NEW INTERIOR MINISTER: APRA CONGRESSWOMAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 000246

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/23/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KCRM PE
SUBJECT: NEW INTERIOR MINISTER: APRA CONGRESSWOMAN
CABANILLAS

REF: A. LIMA 115

B. 08 LIMA 01659

C. LIMA 182

Classified By: Ambassador P. Michael McKinley
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: Prime Minister Yehude Simon announced the
resignation of Interior Minister Remegio Hernani Meloni
February 19, ostensibly for "personal reasons." APRA
Congresswoman Mercedes Cabanillas was sworn in as the new
Interior Minister on the same day. The resignation of
Hernani, who never recovered from a rocky start following his
appointment last October (Ref B),was not unexpected. The
politically seasoned Cabanillas has significant advantages
over her predecessor, including an independent power base
within the APRA, first-hand experience in the legislative and
executive branches (she was Education Minister in Garcia's
first government) and a close relationship with President
Garcia. Cabanillas has promised a crackdown on corruption
and sweeping changes in the national police (PNP). End
Summary.

Hernani's Ouster
--------------


2. (C) The resignation of Minister of Interior Gen.(r)
Remegio Hernani held little surprise. In January, when
Hernani was blamed for a botched January 20 operation in
which two policemen were killed while evicting squatters from
the Pomac reserve in the northern region of Lambayeque (Ref
A),Prime Minisiter Yehude Simon told Radio Programas del
Peru (RPP) that there would be Cabinet changes in
mid-February. Hernani was also widely criticized for
mishandling the appointment of the Director for the National
Citizen Security Council and for asserting (with scant proof)
that the recent attack on Attorney General Echaiz was the
work of common criminals bent on robbery.


3. (C) By all accounts, Hernani acted more like a police
chief than a cabinet Minister. In his first meeting with the
Ambassador in October 2008, he said he would focus 90% of his
time as Interior Minister on the PNP. He caused particular
turmoil in the organization at a time of year-end promotions
and transfers, and was said to have ruffled feathers within
police ranks by dealing more closely with his former
colleagues from the Peruvian Investigative Police (PIP) at
the expense of senior police officers in other branches of
the organization. The tally of sixteen policemen killed
during Hernani's brief tenure also worked against him.
Finally, many observers attributed Hernani's departure to his
being out of his depth politically.

Cabanillas: Political Heavy Hitter
--------------


4. (C) The politically savvy Mercedes "Meche" Cabanillas, 61,
was sworn in at a quiet ceremony on February 19. She has
been a rumored APRA candidate for this position for some
time, and her name has also surfaced occasionally as a
possible Minister of Defense. By serving as President of
Defense and Security Committees in Congress, as well as
President of Congress during 2006-7, she has consciously
burnished her credentials for both jobs -- and possibly
beyond. She is no stranger to Garcia's Cabinet and in 1987
was appointed Minister of Education (the first woman in Peru
to become a Minister) during his problem-ridden first term
(1985-1990). As a member of Congress since 1990, Cabanillas
was one of Alberto Fujimori's fiercest opponents. She also
ran as the APRA"s presidential candidate in 1995, winning
four percent of the vote.


5. (C) The ambitious Cabanillas does not come without
baggage, however. She has been indirectly linked to the
ongoing "Chuponeo" eavesdropping scandal (Ref C) but publicly
claimed that Business Track had only been hired to do an
electronic sweep of the Congressional building while she was
president. According to press reports, she has also been
uncomfortably close to APRA party member German Cardenas, who
has been accused of trafficking in land titles. Her
political stock fell somwhat near the end of her tenure of

President of Congress after the selection (by Congress) of
several members of the Constitutional tribunal appeared
tainted by corruption. Some of her Congressional colleagues
say that her sometimes shrill tone generates resistance and
detracts from her leadership potential.


6. (C) Still, most analysts believe that her
straight-talking, no-nonsense approach is likely to instill
more order and discipline in the PNP and Interior Ministry.
Cabanillas has promised to crack down on corruption and to
make sweeping changes in the National Police (PNP). In one
of her first public acts, she met with Human Rights
Ombudswoman Beatriz Merino during which they pledged to
collaborate on ways to combat corruption. In a nod to the
high turnover in this unstable ministerial portfolio,
Cabanillas also called for a Council of former Interior
Ministers from this and previous governments as a way of
gathering different subject-matter experts under one roof and
channeling criticism in a constructive direction.


7. (C) Comment: Cabanillas' appointment is a potentially
shrewd move. For one, she brings political heft -- and
therefore potential stability -- to the government's most
challenging and volatile portfolio. As a member of the
Defense Commission, she also brings strong credentials and
knowledge of the issues. Not insignificantly, Cabanillas
remains the last of the APRA's heavy hitters in a senior
government position, following the departure of Jorge Del
Castillo and Alva Castro in October 2008, coupled with
Mauricio Mulder's public pledge not to seek reelection as
APRA's Secretary General. This could mean she is being
groomed by Garcia for bigger and better future possibilities
-- or else set up to take a painful fall. The bets are on.
MCKINLEY