Peru: Human Rights

Publisher Marketing: Peru is a constitutional, multi-party republic. Ollanta Humala Tasso of the Peruvian Nationalist Party (part of the Gana Peru electoral alliance) won the June 2011 national elections in a vote widely considered free and fair. Security forces reported to civilian authorities and committed some human rights abuses. The most serious human rights problems included violence against women and children, trafficking in persons, and corruption that undermined the application of the law. The following human rights problems also were reported: harsh prison conditions, abuse of detainees and inmates by prison security forces, lengthy pretrial detention and inordinate trial delays, intimidation of the media, limits on religious freedom, incomplete registration of internally displaced persons (IDPs), discrimination against women, and socio-environmental conflicts that frequently turned violent. There also was discrimination against individuals with disabilities, members of racial and ethnic minority groups, indigenous persons, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons, and persons with HIV/AIDS. Other problems were a lack of labor law enforcement and the exploitation of child labor, particularly in informal sectors. The government took steps to investigate, and in some cases prosecute or otherwise punish, public officials who committed abuses. Officials sometimes engaged in corrupt practices with impunity. The terrorist organization Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) was responsible for killings and other human rights abuses, including kidnapping and forced recruitment of child soldiers, extortion, and intimidation.