SUPREME COURT DECIDES THAT REBEL LEADER ANTAURO

UNCLAS LIMA 004130

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINS PE
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT DECIDES THAT REBEL LEADER ANTAURO
HUMALA SHOULD BE TRIED IN ANDAHUAYLAS, NOT LIMA

REF: A. LIMA 357


B. LIMA 93

C. LIMA 37

D. LIMA 12

Sensitive But Unclassified, Please Handle Accordingly


1. (U) SUMMARY. Peru's Supreme Court ruled 9/21 that
Ethno-Cacerist leader Antauro Humala and his followers should
be tried in Andahuaylas, the site of their murderous January
uprising, and not in Lima. The National Director of Prisons
said he would not comply with the Court's ruling on
transferring the prisoners, and the Public Prosecutor said he
would file a request for a change of venue with the
Andahuaylas Court. Holding the trial in Andahuaylas would
seriously strain local resources, and legal wrangling over
the location of the trial is expected to continue. END
SUMMARY.


2. (U) The Permanent Criminal Chamber of Peru's Supreme
Court, under the direction of former Supreme Court President
Hugo Sivina, ruled unanimously on 9/21 that the trial of
Ethno-Cacerist leader Antauro Humala and 159 of his followers
should be held in Andahuaylas, where Humala's January 2005
uprising (see reftels) took place, and not in Lima. The
take-over of the Andahuaylas police station by the
ultra-nationalists under Humala's leadership resulted in the
death of four police officers and a hostage stand-off that
lasted for four days. The long-awaited decision by the
Supreme Court cited the principal of seeking the "natural
venue," i.e., the presumption that a trial should occur in
the locale where crimes are alleged to have taken place.


3. (U) National Director of Prisons Wilfredo Pedraza
announced that he would not comply with the Supreme Court's
order to transfer the prisoners. Pedraza said the jail in
Andahuaylas was designed to accommodate 90 prisoners, and
that 168 were already being held there. Transferring the
Ethno-Cacerists would almost double an already over-crowded
contingent, and would further challenge the sparse local
security force of 15 prison guards and 8 police officers. He
also noted that unlike the Castro Castro and Lurigancho
prisons in Lima, the jail in Andahuaylas did not have a
secure courtroom adjacent to it.


4. (U) Public Prosecutor Jacobo Romero said he would contest
the Supreme Court decision by filing a request for a change
of venue with the Andahuaylas District Court. Romero said
the Peruvian Procedural Code contemplates such a change when
there is "risk or uncontrollable danger" associated with the
circumstances of a trial.


5. (SBU) COMMENT: The Supreme Court's decision to have the
Ethno-Cacerist trial take place in Andahuaylas is supported
by abstract legal principle, but it ignores the practical
reality of the very adverse conditions that exist there.
Physical infrastructure and police presence will have to be
markedly augmented if the case is to be heard in Andahuaylas,
and the situation is exacerbated by the lingering
undercurrent of community support in the highlands for
Antauro's rebellion, and for the increased political activity
of his brother, Ollanta Humala (septel). We expect that the
matter is not fully settled, as many media and political
figures have yet to weigh in. There will likely be further
judicial maneuvering, as the judges in Andahuaylas will
presumably be loathe to take on the risky responsibility that
the Supreme Court has handed them.
POWERS