FREE LORI BERENSON NOW
The Peruvian Supreme Military Coun-cil overturned Lori Berenson's conviction of treason and aggravated terrorism and nullified her life sentence. Lori, a US citizen, has already endured almost 5 years of unlawful imprisonment in Peru. Instead of releasing her, the Peru government remanded her case to the civilian courts for a "show trial." The US Department of State, Human Rights Watch: Americas, and other human rights organizations declare that Peruvian courts cannot give fair trials to anyone accused of terrorist-related charges.
Lori went to Peru in 1995 and began to write articles on human rights, democracy, and the lack of social justice. After less than one year in the country, she was arrested by Peruvian anti-terrorist police while she was riding a public bus in Lima. In violation of international law, she was taken before a secret military tribunal presided over by hooded judges, never informed of the charges or of any evidence against her, and given no chance to defend herself. On January 11, 1996, she was convicted of treason and sentenced to life in prison while a gun was held to her head.
Now, Lori is being subjected to a second unlawful trial on the same allegations (considered "double jeopardy" and disallowed in Peruvian and international law). The Peruvian court's behavior during this retrial has already violated due process. Lori has not been given the charges in detail, was given insufficient time to hire and meet with a lawyer, and insufficient time and means for the lawyer to prepare the defense. In addition, the judge had already taken testimony from witnesses without Lori's lawyer present.
After she obtained a lawyer, the pretrial judge and the Peruvian prosecutor interrogated Lori for the record for 14 hours over a 3-day period. Her lawyer reported that she answered all their questions calmly, coherently, and satisfactorily, making it perfectly clear that she was never a member of the MRTA and never assisted or knew of plans for any MRTA activities. Her lawyer told the US Embassy and the Peruvian press that Lori's testimony was very credible, that he is confident she is innocent of all charges, and that she has been imprisoned only for her beliefs.
Meanwhile, the Peruvian government and media have declared her guilty. The only chance for justice for Lori is for the US government to intervene and secure her release. The Committee to Free Lori Berenson urges people to call the President at (202) 456-1111 regularly to demand that he secure Lori's release. For further info, contact the Committee at: <www.freelor.org> <gtaylor@freelori.org>, Tel: (202) 548-8480, Fax: (202) 544-9613, 110 Maryland Ave. NE #102, Washington DC 20002.
--Gail K. Taylor, National Organizer, COMMITTEE TO FREE LORI BERENSON,
Winter 2000
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