coverage of investigations dedicated against corruption.
Events in the year 2021 in Peru.
Karelim Lisbeth López Arredondo is a Peruvian businesswoman and lobbyist known for controversial interactions with the governments of Presidents of Peru Martín Vizcarra and Pedro Castillo.
Liz Patricia Benavides Vargas is a Peruvian lawyer. On June 20, 2022, she was elected as the Peruvian attorney general.
On 7 December 2022, President of Peru Pedro Castillo attempted to dissolve Congress in the face of imminent impeachment proceedings by the legislative body, immediately enacting a curfew, illegally establishing an emergency government in which he would rule by decree and calling for a constituent assembly in violation of Article 206 of the Constitution of Peru. Attorney General of Peru Patricia Benavides, in violation of Article 117 of the Constitution of Peru, had previously said that Castillo was the head of a criminal organization and called on Congress to remove him from office, with legislators then attempting a third impeachment of Castillo. Citing the actions of Congress obstructing many of his policies during his administration, Castillo argued that the legislative body served oligopolic businesses and that it had allied itself with the Constitutional Court to destroy the executive branch in an effort to create a "dictatorship of Congress". He also called for the immediate election of a constituent assembly with some calls for the creation of a constituent assembly existing since the 2020 Peruvian protests.
Following the ousting of president of Peru, Pedro Castillo on 7 December 2022, a series of political protests against the government of president Dina Boluarte and the Congress of Peru occurred. The demonstrations lack centralized leadership and originated primarily among grassroots movements and social organizations on the left to far-left, as well as indigenous communities, who feel politically disenfranchised. Castillo was removed from office and arrested after announcing the dissolution of Congress, the intervention of the state apparatus, and the establishment of an "emergency government", which was characterized as a self-coup attempt by some media organizations and institutions in Peru while Castillo's supporters said that Congress attempted to overthrow Castillo. Castillo's successor Dina Boluarte, along with Congress, were widely disapproved, with the two receiving the lowest approval ratings among public offices in the Americas. Among the main demands of the demonstrators are the dissolution of Congress, the resignation of Boluarte, new general elections, the release of Castillo, and the formation of a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. It has also been reported that some of the protesters have declared an insurgency. Analysts, businesses, and voters said that immediate elections are necessary to prevent future unrest, although many establishment political parties have little public support.
The third presidential vacancy (impeachment) process against President Pedro Castillo was an action initiated by the Congress of the Republic of Peru with the purpose of declaring the "permanent moral incapacity" of the President of the Republic, Pedro Castillo, under Article 113 of the Political Constitution of Peru.
The Ayacucho massacre was a massacre perpetrated by the Peruvian Army on 15 December 2022 in Ayacucho, Peru during the 2022–2023 Peruvian protests, occurring one day after President Dina Boluarte granted the Peruvian Armed Forces expanded powers and the ability to respond to demonstrations. On that day, demonstrations took place in Ayacucho and the situation intensified when the military deployed helicopters to fire at protesters, who later tried to take over the city's airport, which was defended by the Peruvian Army and the National Police of Peru. Troops responded by firing live ammunition at protesters, resulting in ten dead and 61 injured; Among the injured, 90% had gunshot wounds, while those killed were shot in the head or torso. Nine of the ten killed had wounds consistent with the ammunition used in the IMI Galil service rifle used by the army.
On 9 January 2023, Peruvian National Police shot at protesters in Juliaca during the 2022–2023 Peruvian political protests against President Dina Boluarte, resulting in a massacre. At least 18 people, including a medic responding to the scene, were killed and over 100 others were injured by police responding to protests in the city, with all of the deaths being attributed to gunshot wounds. The massacre was the deadliest day during the series of protests in Peru. Local media criticized the response of national media, saying that events in Juliaca were overlooked. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights would describe the event, along with the similar killings in Ayacucho, as a massacre.
Josué Manuel Gutiérrez Cóndor is a Peruvian lawyer and politician. He served as a member of the Congress of Peru from 2011 to 2016. In May 2023, he was appointed Ombudsman of Peru by Congress.
The deaths of the two young men led to a dispute over public space that prefigured the following months: the memorials erected spontaneously by citizens were repeatedly razed to the ground by the pro-Fujimori group La Resistencia, a far-right shock troop that months later would boast of shouting "no to communism" with the fascist gesture of the raised right arm during the second round between Keiko Fujimori (Fuerza Popular) and Pedro Castillo (Perú Libre).
neofascist groups like La Resistencia, with close ties to the fujimorista movement, have sought to intimidate government ministers, independent journalists and feminist activists.